Rumors

There's been a rumor going around at work.
They say that I had been dating my friend Janny and fathered her child.

Little do they know.

When I told the story to Janny while holding my Goddaughter she laughed uncontrollably.

So did her husband Gary.

They know about me and Sam.

The easiest way to spread company policy and new directives isn't by memo or text or email. It's good ol' fashioned gossip through the grapevine. What's interesting is that before I heard these rumors of me having an affair and fathering a child, there was another rumor that I was gay. Of course I neither confirm nor deny any rumors. It's more fun that way.

I like to think that others think of me as a mystery. Plus, it's really much easier to manage people if you don't reveal too much about yourself. Almost all of my subordinates know very little about my personal life and I'd like to keep it that way. I like to keep work and home separate as much as possible. Never mix business with pleasure as they say.

There was also another rumor that one of the department heads, Carrie, was pregnant. After all, she was a big woman and it was hard to tell.

As I approached Carrie, I rubbed her large, protruding belly and said, "Congratulations on the baby!"

With a quizzical look and a raised brow, Carrie replied "What baby?!?! I'm not pregnant."

I turned beet red and apologized.

Good thing she was a sport about it all.

Painting by Rose Freymuth-Frazier