Part 1The Office Darling

The office darling is Tiffany.

In any situation involving a man, her favorite pastime is throwing the other women under the bus.

For a client meeting, I put on a little lipstick for once.

She covered her mouth, feigning a giggle. "Oh, honey, your makeup skills aren't the best, are they? It looks a little… rough."

I rolled my eyes. "We're here to close deals, not legs."

At lunch, I ordered a loaded Philly cheesesteak from a food truck.

She saw it and shrieked, "Oh my god, that's disgusting! All that grease and… mystery meat! Are you even a girl?"

I shot back, "At least I'm eating the cooked stuff. You're the one eating it raw. Don't act like I'm the weird one."

Furious, she started a rumor that I was sleeping with a male colleague.

I didn't get mad. I just smiled. She had no idea I’d seen the video of her with our department head, Greg.

*

* * *

On my first day, my new colleague Mark gave me the tour of the department.

"It’s mostly guys here," he explained. "For the women, it’s just you and Tiffany. And just so you know, she’s kind of the… office darling."

*Darling?*

Hearing that, a bad feeling started to creep into my gut.

At noon, a few colleagues said they were taking me to a lunch spot downstairs to get me familiar with the area. I went ahead to call the elevator.

That’s when I ran into her. A girl in a long, white sundress. Long, straight black hair, flawless makeup. In a department full of dudes in polos and khakis, she definitely stood out. This had to be Tiffany.

I gave her a friendly smile and a nod. "Hi, I'm Chloe. It's my first day…"

Tiffany flicked a stray hair from her face, her eyes scanning me up and down like she was inspecting a piece of produce. After a long pause, she finally spoke, her voice flat and cold. "Are you coming to lunch with us, too?"

The question caught me off guard. It was a department welcome lunch, but the way she said it made it sound like I was crashing her private party.

That bad feeling in my gut intensified, but I kept my voice polite. "Yeah, Mark invited me along to meet everyone."

She didn't reply, just gave a little "hmph."

The elevator dinged open, and Mark and a few other guys rushed over.

Instantly, Tiffany transformed. A sickeningly sweet smile spread across her face. "There you guys are! I've been waiting *forever*." Her voice was now a high-pitched, cutesy purr—a complete 180 from the ice queen I’d just met.

I followed them into the crowded elevator. She completely ignored me, effortlessly wedging herself into the center of the male circle, laughing and joking with them. I was stuck in the corner. She chatted with every single guy around her, talking loudly about some video game, but never once glanced my way. It was like I was invisible.