Chameleon (Stardew Valley x OC)

Prologue: Perfect Fit

"I feel like I've been your best friend forever!"

"You're so impressive!"

"It's like you get along with everyone, how do you do it?"

"I love you."

"You've done so well at the company, we'd like to offer you a raise."

"It's like you were born for this."

"I'm sorry, I'm not sure I understand. Is this a resignation letter?" Her District Manager asked, dumbfounded. His shock was almost satisfying to her and could've acted as her sole reason to even pull a stunt like this in the first place. The office was small, and his voice could easily be heard from the open door. She had offered to shut the door behind her when she first entered, but he dismissively waved the notion off.

"Yes, effective immediately." Pinching her leg through her stocking, she offered a sympathetic smile as she nodded and confirmed his words. You could hear the chatter and buzz from outside of the office stop and slow down to silence and the occasional mutter. Drama in the office was relished and always spread through whispers by the coffee machine. But this juicy occasion didn't even need to be spread, the whole office was bearing witness firsthand to one of their prized managers quitting on the spot.

"Ms. Mae, I don't think you understand the severity of a decision like this. For both yourself, and the company. Where is this coming from? You're one of our best, a move like this would tarnish your reputation, you'd wouldn't even be considered for rehire!" All of this sounded like a veiled threat and a 'reconsider!' to Mae's ears, or the closest thing to it that someone would ever get from her District Manager. He had never been an agreeable man, even to her— one of his favorite employees— his words, not hers.

"I understand your concern for me, and I truly appreciate it. However, my decision cannot be changed. I have already packed my belongings from my desk, and scheduled to return any remaining company assets in my possession." Mae offered up the most appropriate response for the situation. Revealing that such a bold move was premeditated on her end, the District Manager was struggling to remain composed and keep his professionalism. He had always been quick to anger, Mae internally mused.

Readying herself to leave, she stood up and gathered her jacket, noticeably leaving behind her company laptop— which she had already wiped clean. She was only halfway through picking up her bag when he spoke again, this time, not fully able to hide his his anger and desperation, "Why? What do you want? If this is because you haven't seen a raise in a few months, we've been working on that! A promotion! You're a perfect candidate! We can discuss a new raise, new benefits?" Mae paused in her actions, almost seeming like she was considering it. Though it was only in shock, she hadn't expected him to actually offer anything. She didn't expect anything good from this company at all, much less her unpleasant District Manager resorting to bartering and begging. She hadn't even considered herself all that important to the company.

Overcoming her shock, Mae picked up her bag with finality. Wordlessly offering a handshake to her superior which he quickly returned with a clammy hand and a relieved smile, thinking she might've accepted the offer, "Thank you for the opportunity to work here, and all the experience you gave me. I expect my final paycheck to be deposited in my account in 5 business days." She said words she didn't truly mean, defaulting to a suitable reply to follow through with her actions. Making eye contact with him, clear fury and disbelief were swimming in his eyes, his entire face was scrunched up in unsaid anger, and she took a second to wonder how he got that far if he was such an open book.

With some effort, she let go of his hand and walked out the door, back straight and with confidence. All the eyes that were nosily fixed on the office darted away as people pretended to busy themselves with work. Mae pinched her thigh harder, feeling her stockings rip a bit as she let out a small, inaudible 'tsk' and made a beeline for the restroom. The entire office was still so quiet, Mae's heels sounded so loud to her while she rushed to the bathroom, trying to maintain her own composure. She could feel eyes glue themselves to her back as she passed her old coworkers. Her walk to the bathroom never felt so long before.

Finally making it to the bathroom, Mae quickly locked the door behind her and let out the breath she had been holding the entire time. Her back slumped and she took a minute to slow her breathing, her face felt hot and her ears were burning up. She was so close though, don't loose your cool now, she chastised herself. Exhaling and gripping the sink like it was the only thing keeping her upright, she contemplated splashing some water on her face before deciding against it, "I don't think I put on waterproof concealer today." She muttered and sighed to herself. Looking up into the mirror, she wasn't surprised at the reflection. Everything was in place, her appearance was deliberate, just like it was today, and the day before, and the years she spent at this job. A pristine, white button down, tucked into an ironed pencil skirt, a slicked back bun, and eye bags expertly hidden by makeup. She spent a second longer observing her eyes, black, cold, sharp, and lifeless. Her eyes flickered to her stocking and she openly grimaced, noticing she had indeed accidentally pinched a hole into her stocking. She tried to ignore her annoyance, 'It's not like I'll need them after today.'

Looking to the mirror, she tried her hand at a smile. Frowning at how tense the smile looked, she tried again, giving herself a small pep talk along with it, "This is what you want— no. This is what you need Mae. You go out there, you say your goodbyes, smile, maybe cry a little bit if it's appropriate. And leave." Her heart was pounding in her chest and she felt like doing much more than anything that she said. She'd be lying if she said that it wasn't exhilarating to pull such a stunt, but she'd just as easily be telling a bigger lie if she were to say uncertainty didn't bubble in her stomach and silently weighed her down. Mae was terrified at the prospect of quitting her job, throwing away years of hard work she put in to climb the ranks. All the tears, all the mundane tasks of playing friendly with two-faced coworkers, the preparation she put into presenting herself as the perfect office woman every single day— was all down the drain. She was angry at herself, she felt pathetic. Maybe if she had been stronger, been able to tough through more, she wouldn't be in this situation.

But part of her knew it was suicide to stay here. That this was an inevitable decision, whether she had done it with the opportunity she had now, or finally broke down from stress with nothing to rely on. That letter from her Grandfather was her out, it was the chance she had been waiting for. She couldn't squander it by continuing to live an unfulfilling life, spending her days in a sad cubicle, staring at her computer screen and papers until she felt her daily headache pound in the back of her head, giving fake smiles and laughs before coming home to a cold and empty apartment, only to rinse and repeat this cycle every single day. It was all catching up to her, she couldn't live like that anymore.

Focusing on her reflection one more time, Mae gave herself a once over. Pulling the skirt down a little to hide the hole she had created in her stockings and patting down her shirt that had been slightly wrinkled from being hunched over the sink for so long, she straightened her back once more. Eyeing a piece of curly hair that popped out from her slicked back bun, she grumbled at it, not having the time to redo her hair and risking spending anymore time in the bathroom. Choosing to ignore it, she made eye contact with her reflection, letting out a small, perfect, smile. Satisfied, she walked out the bathroom and made her way to pick up the last of her stuff from her desk.

Her District Managers door was now closed, the faint sound of a frantic phone call could be heard but she wouldn't see him for the rest of her time there. The remainder of her time was spent exchanging faux sad goodbyes from coworkers she knew had just been giggling on lunch break about her. Making her way to the elevator, everything felt eerily quiet, and Mae's stomach churned more with uncertainty as the silence let her thoughts run rampant. But once she was out of the building and she heard the busy streets and traffic flood her mind, those feelings immediately washed away. Mae felt like she could finally acknowledge the building for what it actually was now that she was no longer inside it, no longer tied to it. Turning around, Mae openly glared at the building. It was the most expressive her face had been the entire day. Hailing a cab, she watched the rest of the passing buildings with open disdain, knowing that she'd be able to leave Zuzu city with more conviction than she had leaving her job at Joja cooperations.