13 Coworkers Who Proved the Office Is the Real Drama

Office life is full of surprises, but some coworkers elevate workplace drama to an entirely new level. Here are 13 stories from our readers showcasing moments of pure office chaos.

1.

I used to keep a small cactus on my desk, but every week it looked worse and worse. I couldn’t figure out why it was dying, so I decided to set up a hidden camera. What I discovered was wild—five coworkers were all secretly watering it because they thought it needed some extra care. None of them told me, and they didn’t realize the others were doing it too. They thought they were being helpful, but instead, their efforts drowned the poor cactus. Too much love literally killed it!

2.

Our office had a no-perfume rule, but every afternoon after lunch, I noticed my desk reeked of strong smells—first vanilla, then lavender, and later, some musky scent. I couldn’t figure out what was going on and started thinking someone was messing with me.

One day, I caught a coworker spraying something around my desk. When I confronted her, she explained she was trying to make my area feel “calmer and more Zen.” Turns out, she thought I was wearing perfume and was spraying neutralizers to tone it down. Without realizing it, we’d been in a silent scent battle for weeks!

3.

For months, I kept finding love notes and little gifts on my desk, supposedly from a “secret admirer.” I was kind of flattered and curious—until I found out they were actually from a married coworker. When I finally asked him about it, he got embarrassed and admitted the truth: he was leaving them for himself to cheer himself up after his wife had left him.

4.

Our office had a stray cat we all loved and took care of—until it suddenly disappeared one night. Everyone was upset, and we spent days searching and accusing each other of taking it. Finally, the janitor admitted he’d taken the cat home. He said it reminded him of the cat his late wife used to have, and he couldn’t bear to leave it behind.

5.

When our office got new ergonomic chairs, one of my coworkers was desperate to have one. While I was away from my desk, she took mine and replaced it with her old chair. I came back to find her sitting in my brand-new chair, acting completely normal, like nothing was wrong. When I confronted her, she just shrugged and said it was “part of the perks of her role.”

6.

Every morning, I’d find my coffee cup spotlessly clean, even though I intentionally left it unwashed to finish my coffee the next day. After weeks of wondering, I finally caught the intern scrubbing it. She admitted she thought leaving coffee residue was “unprofessional” and decided to clean it for the sake of the team. When I told her I liked my mug “seasoned,” she looked absolutely horrified. She explained she thought I just kept forgetting and wanted to “help out” without making a big deal.

7.

I started noticing that my new coworker was mimicking everything I did. If I wore black on Tuesday, she’d show up in black on Wednesday. When I switched to drinking my coffee black, she stopped using creamer the next day. At first, it seemed harmless, but things got weird when she started using my exact phrases in meetings.

When I asked her about it, she said, “You’re just so good at what you do, I figured copying you would help me learn.” What I didn’t expect was finding out later that she had gone to HR, claiming I was the one copying her to mess with her confidence.

8.

I began finding “anonymous” notes critiquing my work, from how I spoke to what I wore. After some digging, I realized a coworker was behind them, claiming she was compiling “feedback” from others. When I confronted her, she said, “I thought you’d value proactive input to help you improve.”

9.

Last year, my Secret Santa at work gave me a gorgeous silver ring with a tiny emerald. It was such a thoughtful gift, and since we got along well, I wore it regularly without a second thought. A year later, I noticed a small groove around the stone and, out of curiosity, managed to twist it open.

Inside was a hidden compartment with a note with two words: “Hate you.” I was completely floored. I’d spent the entire year believing Sarah and I were on great terms. Now, I couldn’t stop wondering—was this some kind of bizarre joke? A mistake? Or had she planned this all along?

10.

A coworker from another department kept offering me random, unsolicited “advice” about my work. It didn’t make sense, so I eventually asked why she was so invested. That’s when she confessed her boss had secretly assigned her to “mentor” me to ensure I “succeeded.” The kicker? Neither I nor my manager had any clue this was happening!

11.

I started to notice a strange pattern: every morning when I arrived at work, my coworker was already parked in the spot next to mine, silently following me into the building. It was weird, so I eventually asked her about it. She calmly admitted she’d been “tracking” my arrival times because she thought I was “barely making it before 9 AM.” She even had a spreadsheet to back it up.

When I reported her behavior, she defended it as a “team-building accountability project.” HR wasn’t amused and ended up sending out a company-wide reminder about respecting personal boundaries.

12.

One day, I noticed low-calorie snacks mysteriously appearing on my desk. Then, out of the blue, a coworker handed me a booklet called Your Path to Happiness. She proudly explained that her boss had “tasked” her with promoting “healthy habits” among the team—and I had been chosen as her primary “focus.”

13.

I spent a lot of time preparing for an important presentation, but on the day of the meeting, my coworker started presenting the same topic before I even got a chance. When I asked her what was going on, she claimed she thought my slides were meant to be “examples” for her own work. The kicker? She hadn’t even edited out my name from one of the slides.

Here are some tips on how to handle a toxic person and protect your well-being in challenging situations.