The Reviewer — A Short Story
Every five minutes he looks at me. Even from this far away I can see the fear in his eyes. He is my friend but that will not affect the outcome of his mistake, it may break him like the others before him.
After all, the work he has done can be torn apart with just one click from me. Should I be merciful for the sake of the sleepless nights he spends to get things done, or maybe knowing that he has good intentions while doing this? But no, we don’t care about what they had to do, or what he sacrificed. People in this line of business lose their families, their health or themselves. It’s a black hole you can’t get out of without my approval, but I’m here to make sure we can get the best from you and everyone else before we open the door and let you out.
I seek perfection and only perfection can make you get out of this black hole. But you, dear friend, have failed me. More importantly, you have failed yourself.
You can say to yourself that I’m the villain but don’t fool yourself. You’re the one that forced my hand to do it, so don’t lie to yourself and blame me. Rather, blame yourself.
You know from the start what we seek, and it’s not a crime. Some people think we evolved from our ancestors’ way of living back in the dawn of time, but deep down we all know that only the fittest will survive and it’s my role to make sure we survive. Some will never get it, but at the end of the day I’m just doing my job as a *Quality Engineer*.