Page 118 of Debugging Love

“I would not have to wear them if our cubicles had walls.”

“I wouldn’t have to stop my meeting if you two weren’t causing disruptions.”

The mood in the room drops. We’re not familiar with irritable Christopher. He’s usually harping about our next team-building event. Something is off.

Chance removes the Ostrichpillow. His hair looks like it’s been slept on, crammed into a toilet, and styled in a blender. Juanita and Violet snicker. I hide my laugh behind my hand. Chance doesn’t bother to smooth his flyaways.

Drew also complies with Christopher’s request, folding his blinkers and chucking them onto the table. Morgan grabs them and hides them in her lap.

“What’s up, boss. You seem grumpy.” Bruce says. The man has no fear. Why would he? He’s the biggest guy in the room.

“I do have one other announcement. It’s…” His voice quivers. He pushes his laptop away. “I’m quitting.”

Again, the room is a chorus of gasps, but these aren’t happy inhalations. After the moment of shock passes, layered chatter fills the room. Christopher gestures for us to quiet down. “I put my two weeks in this morning.”

“You’re leaving, as in goodbye?” Violet asks.

“Yes,” Christopher answers.

“I thought you were leveling up to corporate,” Abeer says.

“I was.” Christopher’s face is somber. “And now I’m not. But I’ll be here for two more weeks, so… Class dismissed.”

Nobody moves.

“You can go now,” he tries again.

We all stare at him.

“We like you, Christopher,” Juanita says. “You’re the best boss.”

Others voice their agreement.

“I’m sure your next boss will be even better,” he says. He stands, gestures for us to rise. A few do, reluctantly. “No sad faces. It’s the circle of life. Run along ducklings.”

His humor bolsters us. We stand and shuffle. I head straight to my desk to finish my PowerPoint slides.

Morgan, Kayla, and I chat briefly on Teams about what days we want to work in the office. Kayla wants Monday and Tuesday. I tell her I want to sleep in and work in my pajamas on Monday. Morgan suggests Thursday and Friday, but Kayla is staunchly against coming in on Fridays. We’ll agree on somethingeventually. Until then, I gotta work. Thanks to Chai World, I’m behind on my coding.

I work through lunch despite Morgan’s protesting. At twelve thirty, I warm up a pot pie and eat it at my desk. I’m shoveling it in my face when Chance’s Ostrichpillow peeks around the desk divider.

I can’t suppress my laughter. “How do you breathe in that thing?”

“Like an ostrich.”

“Ostriches have beaks.”

“I’m working on one. I’m going to have Drew 3D print it.”

“That’s weird.”

“Need a break?”

I give Chance’s padded head a light punch.

“Hey, what was that for?”

“You’re wearing a padded helmet. Absorbing punches is what it’s for.”

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