After resigning, I walked right into my new role at Thunder Tech, where I was handed some serious responsibilities.

When I showed up at Gwendolyn's company as the client rep, the receptionist greeted me with a smile, oblivious to the drama about to unfold.

As soon as I stepped into the office area, I spotted Rowan, now sporting a director's badge, strolling around like he was some kind of superstar.

"Make the logo bigger, but also somehow smaller," he barked at the team.

"And when I say black, I mean that iridescent black, like a crow's wings."

"Actually, forget what I said. The first version is better. But I like the font from version seven and the color from version sixteen. Mix those together and get it to me by today."

The employees at their desks looked miserable. One of them finally snapped:

"This design's already been approved by the client. The real issue right now is the program's stability."

Rowan scoffed like it was beneath him to even listen:

"The client's just some nouveau riche. What do they know about real art?"

"I'm the director. Trust me, my aesthetic is top-tier. The client will love it. We might even get a bonus out of it."

Please.

This company wasn't designing art; they were trying to create a user-friendly system. And the way Rowan was messing around with the text? It was borderline painful to look at. Were they trying to start a new optometry program?

No wonder the program was crashing left and right, and the quality was a complete joke.

Some of my old coworkers caught sight of me, and their eyes shifted, those same people who used to avoid me now seemed desperate for my help.

Jack, my former apprentice who once made it his mission to talk trash about me, was nowhere near the core team anymore. Instead, he was stuck running coffee errands on his own dime.

Rowan, barely hiding his disdain, gave me a dismissive look:

"Looks like I need to suggest to Gwendolyn that we hire some security. Wouldn't want just any random person walking in here."

The receptionist looked like she was about to remind him that I was there as the client, but before she could say anything, Gwendolyn marched past me in her stilettos. She caught sight of me and immediately assumed I was there to beg for my job back.

"Well, well, if it isn't Director Felix. Realized the job market's rough and decided to come crawling back?" she sneered, all fake sweetness.

Rowan, pretending to be the nice guy, jumped in:

"I think Felix has potential. Maybe we could offer him a managerial position. Work under me, and he'll be back on top in no time."

Gwendolyn shot me a look like I was beneath her:

"Manager? Please. He's lucky if he can even stay on as a junior employee."

"If you want to come back, you'll start at the bottom, half salary, no bonuses."

The rest of the employees looked at me like I was a virus, trying to avoid being associated with my apparent downfall.

I couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all.

Gwendolyn narrowed her eyes, annoyed:

"What's so funny?"

I calmly reached into my briefcase, pulled out the contract, and slapped it down on the table with a crisp sound.

"Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Felix, Technical Director of Thunder Tech."

I let that sink in before dropping the real bomb:

"I'm here to let you know… the project's been suspended, and the contract's been terminated."