Chapter 3

~~~Past Wind~~~

"Gotta say this girl, you've got a lot of guts in your spine." Claire teased me as I was trying to put the ball into the court but alas! Failed once again to do so, because my stupid best friend was distracting me and not letting me concentrate. If only she stopped talking for once.

We are currently playing basketball and she wouldn't shut up about today's god damn incident with Kayish.

"For fuck's sake can you please just shut your mouth and let me focus on the game for once?" I scolded her as I caught the ball my teammates passed on to me.

"Okay! But I better get an explanation later," She yelled before leaving the basketball court and finally giving me a chance to breathe.

Though I have to admit, I was kinda hurt by her reaction towards the incident. Ever since that episode happened, she kept on asking me to give her all the juicy details regarding it and I already told her that there's nothing between us.

She thinks that Kayish and I were engaged in a so-called 'secret relationship' together and ended up fighting, so he came there to seek my forgiveness and gave me a breathtaking kiss. But I was still mad at him and apparently slapped him.

That's how she narrated the story to everyone and by 'everyone' I mean literally everyone in the college. And after spilling all that bullshit, she finally comes to me and says that she's proud of me for my guts? What kind of a person is she? Silly girl!

I came out of my notion and paid attention to the game. I love to play basketball. Whenever we get free time, I come to the ground and play basketball with my friends. Isn't it a distraction?

My seniors would sometimes challenge me to play with them. Most of the time it's me who prevails the match. Some people take this fact positively and are okay with the fact that I ace at it but some take it contradictory and create grudges just because of a little basketball match. It all depends on their conceit.

I have many friends here. They all are very close to me and they all know me very well.

I'm not that pretty but other people don't think like that. I play basketball every time I need to get my mind cleared. Morning's incident was still haunting my mind and I wanted to distract myself from it.

After finishing the match, I went to the washroom to change my clothes. When I walked out of the room and I saw him leaning on the wall with crossed legs and hands folded against his chest.

I ignored his gaze and started walking towards my locker. As I passed him, he stepped in front of me which made me halt in my track.

His baby blue eyes pierced through my body eyeing me up and down. I coughed awkwardly to get his attention back.

"I'm sorry. I know what I did today was really wrong." He apologized which took me off guard. Am I dreaming? Kayish Miller, the well-known player is here to seek My forgiveness??

"Never mind." I rolled my eyes and walked away while he was still standing there. I know how to handle these types of boys.

If I forgive him, I know that he will take advantage of it and would dare to take things further again. So it's better to avoid him from the beginning itself.

*

I packed her lunch in a small tiffin box along with her snacks. She was so excited to start her school today, unlike the other kids who keep whining on their first day of school.

When the school bus arrived I kissed Sweety on her forehead and blinked my tears back.

I'm not a good mother though. I want to be there for her in every single step of her life but I have failed multiple times to do so.

"All the best mom. You're going to work today, right?" Sweety asked and pecked my forehead.

She was way too mature for a four-year-old kid and honestly, I can't blame her either, because I know where she got that attitude from.

I prepared myself for the beginning of a new chapter in my life and got ready for my office. 'Why does it have to be on the same day as my daughter's first day of school?' I thought to myself as I mentally groaned.

My mind kept wandering around Sweety and I couldn't focus on anything else. Just as I was ready to leave, mom rang me up and gave me a long lecture on what to do and what not. She still considers me an immature little child whereas I have one on my own.

Time flew by and right now, I'm standing in front of The Global Institute Of technology. I looked at my watch and heaved a heavy sigh. Thankfully, I made it to the place on time. It took me about thirty minutes to reach the office and I'm grateful that there was no traffic on the streets today.

I showed my ID card to the security and walked towards the entrance.

"How may I help you?" asked the receptionist as I reached the entrance. I showed my ID card to her and she kept eyeing me up and down before and smiling at me politely.

"Well..." she trailed off. "Don't get me wrong, Miss. Kader but I was just wondering how did you get this position at such a young age? Our company usually prefers those candidates only who have enough experience" She adjusted her glasses and looked at me.

"Yeah, I know Miss. Steplon." I read her name from her nameplate. "You are right but age shouldn't be a barrier restricting us from achieving our goals. Age is just a number, Maturity is a choice." I replied back generously.

Her face lit up and she nodded her head as an agreement. I handed her my appointment letter.

"Ma'am, your office is on the 7th floor, right next to our boss' office," She informed me and handed my file back.

"Call me Riya. You seem young. So no formalities please." I told her.

"Payal." She stretched her hand out and I gladly shook it back. She is so funny and very young. I presume 19 or 20 years old.

I stepped out of the elevator, on the 7th floor and looked around the lobby furrowing my brows.

The area was still under construction and the employees were fidgeting all over the storey. Why everyone is so nervous?

"Mam, can you please step aside?"A person from behind me requested.

"Oops! Sorry." I turned around and met with a familiar face. I grinned recognizing her and seems like she recognized me as she warmly smiled back at me too.

"What a pleasant surprise! What are you doing here?" She asked showing her perfect white teeth.

"Nothing, just wandering around."I joked. She seemed to think a bit then her eyes widen. She covered her mouth with her hands and gasped.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! I'm so sorry. So you are the project manager, aren't you?" She asked with excitement.

"Yes, I am. " I told her.

"Sorry, ma'am. I'm a little bit busy, so I didn't see that you arrived earlier." She said nervously while fidgeting with her fingers.

"Hey...Relax. I just arrived. And please, call me Riya." I put a hand on her nervous frame.

"Riya? You have a beautiful name. I'm Juliet." Her face lit up once again.

I hummed in response. "Why is there so much commotion in this place and why they are changing everything from its place?" I asked out of curiosity.

"What can I say? Our young boss arrived early this morning and ordered us to change everything. He wants everything new in his office. And he gave us only one day." She slumped her shoulder.

I gave her a small nod.

"Do you know him?" She asked me and I shook my head no.

"Be careful with him. He is really arrogant and dominating." She whispered in a husky voice as if she was telling me one of the biggest secrets on the planet. I raised my brows at her.

"Well-- he is your boss, isn’t it?" I asked her amusingly.

"Nah, his dad is our boss. Wait-- no no no!" She shook her head furiously. "His dad was our boss until the previous week. He retired and now his son claimed his position."

"And he wants everything perfect for him." I finished the sentence for her while she nodded her head as a comprehension.

"And why do you seem so nervous? Even if he's our new boss that doesn't mean he would swallow you." I joked.

Her face dropped down. "I'm his personal assistant, how could I not be nervous. I need this job to run my family. He is short-tempered. He almost fired 30 employees even before he took over the position. If I lose my job then my family will come to the road."

"Calm down. Don't think too much" I patted her shoulder. "I'll be right here if you need me anytime." I assured her.

"Thank you so much," She said and hugged me. "Well, I have to go. There is a ton of work left. I need to take care of them. See you later." She waved her hand and sprinted towards a room which I assumed was our new boss' office.

I entered my office and saw everything was neatly arranged in its assigned place.

It screamed perfection.....

As I was looking through the schedule, someone entered my office and set a cup of coffee on my desk. "Here." She said while offering me the drink 

"Juliet, you are his assistant, not mine." I shook my head and rolled my eyes at her.

"No problem. He won't turn up today. and I just wanted to have coffee with you so......" She trailed off and took the seat beside me.

"Thanks, Juliet."

"No formalities. It's my pleasure." She giggled.

"No, not for the coffee. It's for helping me at the airport. I really appreciated it. So thanks for that." I said sincerely.

"Ohh that! Nevermind. Your baby is just so cute. The exact replica of yours."

I smiled at her in agreement. She was right. "Her name is Sweety and yeah she looks a lot like me." I said as we both then busted in a fit of giggles. "And by the way, I don't really drink coffee." I let out my voice.

"Why?" She asked. Well, who doesn't drink coffee?

"I'm allergic to coffee that's why."

"Oh no problem, I will make you tea then." She offered.

"No Juliet. I'll let you know if I need it." I politely declined. "I'm calling it a day. See you tomorrow." I told her and grabbed my handbag.

"Riya! Tomorrow is the welcoming ceremony of our new boss, you have to be here for attending the function." She informed while picking the two glasses from the table.

"Positively." I assured her and we both walked out of my office.

"Nice job, Juliet! I appreciate your hard work." I patted her shoulder once I saw the arrangement on the floor which was so neat and humble and reminded me of someone's personality.

I put the thought on the back of my mind and smiled at her. "Take care." I told her and walked away without turning back.

*