3 days off

Tiffany sighed, as she stared at her computer screen. Writing reports normally was never a chore, but for some reason she felt tired, yet restless at the same time. After a few more minutes, she decided to take another break despite her time to leave approaching within a half hour. She trudged along towards the break room, which was a few feet down the hall and on her left. The small room held just a few tables and chairs, with a refrigerator and a stove top to accompany the setup. Grabbing a paper cup from a small rack, she began to pour herself some water. As she poured in monotonic boredom, another, her boss skipped in happily behind her. He caught sight of the look on Tiffany's face, and could tell something was up.

"Hey Tiffany, I like that necklace. Where did you get it? If you know someone selling jewelry for a good price this time of year, I'd love to get something for my wife."

Tiffany smiled slightly, clutching the small, gold chain around her neck. "Thanks. There's some antique store that's remodeling and selling house on brown street. They have all sorts of weird items in there. Maybe you can find something for your wife, but this was about the most normal thing I could find."

Her boss could tell her usual pep and cheer wasn't quite there, and he tried to wonder how best to remedy the situation. Tiffany was one of the best for their insurance agency at writing up and researching information for clients. But all day it had seemed as if she was tired. He decided it could possibly be the beginning of a burnout, and quickly decided to head off the problem before it developed into something more established.

"You seem tired, why don't you head home?" Her boss stated, now taking her place and filling up a cup of his own. Tiffany looked around confused for a moment, before pointing at herself. "Me? Oh no. I'm fine. Cool as ice. You're the one who needs to get out of here early. I know you've got to be tired of hearing 'Gary! The printer is down!', or 'Gary, the toilet's backed up!', or 'Gary, I can't-'" Tiffany mocked, enunciating the voices to mimic specific coworkers. Gary couldn't help but laugh, and nearly spilt his water.

"That was good. But seriously. Go home. You look exhausted. Actually, don't come back until Friday. If you feel bad about missing some work, just do it from home. I know you're all caught up on researching, so it should just be writing up reports. Nothing you can't handle from the couch, with a laptop." He explained. Tiffany was about to interject again, but Gary quickly interrupted. "If you promise to take it easy for a few days, I will give you a big job. Something with a bonus attached."

That was enough to shut down her arguments. "Well, can't exactly say no to that. You've made me an offer I can't refuse." Pretending to be defeated. Inside, she was ecstatic over the bigger job chance, and the chance to beat the traffic and get out earlier. "If you need me, I'll be at home. On the couch, writing reports in my underwear." Tiffany said matter-of-factly. Gary raised an eyebrow at the details of her state of dress at home, but brushed it off as Tiffany being especially excited for a few days off. "Well, enjoy it. Hell, if that's what it takes to keep you working, just show up here in your birthday suit on Friday." He joked, laughing as she went down the other wing of the halls towards the elevator.