Three Days Left
554 Words
He was sitting in his office, contemplating his earlier discussion with her. He was certain that he would not agree to her terms. Even if she tried to persuade him, he would clearly reject her offer. Just like him, he wouldn’t want to mix personal matters with work. They were on separate paths now.He had betrayed him, and he would not forget it. Why should he? After all, he had been stabbed in the back.
As he sat there, something flickered in his eyes—something nostalgic, something painful. Surviving the betrayal of a close one was never easy. The hurt was evident in his expression. He tried to divert his attention by focusing on his work, but his mind refused to settle. Finally, he decided to take a one-hour break.
-------------------------
Meanwhile, she was preparing for her first assignment—her first project, an improvement of their earlier discussions. Her countdown would begin tomorrow. It had been her request, and he had agreed to it.
She looked up at the sudden knock on her door. Her secretary entered after seeking permission.
“Ma’am, Sir is taking his leave for one hour. He asked me to inform you that you may collect the necessary documents from his office. And the most important thing—” the secretary paused, as if suddenly remembering, “he instructed that you must not touch any documents on the left side of his office. Those belong to other workers’ ideas, and you must design your own.”
“Okay, you may leave now,” she dismissed her secretary with an agitated tone. Her expressions mirrored her frustration.
“How could he think I would try to cheat others on my very first project? Useless, self-centered, obnoxious man,” she mumbled irritably under her breath.
“I won’t take any documents,” she assured herself. “But I must work on my project. And thanks to him, I only have three days.” Her frustration showed as her leg shook restlessly. “Fine. I’ll go. For my project’s sake.”
Within three minutes, she was inside his office. She didn’t even glance at the left side but walked straight to the back of his chair. Her eyes fell on the artwork hanging there something she had previously ignored. The piece looked strangely familiar. Before she could dwell on it, her secretary’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Ma’am, please collect the necessary files. We have only forty minutes left.”
“Alright. Help me choose the documents.”
Within thirty minutes, she had gathered what she needed and left his office before his return.
-----------------
Later that night, she sat on her bed, frustrated. She had wasted the entire day reading documents that had nothing to do with her work or her idea.
“I think he just wasted my whole day,” she muttered, and she was quite right about it.
----------------------
He had succeeded in wasting her day. But there were still three days to go, and she was clever enough to understand that he had deliberately tried to distract her. Her secretary had even told him that Ma’am, in her anger, had left a message for him: “Next time, I won’t fall.”
He smiled bitterly. He would have to plan something else. Something worth the effort.
- Writer
