The Intern Accused Me Of Getting Paid Doing Nothing

When the company’s bionic robot was announced to the public, its stock price skyrocketed tenfold overnight. As the Principal Engineer, I received a year-end three-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus. The next day, an intern named Alaina Zeller and the company’s vice president, Vincent White, cornered me at the restroom entrance. Vincent scowled and glanced at his watch. “Joel, you were in there for fifteen minutes. You mind explaining that?” I did not grasp what was happening and answered casually, “I was using the restroom.” Alaina reacted as if she had caught me red-handed. She pointed at me and shouted, “See, Mr. White?! Mr. Lakely is literally getting paid to take a dump!” Completely bewildered, I tried to explain myself. “It’s Sunday. I’ve been pulling all-nighters for three days straight, fixing bugs. Can’t I even go to the restroom now?” Vincent ignored my explanation and said pointedly, “Your behavior is completely unacceptable. As the company’s Principal Engineer, you’re setting a terrible example for the entire team. “Your entire year-end bonus is hereby withdrawn. Consider this a warning to everyone.” Chapter 1 I became furious. As Vice President, how could Vincent White accuse me and deduct my three-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus without any proper investigation? I was about to lose my temper when Vincent said coldly, “Joel, the only reason you’ve stayed Principal Engineer at Astra Technologies all this time is because my father trusted you. “I never expected you to have such poor character.” I laughed exasperatedly, “So tell me, Mr. White, what exactly is poor about my character? Would it be of poor character to use the restroom?” Vincent did not answer directly. Instead, he called me and the other colleagues who were working overtime into the conference room. He nodded at the intern, Alaina Zeller, and said, “Ally, take it away.” Alaina glanced at me and said to the colleagues in the room, “I swear that everything I’m about to show you is based on what I’ve seen with my own eyes. You have my word.” She then pulled up a slide presentation on the large screen. The first slide displayed large text. [Formal Complaint Against Principal Engineer Joel Lakely for Multiple Violations of Company Values.] I scoffed but remained silent. I had been in Astra Technologies for eight years and started in an entry-level role. After eight straight years as a top performer, I worked my way up to Principal Engineer. I was curious to see exactly how I had violated company values. What followed left me completely stunned. Alaina had prepared a full sixty-five-slide presentation, listing eight major offenses against me using every possible twisted angle. These ranged from petty complaints like using the restroom during work hours and forcing colleagues to bring me lunch. They also included serious allegations like misusing company funds on client dinners and leaking proprietary information at technical conferences. There were dozens of photos, and to top it off, a few videos where my face could be clearly seen. Alaina kept emphasizing that “pictures spoke louder than words” as she presented them. After she had gone through all the slides, she provocatively asked me, “Mr. Lakely, got anything to say for yourself?” I was speechless. I genuinely could not understand the thought process that would lead a young girl like her to collect half a year’s worth of data just to report that I spent an average of twenty minutes per day in the restroom. Before this, I had noticed her following and secretly photographing me. At that time, I thought she was my little fangirl who had a secret crush on me. I never expected those photos to end up being used here. Vincent, however, nodded with satisfaction and looked at me mockingly. “Mr. Lakely, the evidence is all here. If you have nothing to say, I’ll take that as a confession.” Even an idiot could tell that Vincent and Alaina were in cahoots. Otherwise, how could Alaina have been looking for dirt on me since the very first day of her internship here? I asked coldly, “So, Mr. White, what’s my punishment going to be?” Thinking I was backing down, he smiled smugly and said, “Your entire year-end bonus will be forfeited, and you’ll be suspended while this matter is under review.” Aside from Alaina, the room was full of senior managers I had worked with for years. They had good relationships with me. Eventually, one of them could not keep quiet anymore. The Sales Director, Zac Smith, spoke up on my behalf. “Mr. White, regardless of the circumstances, Mr. Lakely has been one of our top employees. Could we reconsider this decision?” Vincent snorted and said, “I’ve been here for site visits three times in the last month. Every single time, Joel was conveniently ‘on a business trip.’ “We’re in the final stretch of this project. As Principal Engineer, he should be staying here to oversee the work. What is he traveling for at a time like this?” The HR Director, Mandy Miller, quickly tried to explain on my behalf, “I actually approved Mr. Lakely’s trip. He went to negotiate a partnership with DeepSpace Technologies—” Vincent raised his hand and cut her off abruptly. “Negotiate what? Where’s the deal? I don’t see any result. It’s nothing but a paid vacation dressed up as work.” I had originally planned to purchase and integrate DeepSpace Technologies’ AI. I was still debugging the interface on that day. It looked like Vincent no longer needed it. He noticed my grim expression and that I neither admitted nor objected to his accusations. He then proceeded to post an announcement directly in the company-wide group chat. [Effective November 30, 2025, VP Vincent will assume the role of president of Astra Technologies.] [Principal Engineer Joel Lakely is suspended effective immediately, pending internal review. Alaina will step in as interim Principal Engineer.] Chapter 2 Alaina was overjoyed. The others in the conference room did not exactly share her enthusiasm. I finally could not hold back any longer. “What in the world makes Alaina qualified to be Principal Engineer? Alaina could barely read the code. She could only read the comments within it. Replacing me with someone who did not actually know how to do my job was a bigger insult than all the baseless accusations they just made up against me. Vincent immediately stepped in front of her to shield her. “Ally is my junior from grad school. She has a Ph.D. in Robotics Engineering from an Ivy League university. “You’ve got a Bachelor’s from some local computer science program. Everything you know, she can do better.” I stared at Alaina and questioned her directly, “What do you think? Do you actually have what it takes?” Alaina puffed out her chest and said smugly, “I spent eight years specializing in robotics engineering. I understand both the technology and the engineering. This Principal Engineer role is rightfully mine.” That dumb, self-assured gleam in her eyes nearly made me throw up. Vincent, however, nodded with satisfaction and then said to me, “Joel, I know you have been with the company for eight years and have indeed contributed a great deal to Astra Technologies. “This doesn’t have to be the end of the road. Write me a ten-thousand-word apology letter by tomorrow. Show me you’re serious about fixing your attitude, and I’ll consider giving you your job back.” Inwardly, I said to myself angrily, “Screw that! Do I look like I’m in middle school?!” But instead, I just asked, “What if I refuse to write it?” His expression turned cold. “If you refuse, then scram!” With that, he left the conference room with a dark expression. The smug-looking Alaina followed behind him. Other colleagues in the meeting room began shaking their heads and sighing. Zac patted me on the shoulder. “Vincent is just asserting his new authority now that he’s back from abroad. He’s trying to make an example out of you. Don’t take it personally. With your track record, you’ll definitely get your position back soon.” I nodded and pretended to agree on the inside. But the truth was I did not agree at all. Was he trying to make an example out of me? Did he think I was a pushover? In just this past month alone, eight tech companies had already tried to poach me. When I went on a business trip to DeepSpace Technologies last month, Wilfred Bridger, the president, even offered me three times my current salary to join them. DeepSpace Technologies was the leading artificial intelligence company in the country. Its AI technology set the global benchmark. However, for the sake of the robot project I had worked so hard on for so long, and to repay Vincent’s father, Henry White, for his recognition and support, I still politely declined. I never expected that upon my return, I would be met with such heartless abandonment and humiliation. Without saying a word, I went back to my office. I first sent an email to DeepSpace Technologies to cancel the collaboration and offer my sincere apologies. Then, I called a lawyer friend, Alex Bicker. After I hung up, I felt more confident about my situation. I then started to organize all the materials from the past eight years that could prove my capabilities and accomplishments on my computer. I even prepared an attendance record. To my surprise, I had never realized that I had been working overtime for the company without pay for at least one thousand hours each year. I also obtained the surveillance footage from the restroom entrance and the conference room from the security department. After uploading all the evidence to the cloud drive, I opened Minesweeper and started slacking off. As for the apology letter that Vincent demanded, I was not playing along in the slightest. Writing it would be equivalent to admitting guilt. Not long after, a person knocked on my door. It was none other than Alaina, the new Principal Engineer. She smiled smugly and said, “Joel, don’t hold today against me. This was all Mr. White’s call.” I glanced at her dismissively. “Cut the act. If you have something to say, say it. If not, get out.” She brushed it off, stepped close, and leaned in to my ear. “Joel, let’s work together. You can still handle all the Principal Engineer’s actual work. I’ll put in a good word for you with Mr. White. Together, we can make the robots even better.” Chapter 3 “Work together?” I scoffed with disdain. “So, you do realize that you’re not qualified to be Principal Engineer on your own, huh?” I stood up and met her gaze. “Do you even know what users actually want from a robot? “Do you have any clue how to control the power system? “Most importantly, do you even know what issues still plague our current AI technology? “You don’t know any of it. “You are nothing but a cheap social climber who bought a degree overseas, came back to leverage connections, and you think you’re in a position to talk about working together with me?” With each sentence, I took a step closer to her. By the time I finished, her face had turned pale. She pointed at me and hurled insults. “Joel, who do you think you are? I’m the Principal Engineer now!” “In that case, knock yourself out. Keep fooling Vincent while you’re at it.” With that, I turned away and prepared to go back to my Minesweeper game. Her expression shifted rapidly. A flash of malice passed through her gaze. She lunged at me from behind. “What are you doing?!” Caught off guard, I was tackled to the floor. I turned my head and was shocked to see Alaina frantically tearing at her own clothes. Her blouse was already ripped open, exposing a large amount of her skin. She then screamed loudly, “Help! Joel is trying to attack me!” “What the—” In a moment of panic, I kicked Alaina and sent her flying. My colleagues soon gathered in front of my office. They saw Alaina sobbing with her clothes in disarray. They then saw me with a look of utter shock on my face. In that split second, everyone took Alaina’s side. “In the office? Are you kidding me? This is insane!” “I can’t believe Mr. Lakely would do something like this.” “No wonder Vincent suspended him. It all makes total sense now.” I stood up with a grim expression. “I didn’t do anything. She set me up!” Given that the incident happened in my office, all my explanations felt powerless. Even Zac and Mandy, who were closest to me, and my own direct subordinates, could only shake their heads and sigh. Vincent pushed through the crowd. When he saw Alaina clutching her chest with tear-filled eyes, rage surged through him. He charged at me and said, “How dare you lay a hand on my woman?!” I had no time to dodge the blow. His punch left me dazed. When I came to my senses, he had taken off his suit jacket and draped it over Alaina. I heard her say between sobs, “I... I was scared Mr. Lakely might hold a grudge against me. I just came to apologize, but I never thought he’d actually try to force himself on me...” Vincent glared at me and said furiously, “Joel, I was the one who suspended you. If you’ve got a problem, you come at me. What kind of man does that make you to go after Ally?” Alaina sobbed, looking absolutely pitiful, helpless, and vulnerable. “He just wasn’t thinking straight. I’m sure he didn’t mean to... to force himself on me.” Hearing her words once again made Vincent even more upset. “Joel, I was actually going to give you a second chance. Not anymore. “Pack your things and get out of this company! “Get out now! I don’t ever want to see your face again.” His words made the entire office fall into dead silence. Everyone was watching to see how I would react. I neither argued nor got angry. I simply pulled a few tissues from my desk, wiped away the blood from my nose, and quietly began packing my belongings. There were cameras everywhere in the entire company except for the President’s office and the restrooms. After I had packed everything, I slung my backpack over my shoulder and turned to leave. As I walked past Vincent and Alaina, I turned to them and said, “One last piece of advice. Make sure the robots are fully tested and bug-free before launch. Do not waste Mr. Henry White’s hard work. “Even so, don’t come looking for me. I won’t return, even if you’re begging on your knees.” Alaina had stopped crying. When she looked at me, a hint of cunning still lingered in her gaze. Vincent had also calmed down by that point. He was about to say something, but without giving him the chance, I strode out of the company.