“The Email”

Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!

Write a story titled “The Email”.

I stare at the subject line of the email from my boss.

URGENT! Emergency meeting at 1 pm

It’s not unusual for Stan to call impromptu meetings, but he never calls meetings ‘urgent’. In fact, he never calls anything ‘urgent’.

You see, Stan is an extremely laid-back guy. He’s the type of boss who doesn’t care who you are or what you do as long as the job gets done and he makes a profit. Sure, we might spend most of our work day socializing and planning get-togethers, plus it’s a well-paying job and we get great benefits. I guess some would say that Stan is a bit too laid-back sometimes, but he’s a super nice guy and we all take care of each other to keep the business afloat.

Which brings me back to my point: nothing is ever urgent to Stan. If he ever did call something urgent, it would probably only be when the world is ending.

If even then. Who knows; I’ve never experienced the end of the world before.

I close the email and check the time. 12:54 pm. Just enough time for me to get to the conference room.

Not entirely sure what to bring–because I have no idea what this meeting is actually about–I just grab my laptop, a notepad, and a few pens before rushing out of my office and heading over to the conference room.

When I get there, the room is already packed. I’m two minutes early, but I guess so is everyone else.

“Mark!” I call, grabbing the guy closest to me. “Do you know what this is about?”

He looks at me with wide, unfocused eyes before turning around and disappearing into the crowd.

I frown. Okay, something strange is definitely going on here.

I push my way into the room. The noise around me is deafening; this conference room was definitely not meant to hold the entire staff. Nonetheless, I find a small pocket of space and wait for Stan.

When Stan finally does arrive, he’s on time for once–usually he’s at least five minutes late. Immediately, a hush falls over the room as he squeezes his way to the front.

“Thank you all for coming,” he addresses us, his face ghostly pale. “I’m afraid that I have some bad news.”

He lets his words sink in for a moment before continuing, “It’s the End of the World. It’s coming.”

Final Comments: Cliffhanger again! I enjoyed writing this one–it was definitely a nice break from studying for midterms!!

Overall Rating: 🙂