Every workplace environment has that one unique individual.
Some make us laugh...some make us mad...and some just simply push us to the break of insanity.
But at Cineplex Pary Royal and VIP, there was one employee that did all three of those.
Yes...it was the legend of Arad.
Like everyone, Arad started off as another employee hired at the theatre, hoping to make money like the rest of the cast crew. But it didn't take long for him to become legendary at Cineplex, yet for all the wrong reasons.
Nicolas had experienced the utmost honour of meeting the legendary Arad in person, just once. It was early into Nicolas' Cineplex career. He had just been recently hired at the theatre. It was so long ago that everyone was still wearing masks for COVID, and the floor team was using the ticket podium back near the freestyle machine, as proof of COVID-19 shots were being taken at the front.
"Jesus Christ, man," Nicolas specifically remembered Arad saying behind his mask, not even properly introducing himself yet at this point.
"What's up?" Nicolas replied.
It was a hectic shift that day, with people rushing in and out the theatre doors like a hive of angry bees.
"My fucking ex is coming in to work today," Arad confessed.
Nicolas raised a brow. He had only been working at the theatre a month or two at this point, but even he knew that Arad had gotten himself into a sticky situation.
"Dang. Who's your ex?" Nicolas asked.
After disclosing who it was, Nicolas confessed the name sounded familiar and rang bells, despite being so new to the theatre.
The rest of the shift was a disaster, with Nicolas trying to calm Arad down, the panic of seeing his ex more clear than a new glass window. They talked and chatted more about how he would deal with the reality of working with someone who had once been so special in his heart, yet now was just a longing, familiar face.
And then it happened. The infamous ex of Arad walked in, motioning right past, both ghosting each other like a scary movie. Nicolas felt second-hand embarrassment for them both. It wasn't even his relationship, yet even he couldn't cringe at how awkward that just was.
After talking more and chatting, Nicolas' shift gradually came to an end, as that would be the only, and last time, he ever saw the legendary Arad in person.
As time passed, Arad's presence at the theatre was less than none. If the job were equivalent to his school attendance, he would have been expelled and banned from ever returning, and known across the entire mainland. He never showed up.
At first, his excuses were valid and somewhat believable. Alright, everyone gets sick here and there, or has something scheduled throughout their week they have to swap a shift with. We all got it. As great as the people were, working at Cineplex could get tiring, and we all understood that.
However, Arad always had an excuse. And the managers, naive as could be, were believing all of them.
Nicolas could remember Gregor walking up to podium in that COVID mask he wore so damn long (too fucking long) and crossing Arad's name out on the floor schedule with a pen, over and over and over.
"Arad can't make it tonight."
"Arad has a makeup exam."
"Arad booked the dentist."
