Mystery Cookie

While most people dread Mondays or going to work all together, Cooper enjoys coming to work.  He hadn’t always felt this way.  He used to be cynical like a lot of his co-workers in eligibility.  They come to work with fake smiles and complaints about their significant others; but over the past ten weeks he’s overcome the depression he began to deal with after Jenn broke off their engagement.

The happiness started again with a cookie about ten weeks ago.

A single cookie was sitting on his desk one Monday morning about a month after the break-up.  Cooper had no idea where it came from.  He didn’t trust a random cookie sitting on his desk so threw it away.  The next day another cookie was waiting for him.  Again he threw it away.  After a week of cookies, he finally started to accept the gift and eat them.  

And they were delicious!

He started looking forward to coming to work because of the mystery cookie.  He always felt it was that cute clerk girl Megan, but the cookies kept coming after she was fired for assaulting that guy Russ in claims.

The cookies made him happy because it made Cooper feel appreciated again.

Cooper approached his cubicle with the same expected excitement he had every morning now.  He slung his backpack on his desk but didn’t see a cookie.

In its place was a manila envelope. Cooper was slightly disappointed but intrigued with this unexpected surprise. 

He opened the envelope and emptied its contents on his desk.  A clinging sound got his attention first as he picked up a ring that came to rest next to his keyboard.  He held it between his thumb and fingers to examine and realized it was the ring he gave Jenn when he proposed.

“What the heck??!?”

He read the accompanying note: 

“Dear Coop.  I hope you enjoyed the cookies.  I saw how upset you were after the break-up; I felt you needed hope again.  Jenn actually helped me with the cookies, well she WAS the cookies.  She turned out very sweet.   I was thinking of using some of her for your birthday cake next month.  LMK. Megan.”

Confused, Cooper flipped over a picture and vomited as he recognized Jenn’s mutilated body in the background of Megan’s selfie.

***

Taken from Writer's Digest.  The writing prompt was as follows...

One day you come into work and find a cookie mysteriously placed on your desk. Grateful to whoever left this anonymous cookie, you eat it. The next morning you come in and find another cookie. This continues for months until one day a different object is left–and this time there’s a note.

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Steps Challenge

Russ sat in the bleachers of his daughter’s basketball game. Instead of watching his eleven year old soar over her opponents while grabbing rebounds and throwing elbows, he sifted through Google images of Atlantis on his smartphone. His company had offered up a “steps challenge” for his office. The employee with the most pedometer steps in the office gets an all-expense paid trip for two to the Bahamian resort.

They weren’t in the best financial situation when they got married twelve years ago, so they couldn’t afford a honeymoon. They got pregnant with Laura a few months later; then over the next eleven years four more kids arrived. The finances never got any better – they managed to keep their head above water over the past decade, but that honeymoon never came.

This trip was going to be his and this was going to be the honeymoon his wife, Christine always wanted.

“What are you doing?!?!” Christine chastised while hitting Russ in his knee.

“Owww.. What??”

Russ hurt his knee with this challenge. He was walking in the wooded area behind the office on Wednesday when he stepped in a hole and banged up his knee pretty good. He didn’t tell Christine about the challenge nor the knee because it would have brought up too many questions.

“Your daughter is out there playing like an all-star and you’re on your phone!!!”

“Okay okay okay.. I’m done anyways.”

Russ put away his phone but was still focusing on the pictures of Atlantis in his mind. He also focused on the leader board in his office. Megan was about four thousand steps ahead of him on Friday. He worked claims while she was the office clerk. Her job description gave her the reason to walk and walk and walk.

Russ secretly despised Megan. The twenty-two year old recent college graduate doesn’t need to go to the Bahamas. What does she have to get away from? Selfies on SnapChat? Her stupid old beagle named “Buddy”? He’s got kids. He deserves this vacation. She’s got plenty of years to go to Atlantis, Russ tried to justify.

Since he hurt his knee he hadn’t been able to walk as much and his count suffered. Megan was able to catch up and pass him because of the injury. Russ also noted she didn’t do a lot of walking on weekends and it was his time to catch up. Yet he wasn’t able to because of this stupid knee. The final step count would be turned in tomorrow morning at 8 AM and all Russ would have are these Google Images of the Bahamas. He hated he’d have to hear about the bathing suits and cute lifeguards from Megan.

Oh how he despised her.

The buzzer sounded and the game was over. He and his family cheered for his daughter’s winning team. He gingerly made his way down the bleachers to embrace his daughter.

“Excellent job, Ladybug!”

“Thanks” an out of breath Laura said while guzzling down some water.

Russ hugged his daughter and pulled something from her waistband.

While other family members congratulated her, Russ looked at the pedometer he removed from his daughter’s shorts. Seven thousand steps added to his count. Hello Atlantis. Let’s see her stupid old beagle get that many this weekend.

***

Taken from Writer's Digest.  The writing prompt was as follows...

In an effort to improve the health of the office, your company has issued a steps challenge—who can take the most steps in a week. The winner gets a free trip to the Bahamas (something you are determined to win). It’s come down to the final day and it’s between you and one other person in your office—and that person keeps trying to sabotage you.  What happens and who wins?

Link to Prompt.

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