Chapter 106 – Controlled Chaos
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There was no doubt about it: Jessica was a superstar manager. In just two short years, she transformed her struggling West Grandebelle operation into a top-performing powerhouse of profit. She was the type of manager every business in the country wanted. And her employees loved her, too. She worked hard to make sure her branch was a comfortable place to work where every employee was listened to and respected. Everybody who worked there wanted to be there and they couldn't believe how good they had it.

Jessica was well-known for getting her employees to do a little more work than they were used to. Her expectations were sky-high, but her team rose to the occasion each and every week. She was the type of manager who didn't accept 'good enough.' She pushed people to try harder. To perform at a higher level. To be the best.

In an interview with the Young Business Leaders’ Journal, Jessica described her management style as 'controlled chaos.' She said that the secret to her unprecedented success as a manager was taking the easy wins as soon as she saw them instead of sitting back and waiting for them to come to her like most managers would. She didn't hesitate to get creative when it came to solving problems because she knew her team was talented enough to pick up the slack if something went wrong. And she acknowledged her approach wasn't right for everyone, but she believed it was close to perfect for someone with a personality like hers.

The big problem with Jessica's unconventional management style was that none of her employees understood what she was doing. She was the type of manager who refused to explain herself or answer any questions. And she did all kinds of crazy stuff that made absolutely no sense at all.

She'd cook up bizarre new policies without the knowledge or consent of the higher-ups and expect everyone to follow them without question like a herd of sheep. She’d send out a dozen e-mails back-to-back that all contradicted each other and then disappear from the bank without clarifying anything. She’d generously hand out vacation time and raises and raises and bigger raises that everyone knew she was definitely not approved to give.

It was completely mystifying and she clearly wasn't thinking about the long-term health of the business at all. But as long as she was getting results, no one at corporate bothered to stop her. Her behavior went completely unchecked. So she just kept doing whatever she felt like and getting away with it.

It wasn't easy for poor little Erica to keep up with Jessica's rapid-fire pace. She was constantly on edge, worried that her boss was going to cause a huge incident that would ruin her life. She was pretty sure Jessica wanted to keep her around, but she was still terrified of getting fired. She had to take a big, deep breath every now and then to calm down and remind herself that she was working with an amazing human being and that they were all in this together. She rationalized Jessica's craziness by telling herself that everything she saw was part of something bigger and that eventually, things would make sense.

She thought that maybe Jessica was just too creative to spend all her time cooped up in a bank and had to come up with little ways to entertain herself. Maybe she was so intelligent that no one on the planet was smart enough to fully grasp the brilliance of what she was doing. Or maybe she was just completely unstable and a danger to everybody around her and needed to be stopped before she caused any more trouble. And then, of course, there was the popular theory that she was a visitor from outer space. There was no way to know for sure. Whatever the reason, Jessica did things that no other manager would ever dare do.

Erica was willing to put her faith in Jessica's genius. She didn't want to think her hero was crazy. She wanted to believe that there was a logical explanation for every single thing Jessica was doing. And she slowly adapted to her boss's style. She learned how to read Jessica's moods and react accordingly. She learned how to trust her instincts and work with her intuition. And she learned that it was okay to be a little reckless sometimes. As long as she wasn't putting anybody else in harm's way, of course.

One day, Erica came into the office early and found Jessica sitting alone at her desk, staring off into space. It was clear she was thinking about something big. She wasn't wearing makeup and she looked exhausted.

"G-good morning, Jessica! Is everything alright?"
"Ah... Erica. Good morning. I wanted to talk to you about something."

Erica felt a pang of fear in her chest. Was she about to get fired? Was Jessica going back to her home planet? Or did she have some absolutely crazy scheme in mind that even she wasn't sure was safe? Whatever it was, she could tell from the look in Jessica's eyes and her tone of voice that whatever she was about to share was serious business.

"Y-you can always to talk to me... about anything, Jessica. I mean that..." 

Jessica looked away with a complicated expression on her face. She was quiet for a few moments. Then, she spoke in the softest, most tender voice Erica had ever heard.

"I've been thinking of making a major change, Erica. I think it's finally time for me to move on."
"Do you mean..."

"Yeah. The truth is, I've been thinking about leaving for a while. This isn't the right environment for me anymore. It's hard to explain, but..."
"I'm going to miss you..." 

Jessica nodded and smiled sadly.

"You know, I'm going to miss you too, Erica. It has been a wonderful three years."
"We... we all really like you here, Jessica."

"Thank you. That means a lot."
"Can you please, please tell me what's wrong? Where are you going? Why?"

"I'm moving to a different company... a smaller one. You could say I'm pursuing my passion."
"P-passion?" 

"I know it's going to sound childish, but the truth is, I don't want to settle for a life where the only reward I receive for a job well done is money. I want more. Something more meaningful. I want to work someplace where I can leave a mark on the world. I want to work for an organization that helps people."
"Wh-where?"

"I'm going to go work for the Chosen Ones. I said they're a company, but they're not really a business in the traditional sense of the word... they're more like a spiritual movement than anything."
"Chosen Ones?"

That name gave Erica a bad feeling. She didn't want see Jessica get involved with a weird scam like the Psychic Network who victimized desperate, weak-willed women like herself. She tried to hide the panic that was bubbling up inside her.

"I know you probably think this sounds crazy, Erica. I don't blame you for thinking that."
"I... I didn't say that. I just... want you to be h-happy." 

Erica was trembling. She could feel a panic attack coming on. Jessica rose to her feet with a weary smile.

"Come here, Erica."
"Y-yes..."

Jessica gently wrapped her arms around Erica and rubbed her back. Her tiny body was warm and soft. Almost warm enough to calm the pounding anxiety in Erica's head. But not quite. She felt tears forming in her eyes.

"I d-don't want you to leave..."
"Don't cry. Don't worry. There's nothing to worry about. I'm going to come visit you, okay? I'm not going anywhere. I'm just trying something new, that's all."

"Buhhh! Uhhh! Huuuh! Huuuh!"
"There, there..."

"Jeeessssshhica!"
"Shhh... I know. You'll be okay. It will be okay."

Erica clung tightly to her hero, sobbing and bawling like a little baby. She needed Jessica. Jessica was kind, smart, funny, mysterious, dignified, gentle, brave, strong... she was someone Erica looked up to and wanted to be like. Erica didn't want her life to go back to what it was before. Before she met Jessica, she felt like she was a complete and utter failure of a human being that would never amount to anything. She was so miserable that she even contemplated...

"You know, Erica... you can come with me if you want. We can both... I mean. If you don't want that, that's okay."
"What?"

"I'd love to keep working with you, Erica. I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think you're happy as a bank teller, really. Why not give the Chosen Ones a try?"

It took Erica a few seconds to register what Jessica was telling her. She wiped her face on her shirt sleeve and looked her boss in the eye. There was something strange and intense in Jessica's expression. Something desperate. It reminded Erica of a child reaching out for comfort and support.

"Ummm..."
"You don't have to, if you don't want to... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Forget I asked."
"No, wait.. hold on, let me... let me think about it."

Was she seriously considering this? A wave of nausea rolled over her. She must be really damaged to want to quit her job for something so stupid. Maybe she really was in love with Jessica. Or was she just too afraid to stand up to her? Was she actually that spineless? Or maybe... Jessica had a good reason for wanting to join the Chosen Ones. But she couldn't properly explain it. She was never good at explaining why she did what she did. That was why people called her an alien behind her back.

"So you're actually thinking about it?" Jessica whispered.
"I, um, uh... I mean... well... I..."

"I think it could be fun... working with you again. We'll figure it out. Okay?"
"Yeah..."

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