Heart for The Lonely Souls

Chapter 3: The New Hire

It has been a few days since that incident in the break room. Things at work—thankfully—haven't gotten awkward as I worried previously. Since Kayden and I are busy working on our own project, we don't have any chances to stop and chat with each other (Not like we have had casual conversation before). Other than that, work has been surprisingly peaceful and it's a relief for me.

I'm currently working on another book cover design. I have been getting a lot of these projects as of lately. The client has approved my initial sketch this morning (after many trials and errors), so I can finally proceed to the next step. I begin to do some light stretching on my desk before wearing my wrist guard. Unfortunately, I've forgotten to bring my headphones with me. I usually work better if I can block the sound of my surroundings, but it's not like I can do anything about it now. I might need to set a reminder on my phone next time so I don't forget again.

I turn on my tablet monitor, open Adobe Photoshop and create a new file. I take my tablet pen and start to sketch on the blank canvas. It doesn't take long for me to be immersed in my work. The squiggly lines I made are beginning to form a shape, then...

"Have you heard? There's a new hire joining our team today!"

My hand comes to a halt. After hearing those words, I can't seem to focus anymore due to curiosity. I don't want to make it obvious that I'm eavesdropping, so I pretend to be focusing on my canvas as I sneak a glance over my monitor. The conversation seems to be coming from a few desks away from me—which is around Kayden's desk.

"I wonder what they look like. I hope they're nice!" Nadine Rosario says in a chipper voice.

Nadine, one of the junior graphic designers of our team. We rarely work on projects together, but we're at least civil with each other. She's a bit shorter than me with golden beige skin, her muscles abound, her biceps and thigh muscles are visible through her usual attire of hoodie and jeans.

"I'm not aware of it. Where did you hear it from?" Amani Shelton asks, his eyes are still focused on his tablet monitor.

Amani is a senior graphic designer, just like me, with a few more years of experience under his belt. He's tall and skinny with rich brown melanin skin. His jet-black hair is styled in a fade buzz-cut and his face adorns with a short boxed beard. He often wears a flannel shirt on top of a white T-shirt along with jeans and a beanie.

"Dolores told me a few days ago," Nadine answers, sweeping her black red ombre straight hair into a ponytail. "She's planning a welcome party for the new hire, so she asked me for restaurant recommendations to host the party."

Amani places down his tablet pen on the table as he turns to face Nadine. "I guess it has been two months since Safiya left the team. As long as they're responsible and do their work, I won't have any complaints."

Safiya...

I glance at the empty desk beside me where Safiya used to sit. Two months... has it been that long already?

Safiya Anand was a co-worker who entered the company at the same time as me. Because we were both new hires and close in age, we naturally became close and I considered her a friend—although I don't know if she thinks the same. She decided to leave the company to pursue her dream of becoming a children books author.

We still chat through social media, but not often. I don't think it will take long before we lose contact completely, and maybe that's a good thing. After all, who wants to stay friends with someone like me?

"So, which restaurant do you recommend to hold the party?" Amani asks, curious.

"A Korean BBQ restaurant a few blocks from here," Nadine answers. "I was going to recommend this Filipino restaurant I used to frequent, but they're fully booked on that day."