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How do you wake up in the morning thinking you will be promoted and proposed to and end up being demoted and dumped all in the same day? It has happened to me and it all started the day I picked that good-for-nothing-loser-of-a-guy as my assistant despite his poor qualifications and lack of experience because of his now-ugly-looking-at-the-time-impressive-face. His name is Nitesh and I was totally smitten by him, who knew he would not only scam me into thinking I was the next Mrs. Nitesh Malhotra but also steal all my ideas and get the promotion I deserved. Now, here I am without a ring on my finger and a loser-faced-scum-sucking-bottom-dwelling-has-a-peanut-for-a- brain for a boss.
And what is my best friend, Ipshitta, grinning so widely about. Did she not hear my hour long rant about how I am doomed to be single and miserable for the rest of my life? That is the thing about Ipshitta and her kind of people, always smiling, trying to look at the bright side of things. I have known her since grade two; she was the angel of the class, always helping everyone. Despite my many efforts she never changed, always remained the do-gooder. Ipshitta and I are as different as chalk and cheese, she is miss goody two shoes, I am miss owns a pair of great shoes. She tries to find the good in people; I try taking advantage of good people. She is beautiful and I am damn hot and sexy, or so I would like to think. We are as different as can be, but still she is my best friend and I love her, however, she better soon wipe that silly smirk of her face or else only God can save her from my wrath.
"What? Why the heck are you smiling silly?" I finally ask unable to take the torture any longer.
"Let's wait for Anupam." She says her eyes now glued to the apartment door.
Anupam, my second best friend, know him since my college days. He, too, is one of those "positive" people, just like Ipshitta. Both of them make me sick with all their talk about positive energy and helping people. Feeling more annoyed now, I rest my head on the couch and fold my arms across my chest, silence encroaching us and all we hear is the rhythmic tick-tick of the table clock. Finally the door swings open and in walks a beaming Anupam. I roll my eyes at him and wish both of them would disappear if they are not going to pay all their attention towards me and my miserable situation. He takes a seat by Ipshitta and both share an overly friendly hello. I think I am going to be sick.
"I am so sorry about everything that happened Gauri. Are you okay?" Anupam asks sounding sincerely concerned.
"No! How can I be fine? You know what that scum-sucking-bottom-dwelling…" Wait a minute, they both are not even listening to me, and they are busy looking at each other, again grinning silly. Something is definitely up… "What is going on?"
"You tell her." Ipshitta nudges Anupam; giggling.
"Are you sure, you don't want to tell her?"
"Oh okay I will tell her." Ipshitta now turns to me, and can't stop giggling. "No, I can't you tell her." She turns back to Anupam.
"Are you sure?"
"Oh I want to tell her but I am just so excited, you tell her, no I will tell her…"
"If someone does not tell me what is going on, I am seriously going to hurt someone!"
"Okay…" Anupam starts. "Ipshitta and I…"
"We are engaged!" Ipshitta interrupts leaping up from her seat and pouncing on me, like a lioness pouncing on her prey. She throws her arms around my shoulders and breaks in fresh tears. "We realized our love for each other last night and decided we know each other as much as we can and want to get married."
I am dumbstruck. Now I won't say I am not happy for them both. Heck I am over the moon about this, my two best friends, finding love in each other, what could be better? Nothing. Yet, there is small part of me that is a little jealous and envious. The day I get demoted and dumped is the day my best friends' realize their love for each other. A precious moment stolen from me all because of that foul-mouth-sour-faced-onion-breath-loser-of-a-boyfriend of mine.
I hug Ipshitta back and a few tears escape my eyes as well, I am happy for her. Anupam joins us for a big group hug. We jump, laugh and cry all together. We celebrate with a bottle of champagne and cut a mini chocolate cake. We talk for a while remembering all the times, Anupam and Ipshitta had almost realized how they were meant to be but something had come in the way. But now they are together and that is all that matters. They both have found their happily every after. Soon it is time for them to leave, time for the two love birds to spend alone, without me to tag along as the third wheel. They leave and I am left with half the bottle of champagne and chocolate cake. I obviously gorge on the cake, drink myself silly and then cry myself to sleep.
I wake up the next morning feeling miserable from head to toe. My head in thumping in pain, my neck feels stiff and I just want to fall back into bed and sleep all day long. Of course I have no choice but drag myself out, take a quick shower and head to my agonizing and painstaking job. I curse myself under my breath each time I lift my foot and place on the next step, pulling myself up with the support of the railing. What am I thinking? My office is on the fifteenth floor, and today is just the first day after that doomed day of my life, how long can I avoid being trapped in the elevator with Nitesh and take the stairs? In the end I am going to have to face him, sitting in that sweet leather chair, in the glass windowed, draped with beautiful blinds, office that should have been mine! Huffing and puffing I grab the handle of the fire-escape door that leads into our office floor, I rest a little and take in big gulps of air, then finally trying to re-gain my composure I enter.
"You are late." Comes the nasal voice of the witch called Palak, the receptionist. She does nothing all day, just sits at that desk, filing her nails and chewing on her gum. I feel like giving her a piece of my mind, but right now I can think of nothing but collapsing on my desk chair and taking of these god forsaken shoes that are killing me one toe at a time. Struggling, I finally make it to my desk, draping myself over my chair I kick off my shoes and shut my eyes trying to relax.
"Good Morning Gauri! Beautiful day isn't it." I open my eyes to find another wicked witch towering over me, Maya, smiling like she has just won the million dollar lottery. I sit back up trying to ignore her as she takes her seat on her desk, which unfortunately is right beside mine. As I lean forward to turn on the computer screen something catches my eyes and I am blinded by its brightness. I put up my hand trying to figure out what it is and then I see it. There it is, sitting on her finger, glittering away. I swallow hard and try to speak, "Ma…ya … is that…"
She sees me noticing the honking ring and admiring it on her own hand she smiles and continues, "Oh this little thing, it's an engagement ring. Nitesh proposed to me last night."
"Nitesh?" His name still rings in my ear. I feel like I have just been struck with a poison filled arrow straight through my heart ripping it to pieces. That ring was supposed to be on my finger.
"Yah, he proposed last night, telling me that he had been in love with me since his first day of work here, and was just waiting for the promotion to propose."
That was my promotion. I feel sick to my stomach. Holding back the chocolate cake that I ate last night, that is now on the verge of spilling out; I grab my purse and run out. I frantically press floor twelve on the elevator, thank goodness Ipshitta and Anupam work at the same place. I storm into her office and find Anupam and Ipshitta discussing more than a file. Now I am definitely going to be sick, it is one thing to be happy for your best friends, but it is another to witness to their open love. I hear them saying something to me in the background but ignoring them I head back into the elevator. I feel suffocated; I need to fresh air to breathe. As the elevator door is about to shut, a hand stops it. It re-opens and in walks the man of my nightmares, the pig-faced-idea-stealing-snake-hugging-loser. I gag seeing the smirk on his face, and before he can get in I bang my heal on his foot that is inside the elevator causing him to retract it and quickly hit the 'shut-door' button of the elevator.
I push the pair of glass doors open and take in a deep breath reaching the pavement outside our tall office building. I start walking when my mobile vibrates inside my purse; I fish it out and find Ipshitta flashing on the screen. I turn it on and put it to my ear.
"Hey Gauri, is everything okay?"
"Oh Ipshitta…."
"Anupam stop it…" she giggles, "I am on the phone…"
I hang up the phone and let the tears flow out. Going into a restaurant around the corner, I take a seat on an empty table and now start to sob loudly. A child from the table across me gets scared seeing the lady with the running mascara and weird sounds coming out of her mouth. This makes me cry louder. Everyone is looking at me but I don't care. My phone vibrates again. I turn it off.
"Is everything okay?" A waiter approaches me.
I look up at her, my tears stop as I wipe my tears, gulping for air, calming down. Then my eyes fall onto her hand as she hands me the menu and I see the dreaded sign of "I am engaged and you are not!" I start to cry again. Half hour later I have cried my heart out. I take in a deep breath. I am a grown woman and should be happy that boyfriend-stealing-dirt-faced Maya is getting what she deserves; the loser-faced-pea-brained-man and their children will be ... will be … beautiful. I start to cry again. A man dressed in a black suit now approaches me, I try to look at his face but give up soon, as all the crying and running mascara has temporarily made me blurry eyed. He takes a seat across from me and hands me his handkerchief. I narrow my eyes, squint and try my hardest to look at him but it is useless.
"A beautiful girl like should not be crying over a guy."
How dare he assume that I would be crying over a guy? Does he not know I am career driven, beautiful girl who could care less about any guy. I snatch the handkerchief out of his hands and start to wipe my tears, and then I look up at him again with my vision restored. He is gorgeous. His hair gelled back, his eyes a beautiful blue-grey and a smile that can brighten any day. I slowly slip out my compact from my purse to just give my hair a quick fix, while he signals the waitress to come back. Opening my compact I gave myself a glance and am horrified with what I see. Racoon eyed, lighten struck hair and tears stains down my cheeks. I can't sit here any longer and let myself be humiliated any further. I grab my purse and run out. &a mp;n bsp;
After a very long and very slow walk I tip-toe but to our building and jet towards the washroom, where I try and fix myself. Once I look decent enough to face the world of engaged and happy people again, I head up, back to that dreaded place I call my work. Again I am greeted by Palak's nasal ranting about skipping from work and so on so forth, I tune her out. Sitting on my desk I find Maya missing from her own, I am glad she is not there, just thinking about her makes me shudder with disgust. I turn on the computer and go on the internet for some senseless browsing. Just as I think the peace of my world has been restored back Nitesh storms up to my cubicle. I look up at him and remember my behaviour from this morning; I look down at his toe. He is without a shoe and a bandage covers his big toe, I burst out laughing.
"Gauri it is not funny!"
"Oh yes it is!"
"Come and see me in my office right now." He starts to leave and I drag myself behind him.
Entering his room, I find Maya sitting on his chair swirling around, like a five year old. She flashes me a smile that says 'I am the queen of the world, fianc of your ex-boyfriend, and current boss so you better bow down to me'. I keep a straight face, and narrow my eyes at her, gritting my teeth. Nitesh pulls out a pile of files from his cabinet and slams them on his desk.
"Gauri, our CEO is coming. We don't know exactly when he will be coming, how long he will be here. We know nothing, it is suppose to be a surprise visit and I got this information from a very reliable source. I want you to update all these accounting files."
"What? That is Maya's job, she handles the accounting."
"It doesn't matter; Maya has other things to do. Get it done!"
"Other things, like what?" I say glaring at Maya.
"Oh don't be jealous Gauri, just because I have the ring on my hand and you don't!" She says admiring that ugly thing on her hand as it gleams under the sun's ray coming in from the glass window of the office that should have been mine. "Anyways Gauri what else do you have to do, I mean you are single and have nothing better to do, might as well do some work, it will make you long and boring go a bit faster." Oh if I was not a civilized woman, I would slap this woman silly and rip her hair out. But I am above these little games she is playing with me to prove me a lonely soul. I am a strong and confident woman, who will not stoop down to her level, of stealing one's boyfriend and then using him to get out of work.
I swallow my anger, pick up the files, flash a 'you will regret this' smile at Maya and say, "I will have it done."
Just as I am about to exit the room Maya speaks again, "Oh and Gauri can you bring Nitesh and me two cups of tea. Nitesh likes his with two spoons of sugar and lots of milk. And I like mine black, no sugar, and no milk."
I turn back aground and force a smile. "Will have the peon get it for you and will give him the special instructions too."
"Oh and Gauri, I am throwing a little get together at a restaurant for Nitesh, you know to celebrate his promotion. I had to make the reservations, so for you it will be one, right." She says sticking up her index finger emphasizing the "one: single and alone" factor.
"No, make it for two." I blurt out.
"What?" Nitesh questions, his jaw dropped.
At this moment I smile, place the files back on the desk, go close very close to Nitesh, and tracing my index finger along his jaw line start, "Oh Nitesh, don't be jealous. I know the moments we shared together are very memorable for you, something you will never forget. But you know it is time to move on, you must get over me." I look at Maya from the corner of my eye and see her breathing fire. I tilt my head and give her 'I am the queen of the world' smile back. Picking up the files I walk out and just before leaving I stick up my index finger and middle finger and waving them continue, "reservations for two, Maya."
With each step I take the reality of the situation sinks in. I got the reservations made for two, but the truth is I am just one. Well, I hate to admit it, but Maya was right about one thing, having to weed through these files will get my mind of the lie I just told. I tilt my head to get a view of the path before me, the pile of files in hand are obstructing my view. What I see next makes me question my sanity. Could it really be or I am hallucinating? The black suit, sky blue shirt, gelled back hair, sea blue eyes and a smile that could brighten any room… I blink once and then again. I blink again, as the not-really-a-stranger seems to be getting closer.
"Can I help with those?" He asks standing right in front of me now.
Do I look like I need help? Men; they think they know everything. "No, thanks!" I respond, turn around and take the long way back to my desk.
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