One bad turn deserves another

“Hello Jane, good morning. Can you please cover for me at work today?” I asked hoarsely.

“Cover for you? Me? I can't do it, why should I cover for you anyway?” Jane’s voice cackled through the phone.

“I'm really feeling sick. I want to get some drugs and rest today, I'll be there tomorrow. Please I'll work an extra day” I begged, feeling the throbbing headache I had slept and woken up with getting worse.

“I can't do it. Come to work. Bye!” Jane snapped before ending the call.

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I groaned in bed, turning around like a wind will and asking myself why I had to have a coworker from hell. I knew I was left with no option that to go to work, so I painfully got up and headed to the kitchen to inform my sister Ify of the development.

“Shouldn't you be resting? I thought you said you'd call your coworker to help you out?” she asked.

“She refused, I will just get some drugs from the pharmacy on my way to work and take them during my shift. Hopefully, I'll see you in 3 days?” I joked weakly, moving to the bedroom to pack for my shift.

I worked at a place that rented out apartments, it was just like a hotel, but the apartments were built separately and fully furnished and also pricier than a hotel. My coworker Jane and I worked the front desk. Our job was to check guests in and out and relay their needs to the other workers when they called the front desk. For example, drinks, deliveries, or food if they couldn't be bothered to use their kitchen.

We worked in 3 day shifts per person, which I loved because I could use my free three days off to do other things like sleep and eat, and the pay and bonus were attractive. He-he. As much as I loved my job, the only thing I hated was Jane's attitude.

“She said what?” my sister asked, following me into the room.

“I can't be repeating myself sis, I need to save my energy” I replied, picking out my clothes and heading to the bathroom.

“Sorry, dear, I just find it difficult to believe. Is it not this same Jane that always calls you to ask how to do her job whenever you're off?” Ify asked incredulously.

I managed to chuckle and affirm that yes it was the same Jane we were referring to. Jane had this annoying habit of calling me whenever she was on duty to ask questions. She couldn't balance the books, she mixed up apartment numbers, and she could never find anything in the office without calling me, and I always guided her patiently.

Initially, I thought she would learn with time, but it turned out to be the opposite. She got the worst by the day, extending her snobby attitude to most guests and gossiping about me to the other workers (which they always told me about). She was only really nice to the handsome guests, which I found funny at the time. I couldn't be bothered about reporting her to our boss because I was also working on gaining admission into the university then.

I left my house and went to the pharmacy before heading to work. On getting to work, I found Jane already packed and ready to go. She picked her things and left immediately she saw me, not even bothering to respond to my greeting or inquire about my health. I watched in amazement, and I didn't know when I spoke out loud to myself.

“Wonderful!” I said, taking my seat and reclining on the chair.

“What is wonderful and why are you late?” the Cook asked, walking into the reception from the kitchen.

I told her what the problem was, and she replied, telling me the problem with me was that I had refused to see how mean Jane was, and she was only nice when she needed something.

“Well, I'm done helping her. I am serious” I emphasized when I saw cook staring at me with a smile on her face.

Until this day, I haven't forgotten how bad the 3 days were for me. At some point, the drugs made me so weak that I had to lie down beside my desk. Our boss eventually noticed I was down, and he was mad at me for not asking Jane to help out.

“I asked her, but she refused boss” I replied to him. We fondly called him boss.

“Are you serious, I've been seeing things from the camera and getting complaints” he said to me

“Ha! Leave her please, let's manage her like that” I replied and we laughed.

“Go home and rest. I'll call her myself” he said, reaching for his phone.

I vehemently refused to go home and insisted on finishing the remainder of my shift even if it killed me. The next day, our boss’s wife, who loved me like a junior sister, came to check on me and pleaded with me to go home, but I refused and insisted on staying. Eventually, with her help, I managed to work the 3 days and went home to recuperate.

Two days later, my phone rang and Lo and behold, it was madam Jane. I knew she was calling to ask for my help with one issue or another, so I ignored her. That was the beginning of me giving her a taste of her medicine. I stopped helping her, and she made numerous mistakes that almost got her fired, but the highlight of the whole thing was one day in December when I was done with my shift and waiting for her to resume.

Jane walked in bundled up like someone living in Russia, shaking and behaving as if she were about to die at the spot. The sweet part was that she had taken a week off before resuming that day and I had worked for that week, so she was supposed to work for a full week as well. I ignored the shaking, picked up my stuff and headed home, shouting “byeee” merrily as I left.

The next day, she called me and I picked the call

“Yes?” I asked.

“Loveth I'm sick, you need to come to work, I'm going to the hospital” she replied.

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I put the phone away from my ear, laughing in shock. It's the audacity for me! I thought to myself, she didn't even say please. I brought the phone back to my ear and said:

“I’m not in town. Stay at work. Bye!” then ended the call.

Immediately my sister came back, I told her what had happened, and she was livid. Another dozen round of phone calls from Jane went unanswered as my sister and I laughed and pondered what type of human being she was. I made a call to another staff who told me that the boss and his wife had refused to let her go, except she managed to somehow get me to cover for her. His wife had even reminded her of her behavior towards me not only when I was sick but also whenever I needed her help at work.

I know it is not good to pay evil with evil, but it felt good to let her experience what I had passed through, only her punishment was longer. Maybe if she had called back and used the magic word PLEASE, I would have changed my mind, but she didn't. So I relaxed and went out of town to enjoy my one-week rest with blessings from my boss. I still don't regret what I did, especially because I resumed work to find out that it would take more than one dose of her own medicine to change Jane.