After Hours Chapter 1

The fluorescent lights hummed their familiar song as Jessica finished the last of the quarterly reports. The office had emptied hours ago—everyone eager to start their weekend—but she had stayed behind. There was always more work to be done.

“Still here?”

She looked up to see Mr. Collins standing in the doorway of his corner office, his tie loosened and jacket slung over his arm.

“Just finishing up the Morrison account,” she said.

An Unexpected Conversation

He walked over to her desk, glancing at the stacks of papers with what might have been approval—or concern. It was hard to tell with him.

“You know, Jessica, you don’t have to prove anything to anyone here.”

She blinked. In three years of working for the firm, this was the first personal thing he’d ever said to her.

“I’m not trying to prove anything. I just want to do good work.”

He nodded slowly, something shifting in his expression. “Walk with me. There’s something I want to show you.”

The View from the Top

The executive floor was deserted at this hour. He led her to the corner conference room—the one with floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the city.

“I come here sometimes,” he said, “when I need perspective. The work is important, but it’s not everything.”

She stood beside him, watching the lights of the city twinkle below. For the first time, she saw him not as her imposing boss, but as a person carrying his own weight of responsibility.

Some connections happen in the most unexpected places.