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I Resigned From My Steady Job

I Resigned From My Steady Job

Short Story · Emotional Realism
By:  Mr. CapybaraCompleted
Language: English
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Synopsis

Face Slapping

Workplace

Independence

Hypocrisy

Teacher

Feel-Good Story

Plot Twists

Two months before the SAT, Dom Platt, Director of Academic Affairs, called Monica Rae, the teacher in charge of Class Seven, and me into a meeting. “After discussing it, we’ve decided that this year’s Master Teacher promotion will go to one of you. We’ll base the decision on which class shows the greatest percentage improvement on the third SAT practice test.” I was already celebrating inside. Everyone in the senior year knew Class Seven was the weakest class. Most had given up on going to college. Half of them barely showed up to class, let alone paid attention. My students in Class One were another story. They studied on their own and were determined to push their scores higher before the SAT. That promotion had my name written all over it. However, on the very day the third practice test results were posted, the school announced without warning that Monica had been promoted to Master Teacher. I stared at the results sheet. Monica was listed as the teacher in charge of Class One. My name was beside Class Seven. It finally hit me. I had worked into the early hours night after night to raise Class One’s average score by two percent, only for Monica to take all the credit. So much for that supposedly fair decision. I walked into the academic office with a blank expression and slapped my resignation letter onto Dom’s desk. He stared at me in shock. “Have you lost your mind? The names on that results sheet are only temporary. If you quit, who’s going to get Class One ready for the SAT? Those kids have a real shot at Harrowgate or Kingsbridge!” I sneered. “I’m done with the dirty politics at this school. I quit.”

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Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Dom Platt’s expression hardened. He looked at me and said in a measured voice, “Ms. Cruz, I get that you’re upset about the promotion announcement.”

He waved my letter with a resigned expression.

“But you know I’m only the Director of Academic Affairs. I don’t run the school. I didn’t make this decision alone, and the announcement wouldn’t have gone out without the majority’s approval.

“You’re an excellent teacher, and you’ve made a name for yourself across the city. Is it really worth fighting a newer teacher over this one promotion?

“Giving someone else a chance helps keep the faculty motivated, you know?”

I stood there with an indifferent expression.

“Right. Of course you’re right. Everyone in the city knows me as the teacher whose students aced the SAT. Even so, this school has held back my promotion for ten years…”

Before I could finish, Dom cut me off.

“Yes, yes, Ms. Cruz, I know you’ve been treated unfairly. How about this? Next year. There’s bound to be another promotion available next year, and then…”

I shut my eyes tight.

It was the same promise every year. I was done pretending to believe him.

“Enough! It’s been ten years. Even an average teacher with nothing to show for it would’ve made Senior Teacher by now, just on years of service.

“Yes, teaching these kids is my job, and I’ve done it without complaint. I’ve never shirked my responsibilities, and I’ve treated every student fairly.

“So, why do the promotions I’ve earned always go to someone else? You’ve had a thousand excuses over the years, but I want an answer now.

“Why am I still an Associate Teacher after ten years, while Ms. Rae makes Master Teacher before she’s even been here two years?”

Having said everything I wanted to say, I fought back tears and exhaled deeply.

“Mr. Platt, this isn’t a rash decision. I’ve thought it through. I know I can’t take on the school, and I’m not asking for anything else. There’s only one thing I want today.”

I held his gaze without a flicker of emotion.

“I want to resign.”

Dom’s face darkened at once.

“You’ve been here for years, and this school has treated you well. Show some loyalty.

“Do you think you built your reputation for getting students into Harrowgate and Kingsbridge on your own? This school gave you that reputation.

“Are you just going to walk away right before the SAT? Have you no sense of duty as a teacher?”

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9 Chapters
Chapter 1
Dom Platt’s expression hardened. He looked at me and said in a measured voice, “Ms. Cruz, I get that you’re upset about the promotion announcement.”He waved my letter with a resigned expression.“But you know I’m only the Director of Academic Affairs. I don’t run the school. I didn’t make this decision alone, and the announcement wouldn’t have gone out without the majority’s approval.“You’re an excellent teacher, and you’ve made a name for yourself across the city. Is it really worth fighting a newer teacher over this one promotion? “Giving someone else a chance helps keep the faculty motivated, you know?”I stood there with an indifferent expression. “Right. Of course you’re right. Everyone in the city knows me as the teacher whose students aced the SAT. Even so, this school has held back my promotion for ten years…”Before I could finish, Dom cut me off.“Yes, yes, Ms. Cruz, I know you’ve been treated unfairly. How about this? Next year. There’s bound to be another promot
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Chapter 2
I felt a jolt.A teacher’s duty? I turned his words over in my mind and nearly laughed out loud.There were sixty teachers at this school. If anyone had taken that duty seriously, it was me.In my ten years of teaching, I had always worked harder than my students whenever the SAT drew near.I stayed up late preparing lessons, studied past tests for likely topics, and put together study guides.When my students were overwhelmed, I even skipped Thanksgiving dinner with my family to drive over and help them through it.Every time my students set a new school record, an administrator would smile and pat me on the shoulder.“Thank you for all your hard work, Ms. Cruz. Don’t worry, you’ll be on the promotion list next year!”That promise had kept me here for ten years.It was never fulfilled.I rubbed my stinging eyes and forced myself to stand straight. “Mr. Platt, I’ve never let this school down. Every year when the SAT came around, I worked even harder than my students. I thou
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Chapter 3
“Exactly! Mr. Corvin had it all figured out!”Their footsteps faded down the hallway, but my heart could not stop pounding.Was the working world really this cruel?Before I could dwell on it, my phone rang in my pocket.I stared blankly ahead and answered on autopilot. A familiar woman’s voice came through.“Annie? It’s Kelly Brett, from college! How are things at Ridgeway High? I’m calling on behalf of Cresthaven Academy. We’d love to have you here. If you’re interested, we’ll offer you the best salary we can.“How does $800,000 a year sound? I promise we’ll take good care of you. If there’s anything else you want, just say the word. We can talk it through.”$800,000?Hearing that astronomical figure, I could not help but chuckle. In all ten years at Ridgeway High, I had not earned even half that much altogether.I had given in again and again and poured everything I had into my work. In return, they had decided I was someone they could push around.They had shown me no l
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Chapter 4
So when persuasion failed, he moved on to threats? I knew exactly what was going on.Many students had come to Class One because of my reputation for producing top SAT scorers. Their parents had paid hefty “donations” to secure them a place.Since they thought I was disposable, I would show them what happened when I left.I wanted to see how happy those students and parents would be once Class One lost the teacher they had come for.Kelly and I agreed that I would start in three days. With the SAT so close, I was able to negotiate an annual salary that was almost hard to believe.The next evening, a message in the staff chat told everyone to attend a dinner.They called it a dinner, but it was an old school tradition meant to rally the teachers working with the seniors before the SAT.Jack stood onstage with a drink in his hand and a broad smile on his face. He held up a stack of bonus checks. “To thank everyone teaching our seniors for all your hard work, the school has set
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Chapter 5
Before anyone else could react, I grabbed my purse and headed for the door.Monica rushed over and caught my arm.“Ms. Cruz, what are you talking about? You can’t just quit now! What will happen to Class One if you leave?”I did not pull away. I just smiled at her.“What do you mean? You’re Class One’s teacher now, aren’t you? The assignment notice is still up on the bulletin board.“I’m only an Associate Teacher. My leaving won’t be a big deal, and it certainly won’t disrupt the school’s plans.”I spoke evenly, without a hint of resentment or hurt.Just then, Victor Raymond, the principal, who had been sitting in the back row, frowned and cut in. “What do you mean, Associate Teacher? Ms. Cruz has been recognized for outstanding teaching ten years in a row. How is she still at the lowest rank?”Jack’s expression turned a little nervous, but he quickly regained his composure.He stepped off the stage and approached Victor with a fawning smile.“Mr. Raymond, with respect, it’
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Chapter 6
I opened my bag without hesitation and held out a stack of pay stubs.“Mr. Raymond, I do care about this school. But after years of being bullied at work, caring about it isn’t enough to keep me here.“These are my pay stubs from the past five years. I’ve worked here for ten years, and I’m still paid at the bottom of the scale.“Aside from a schoolwide $300 raise four years ago, my pay has never changed. Every year, I do everything I can to raise my students’ SAT scores. Even when they do well, I never receive a bonus.”I wiped the tears from my cheeks as I continued, “Even the younger teachers who joined long after I did earn far more than I do. They outrank me too.”Someone in the room let out an audible gasp.Everyone knew Jack had been holding me back.Though seeing it laid out in my pay stubs was another matter.All the color drained from Jack’s face.He stepped forward with a strained smile, scrambling to explain himself.“N-No, it’s not like that! It was all part of th
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Chapter 7
“Who do you think you are? Without this school, you’d be nobody. Have you forgotten how your knees shook whenever you stood in front of a class when you first started?“Can you honestly say you’ve done right by this school or by your students?”I turned back and looked Jack straight in the eyes. “I haven’t done right by the school? Are you serious? If there’s anyone I’ve done right by all these years, it’s this school!”Jack clenched his fists. Veins stood out on his forehead. “From my first year here, my base pay was $5,000 a month. It stayed that way until the schoolwide pay adjustment four years ago, when it rose to $5,300.“Apart from that, I haven’t received a bonus or any other extra pay from this school. Isn’t that right?”Jack said nothing. I counted off the years on my fingers. “Over the past ten years, whenever another teacher needed time off, I was the first person assigned to cover their classes.“But when I asked for leave, I was turned down eight times out of
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Chapter 8
“What a monster! Annie Cruz is a fraud! Our family scraped together $100,000 to get our child into Class One so they’d have a shot at a good university. Do you know what that cost us?“Now, with the SAT almost here, she just walks away! Changing teachers this late could hurt any class, let alone the school’s top class. She scammed us! What kind of teacher does that?”The crowd erupted in angry agreement.Several people raised their phones to record.I pushed through the crowd and walked calmly into the middle.“I’m Annie Cruz. Can you say for certain that you handed that $100,000 to me? If you can’t, you’re defaming me. Do you realize that?”The woman hesitated for a moment, then dropped to the pavement and started shouting again.“Don’t play innocent! I paid that money to you! You harlot, you’ve got some nerve showing your face here. Everyone, look at her!“This is Annie Cruz. She used her reputation for getting students into Harrowgate and Kingsbridge to charge parents a fort
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Chapter 9
What surprised me was how stubborn the woman was. Even in the interview room, she refused to give Jack up.She insisted she had acted on her own because she disliked me.She was the only person who could directly implicate Jack. As long as she stuck to that story, there was nothing anyone could do about him, even though everyone knew he was behind it.That was fine.That evening, after I got home from the police station, a video of the confrontation appeared in my feed.The creator had edited it well, making the whole story easy to follow.Viewers were furious and started digging into who had sent the woman.The comment section quickly filled with people criticizing Jack.[Is this what workplace politics looks like? That’s a dirty move.][I know Ms. Cruz. She’s been recognized as an outstanding teacher for years. I’ve heard she’s great with students.][This video tells you everything. At some schools, the people at the top can still do whatever they want.]I scrolled through
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