Risk Taker [Englot]

Chapter 1

My phone rang on my desk and I picked up instantly when I saw who it was.

"Yes, sir?"

"Engfa, could you come to my office, please?"

"I'll be right there."

I hung up and went up two floors to Director Nawat's office. He welcomed me as he was typing on this laptop and asked me to sit.

"Engfa, I need you to go to New York in December." he said, still looking at the screen in front of him.

I knew better than to let my surprise be seen. I kept my mouth shut, letting him go on.

"The team at MOMA invited us to a two day seminar on public programs. I was supposed to go with board member Warintorn but our schedules don't match. I need you to replace me. There's a 10 minute presentation to do on our programs on the second day." he explained to me.

I was stunned. New York? This would mean leaving for a few days... Career wise it could be a really good move but... leaving the kids for four or five days wouldn't be easy...

"I just forwarded you all the details."

I took my phone out and opened his email, scrolling down the invitation. This was definitely a good opportunity. But going alone... Could I bring someone with me? Could I bring... her? I was lost in my thoughts when Nawat's voice woke me up.

"All good?" he asked, looking at his phone.

"I'll manage but I think I would be more at ease if I could bring someone from my team to help me with this presentation. I saw that they offer different workshops and I won't be able to attend all of them at the same time..."

He looked up at me.

"Yes, bring the public programs officer. HR will take care of you two."

I got out of Nawat's office with a wide smile on my face. I felt like singing in the hallway but I refrained myself. My body was already carrying me at a fast pace down the stairs towards her office, like it was moving on its own.

"Charlotte!" I said, surprising her as I opened the door.

"Yes?"

She was alone... and she looked stunning today. I couldn't help but notice her outfit. She was always well dressed but her dark blue suit made her look almost regal. I snapped out of contemplation to give her the good news.

"The board wants to send two employees to MOMA for a seminar on museum public programs in december. Director Nawat can't go so I asked if you could be my partner for this trip." I said, excited.

"MOMA... as in New York??" she asked with a shocked face.

"Well yes! It's two days of conferences and various meetings. And we have a 10 minute presentation on our programs here at MOCA."

"Wait, what? We have to present our work?" she asked, panicking.

"Well who knows what we do better than you? It's your job so you're the most qualified to talk about it!" I tried to reassure her.

"I... I don't..."

Damn, she looked scared. I should help her get over this feeling because this was clearly a good opportunity for her too. Plus, I would really like her to come... to come with me. Engfa, time to get a grip!

"It could be a great opportunity for both our careers, your English is really good, I'll take some classes to get better myself... and it's a trip to freaking New York, Charlotte..." I said, trying to behave like the manager I was supposed to be.

"You said December, right?" she asked.

Yes! I nodded, unable to contain my smile. I was so happy that she was considering it. I saw something twitch inside her eyes... My heart was pounding a little faster than normal. Calm down, woman!

"I'll talk about it with my husband tonight, I need to check his schedule to be sure that he'll be there to take care of Miles while I'm away. Could you send me the details?"

"Yes! And I will ask HR to get us everything we might need for our trip as soon as you say yes." I replied, leaving her office in a hurry, in fear that she would start to argue with me as to why she needed to do the presentation.

As I was walking back to my office I forced my face to drop the smile that was plastered on it. I crossed paths with Elsa from HR and my poker face came back on. I nodded at her politely and went on with my day.

It was already late when I left my office that night. Only a few people were still working at their desk. I decided to swing by Charlotte's just so... Well I had no idea why or any good reason to...

"Engfa? Can I help you?"

Heidi Jansen was the only one in the room. Fuck, did she see me feeling disappointed??

"Ah yes, Heidi, I wanted to ask you about..." I started to think out loud.

My mind was blank. Oh no, Heidi was looking at me with a smirk on her face... Think Engfa, think! Heidi... in charge of guided tours and workshops... Come on! Ah yes!

"Have you started working on the new guided tour for early childhood and parents for the next exhibition yet?"

"Not yet, I have to finish the one for teenagers and run it through Charlotte first. When this one is done, I'll start working on the one for babies and parents." she explained to me.

"Yes, ok good... Thank you, Heidi. Have a good night." I said starting to leave.

"Are you sure that's all you wanted to ask?" I heard her say behind me, I knew she wouldn't let it go...

"Yeah, that's all. Bye!" I said, not turning around and fleeing outside.

I got back home a bit late, paid the babysitter and went into the boys' room to check on them. Sun was hugging his monkey plushie in his arms, all snuggled up under his blanket. Champ was snoring in his crib, his pacifier had fallen from his mouth. I put it inside his tiny hand for him to find it during the night and I left the room without a sound.

Their dad was supposed to come home even later than me today, so I started to make something for dinner for the both of us. Apo came home really late, telling he already had dinner with his coworkers. I bit back the words that wanted to come out of my mouth and focused back on my laptop when he said that he was going straight to bed. A few minutes later, I got a notification for a new email. I suddenly sat up as I felt a few butterflies appear in my stomach when I realized it was from Charlotte with the title "Presentation at MOMA-NYC". I was clearly a little bit stressed out before I opened her message, hoping that she could come. I clicked on her name and smiled so wide when I read what she had written. My fingers started to reply, like they were dancing on the keyboard. I pressed send and sat back on the couch, sighing happily.

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Here's the first chapter of "Risk Taker", let me know what you think and if this is something you're interested in!
Kisses! 🤍