Page 2 of Drop Pass

I ended the call before reaching back to zip my dress back up. As soon as the email with the contract came in, I signed it and returned it before jumping out of my seat. I needed to talk to the morning producer before he got lost in meetings for the rest of the day. I marched down the hall to the newsroom where I hoped he was still bossing people around. I took one step in and drew the attention of the people closest to me.

“Have you seen Mark?” I asked in a low voice. No one was on set filming but I always felt like an intruder here. Things moved at a hundred miles an hour at all times in this room.

“Over there.” One of the guys without a headset cocked his head to the left.

I spotted my boss and crossed the room on my tiptoes. When I was within whispering distance, I called him. “Mark?”

He turned to me and gave me a once over? “Yes, Elena?”

“Can I speak to you for just a moment?”

He let out an exaggerated sigh as if I was the biggest inconvenience he’d ever faced. “What is it?”

I looked around at the prying ears. I knew people were pretending not to listen but as soon as I said a word it would make its way around the station.

“I’d like to talk to you in private.”

“I don’t have time for this. What is it?”

Oh boy. I was going to enjoy this more than I thought. “I quit. This will be my last week if you’d like to me finish it out.”

He and I had previous conversations about the possibility of me transferring, but he blew me off. He thought I was being dramatic, but I’d been dead serious. I’d told the weather producer I received a verbal offer while I was in Salt Lake, so she was better prepared, but Mark was too arrogant to think anyone would ever willingly leave LA to take my concerns seriously.

His cold eyes turned on me. I could feel him surveying me. An insult was coming. He always had a biting word for those he deemed defiant or unworthy. In this case, I was both.

“Don’t bother. We have a hundred young blond bimbos in line to take your spot.”

There it was. If I wasn’t prepared for some sort of insult his words might have stung, but I also knew the truth. His reputation was known within the industry. Finding a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist that would want to work at this station would be difficult, let alone one that fit the appearance he required of his team.

“If you’re sure…” I wasn’t expecting him to change his mind, but as long as there were witnesses around, I wanted to make sure I gave him plenty of opportunities to be a decent human.

He didn’t lift his eyes from the clipboard in his hands. “Just go.”

I caught the eyes of the crew around us and gave them a nod. At least they could vouch that I’d tried.

“It’s been a pleasure.” I made sure they knew I was talking to them even though Mark made a grunting noise in response.

I’d hated every minute of working for him. I had to keep my hair this unnatural shade of blonde, wear skin-tight dresses, sky-high heels, and if I even looked at a carb he threatened to switch me to weekends.

Now I was free.

When I got back to my desk, I wrote out a few thank you cards to the anchors and crew I might actually miss then gathered my belongings. The assistant morning producer was a mini-Mark so I wasn’t too concerned about catching him before leaving. He’d make a comment much like his boss and I was no longer obligated to listen.

With my purse and garment bag of extra outfits, I walked out of the building for the last time. I’d worked at this station for years, but I had zero doubts about leaving. No friends or mentors to make me hesitate. I’d been a puppet. A mindless drone.

Not anymore. In less than a week I’d be at a station that valued me. One that really wanted me to be there. They’d fought for me when I countered with the things I wanted. I made it seem like I had life made here in LA and they were willing to match my requests

As soon as I was stuck in traffic on the five freeway, I called Lucy.

“Hey Elena.”

Her bright voice brought a smile to my lips. “Hi love. I have news.”

“Oh really?”

“I got it.”

She squealed and I couldn’t fight back my laughter. “Are you serious? When do you start? When do you get here?”