The Accountant Who Went Blind (On Purpose)

From a stall in the office restroom, I overhear someone badmouthing me.

Henry Fielder, the intern I've been mentoring for three months, grumbles, "The guy's got zero people skills. He's a total fossil, like a robot stuck in one mode."

I'm about to push the door open and jump in when someone laughs and piles on.

"The paperwork is incomplete. The receipts aren't compliant. I can't reimburse it without a manager's signature. We could recite his canned empathy lines in our sleep!"

Once they're gone, I quietly head back to my office.

Later, Henry drops a thick stack of expense reports onto my desk. "Quit waving the rulebook and rejecting everyone's reimbursements."

I skim the fake receipts, and for once, I don't call him out.

Instead, I give a thin smile and say, "I have a headache. I can't make out the words."

"What?" Henry Fielder, the intern, froze, then his voice turned sharp. "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? If you won't process the reimbursement, just say so. You're just making life hard for everyone. Why fake a headache?"

I took a deep breath and didn't bother arguing with him.

In the past, I would've patiently explained that reimbursement receipts had to be legal and valid. As the finance team, we were the gatekeepers and held legal responsibility for everything we approved.

"Rules are rigid, people aren't. Ever heard of flexibility, Ronan?" he snapped at me, wearing the same defiant look.

Even then, I stayed professional and walked him through the review process again and again.

Just remembering what Henry had said in the restroom left me colder than I'd expected. Since he didn't appreciate it, I had nothing more to say.

I grabbed my thermos and turned to leave.

Henry frowned and grabbed my arm. "Where do you think you're going? Feeling guilty?"

When I didn't answer, he raised his voice. "Do you have any idea how many people have had a problem with you? You think I'm the only one who can't stand you?

"You're always denying reimbursement requests. What, are you pocketing the money?"

I froze, floored by how absurd it was.

Just last week, Henry had applied for a full-time position, and I even wrote him a thoughtful recommendation. I hadn't expected him to turn on me before the decision even came down.

His grip hurt. I pulled my hand free and said, "Henry Fielder, listen carefully. The company has a formal process and policy for reimbursements. I was just following the rules."

He scoffed. "Rules? Are you even human? All you ever say is rules. The same lines, over and over."

Then he snorted, his tone edging into a command. "I don't care. You're approving everyone's reimbursements today. They're too polite to call you out, so I'll go first. Fix that lousy habit of yours, Ronan Cooper! Stop acting like a robot!"

As soon as he finished, the few onlookers who had been silent burst into snickers.

"Henry's got guts!"

"There's finally someone to deal with Ronan."

With people backing him up, Henry looked smug. "Now you see how many people are fed up with you? Learn from me. Cut everyone some slack and stop making them jump through hoops for you!"

I almost laughed out of sheer anger.

The top expense report on my desk had a bogus receipt attached to it. The line item read "business trip cab fare", but the amount came to 100,000 dollars.

I had to wonder if that coworker had taken a cab around the whole country.

I set that expense report aside and flipped to the next one. It was a screenshot of a bank transfer for 50,000 dollars.

The recipient's note read, "Love you, honey".