I don't know

28

It was nearly Tom's one-year anniversary. So much had changed since that day in the hospital when Anthony's little brother called him worried and scared.

Anthony missed his father so much and he regretted the fact he wasn't able to make things good with him before he passed. He thought he had more time.

He had stowed the trinket box away deep in his cupboard and he'd take it out now and then to re-read the letter or stare at the mini teddy bear. The ring however always stayed on Anthony's finger and he had grown onto the habit of twisting it around when he was nervous.

That's what he was doing at the moment, as he had been called into his editor's office. No one went into Shaine Dimes' office unless they were being fired. The sports journalism team was small, not nearly as large as the finance team or the fashion team. So maybe they were closing down the sports section?

No way they would do that. They might have a small team but the sports articles were always the most popular.

He racked his brain for anything he had done wrong that she might not have liked.  He thought of nothing. He had been perfect since he was an intern at 17.

'Anthony? Ms. Dimes is calling for you.' Shaine's assistant, Lily said.

Anthony took a deep breath as he walked into Shaine's office. She was staring at her monitor and she looked serious as she turned to Anthony.

'Sit down, James.'

'Before you say anything, I've been thinking about the past 12 years and I'm pretty sure I've done NOTHING wrong. Except for that one time when I dog-eared one of your books.' Anthony said, sitting down. Shaine stared at him for a few seconds before she cracked a smile.

'I'm not letting you go, James.' she laughed as Anthony breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't need to go through the hassle of updating his LinkedIn profile.

'I'm doing the opposite.'

Anthony looked up at her, his eyebrows wrinkled. 'I'm lost.'

Shaine sighed, 'I got a better job, James. It's not the most reputable paper but they're looking to update their Sports column. They've chosen me as the editor and it pays more.'

'Congratulations! But again, what does that have to do with me?' Anthony pressed.

'James, do you have a brain?'

Anthony opened his mouth to respond but Shaine hushed him with a snap of her fingers.

'Rhetorical Question. For your information Anthony, I've thought this through and I can see no one doing this job better than you. You have been promoted to the Editor of the Sports Column.' Shaine said smiling. 

It took Anthony a good moment to take that in. He stared at Shaine, before he finally found the words to say.

'Shaine- I'm speechless. Thank you!' he said, getting up and hugging his editor. She was so much more than his boss. She had helped him develop in his career, mentoring him over the past 12 years - even if she did it quite aggressively. She was certainly a mother figure in his life.

'You deserve it James.' she responded, pulling away from the hug and in an instant she went back into 'boss mode.'

'Well, James I am still your editor for the time being and I want the article due in Tuesday.' She said, shooeing him from her office.

Anthony left his office building, a warmth flowing through his body. Looks like he'd have to change his LinkedIn profile after all.

~~~
'You got promoted! Congratulations!' Lucia said as she hugged her son tightly. Anthony grinned as he sat down at the kitchen table, helping himself to a doughnut.