When I said I write stories in exam hall, I literally meant it. Y'see my English paper has story writing as one of the questions in the composition section. (Does every school have this, or is it only mine?????) We usually have to develop a story based on the given first few lines or hints.

This time the starting line given was:

'A manager who had several clerks working under him found that one of them was in the habit of coming late to office. He wanted to teach him a lesson.'

PS: Don't stop reading till you reach the end pws! ^=^

*~*~*~*~*~*

A manager who had several clerks working under him found that one of them was in the habit of coming late to office. He wanted to teach him a lesson. So one day, he mailed a letter to him, threatening to consult his name for removal from the rolls.

The manager was rather smug about his cleverness. He was mentally prepared to receive an apology mail, begging for his restraint from sacking the clerk. Little did he think the reply mail would request for an appointment at the local café.

Intrigued, the manager accepted this request. It had started to rain on that Tuesday night by the time he reached the café. He was left completely drenched by the time he reached the café. 'So much for choosing to walk for a change,' he thought grimly.

The manager's eyes skipped from one component of the café to the other. The lighting in there was beautifully contrasting to the dark sky outside.

He noticed the disapproving glare of the barista, who probably doubled up as that café's owner too, the manager guessed from the authoritative air around him. He noticed the disapproval  towards the squeaky noise and the mud prints His wet shoes left on the floor.

As time passed, he started to grow increasingly annoyed at having to stand in the corner of the café, all for a mere clerk. Only an hour later did the clerk arrive. The manager couldn't even remember his name. Sore all over from standing for so long, they both went to sit down in the bar stools. Since he was no longer leaving behind a river in his trail, the owner finally let him sit down. He noticed that the clerk was not drenched at all.

The manager voiced his observation, in an exasperated tone, not bothering to greet him. The snickering of the owner came a reply. "Eavesdropping is very impolite," he spat out at the owner in a very harsh tone.

"Let's get down to business. I can no longer work regularly in your company. I have other means to earn a living," the clerk interrupted not wanting to witness any bickering. The manager's jaw to dropped further with every word that came from the clerk.

"This startup had offered me a job with them a while back. I had gladly accepted it. Now it is growing and I it requires my complete focus." He went on to explain about the excellent infrastructure, faculty, salary and provisions, taking a lot of care to explain the details. He repeatedly made sure to let the manager know he felt lucky for getting a job in an excellent place.

"Wait! How in the name of God did you find such a job!" the manager exclaimed, jealously apparent in his voice. "One of my relative holds an influential position in there, Sir, all I had to do was ask. The reason I am telling you all this is because they are in need of a new faculty member."

"Go on," the manager responded hopefully. The manager was really not happy about his current job,  he wanted to work somewhere more challenging. "I was wondering if you would like to take up this job."

As expected, the manager replied in the affirmative. Immediately, the clerk produced a thick stack of paper, claiming it to be the agreement paper containing the terms of employment. Though the manager was horribly suspicious of it, he signed away all the documents after going through the first few pages.

"A bird in your hand is worth two in the bush," the clerk said once the manager kept down the pen. The meaning of that line had not been comprehended by the manager as he registered the flow of something silky down his back, which was getting soaked up by his shirt, and a searing pain that had not been there a heartbeat ago. Just like that, staring at the clerk with confusion and pain written all over his face, he died.

"Are you sure all our debt can be credited from his account, now that he has signed all the documents, son?"  the owner asked, pulling the knife out of the manager's back. The clerk nodded and headed to his room upstairs after gathering the documents in his hands.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Insanity at its fullest, I know. What was even running in my mind!!! Ughh! All i remember is being pissed at getting such a dumb starting line and wanting to rebel agaisnt its dumbness. But when I left the exam hall, I was anxious realizing that the teacher might simply not give marks for such nonsense.

In the end, she actually liked it......a lot.  THANK GOD!!!!!

Hope y'all found it a teeny bit entertaining atleast! Thanks for reading (๑ơ ₃ ơ)♥