The Fifteen Minute Novel is an attempt to take a single prompt and use the last sentence written each day as a start for the next day. This year I had several prompts circling around a similar story, so I have combined them. However, the story starts the same way each day, with the last line from the day before and a timer set for fifteen minutes. The hope is to end up with a complete, if very rough draft by the end of the year. Some stories are better than others, but I always learn a whole lot about my own writing when I do this so for me it is not only a nice way to work out a story, but it is a tool for helping my writing get better. And so, we continue this story for 2024 with…
Day 75: Sophie turned back. “I am still not allowed to take any of your files.”
Sophie turned back. “I am still not allowed to take any of your files.” She again turned away.
“We’ll just see what Don has to say about this.”
Kristen walked towards Evers’ office and Sophie headed back to her own cubicle. After Sean’s explanation, Sophie didn’t think Kristen was likely to have too much success. ‘And Sean is still in Ever’s office.’
She shrugged and went back to her cubicle. She had her own work to do and wasn’t too interested in what happened with Kristen as long as it didn’t impact her.
‘After all what is she going to d, not talk to me any more?’ She shook the thought away and logged back into her computer. She got to work, pausing when she heard Kristen return to her own desk. She looked at the clock. ‘Twenty minutes,’ she thought. It was longer than Sophie suspected she would be away. ‘Maybe Sean and Evers explained the situation.’
Sophie wondered how long it would take before everyone knew they could no longer expect to pass off folders to her.
Sophie was left to work in peace and around lunch time, she heard everyone walk off to the food tuck courtyard. Since she wasn’t certain what to expect, Sophie packed her lunch. ‘Kind of glad I did.’ She suspected that today was not the day to gt mixed up with the lot of them outside the office.
Wanting to finished the file she was working with before stopping to eat, Sophie continued working. She finished and closed her file about the same time as everyone came back into the office. She stopped the music she was listening to as she worked and pulled her lunch out of her bag As she navigated to a new podcast, she heard the others as they moved to Evers office.
“Wait,” she heard Carrie say. “We can’t pass of any files?”
“None and no more extensions, at least not for a while,” Evers said.
“What ydo you mean no more extensions?” Kristen said. Sophie didn’t hear the response t that as the door to Mr. Evers office closed blocking out the conversation.
‘I guess they’ll know now,’ Sophie thought. She shrugged and scrolled through her list of available podcasts trying to decide which one she wanted to listen to over lunch.
“Is it true?” Someone asked.
Sophie nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of the voice. She spun around to see a sheepish Petra standing in the doorway. “Sorry,” Petra said. “I didn’t see the headphones.”
“No problem,” Sophie said trying to get her heartrate under control. She slipped the earbuds out of her ears. “So is what true?” she asked.
“That you’ve been promoted and are no longer under Don’s supervision?” Petra asked.
Ten til Midnight 