Chapter Two: The Distraction
704 Words
The training session ended that day. Karl left, so did everyone else. But when night came, sleep became my enemy. My mind wouldn’t stop replaying the day, the way he walked in, the way his voice filled the room, the way my heart had skipped.
I tossed and turned, hugging my pillow, trying to push his face out of my head. But the more I tried, the clearer it became. Karl. His smile. His presence. That man was already becoming a distraction, and I hated it.
The next morning, training continued. I had promised myself I’d focus; strictly business. But my eyes betrayed me. No matter how hard I tried, they kept finding Karl across the room like magnets drawn to steel.
“Ronda, don’t do this to yourself,” I whispered under my breath.
“Business is business. You came here to build a life, not catch feelings.”
I straightened my back, forced a polite smile, and buried myself in work. I laughed with colleagues when necessary, greeted everyone with respect, and tried to act like Karl wasn’t slowly messing with my peace.
But something changed.
Karl began to notice me. He saw how focused I was during meetings, how often I asked questions, and how seriously I took my training.
The way he looked at me sometimes, like I wasn’t just another trainee, made my stomach flutter.
And the best part?
When he corrected me during tasks, he did it gently, never condescending, always with that calm, smooth tone that made my heart betray me a little more. He was an all-round man. The kind I used to dream about when I thought love was simple.
But I wasn’t the only one noticing him.
“I must have him. If I can’t, no one will,” Vivian, one of the other trainees, muttered one afternoon, her voice sharp with quiet envy.
I heard it. I pretended I didn’t. But in that moment, I realized whatever this was, I wasn’t the only one feeling it.
The supervisor, Nathan, noticed the little sparks in the air and didn’t waste time reminding us about the “no dating” rules. He cleared his throat dramatically before speaking.
“I can smell love in the air,” he said with a playful smirk.
“I hope you all know the business rules. If at all you have feelings for each other, meet the leaders.”
I forced a smile, but deep inside, I silently concluded that whatever feeling I had for Karl shouldn’t be born at all. I had come here to work, not to catch feelings.
A few days later, a practical skill program began, and I was elated to be part of the selected participants representing the firm. The event was held at a modern conference hub not too far away. It was an inter-competition program with other firms in attendance.
The sun was bright that day, almost as if it was cheering us on. Karl was also present among the firm’s elite, and his calm confidence made my heart flutter even when I tried to ignore it.
The event kicked off and, after hours of presentations and teamwork, came to an end.
The hall erupted into cheers as the announcer declared, “AB Tech Company won the award of the year!”
We had done it.
To my surprise, I also received multiple awards as one of the fastest-growing tech trainees. Happiness spilled through every corner of the room, and I caught Karl looking at me with genuine pride.
“Congratulations, Ronda. Thank you for making us proud,” he said, flashing that smile that made my heart skip.
I shook his hand, and that simple exchange pulled us into a deeper conversation. Karl confessed he had been quietly tracking my progress and admired how focused I was at work.
His compliments were mesmerizing. Every word soaked into me like warm sunlight.
That night, I dragged my tired body home, exhausted but fulfilled. As soon as I lay on my bed, the memory of Karl’s smile and the way his voice wrapped around my name replayed in my mind.
I’m not exaggerating when I say I slept like a baby that night.
- Writer
