Renting Hearts

seven- step down

Jonathan

The board room was filled with an air of tension, and hushed conversations as I walked in with Helen trailing behind. While she scampered to a seat at the other side of the long mahogany table, I approached the empty seat at the head of the table.

A very loud silence fell in the room, and as everyone’s curious eyes were directed at me, I lowered into the seat and adjusted my black tie, which length was resting on my white Oxford shirt.

Trailing my gaze along the faces of everyone present, I suspected that the meeting might not have been so impromptu. They looked like they came ready, and I meant the shareholders who lined up by my right, looking like they were being choked by every single word they couldn’t wait to haul at me.

Mr Okoye, who was one of the shareholders, was the first to speak. He was the second by my right with the first person being my uncle, who had the second largest shares in his possession. He was the one who held the position of both the chairman and the CEO until I was ready.

Even though I wasn’t always present in the first year until the board wanted me to step down. I still did my job. I did a good job just like I was doing now, and it left me to wonder why they were here just because of a stupid scandal.

“Since you’re here we will start with the video,” Mr Okoye adjusted his red cap as he signalled to the facilities manager, who was seated at the end of the table by my left.

Before him was Helen and then, the CMO, CHRO, the company’s legal counsel and the CFO. Patrick was seated next to me and ever since I walked in, he had been busy with either the papers in front of him or his hushed conversation with the CFO. Not once had he looked in my direction, maybe he was really mad at me about everything that happened with Ugochi.

He didn’t believe I cheated with the employee right? There was no way he would believe that. I promised him I would never hurt Ugochi and I kept to my promise.

A few minutes later, a sound from the projector filled the room and just like every other person in here, my eyes went to the projector standing in front of us.

The projector was sometimes needed in our meetings, but it had never been used to play a video of me grabbing onto my employee’s waist. Well, until today. But a few seconds in, my mind drifted into the pool of the conversation I had earlier with my father.

He had called to ask if there was a problem at the hotel. According to him, a friend of his who he hadn’t had time to hang out with anymore— because of Mom’s health— called, asking if he was aware of the scandal with my employee.

He wanted to know what was going on but I assured him that everything was fine, which he believed and dropped the topic immediately.

But the pool in which my mind was swimming in at this moment had nothing to do with whatever his friend told him, it was about the things he said after that.

According to my father, his wife had not stopped talking about my supposed fiancee and how she couldn’t wait to meet her. He wanted me to know how happy Mom was and asked that I bring her as soon as possible. If only he knew. If only Mom knew that I lied to her.

When the sound from the projector ended, I snapped back to the present just to meet the eyes of the shareholders on me.

“Can you please tell us what was going on in that video?” Mr Okoye spoke up again, adjusting his red cap and the rest nodded except my uncle, whose facial expression matched mine.

Mr. Okoye was the hotheaded one, and he was always very vocal about how I didn’t deserve the CEO position, so I wasn’t surprised. His senator suit looked like they were made with the most expensive material, it was loosely fitted and was guiding his protruding belly.