Conference Room Secrets

32 minutes. Manuel was supposed to be home 32 minutes ago. 

Gazing outside the office window, Manuel could see that the blizzard wasn’t letting up any time soon. A startling sound jolted him up from his daze, causing him to wonder what his coworkers might’ve stumbled upon. 

In the break room, four of his associates gathered around the refrigerator, helping themselves to whatever they wanted. Everything was clearly marked with the name of whoever left it, but it seemed that his peers had decided that this food was now anyone’s game.

“There you are. We were wondering where you ran off to,” greeted Linda, the older woman from HR.

“I heard a noise. Did somebody drop something?” Manuel inquired, searching the floor for anything out of place.

“Not in here.”

“Oh hey,” Lacey, one of the secretaries uttered, finally coming up for air from her makeout with Sav, the very silent, but very attractive guy from accounting.

“Manny, nice of you to finally show up,” Darwin, Manuel’s arch-nemesis snickered, stepping up to him. “I assumed you decided to brave the storm and it pained me to think that you’d never show up here again.”

“And give you absolutely no competition for the big promotion? In your dreams,” Manuel retorted, matching Darwin’s expression.

Out of nowhere, a large growling sound could be heard, causing both Linda and Darwin to shift their gaze to Manuel’s stomach. 

“That wasn’t me,” he told them.

“There are leftovers in the fridge if you’d like,” Linda mentioned, adjusting her glasses.

“No thanks. I’m not sure if we should be helping ourselves to other people’s lunch.”

“Oh, don’t worry. You should see all of the stuff that gets thrown out every week. Most of it would’ve gone to waste.”

“Lighten up, Manny. If the sweet old lady from HR says that it’s okay, then we’re all good,” Darwin added, stuffing his mouth full of raisins. “Plus, we’re the only ones around. Everyone else made it out on time, even the boss.”

“Mr. Wilkie isn’t here? But he’s always here. Whenever we all leave, he stays late. No matter how early I get here in the morning, he’s always the first one in,” Manuel recalled.

“I haven’t seen or heard him so my guess is that he’s gone and it’s just the five of us.”

A loud beeping disrupted their conversation, coming from behind Lacey and Sav. They stopped their workplace debauchery to open the microwave, thus releasing the worst possible stench in existence.

Manuel and the others fled the room, covering their noses with their hands and finding safety further down the hall.

“Who the hell microwaves fish at work?” Darwin interrogated. “Or at all.”

“Sorry,” Lacey called from the other room. “Someone left salmon in the fridge and that’s Sav’s absolute favorite.”

Looking back down at his phone, Manuel could clearly read the words “No Service” at the top of the screen. There was no way to get local weather updates which meant the group of five was stuck inside with smelly fish and no contact with the outside world.

After another ten minutes, Lacey and Sav exited the break room to find Darwin dozing off in his chair, Manuel doodling, and Linda reading a very old looking book.

“So, what should we do?” Lacey asked.

“What do you mean?” Manuel replied, wondering what Lacey had in mind.

“We could play Never Have I Ever or Two Truths And A Lie.”

“I’m not interested in children’s games,” Linda responded, not looking up from her book. 

“Well, sitting around isn’t fun either,” Darwin uttered, jumping up from his seat.

“Then what do you suggest?” Manuel inquired.

Darwin’s eyes wandered further down the dark hall. “Wanna explore?”

The room fell quiet, with each associate sharing a glance that meant both worry and curiosity. There was a whole building to explore with nobody to stop them. This opportunity would probably never come again.

With Darwin leading the charge, and the other three agreeing, Manuel had no choice but to go along with the craziness.

They started off on the west side of the floor, in the copier room. This section was always open to the staff. The only reason they wanted to visit it was so that Lacey and Darwin could take pictures of their butts on the copier. Lacey ended up giving hers to Sav and Darwin jokingly gave one to Manuel, who politely declined.

Next up, Darwin wanted to explore the women’s restroom to see if it was truly different from the men’s and was sorely disappointed to find out that they looked almost exactly the same, minus the urinals. The women declined to look inside of the men’s restroom upon Darwin’s request.

After a bit more exploring of random closets and offices, the group found the conference room, a place none of them had actually been in before. This was where all of the supervisors and board members came together to discuss the future of the company—a place where Darwin and Manuel aspired to be. With the new administrative position down to the two of them, it would soon become a reality.

They each sat at the table in the center, with Darwin and Manuel sitting at opposite heads of the table, staring each other down.

“You know what would make this more fun?” Darwin asked, finding his way to the door. “Alcohol.”

“Well, we’re all technically off duty,” Linda muttered, sitting back in her seat.

Suspicious of his intentions, Manuel followed Darwin out of the room to see him heading to their boss’ office just down the hall. He grabbed his arm to try and stop him.

Darwin shook him off. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“You weren’t going to Mr. Wilkie’s office, were you?”

“Yeah, I figured he would be hiding some whiskey or something. I bet he’s got a bunch of new suits in there too. You ever notice that he always has a new suit?”

“But we’re not allowed in his office.”

“Who’s gonna stop us? Mr. Wilkie isn’t even here.”

“I never saw him leave.”

“Don’t you wanna know what he’s hiding?”

Manuel decided not to respond, knowing that Darwin’s mind had already been made up. He decided to stay close to him in case anything were to go south. 

Darwin made his way to the door at the end of the hall, placing his ear against the door, listening to make sure no one was inside. Slowly turning the doorknob, the two of them entered the office. 

It was a much larger space than anticipated. A long desk sat against the wall, with an old computer and a pack of cigarettes resting atop. Stacks of papers covered most of the floor, and the room was clouded in a strange scent that neither man could place.

They exchanged disgusted glances, wondering how their boss could stand being cooped up in a place like this for eight hours.

“He’s gotta have something around here somewhere,” Darwin mumbled, searching in the far corner.

Manuel stayed close to the door, getting a bad feeling about the area. He watched as Darwin continued to scour the area for any liquor. “I don’t like being in here.”

“You didn’t have to come in. Wait outside if you’re scared,” Darwin responded, widening his eyes as he remembered the desk. He marched over to see if there was anything hidden in the drawers but jumped up when he heard a strange noise.

Manuel made his way over to Darwin with a look of confusion. “What’s the matter?” 

“You didn’t hear that?”

“Hear what?”

Suddenly, a growling emitted from behind the desk, causing both men to back away slowly. It didn’t sound like any normal growl from a dog or an upset stomach. Then, reaching up from behind the desk, the two men saw what appeared to be a large furry claw.

Without another thought, Manuel and Darwin dashed out of the room, slamming the door behind them. Sprinting down the hall, the boys caught up with Linda, who was standing inside of the conference room alone.

“Why do you two look like you just saw a ghost?” she inquired.

“Ahhhh.”

The scream came from further down the hall, prompting the three of them to follow it. They made it to the break room, finding Lacey and Sav sitting alone in the dark.

“What’s wrong?” Manuel questioned, feeling his heart start to pound.

“The lights went out.”

They tried the switch, but nothing seemed to come of it. The group creeped out of the room see the rest of the office slowly going dark. 

“Must be the blizzard.” Darwin’s eyes started to wander a little further down the hall, noticing something unsettling. “Hey, Manny, we shut the boss’ door, didn’t we?”

“Yeah, why?” Manuel slowly turned around to see Mr. Wilkie’s door wide open.

“What’s the matter? Just close it again,” Linda told them.

“You don’t understand.”

“Understand what?”

“Linda, do you know if Mr. Wilkie has any pets that he keeps in his office?”

“Pets? No. If he had any, it sure wouldn’t make any sense to keep them in his office. What’s with all these strange questions-”

“Ahhh,” Lacey screamed again, this time because of what was standing before her. It was too dark to make out its exact appearance, but a large creature—over 7 feet tall—was holding Sav between its large claws.

Darwin and Linda stood in place, paralyzed by fear. Lacey crumbled to the ground watching her office romance get eaten by an unknown beast. Manuel looked around for any possible exits, finding a second hallway leading to the elevator

“W-we have to go,” he stuttered, pointing at the elevator. Without another word, Darwin and Linda quickly ran in that direction while Lacey continued to sob on the floor. “Lacey, get up.”

“No, Sav! It’s killing him!” she shrieked.

“Lacey, come on! We don’t have time.” 

Manuel helped her up, guiding her to the elevator. After a minute, they made it to the others. Darwin was furiously pushing the buttons on the elevator while Linda was wandering around, observing the floor.

“This damn door won’t open,” Darwin shouted, looking back at the group. “Linda, what are you doing?” 

“I dropped my glasses while running over here. They’re around here somewhere.”

Ding!

The elevator doors glided open, allowing the group to enter.

Seeing that Linda was still searching, Manuel lunged to reach her but was held back by Darwin. “Linda!”

“It’s too late.”

“Oh, here they are,” Linda cheered, picking up her glasses, but Darwin was right. It was too late. The monster had caught up to them, grabbing Linda, and sealing her fate.

“No!” Manuel cried as the elevator doors started to shut. His breathing grew heavy as he slid down the wall to take a seat. Lacey sat down next to him, with Darwin joining them.

“What was that thing?” Lacey interrogated. “It had large white eyes and massive teeth. It was like a monster straight out of a video game.”

“We don’t know. Whatever it was, I’m pretty sure it was in Mr. Wilkie’s office,” Darwin explained.

“You went into his office?”

“Told you it was a bad idea,” Manuel whispered.

“Whatever. You went in too. He wasn’t there anyway,” Darwin muttered, stopping himself to think. “Oh no. What if that thing ate Mr. Wilkie?”

“What are you talking about? I thought he left.”

“Nobody saw him leave.”

“That’s literally what I said,” Manuel grumbled.

Darwin exhaled, almost displaying an expression of true sadness. “Who’s gonna sign my paychecks now?”

Lacey’s head was now in her hands. “Who is gonna make out with me in the supply closet now?”

“You know, he died never having said a single word.”

“You both need to stop with this nonsense,” Manuel demanded. “We have to pull ourselves together if we’re gonna get out alive.”

“How do you suppose we do that? We don’t even know how that thing got in here.”

Suddenly, the elevator stopped, causing everyone to look at each other in confusion. The buttons were still glowing, meaning they hadn’t yet arrived on the ground floor as they intended. 

The roar of the creature could be heard above them, followed by claws piercing through the ceiling.

The three of them scrambled to pry the door open on whatever floor it was on, but it was proving difficult. They could see the beast now through the holes it was making. There wouldn’t be much time left before it got to them.

With a sigh of relief, the group was able to open the doors with a piece of metal that the beast broke off in its barrage, allowing them just enough room to escape. Lacey went first, followed by Manuel, and finally, Darwin, whose exit was stalled due to his leg being pulled in the opposite direction by the monster’s claws.

“Help!”

Lacey and Manuel each grabbed one of Darwin’s arms, slowly pulling him through, successfully stealing him away from the creature. Blood began pouring out of his leg, prompting the other two to carry him down the hall. The monster could be heard behind them, attempting to fit through the opening.

“Are you alright?” Manuel asked, setting Darwin down on the drop cloth covered floor.

“It hurts, but I’m fine. Thanks for saving me back there,” he whimpered.

“No problem. What is this place?”

“I think this is that empty floor right above the first. They wanted to do some painting for some project. That’s why it looks like this,” Darwin winced.

“I couldn’t find any medical supplies, but I found something to bandage up your leg for now,” Lacey stated, crouching down next to Darwin.

Manuel started to pace back and forth. “Did you find anything else?”

“Just a bunch of those paint roller extension poles and dried up paint,” she responded.

“Well, at least we have the paint to protect us,” Darwin joked, causing himself to cough. 

“We’re almost out. We just need to find the stairwell,” Manuel stated, helping Darwin up.

Crash!

Through the large windows, the creature emerged, towering over the three of them. Large wings were now visible, as well as pieces of a ripped up suit and a very loose tie hanging around its neck.

Almost falling back down, Darwin grabbed onto Manuel. “It can fly?”

“Wait, look at it,” Manuel exclaimed, pointing out the suit and tie.

“Oh no. That thing didn’t eat Mr. Wilkie. It is Mr. Wilkie.”

Manuel adjusted Darwin’s arm to rest on his shoulder as he started to carry him away. “Come on, Lacey. We’ve got to go.”

“No,” she declared, spinning one of the paint rollers around in a flawless manner. “I’ll hold it off. You two go without me.”

“But-”

“Go!” Lacey commanded. The boys did as she requested, leaving her behind. “This is for Sav!”

They reached the stairs after another minute, catching Lacey’s scream in the distance. Manuel couldn’t take any time to react. He had two lives in his hands—Darwin’s and his own. There was no time to think or worry, only time to run.

“At least now we know what the boss was hiding,” Darwin laughed, receiving no response from Manuel.  “Hey, can I talk to you?”

“Right now?”

“Yeah, it’s important.” Darwin cleared his throat. “I wanted to apologize for always cracking jokes and making it seem like I don’t respect you. Truth is, I’m envious of you. You’re amazing at your job and everyone likes you. Social situations don’t come as easy for me.”

“Darwin.”

“And I know that you and I have a weird history, but I’ve been nervous to tell you something. I could never find the right wor-”

“You shouldn’t be wasting your breath right now,” Manuel interrupted.

“This isn’t a waste, Manny. I don’t know if we’re gonna make it out of this and I don’t want to die without telling you… that I like you.”

Manuel stopped in his tracks, feeling his heart start to pound again. “Darwin, I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything.”

Taking that as permission to be silent, Manuel finally escorted Darwin to the ground floor. He located the front door, noticing that the blizzard had stopped during all of the chaos. It filled him with delight to believe that he’d finally be able to escape this nightmare.

The door was only about 30 feet away, and there was no time to waste.

Before he could make it halfway, the beast crashed through the ceiling, landing directly in front of the exit.

The creature roared, spitting out a large ball of green sludge toward Darwin. Manuel tackled him, narrowly avoiding the sludge, but dropping his phone in the process. The impact of hitting the floor caused the phone’s flashlight to turn on, blinding the beast.

Manuel picked up his phone, continuing to shine the light at it, carrying Darwin toward the door. 

As soon as they were out, they rushed to Manuel’s car, quickly getting inside and starting up the engine. They were almost out of the parking lot when the beast suddenly flew out of the building and toward the vehicle.

“Hold on,” Manuel told Darwin, brightening the headlights and revving up the engine. With nothing left to lose, he floored it toward the creature. 

The beast collided with the car as it let out one final roar, exploding into massive amounts of green sludge.

With no plans to stop, the pair had successfully exited the premises, getting as far away from the building as possible.

“Promise me you will never tell anyone about what occurred today,” Manuel finally spoke up.

“I promise,” Darwin agreed. “And about that thing I said earlier... It was in the heat of the moment I wasn’t in the right mi-”

“I like you too.”

“What?”

“I said I like you too.”

“Oh, cool. So, what do we do now?”

“Well, we murdered our boss, so I don’t know. Find new jobs.”