“That was not a joke and you are pissing me off right now so I will just go to my cubicle and be alone,” Tina said.

“Fine, do that!” Bette yelled back.

Bette never really understood Tina.  She usually has a way with the ladies but there is just something about Tina that she can’t quite pinpoint.  No one every really stood up to Bette before be it at work or outside of work.  And to be contested every step of the way was new to Bette.  She did find toying with Tina entertaining at times and frustrating at others but Tina was never easy on Bette and never let her win, so after all these years, it became a cat and mouse game for the two, constant bickering and put downs.  Tina on the other hand, never understood why Bette loved to pick on her so much.  It felt like she was in middle school, dj vu style with some goofus boy.  She didn’t like to be picked on or taken advantage of then and she sure as hell won’t let it happen now.

After several minutes of staring off outside the window into the dark stormy night, Tina started to feel a rumble in her stomach.  She was amazed that Bette actually left her alone for this long.  She got up and felt her way to the common kitchen area to see what is there could possibly be consumed.

From a distance, she could see that Bette was in her office, working ‘She certainly makes this seem like an everyday occurrence’ Tina thought.  Tina knew that Bette was one damn good manager; she practically kept the company alive during the slumps by herself, working insane hours to come up with new ideas and more efficient procedures.  She would have praised her of all the positive things she thought about her but that would inflate Bette’s ego even more, so of course this was better kept unsaid.

“Well, well, ladies and gentlemen, the choice for tonight’s dinner is a lovely hardened donut or our chef favorite, a chilly kolache wrapped in soggy breading” Tina sighed, but hunger took over and she chose the most decent looking kolache out of the pack and grabbed a couple of napkins to return to her cubicle.  With her other free hand she wraps her fingers around a spare flashlight.   ‘The janitors are probably off somewhere getting drunk and would never want to come to the building in this weather…’ Tina thought, ‘so that is actually today’s best worst case scenario heh’

After consuming the nasty wrap, Tina decided against doing work and rather, save the batteries in the flashlight, just in case.   She forgot to charge her phone earlier during the week, so it was out of juice and useless.  ‘Maybe I can borrow Bette’s phone I wonder why she didn’t call someone for help already this must be one of her games of trying my patience’ Tina thought to herself.  She peered over her cubicle wall one more time and still saw the same light coming from Bette’s office.  ‘Workaholic, no wonder she can’t keep her lovers’  Tina thought.  She then got up and started walking slowly over to Bette’s office door but stopped immediately when she heard a noise.