Got played by a manipulator, and I played back.... Now it's worse

First time in my life I’ve dealt with someone who might be a narcissist, and it’s having an extreme impact on my life.

A new girl at my job joined our team, and when she first started, I didn’t give her personal attention—just kept it professional. She began testing boundaries—invading personal space, touching, flirting, and making sexual innuendo. At the time, I was dealing with some health issues, so I barely played along.

She’s extremely good looking and eventually got in my head. I decided to ask her to hang out, but she dodged my attempts, always saying she had other plans or was busy, then throwing in “maybe next week.” It felt like she was stringing me along for attention. Her body language seemed to say, “I gotcha!” I stupidly pushed for a direct answer, feeling like she was enjoying controlling the situation. Finally she said “no,” got visibly angry, and then came out with weird lines like “I only date millionaires,” “I only date guys who already have many girlfriends,” and “my type of relationship is a 1 a.m. booty call,” all with this very animated body language and a huge smile.

Later that day, she was at her desk crying—or maybe pretending to cry. After that, things felt messed up, and I started avoiding her as much as I could. She was bad at her job, but my manager told me to explain to her how to do it better. When I talked to her privately, I admit I treated her like shit—making her feel anxious about her job. It was a disproportionate response, but she really was doing a crappy job, and I was just done with her games.

She is extremely charismatic, always upbeat and positive, good looking, and a total social butterfly. Before long, she started gossiping behind my back, making me into a social outcast. I caught on and reached out to apologize in hopes of improving things, tried to be as helpful as possible.told her my emotions got the best of me, and I genuinely felt sorry for how I’d acted.

But nothing improved. I remained an outcast. I went on vacation to clear my head, and when I got back, I texted her trying to patch things up. She wouldn’t have any of it, and it felt like she had total control. I told her what she was doing was messed up and that it wasn’t 100% my fault things went south, it took two people for that situation to unfold. She wouldn’t accept that—no responsibility on her end.

Now, she’s fully in control socially and has turned most people against me, yet she’s still terrible at her job. I gave it a couple of months, hoping things would calm down. She kept sucking at her job. I talked to her again recently, and while the conversation felt okay at the time, she’s still out there spreading gossip. I’ve confirmed this by talking to people who were friendly with me saying she told them not to invite me.

I regret playing games in the first place, but I also felt like I had to stand up for myself. At this point, I have no idea what to do besides try to get her fired for being a shitty worker. Quitting this job is not an option for me. The atmosphere is toxic and hostile, I've tried being the best I can for months.

Has anyone dealt with someone like this before? What else can I do?