"And When Ryan went to find her, she was found with another man in a bed. Right at that moment, Ryan broke up with her." Kevin ended the story by consoling Ryan and patting him on the back.
Ryan just nodded his head and stared blankly at the table.
"That's so sad," Rosy replied, with a big grin, showing her perfect teeth.
I almost laughed at the situation. But I did feel pity for Ryan. He had been in a relationship for two years with that girl. What was her name again?
Maria, my mind replied.
Yes, that Maria girl, she was found cheating on him. I knew from the start that something was wrong with that girl. She never looked serious with Ryan. She was just using him.
But Ryan was serious. He was heartbroken after last night. He looks sad and hurt.
It was lunchtime. Kevin was telling the story of Ryan's breakup to everyone. Rosy was literally celebrating, as she looked happiest. And that brought a smile to my face. Jake was sitting silently in the corner doing something on his mobile.
And me? I was eating french fries while listening to the latest break-up topic.
"Ria. How did you go home yesterday?" Rosy asked me, turning her attention to me. I looked at her and lied,
"I called Aaron and gave him the address. He came." I replied, not making eye contact, looking at the fries which suddenly started looking interesting. I wonder who invented fries.
I didn't even know why I was lying.
I filled my mouth with as many fries as I could. So, I don't have to answer anyone further. The whole table went silent.
When I looked up and found everyone looking at me like I had grown an elephant trunk on my nose. They all stared at me blankly, including Ryan and Jake.
"Are you sure?" Rosy leaned forward, lifting her eyebrow. I gulped and nodded my head. She continues, "Are you sure that you were not the girl our boss was carrying in his arms yesterday?"
I opened my mouth to say, but Kevin beat me.
"Don't lie. We all saw that it was you." He said, folding his arms across his chest and giving me a blank look.
"Okay. Okay." I raised my hands in defeat, "It was me. I just fainted, and he helped me."
"Are you certain that's all that happened? You didn't do anything else? Think hard!" Rosy urged me, leaning forward with a look that demanded the truth.
I rolled my eyes and responded, "Guys, I swear, nothing happened."
"Try to---" She started to say something, but at the same time, my phone started ringing. I looked at the caller ID and breathed in relief. It was none other than Mr. Rude.
And I thank him mentally for doing something right in his lifetime.
I answered the calls and held them to my ear, but Rosy grabbed my phone and switched it to speaker mode. I gave her a wide-eyed look and motioned for her to return my phone, but she refused.
"Hello?" Came his voice.
"Where are you?" It was very unusual for Mr. Rude to ask a question like this. And he has to ask in a situation like this.
Great.
"Um- I am at the canteen doing lunch. Do you want anything?" I asked, noticing that Rosy was getting crazy and making weird gestures with her hand to Kevin. I rolled my eyes. They both are drama queens.
"No. But I want to show you something. Meet me in my cabin after lunch." And with that, he cuts the call.
I looked at Rosy, and she had a huge smirk plastered on her face as she wriggled her eyebrows. "What do you think he wants to show you?" She asked and started making the wild assumption.
"Maybe he would take you to a place that he had never shown to anyone. And do something romantic.... You know Just like I have read in novels." She spoke with a dreamy look on her face, and I shook my head at her.
"Or maybe he will show something like---" Before Kevin could even complete his sentence, I stood up and started making my way out of the canteen. I heard everyone laugh- Including Ryan.
And I felt contended that we became able to bring a smile to his face.
Ã
I was seated opposite Mr. Rude as he began working on his laptop, his expression as serious as ever. He glanced up and motioned for me to come closer.
"Sit." He motioned me to sit on his chair and I just stared at him blankly.
Me?
How can I sit on his chair?
And What is he going to do?
He closed his eyes in irritation and took a deep breath.
"Don't waste my time. Ms. Mehra." He said in his stern voice. I did as he told me and sat on his chair facing the laptop. He rests his hands on my either sides and leaned forward behind me.
My breath hitched as I felt him close enough. His breath fanned my neck making my cheeks go red.
Stop overthinking, Ria!
I froze in my place and looked at his face. His face was so close that I could hear his breathing. His jawline looked sharp as a knife, and his eyes, even though he was not looking at me. I could see his eyes. His eyes---
"If you are done staring at my face, I would appreciate if you bring your focus to the laptop screen." He spoke, his eyes still fixed on the laptop, a small smirk appearing on his lips. I felt the blush spreading on my cheeks.
I mentally facepalmed myself.
Why do I always embrass myself?
"Look, I found this footage. This man came to my cabin yesterday when everyone was at the party. He put the files in his bag and left." Mr. Rude said, and I brought my full attention to the footage. The man in the footage took some files from his desk and put them in a bag. He looked around maybe to see if someone had seen him or not. Then he left.
"I think that he is the one who is behind the matters, like, all the loopholes and selling the important information to our competitors." He closed the video and leaned forward looking me in the eyes. His eyes roamed on my face. And I almost forget how to breathe. Then he spoke in a soft voice.