I did not like Wilson.

Check that. I hated Wilson.

Every morning when he arrived, he would say good morning to everyone around. Cheerfully, regardless of whether it was sunny or raining outside. Of course, only a handful would be around when he came in; he was always one of the first few. And the others would be in that early only because they had kids to send to school.

Not Wilson. He was single and as eligible as ever. He just loved to come to work early. When asked, he would reply, "What can I say, man, as much as I enjoy working among people -- hey, I'm a people person -- I always find tranquility has its own attractiveness." And the other party would be forced to laugh and agree with him.

And that is Wilson for you. He had his way to make people laugh and love him. And everyone save me did.

He would pop up at a female colleague's cubicle, sometimes unannounced. And she would smile and say, "Hi Wilson. And who are you looking for today?" not without a flirtatious undertone. He would say, "Why, the beautiful lady, of course. Like, who else?" This would have her smile even wider.

Business done, Wilson would never fail to make small talks. "Did you just have your hair cut? Oh, I love it! It suits you really well, man, good choice!" "How's your family? I heard your husband get a promotion, congratulations!" "Ask for your opinion. Is that new movie any good? You know I trust your judgment."

Other times, he would offer his assistance without being asked. "Hey, you need help setting up your new software? It just so happens I've had some experience with it." And when it was beyond him, he would still go the extra length. "Uh, the connection's a bit slow today. No worries, when I get home tonight, I'll download it and copy it to your drive tomorrow." Or give assistance in other ways. "You have to get the support personnel to fix this. You have their number? No? It's all right, let me call them for you, I know most of them personally, they're great."

So social. So amicable. So full of compliments.

So fake.

I did not blame those who liked him. There was nothing to suggest to them that Wilson was anything but sincere in his comments and manners. And even if it was all a front, so what? People would take nice people anytime over rude ones.

The problem was, I knew Wilson outside his office persona. Oh, I knew him well. And since the day I joined this company, he had been putting up what I now called the Wilson Office Act. Which had undeniably worked well for him. Too well.

He had charmed his way up the career ladder and done so faster than everyone else I knew.

Therefore, I hated him.

It was rumored that Wilson was right at the head of the line to succeed the department manager, who had resigned recently. While I was sure it would rub some people wrongly -- if slightly -- I had little doubt Wilson would eventually have them soothed. Because that was what he did.

Just the other day, our department had voted for one of us to head the newly formed recreation club. No prizes in guessing who most of the votes had gone to. I knew for a fact that Wilson disliked this sort of committee, as it would leave him with little time for anything else. Nevertheless, he accepted the post, all the while seemingly protesting. Because he was Wilson. Who was very good at acting.

Oh, the hate!

I scanned my surroundings and had just about enough time to switch windows before a pat landed on my shoulder.

"I've gone through your presentation slides. Good job, as always."

I turned sideways and smiled at my manager. "Thank you, sir. I've had good contributions from everyone in the team."

My boss made a gesture dismissing my attempt at humility. "Always modest. I like that."

He took a step forward then turned around, as if having remembered something important. He bent slightly and in a soft voice said, "By the way, I have every reason to believe that the promotion is yours. But keep it between us until the official announcement, okay?"

Nothing less than what I had expected. But a bit of modesty would go a long way and my boss liked it. So, "Wow, is that true, sir? I am very, very honored. Looking forward to contributing more to the team."

He smiled and patted my shoulder again. "You deserve it, Wilson. I'm leaving the department in a good hand."

I believed he meant every word of it.

Current music: none
Current mood: happy