Read Online The Ignored by Bentley Little - (ebook by Undead) - Free Book Online

from the old man’s tone of voice. I wanted to ask him, but he had already
turned away from me and was busily scribbling notes on a typed piece of paper.
    That was Wednesday. When Thursday and Friday passed, then Monday,
Tuesday, and the next Wednesday and I still hadn’t heard back from Stewart on
the overview, I made a trip over to his office.
    He was seated at his desk. His door was open, and he was reading a copy
of Computer World. I rapped lightly on the doorframe, and he looked up.
He frowned when he saw me. “What do you want?”
    Nervously, I cleared my throat. “Did you, uh, have a chance to go over
my work?”
    He stared at me. “What?”
    “The overview I wrote for the File Inventory System last week. You said
you’d get back to me on it. You said you had some new things to add?”
    “No, I didn’t.”
    I shifted uncomfortably. “Well, I thought you said you had to okay it or
approve it or something before it was sent to Mr. Banks.”
    “What do you want? A pat on the back each time you complete a simple
assignment? I’ll tell you right now, Jones, we don’t work that way around here.
And if you think I’m going to allow you to just mope around while you wait for
some sort of ego gratification, you’ve got another think coming. No one here
gets medals for simply doing their jobs.”
    “It’s not that.”
    “What is it, then?” He stared at me, unblinking, waiting for an answer.
    I didn’t know what to say. I felt flustered. I hadn’t expected him to
flat-out deny what he’d told me, and I didn’t understand what was going on.
“Sorry,” I mumbled. “I guess I misunderstood what you said. I’d better get back
to my desk.”
    “I guess you’d better.”
    It might’ve been my imagination, but I thought I heard him chuckling as
I left.
    When I returned, there was a note from Hope waiting on my desk, written
on a sheet of her pink personalized stationery. I picked up the paper, read the
message: “For Stacy’s birthday. Sign the card and pass it on to Derek. See you
at the lunch!” Paper-clipped to the stationery was a birthday card that showed a
group of goofy cartoon jungle animals waving their arms. “From the whole herd!”
the front of the card said.
    I opened the card and looked at the signatures. All of the programmers
except Stacy had signed it, as had Hope, Virginia, and Lois. Each of the signees
had also added a short personal note. I didn’t know Stacy at all, but I picked
up my pen, wrote “Hope you have a great birthday!” and signed my name.
    I handed the card to Derek. “What time is the lunch?” I asked.
    He took the card from me. “What lunch?”
    “Stacy’s birthday lunch, I guess.”
    He shrugged, didn’t answer, signed the card, placed it in its envelope.
Ignoring me, he walked out of the office, taking the card with him.
    I wanted to say something to him, to tell him what an inconsiderate jerk
he was, but as always, I did nothing.
    Ten minutes later, my phone rang. I picked it up. It was Banks. He
wanted me to come up to his office. I had not been to his office since the first
day, and my initial thought was that I was about to be fired. I didn’t know why
or what for, but I figured that between the two of them, Banks and Stewart had
finally come up with a plausible reason why I should be let go.
    I was nervous as I waited for the elevator. I didn’t like my job, but I
certainly didn’t want to lose it. I stared at the descending lighted numbers
above the metal doors. My palms were sweaty. I wished Banks had not asked me up
to his office. If I was going to get fired, I thought, I would have much rather
been notified through the mail. I had never been good at personal
confrontations.
    The elevator doors opened. An older woman in a loud print dress got out,
and I stepped in, pressing the button for the fifth floor.
    Banks was waiting for me in his office, seated behind his huge desk. He
did not say hello, did not stand when I entered, but