Toner Out

Story Submitted by Kevin:

Lynn and I worked in the same office and I always thought her cute.  She was short, had dark hair, and looked younger than her age.  Also, she wore some great skirts.  I chatted her up whenever I could, and we went out on one date.

The date itself was nothing special.  Despite how attractive she was, she was way too into her job and herself for me to see how I'd fit into her life.  At one point, she actually said, "I'm going to be head of the company someday."  Good for her, but not for me.

We didn't do anything physical, and I decided to keep her as an acquaintance.  A couple of weeks later, I bumped into her in the copy room.  She was frowning over a stack of printed pages.  They had printed as if the machine was running out of ink.

She said, "I think the toner's low."

"Did you try shaking it?" I asked.  She stared at me without responding.  I repeated, "You should try shaking the toner if it's low.  You might get enough out of it for another job or two.  Or more."

I opened the machine, shook the toner, replaced it, and advised her to try reprinting.  She didn't say a word, and I left the room.

That afternoon, my supervisor, Maribel, called me into her office.  She said, "Lynn told me that you told her before that she should 'shake it.'  Before I put a sexual harassment claim in, I want to hear your side."

I was shocked to hear this, and told Maribel the truth.  I said, "I was definitely referring to the toner.  You can check it.  It's low, and I shook it myself." 

Maribel agreed that it sounded like a misunderstanding, but cautioned me to avoid unnecessary contact with Lynn.

I left Maribel's office and Lynn caught up with me at my desk.  She said, "Just so you know, I made a sexual harassment complaint against you."

I replied, "You know as well as I do that I was talking about the toner.  What you may not know is that the consequences for making a knowingly false sexual harassment claim can include termination.  Is there anything else?"

Lynn stalked off.  We didn't interact much after that, and she was actually fired about six months later for stealing about $800 worth of office supplies.