Page 57 of Rules Of Our Own

HR Administrator

Ottawa Regional Hospital

My chest tightens as I stop in the hospital lobby and scan the email for the third time.Required. Mandatory.

I make my way to the third floor, and my stomach lurches as I try to make sense of it all—what’s an alignment meeting, and why do I have to be there?

I drag my feet down the hall, desperately wanting to turn around but knowing I can’t. Room 3028 comes into view with only a minute to spare. There’s a woman standing in the doorway, wearing a navy satin shirt tucked into sleek black pants. Her face is expressionless as she says, “Dr. Brooks, please take a seat. I’m Olivia Masters, one of the HR administrators here at the hospital.”

My boss’s silhouette looms in the corner of the sparsely decorated conference room, intentionally avoiding eye contact with me. I shuffle over to the oval table in the center and cautiously lower myself into my seat, facing him.

Olivia takes a seat, straightens the papers in front of her, and lifts them up, tapping the bottom of the pile on the table.

“Dr. Brooks,” she says, her voice clipped and professional, “Do you know why we’ve asked you here today?”

My heart pounds in my chest. A creeping suspicion crawls up my neck, but I push it away. It’s only been three days since I saw Jason. There’s no way he could have gotten me fired that quickly. Right?

“Not really…no.” My voice comes out as a whisper.

“The hospital is downsizing our intern program,” Olivia continues, unfazed by my distress. “You will be let go immediately and will be transferred your remaining payment, as well as two weeks’ severance.”

My mind races as I struggle to process what’s happening.

“What?” I breathe, staring at her in disbelief. I turn to my boss, hoping for some kind of explanation or support. But he winces and looks away.

“You’re firing me?”

The weight of Olivia’s words sinks in with a sickening thud.

She shifts her posture and lifts her chin. I’m sure this isn’t the first time she’s laid someone off. “Not fired. We’re simply realigning our organizational structure. Routine protocol.”

Routine my ass. “How many people are getting let go?”

Olivia leans back in her chair and gives me a plain smile. “Dr. Brooks, if you keep getting upset, I’ll be forced to call security.”

Air hisses through my teeth as I try to take a calming breath. “I’m sorry. How many interns will be let go?”

She meets my gaze. “One.”

There’s no way this is a coincidence. Jason can’t do that? There are laws or something. What the hell had he even said to his dad to get him to pull strings like this?Screw this. “You can’t do that. I’ve had nothing but great feedback. Isn’t that right, Eric?”

My boss presses his lips together, and there’s a clear look of pity across his face.

“Dr. Brooks. The hospital has experienced a wave of regulated pain medicine thefts since you started with us. Someone has brought forth suspicions of your involvement. You should consider yourself lucky we’re laying you off. The only reason you aren’t being arrested right now, is because our internal investigation didn’t provide sufficient proof of your involvement. But, Dr. Brooks, whether we have proof enough to charge you or not, your accuser left no room for doubt.” Disgust breaks through her professional mask. It’s clear she’d rather have charged me anyway.

Shock crashes through me as her words hit home. They think I stole from the hospital? A mix of hurt and embarrassment swirls in my gut as I try to work through what’s happening. It’s so far-fetched that I can’t even process it. She said someone stepped forward, but who would do that?

The second the thought registers in my brain, I know exactly who caused this. Fucking Jason. My stomach sinks, and nausea climbs the back of my throat. He’s been stealing from the hospital, and now he’s pinning it on me. That psycho could’ve gotten me arrested!

I want to push her, force her to admit it was him. At least then I can fight this. I can pull my bank statements or whatever they need to see it had nothing to do with me. But that’s the reason they’re laying me off and not firing me, isn’t it? Because then I don’t get a chance to fight back. I’m hit with a wave of helplessness, knowing that without proof, it’s his word against mine.

“Please sign here.” Olivia slides the paper across the table, and I have to fight back tears as I sign the document.

I’m going to kill that asshole.

I walk out of the room on autopilot, not processing what’s happening around me. There’s a man dressed in a security uniform waiting outside the door, and he holds out a small cardboard box of my belongings.

“I got Dr. Kristie to double-check your locker for any loose items.” He gives me an empathetic smile, but I can’t concentrate on his words. My mind is too preoccupied with my own thoughts.

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