The guy they called incompetent, the "glory hog," the one who "hogged all the credit" — I was the one holding up more than half the company's revenue, making sure they had salaries to collect and bonuses to spend.
I held my breath, walked to my desk.
Picked up the glass "Outstanding Contribution Award" trophy, and hurled it into the aisle.
CRASH.
Glass shattered everywhere, the sound ripping through the entire office.
Every whisper died instantly.
The whole floor went dead silent.
The conference room door flew open. Kenneth still had a cigarette pinched between his fingers, not even bothered to put it out.
He spotted the shattered trophy on the floor and strolled toward me with a smirk.
"Ronnie, come on, no need for all that. If you've got a problem with how things were decided, I can step aside for you."
I sat in my chair, chin tilted up to meet his eyes.
Same face from three months ago when he first walked in as an intern. But the humble act had long been replaced by the gloating mask of a man who'd lucked into something he didn't earn.
"Sure."
I said it calmly.
"Go tell Mr. James right now. I'll wait."