27. Hit or miss

As the meeting went on, Zack listened attentively to what everyone had to say, mentally making notes. Everyone, including Chris, had a thing or two to say, and after an hour and a half, the meeting was finally concluded.

"Now before we go," Mrs. Vaughn brought everyone's attention to the sore topic once again. "As some of you here know, Zack once worked here, and he had such great potential, and that is why I didn't hesitate to bring him back. But the consequence of his past decision is that he only gets to start all over again. His presence here is merely formalities to introduce him back here. Some of you here have worked with him, and some of you have heard of him, I am sure. So what do you think about this old woman's decision?" Mrs. Vaughn said authoratively, although her last question made it sound like she was asking for their suggestion.

The room was quiet for a second, with everyone processing her words and unsure how to attempt to answer her tricky question.

"How could we possibly forget about your beloved grandson?" Mr. Weston said straightforwardly. "After his father passed, he came and turned his work into a legacy, some, and some of the policies and partnerships thanks to Zack, are still a major contributor to this company today," Mr. Weston said, and some of the people who knew Zack and refused to acknowledge him could only nod their heads, feeling some guilt.

"But," Mr. Weston brought back everyone's attention. "How could we possibly trust you to put it in the hands of someone who could easily throw everything away when things don't go his way, the future of this company?"

As soon as Mr. Weston said that those who were for Zack and against Chris nodded in satisfaction.

"I believe in what Mr. Weston here said," Mrs. Hartley took over. "All of us here dedicated years of our lives to this company. So it would be hugely unfair to us to appoint your grandson and have him work anyhow he wishes."

"How are we sure that he won't do the same thing once again whenever he sees fit, knowing he will have a place whenever he chooses without the hard work required to keep his place?" Mr. Sicily added.

"I think we should be careful. Because a single decision could end up affecting our stocks in a way unimaginable," one of the shareholders said grimly.

"And how are we sure he wouldn't want to throw away everything again in the nearest future?" Mr. Porter contributed.

"In my opinion," Mr. Walker spoke and everyone listened attentively. "Zack's good decisions far outweigh that one decision he made. In the end, every one of us is bound to experience one life struggle that could either make or break us. And as someone who has been his mentor for some time, I know Zack has quite the potential."

"Then are you saying we should give him a chance," Mr. Weston spoke. "Because of the chances that he might be a hit or miss?"

"Yes," Mr. Walker said firmly.

"Hmmm," Mrs. Hartley drew in breath. "Who is willing to take the chances then?" Mrs. Hartley tried to look at each and every member of the meeting in the eye, but everyone avoided her gaze.

"I have heard what I needed to hear from you all," Mrs. Vaughn stated, "I will give Zack a chance to prove himself. As you said," Mrs. Vaughn looked towards Mr. Weston. "Hit or miss, you call it? I trust one hundred percent on my grandson's abilities," Mrs. Vaughn said confidently. "I will give him a task, and I will prove to you how capable he is!"

*

The meeting was finally over and Zack quietly let himself out, only letting out a sigh of relief when he reached the door to his office.

Only then did he realize why his grandmother wanted him to attend the meeting. It was not because he needed to input anything to or learn from the meeting itself, but she wanted him to face the reality of how rough the workplace can be with her no longer backing him up as she did years ago.

Zack opened his office to enter when he saw someone, their back to him, gathering the papers on his table while their other hand held his briefcase.

What was this person doing going around his stuff? Did they not think this was now his office? but still the storage.

"Hey you," Zack said, walking up to the person and grabbing them by the shoulder. "What are you..." Zack's worlds died in his throat when the startled, familiar face turned. "HR? What are you doing here?" Zack said, confused.

"Oh Mr. Zack Vaughn, you scared me," the man smiled brightly at him and Zack had a hard time believing it was the same person. "Oh, forgive my rudeness please. I even forgot to introduce myself. It's John Dixon by the way," the man caught dropped the suitcase and papers on the table and caught Zack's hand in his two hands, shaking them vigorously, his smile getting wider that Zack wondered if at one point the edges of the man's mouth might tear. "Oh, I am such a fool that I couldn't recognize an important person such as yourself. Sitting my butt in the HR office does this to someone."

"Uhm, okay?" Zack replied, unsure. "But that doesn't explain what you are doing here."

"To answer your request, of course," John answered.

"What request?" Zack wondered if he had any other requests.

"To change your office, of course. On behalf of those who messed up your first day at work, I offer my sincerest apologies," John said regrettably, almost bowing. "Now, you can't spend another minute here," John grabbed Zack's briefcase and papers once again. "Even a well polished rat would dread this place. Come on now, let's go," John ushered Zack out of the office, and Zack gladly let himself be carried away.

On the way to Zack's new office, Jason distracted him, making sure to entertain him with all sorts of gist, and Zack took that as an opportunity to learn a thing or two about the current state of the company…

Zack's attention was brought back to his surroundings when they got off the elevator and started walking around the familiar floor.

"Isn't this..." Zack wondered out loud.

"The vice chairman's floor. Right," John answered so enthusiastically for Zack's liking. "He called and asked you to be moved to his floor right away, and I tell you got one of the finest offices here," John blabbered, and it finally made sense to Zack the strange treatment he was getting from John.

As much as Zack wanted to turn away the offer and go back to that tiny storage, he knew that working in a nonconducive environment wouldn't yield the best results.

Finally, they stopped in front of what would be Zack's office. John took out the key, unlocked the door before handing the keys to Zack.

"What do you think?" John asked, as they entered the office and Zack took a good look at it.

"It's fine," Zack commented.

"And guess what? It's also close to Chris Vaughn's office."