Chapter Text
You stood outside Tenna’s office frozen. You adjust your blue cap on top of your head in a fit of anxiety as you wondered how you got here.
Tenna's office was a scary place where workers like you went to get fired- chewed out or spat on. Very rarely did anyone get praise. However you were called to his office for a reason- an interview. You’ve been selected to get interviewed for Tenna’s personal mechanic after an outstanding record for fixing electrical issues. You mostly fixed the lights and stage controls for Tenna’s shows as this caught people's attention. Apparently Mike- one of Tenna’s assistants recommended you.
You didn’t know whether to thank him or curse him-. You were a simple worker really- you showed up to work- did your business- and went home to your crummy apartment. You didn’t need all of this attention.
You took a deep breath as you adjusted your blue jumpsuit- maybe you should have changed before the interview but- you didn’t have time. You were caught up smothering fire hazard on set earlier due to faulty wires. So here you were- sweaty, disshelved, tired and ready to get fired cause why would Tenna want YOU to be his personal mechanic.
Hell you didn’t even want the promotion- doing bad at this interview could result in your termination! Maybe- you should have called in sick today…
You took a deep breath as you strode into Tenna office-
The first thing you noticed when entering Tenna’s room was the stench of smoke. The heavy stench slapped you in the face as it made you nauseous. You tried your best not to gag.
Behind his big mahogany wooden desk Tenna sat away from you watching the view outside. You cleared your throat to get his attention. Tenna hummed softly as his antennas perked up in response.
“Ah- so the applicant decided to show up today-“ Tenna spoke as he turned around in his swivel chair. “I didn’t expect you to show up after I fired that last mechanic on the spot ya know.” Tenna chuckled as he shimmied closer to his desk.
You let out a strained chuckle as you sat down in one of the two chairs littered in front of Tenna’s desk. “Of course, I wouldn’t miss this opportunity-“ You replied, trying not to sound nervous.
You’ve never been around Tenna too much outside the sets- but you already knew, he’s kind of an ass-. He always yelled at workers, whether they were doing the right thing or not. Tenna had a short temper- and nobody could stop him. He was the owner of the business after all.
“I see- I couldn’t tell since you're wearing that.” Tenna grimaced looking at your attire.
Yeah- he’s definitely an ass-. You grit your teeth as new found annoyance crept upon your shoulders.
“I understand I’m not in appropriate attire but I was caught up with something. I figured I rather show up like this- than waste your time-.” You retorted as Tenna’s jaw clenched.
Uh oh-
“You were ‘busy’? I bet you were fooling around with someone rather than making yourself presentable“ Tenna accused- he seemed upset with your lack of respect. “I could have you pay docked you know-“ Tenna hissed. You clenched your fists as your patience wore thin. You didn’t do six years of school and four years of hard labor to be treated like this! Your anger built up as soon enough your filter broke before yelling.
Screw keeping this job! Tenna was more of an ass than you realized. You would never work under him- You could find another job anyways with your experience-.
You’d miss the benefits though…
“Well excuse me for saving your building! I was busy putting out an electric fire and rerouting your messed up wires!…” You hissed as you stood up. “You have no respect for us workers do you?” You huffed as you stared Tenna down. Tenna’s face leaned to the side as his face became illegible to read.
Scary-
“You know what- screw you man….” You clicked your tongue as you turned to the door.
Screw this shit- you’d find a better job someplace else.
“Stop-“ Tenna commanded as his voice echoed off of the walls. You stopped as you turned around to see Tenna holding up a piece of paper. “You aren’t allowed to leave unless I fire you-“ Tenna smiled as he looked at you maliciously. You clench your fists as you turn around to face him.
“Then fire me jackass-“ You hissed back. However this only seemed to strengthen his smile as he laughed.
“Haha! Oh my god! Ha- You h-have no idea what you’ve got yourself into! Ha ha aaah!” Tenna laughed as that familiar uneasy feeling crept upon you. “You signed a contract- when we first hired you- ya know.“ Tenna choked as he put the thin sheet of paper down upon his desk. He gestured for you to read it as you walked back over looking at the thing.
You slowly read the words as a lump started to swell in your throat. You finally realized the severity of the situation. Tenna’s laughter simmered as he read your expression. He couldn’t help but smile crookedly at your lack of words.
“Ah so you understand-.” Tenna hummed as he leaned back in his chair.
“From now on you're promoted to my personal mechanic- You’ll still continue your work on sets but expect a little more.” Tenna grinned as he looked through you.
You sat the piece of paper back on Tenna's desk as you avoided looking at him. How could you gaze at him when he- owned you basically.
“It’s funny ya know- nobody reads the fine print…” Tenna chuckled. Your body tensed as your head fell. You stepped into this hell hole the minute you were hired- and now you couldn’t leave. You couldn’t afford the compensation fees for walking out early-
“From now on I’m going to make your life- a living hell.”
——
The first thing you did was bring you to contract to multiple lawyers- you tried your best to try and find a way out of this mess. Unfortunately none of the lawyers you consulted could get you out of this situation. The contract seemed airtight as you went to a dozen lawyers before giving up. You couldn’t afford the expensive ones anyways-
That’s when you realized a loop hole. You could try and get yourself fired! You would do so terrible at your job that a Tenna would have to fire you! You smiled as your first few days back at work you decided to do nothing.
Whatever Tenna asked you ignored- soon enough you raked up quite the reprimands before you found yourself back in Tenna office. It was checkmate and Tenna had to fire you- no way he could let you stay after everything was falling apart!
However Tenna didn’t flinch or scowl at the act- rather he smiled when he looked at your record. That's when you realized maybe you missed something.
There you sat in his office- smoke thicker than usual as you watched the man.
“You don’t understand how powerful I am- do you.” Tenna hummed as he leaned down to one of his desk drawers. You watched as he pulled out a bottle of aged whisky- far too expensive for you to own yourself. He took out two expensive looking glasses as he poured himself a small drink.
“I understand you have a lot of influence over this company but I don’t see how that affects me-“ You hummed. Tenna chuckled as he took a sip of his drink. He hummed a soft tune before he spoke up.
“If I fire you- this would be the last job you’d ever have-“ Tenna smirked. You froze as you looked at him unexpectedly. “You- you can’t do that-“ You mumble.
“Oh I can. All it takes is a little phone call from me to make sure nobody ever hires you.” Tenna hushed. Tenna picked up the bottle of whisky as he softly poured the alcohol into the once empty glass. Two glasses of aged whisky sat on his desk as he pushed one of them to you. “I mean- you could always work as a cashier at BG’s Burgers- but I don’t think you’d like that.” Tenna hummed as he watched you.
“So do us a favor and start working again, yeah?” Tenna spat. You looked down at your fingers as your eyes started to water. You thought you had the upper hand but no- Tenna, already knew. There was no possible way out and you were trapped. You took the glass of whisky as you swirled it around.
No- you couldn’t let him win-
You would work- by yourself time as you thought of something. You wouldn’t succumb to this- tyrant of a man. Your eyes dried under your cap as soon enough you looked at the man before you chugged the drink. Tenna hummed as you looked at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow-.” You hissed as you stood up walking away from him. But before you could have the last set of words Tenna spoke. “Glad we could end on the same page-.”
You clenched your fists as you left his office determined to survive the next year of torment. You just had to buy yourself a little time till your contact ran out- just one year-
Just
One
Year-