A big Thank you to Zaya.hp and Octothorpe for pushing me enough so that I can complete it.
...
When Anurag reached his cabin, Prerna was already working on locating the saved data.
He kept his bag on the sofa and walked upto her.
"Congratulations! We have saved everything major, like all posters, hoarding designs etc etc. So we've minimal work to be redone", she said, not shifting her gaze from the screen.
"Good, so let me just reanalyse the designs..., he said.
"What? Why?, she asked.
"Cause I want them all perfect", he said, controlling his anger.
"Okay so Rule No. 1 the detailing you do is subject to the time you have in hand. This is not the only thing to be done alright.
"See, this is important for me. This is MY company and I want everything in place. I don't know how essential it is for you but for me, it's my last chance", he said furiously, stressing on each word.
"Your company?, she exclaimed, shocked.
She got up and dragged him out of his cabin.
"You say it's your Company, but what of them?, she pointed out to the staff working relentlessly.
"You see that electrician, he's been working all night so that we at least have a proper electricity supply since morning. Forget him, he's not even your employee. You see that lady working there? She's 7 months pregnant. Yesterday was her last day of work before her maternity leave, yet reported to work today cause there are things that cannot be done without her. It's your Company yes, but it's their livelihood. Company's profit means a lot to them and for you it's just goddamn proving yourself".
"Work for them if you want to. Otherwise just leave for a vacation to Bali", she said before returning to the cabin.
Anurag stood there dumbstruck. He had never realised all this until now. He went and offered the pregnant woman a glass of water and arranged a pillow to rest her back.
He moved around for quite sometime, understanding, observing.
He also monitored the reprint of magazines when the staff working on it was tired. He had never done such work and much to his annoyance, the satisfaction he felt was unparalleled. That moment he realised what work meant. It didn't mean doing important things. It didn't mean managing. It meant contributing to a bigger task in all ways you can. It meant valuable inputs into every possible field and ensuring that the target is met. It was a lot more than what he thought.
After about two hours, he heard loud noises in his cabin.
He came back to find Prerna furiously arguing with someone on the phone.
"What do you mean by you won't?, she thundered.
Anurag shook his head. The woman who aced the art of realizations, herself was so volatile sometimes.
He gently took the phone from her hands and cut it.
"What?, she said.
"Let's go to his office and talk. Shouting your lungs out on the phone won't help", he said coolly.
Prerna, partially impressed, followed him to the car.
They reached the office of the billboard holder.
As they were about to enter the cabin, Anurag got a call, so he stayed back in the lobby to talk.
Prerna proceeded to talk with the guy.
"You mean to say that the order we placed around 2 weeks ago now stands cancelled for an order placed yesterday?
"Well, in a way, yes", he answered, not bothered at all.
"Listen Mr, we've made the full payment. And the launch is tomorrow. We need our publicity to fall in place and this cannot be!
"Madam. You cannot talk to me like this alright?, he got up, slightly leaning over Prerna, who had already stood up by now.
She bent backwards, avoiding the move.
Just then, she felt a small tug on her shoulders. She stepped back and let Anurag take the lead.
"What are you saying?, he asked calmly. "Wait, who's the Mayor of Kolkata? Mr. Roy, right. I've a meeting with him tomorrow. Should I tell him to terminate your services of arranging government hoardings?, he said, as plainly as possible.
"Oh Sir. I never knew that... ugh, leave it anyways. Why are you worried? Your hoardings are already printed. They will reach your office before you", he said, wiping sweat off his forehead.
Anurag smiled and left, leaving Prerna pretty impressed.
"Wow, not bad", she gasped, surprised at her own remark.
The ride ahead was quite smooth. Anurag and Prerna worked as a strong team, now complimenting each other in ways no one could think of.
Anurag didn't interfere in her work, neither did she in his. They stayed away from common arenas of work and distributed everything according to each other's capacity. Anurag arranged for all sources and materials while Prerna worked on improving them. Anurag looked into mass production while she worked into solving technical difficulties.
Needless to say, the launch was a big hit. The magazine was well received by everyone. The rustic and city themed grabbed a lot of eyeballs. Moloy's experience, Prerna's acumen and Anurag's hardwork paid off greatly.
Basu House Publications only rose up and up in the coming years. And after 5 years, it announced it's first big makeover. Anurag was named as the HR Head, owing his excellent public management skills which he realised and honed whilst working with Prerna on many projects.
Prerna was named the Secretary of General Affairs, as a result of her extensive knowledge in multiple fields of work.
Yes, Prerna didn't become a CEO but she was more than happy with her separate cabin, with a magnificent name plate. And the heaps of documents she adored, were now a bore.
Neither could Anurag take over as a capable CEO, cause he realised he didn't have it in him to manage all fields. With Prerna's motivation to take up what he loved, he decided to keep all apprehensions aside and take over as the HR Head.
Nivedita Basu Sengupta was declared as the CEO of the company, to reward her with all the dedication she had put in through these years. Moloy retired happily, with the next generation taking over.
After theit 1st AGM, Anurag finally mustered up courage to ask Prerna out for a date.
"We've come so long and far today. This certainly calls for a coffee date", he asked confidently.
"Not possible, I've a million papers to be looked through for approval", entirely avoiding the question of a date.
"Well in that case, let's head back to the office and I'll make you one"
"Sounds good", she said.
He offered his arm which she gladly accepted, and off they walked, making their way to the elevator.
...
PS : Sorry about the lack of romance. This one was a little different.
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