WORKAHOLIC: Shhh..The Boss Is Coming

She smiled in her sleep. In her dream, someone was standing impossibly close to her. She couldn’t see his face clearly, but she knew the feeling—the warmth of his body, the way his hand rested gently against her waist, the softness of his lips meeting hers. She kissed him back. Slowly. Sweetly. Completely lost in the dream. Her arms tightened around him. Except there was no man in her arms. There was only her pillow. She hugged it tightly against her chest, her face buried in its softness as she pressed another sleepy kiss against it. A tiny smile tugged at her lips. “Mmm…” The bedroom door opened. Her best friend stepped inside, still holding a cup of coffee. She stopped. Silence. She stared at the bed. Aliya was sprawled across it, her arms wrapped possessively around a pillow, one leg tangled in the sheets, kissing the poor pillow like her life depended on it. The cup slowly lowered from her best friend’s lips. She blinked. Once. Twice. Then her mouth fell open. “Oh. My. God.” Aliya didn’t hear her. She only hugged the pillow tighter. Her friend covered her mouth, desperately trying not to laugh. “Is this what we’re doing now?” Still asleep, Aliya smiled dreamily. “Don’t go…” Her friend’s eyes widened. That was it. She couldn’t hold it anymore. She burst out laughing. Aliya suddenly stirred. “Huh…?” She opened her eyes. Her gaze landed on her best friend. Then slowly dropped to the pillow wrapped securely in her arms. She froze. Her best friend raised an eyebrow. “So…” Aliya’s face turned bright red. “Don’t.” Her best friend leaned against the doorframe, grinning. “I didn’t say anything.” “You were about to.” “I was actually going to ask who your new boyfriend is.” “Shut up!” Aliya grabbed the pillow and threw it at her. Her friend caught it easily, laughing. “Wow. Three years without a boyfriend and suddenly you’re making out with pillows in your sleep.” “I was dreaming!” “Of what? A pillow?” Aliya groaned and covered her face. Her friend walked closer, still laughing. “Honestly, I’m not even surprised.” Aliya peeked through her fingers. “Why?” “Because at this point, what other option do you have?” “What does that mean?” “It means you can’t date.” “I can date.” “No, you can’t.” “I can!” Her friend pointed accusingly at her. “You’ve been working for five years. Five years. And in all that time, you’ve managed to date exactly…” She paused dramatically. “Nobody.” Aliya rolled her eyes. “I’ve been busy.” “Busy?” Her friend laughed. “Girl, you don’t have a boyfriend because your job is your boyfriend.” “That is not true.” “Oh, really? When was the last time you went on an actual date?” Aliya opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Her friend nodded triumphantly. “Exactly.” “I’ve just been focused on my career.” “For five years?” “Yes.” “And for three years, you haven’t even tried?” Aliya looked away. Her friend shook her head. “You wake up, go to work, overwork, come home exhausted, sleep, wake up, and do it all over again. When exactly are you planning to meet someone, Aliya?” Aliya sighed. “I don’t know.” “Exactly my point.” She picked up another pillow and hugged it defensively. Her friend stared at it before picking up her cup again. “Food is ready. And go wash your face. You look awful.” With that, she left. Aliya stared at the closed door for a few seconds. Then she looked down at the pillow lying beside her. “You’re embarrassing me too,” she muttered. She dragged herself out of bed and shuffled toward the mirror. The moment she looked at her reflection, she stopped. “Oh, God.” Her face looked exhausted. Dark circles sat heavily beneath her eyes, and the slight bags beneath them were impossible to miss. Her skin looked dull from too many late nights and far too little sleep. And her head… Her head was pounding. She pressed two fingers against her temple. “Never again.” From the hallway, her best friend’s voice immediately came. “What is it?” Aliya sighed for the hundredth time. She shouldn’t have listened to her. Yesterday, her best friend had practically dragged her out of the house, insisting that she needed to stop thinking about work for once. Aliya had argued. She had complained. She had tried every excuse she could think of. But eventually, she had given in. Now her head felt like someone had spent the entire night hammering inside her skull. Her friend walked back into the room and examined her face. “Wow.” “What?” “You look terrible.” Aliya glared at her. “Thank you.” “No, seriously. Look at your eyes.” “I know.” “You have bags under your eyes.” “I know.” “And your face looks like you haven’t slept in a week.” “I said I know.” Her friend smiled sympathetically. “Still worth it?” Aliya thought about it. For a moment, an image from the previous night flashed through her mind. A tall man leaning against the bar. That smile. The way his eyes had lingered on hers when they spoke. And the ridiculous butterflies she had felt in her stomach when he had asked for her name. A small smile crept onto her lips before she could stop it.