My $30,000 year-end bonus became $30. I asked my boss if there had been a mistake. He sighed. "It's been a tough year, sweetheart. I promise I'll make it up to you next year." I looked at the sales report, at the $600,000 figure next to my name. And I thought to myself, Yeah, right. I'm not falling for that. That night, I quit. And I went to work for the boutique right across the street. 1 That afternoon, my boss, Mr. Franklin, walked into the shop carrying two bubble teas. "Year-end is upon us," he said cheerfully, handing one to me and one to my coworker, Hailey. "Bonuses have been deposited. Have a wonderful holiday, everyone. Let's keep up the great work next year and push those sales even higher." Hailey and I exchanged a delighted smile. At the beginning of the year, Mr. Franklin had made us a promise: a five percent commission on all our sales, paid out as a year-end bonus. I’d just checked my numbers. I had personally sold over $600,000 worth of designer clothing. That meant a bonus of at least $30,000 was headed my way. Hailey’s sales were less than half of mine, but she was still looking at a respectable eight or nine thousand dollars. I was floating on air all afternoon. The second my shift ended, I rushed over to the sales office of a new condo building I’d been eyeing for months. I was finally going to buy that perfect little studio apartment. I was so tired of renting. Every time I’d finally get a place decorated just right, turning it into a cozy little sanctuary, the landlord would jack up the rent the following year. But this was it. The down payment on the studio was only $18,000. For just eighteen grand, I could have a place to call my own. A warm little corner of the city that was all mine. After the down payment, I'd still have over ten thousand dollars left from my bonus. Enough for a nice vacation during the holidays. The thought kept a smile plastered on my face, a smile I couldn't suppress no matter how hard I tried. 2 I hummed a happy tune as I rode my scooter to the sales office. My real estate agent, Leon, was already waiting for me. With a confident flourish, I pulled out my debit card. "Here you go. I'll take the one we looked at last time." Leon took the card, his professional smile fixed in place. He swiped it. And then swiped it again. The smile began to look a little strained. "Hm, there seems to be... an issue with this card, Ms. Chen." My own smile faltered. "That's impossible. Thirty thousand dollars were just deposited today. Try it again." He tried several more times. Each time, the machine read: "Insufficient Funds." I snatched the card back, a knot of dread forming in my stomach. I raced to the nearest bank. The ATM screen confirmed my fears. My balance was $33.82. The thirty dollars and change were what was left from before. Which meant my boss had deposited exactly thirty dollars. As I stood there, utterly dumbfounded, my phone rang. It was Hailey. "Chloe? What was your bonus? I think mine's wrong. I only got fifteen dollars." We quickly came to the same conclusion: it had to be a mistake. "Chloe, what do we do?" Hailey's voice was tight with panic. "I was counting on that money." "Don't worry," I assured her, though my own heart was hammering. "I'll go talk to him. I'll get him to fix this." 3 Mr. Franklin lived just a block away from my apartment. I jumped on my scooter and zipped over to his building, taking the stairs two at a time to the fourth floor. When he opened the door and saw me, he didn't look surprised at all. He just raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Franklin, there seems to be a problem with our bonuses. I think there was a mistake—" He cut me off, clapping a hand on my shoulder with a sigh. "Chloe, Chloe. You're a veteran here. Business has been terrible this year. The market is in the gutter." He shook his head sorrowfully. "My other stores are all losing money. I just don't have the cash for bonuses right now. How about this? Next year, when things pick up, I promise I'll make it up to both of you. How does that sound?" I knew about his other ventures; it was true they had all failed. But our boutique was a different story. Our boutique was thriving. My sales alone had netted him a profit of at least $200,000. And he was the one who had offered the five percent commission. It was that promise that had driven us to work our fingers to the bone. That commission wasn't a gift; it was earned. The losses from his other failed businesses shouldn't be on our shoulders. "Mr. Franklin, with all due respect, that's not how this works," I said, my voice shaking slightly. "The other stores have nothing to do with us. You promised us five percent." His friendly demeanor vanished. "Chloe, look," he said, pulling me into the dim light of the stairwell. He quickly transferred three hundred dollars to my account from his phone. "Here. You're my best employee. Don't tell anyone, especially not my wife. This is from my personal stash." Before I could respond, he slipped back inside his apartment and shut the door. I stared at the three-hundred-dollar transfer notification on my phone. A wave of humiliation washed over me. I felt like a beggar being tossed a few coins. A lump formed in my throat, thick and bitter. That thirty thousand dollars was mine. I had earned every single cent of it. 4 Hailey called me a few minutes later. "Chloe? What did he say? When are we getting our bonuses?" "Hailey," I said, my voice flat. "I don't think we are." "What?! Why not? I need that money for my mom's surgery!" Hailey hung up and was at my door within fifteen minutes. The moment she stepped inside, her eyes were red-rimmed. "What happened, Chloe? How can he just go back on his word? He promised us five percent! I told my mom I'd pay for her surgery as soon as I got my bonus. What am I going to do now?" She collapsed into my arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Hailey was a sweet girl from a small town, with a family that had never had much. Her dad was killed in a hit-and-run when she was little. The driver was never caught. Her mom had raised her all alone, working multiple jobs just to get by. Just as Hailey was finally old enough to start her own career, her mom was diagnosed with stomach cancer. The doctors said surgery would give her a real chance, a chance at more years. "Without that bonus, how can I afford my mom's surgery?" Hailey's words were choked with tears. "He promised. How can he just lie to us?" My own heart ached for her. Hailey was the hardest worker I knew, always the first to arrive and the last to leave. Knowing I had a sensitive stomach, she would often bring me homemade lunches. "People are made of iron, but rice is made of steel," she'd say with a grin, quoting her mom. "Eating well is the most important thing in life." She was three years younger than me, and I thought of her as a little sister. I’d even passed a few of my own clients to her, just so she could boost her sales and get a bigger bonus. And now, our boss had just... decided not to pay us. His promise was worth nothing. It took a long time to calm Hailey down. After I sent her home, my phone rang. It was Leon, the real estate agent. 5 "Ms. Chen, are you still interested in the condo?" I paused. "I... I can't afford it right now." He launched into his sales pitch, reminding me of the great location, the perfect price. I rubbed my temples, where a dull throb had started. "I don't have the money anymore." That finally shut him up. "Ms. Chen," he said, his voice now cooler, "are you sure you want to back out? The deposit is non-refundable, you know." I'd been apartment hunting for six months. When I found this place—perfect location, great price, my favorite floor—Leon had convinced me to put down a deposit to hold it. I had calculated everything. My bonus would easily cover the down payment. So I'd paid the three-thousand-dollar deposit on the spot. I never imagined my boss would just... renege. It was my fault for breaking the contract. There was nothing I could do. The three thousand dollars were gone. "Look, Ms. Chen," Leon said, making one last attempt, "I'll hold the unit for you for another week. See if you can pull the funds together." After I hung up, my head was pounding. I curled up on my sofa, my mind racing. I couldn't just let my thirty thousand dollars disappear. I grabbed my bag, hopped back on my scooter, and headed straight back to my boss's apartment.
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