missed connections

into the new world

"oh my god wait stop please!" i breathed heavily.

i dashed through the sophisticated & perfumed crowd, almost slipping on the white marble floor, to the closing lift.
"i don't want to be late on my first damn day. it is not a great look" i cursed internally;

gratefully, one of the well-suited people standing in the elevator noticed my desperate attempt and pressed the 'hold' button. what an angel !

i murmured a 'thank you' to the tall, young man. he gave a small nod in response. he has a pretty face not gonna lie. girl get a grip! what if he's a serial killer?

13 floors later

Ernest & Young Accounting Firm. this is where i want to be. i have worked for 7 years of my life to work here. the nights i functioned on ramens, parties i missed, and the odd jobs i took were all worth it.

a couple of people passed beside me into the firm. the corporate aura they emitted kind of intimidated me. that caught me so off-guard. they were dressed elegantly and talked in fluent english. my confidence spiraled downhill.

i moved to new york city from india few months back. don't get me wrong, i am very capable and intelligent. i mean i graduated from a crazily competitive university & bagged my dream job. but suddenly my temperature dropped. i started scraping my skin near fingernails. i felt as if someone tried to suffocate me with a plastic bag around my head. i looked around for help as if i knew anyone in this foreign building. and fortunately, i saw the ladies' room. 

15 minutes later. cool, composed & confident, i went through the revolving doors like the main character toward the reception. my coat flew like those in action movies. i am literally so cool. fake it till you make it, right?

just when i was about to ask the receptionist, a gray-haired man called out my name. he had 6 cups of coffee in his hand and glasses on the bridge of his nose about to fall.

"good morning miss parker. i am Silvester from the HR department. i am in charge of your introduction tour." he had a grandfatherly smile.

he looked at the cups in his hands and then at me apologetically. "i am currently a little held up sorry. but meet me at the consulting department at the end of the hallway. feel free to ask the receptionist for help" saying that he disappeared around the corner.

the receptionist led me to the human resources first. i looked around for the elderly man i met earlier but sadly he was absent. i completed the formalities and then the man returned and offered me a quick tour of the office which i gladly accepted.

the first was the consulting department. Mr Silvester, the HR, introduced me to the head there. it was a woman just a couple years older than me. i shook hands with her and noticed a miniature of candybong on her wall. 

"oh do you listen to twice too?" i asked her with the most excited smile plastered on my stupid face. 

her face jolted up with beams of sunshine in her eyes. "you too?" she almost screamed. 

i shook my head like a kid. 

"whos your bias? 1 2 3, SHOOT!" we both replied the same answer in unison.

Mr Silvester stood visibly confused and partially scared.

 "it was nice meeting you, Ms Kim."  

"oh just call me Jennie. we are practically best friends now" she giggled. we shook hands and bid adieu.

i saw the couple from before in the hallway. Mr Silvester told me they were Ms Bang & Mr Khan. the diversity! They worked in the taxation department. They seemed swamped with work so i introduced myself quickly and left. 

The HR showed me the restrooms, cafeteria, my whole department, and meeting rooms. how the hell did they fit all these on the same damn floor? The last stop was my own cabin. or so i thought.

It was a L shaped room with big windows at the end which looked over the bustling streets. There were 2  desks, one in front of the window and another near the door, and a huge shelf nailed to the wall between them. The window was very organized like no one has worked there. I was quite impressed.

"your partner will arrive soon. they are attending a meeting at 18th floor. and if you ever need help, you know where to find me" Mr Silvester said as he closed the door behind me.

the room was really cold. no lights were on, only the rays coming from the window partly lit up the room. the window overlooked another busy street of the city. muffled noises of vehicles were still heard. i liked it.

i dropped my bag on my desk and adored my nameplate, ms mysha parker. i noticed the nameplate on other table, it was placed wrong. stupid.

let's just hope my partner is hot. oh god, can you shut up for once? this is the second time a day. i stood up and walked to their desk. as i was about to flip the nameplate, i heard someone clear their throat behind me. 

"what are you doi-" i turned on my heels, flipping my medium-length brown curls before the man could finish his sentence.

it was the hot elevator dude. perfect. i am doomed. he was slightly startled. so was i, but i pulled out my most professional smile and walked toward him. 

"hello, i am mysha parker, your partner" while extending my hand. with hope. it would be so embarrassing if he leaves me hanging. it looks like he would. the no-fucks-given face tells me that. come on now. shake my hand we don't have the whole day.

after carefully examining me head to toe, he accepted my handshake.

"wow, what a grip. trying to intimidate me, big man?" it slipped from my mouth.

no reaction. boring.

"Hello, i am Aarav Lee." saying that he hung his coat and took his seat.

that name rings a bell. i hope its not the one I'm thinking about. 

"aarav..... sounds south asian but lee doesn't. are you Indian?" i asked to confirm my doubts. sometimes you gotta act dumb strategically. 

"my mother is indian and i was born and bought up there. lee is my stepfather's last name."

"oh okay...... can you speak Hindi though?"

"yes and Marathi too. i need to get back to work now. please refrain from asking personal questions on company time from now on, ms. parker."

"oh yes sorry my bad. i am sorry about that. will keep that in mind." i smile but roll my eyes internally. so rude for no reason. but he's right though.

after this what we can call a pathetic excuse of a conversation, i am 100% sure its him.

but it's not possible. how can HE be here? in an accounting firm? in new york? this doesn't make sense. i am going to faint.

it's been almost a decade...