Cheryl's furious shouting chased me down the street.
The next morning, the moment I stepped through the company doors, the entire office went silent.
Every pair of eyes found me, studying me with complicated expressions before quickly dropping back to their screens, pretending to be busy.
I walked straight to my office and started packing my things.
I had barely set a framed photo into a cardboard box when the door flew open.
Cheryl stormed in.
The second she saw what I was doing, something flickered in her eyes that I'd never seen before. Panic.
She slammed her hand down on the files I was gathering. "Drew, how far are you going to take this?"
I pulled my hand free and went back to emptying the drawer.
"I thought I made myself perfectly clear yesterday."
"You didn't mean any of that!" Cheryl stamped her foot, her voice climbing. "Twenty years we've been in each other's lives. You can't just throw that away!"
I stopped packing and looked up at her.
"Twenty years... so you do remember."
She bit her lip.
"Look, I know yesterday went too far. But you started it by going after Douglas. You can't blame me for getting angry."
"Enough!" I slammed the drawer shut. "Don't say that name in front of me."
The office plunged into silence.
Then a commotion erupted outside.
Someone screamed down the hall: "Oh my God, Assistant Gilbert is going to jump!"
The color drained from Cheryl's face.
She didn't even glance at me. She bolted out the door like an arrow loosed from a bowstring.
When it came to choosing between me and Douglas, she never hesitated.
I let out a bitter laugh, picked up my cardboard box, and headed for the elevator.
As I passed the lounge at the end of the corridor, I caught sight of Douglas through the floor-to-ceiling windows. He was sitting on the ledge, legs dangling over the edge, swinging them back and forth.
A crowd had already gathered on the street below. Fire truck sirens wailed, growing louder as they approached.
"This is all my fault! I'm the one who ruined the company!" Douglas's voice drifted in through the open window, thick with sobs. "If I hadn't made Mr. Dickerson angry, Zenith Group never would've pulled out of the deal..."
Cheryl stood by the window, nearly frantic.
"Douglas, get down from there! This isn't your fault!"
"So what if we lost the partnership? You can't do this to yourself!"