Fancy a pizza, Mr.Shiny shoes?
***

Kairav is having a bad day, a very bad one, the I-should-dig-a-hole-instead, Maybe-I-should-punch-someone kind of bad. He was late to deliver two packages of pizzas. Now, the discount given to the customers for the delay would be cut off from his little to none salary. If that's not enough, he has to deliver to the miser ass who has money to order pizzas like he is gonna feed a whole chivalry but doesn't have the decency to tip even a note.

Kairav repeatedly presses the stop button of the lift, seeing a man running towards the lift with worry written all over his face. There goes his another order. He has just a minute in his hand to deliver and now he will definitely get late because he decided to play the hero and stop for the stranger.

Kairav heaves a sigh of relief when the man finally enters the lift, looking nonchalant as if he weren't just sweating a bucket. Kairav frowns when the man doesn't even acknowledge him. He, at least, deserves a little smile for holding the door for the ungrateful man. He takes a few seconds to scan the newcomer. He looks like the carbon copy of those people whom you might see modelling for suits. He has a grey suit on which is perfectly ironed, the fabrics shining brighter than Kairav's future. Let's not talk about his shiny pointy shoes. It looks sharp enough to cut through Kairav's hatred for miser customers. However, even with all the accessories to decorate his demeanour, he possesses an ugly personality, at least, that's what Kairav has assessed so far.

"You are welcome." Kairav mumbles under his breath, loud enough to let the man hear him while he presses himself against the lift wall, holding 5 boxes of large pizzas.

The man looks puzzled for a second, then he schools his features and looks at Kairav as if he were the most boring object the man has ever laid his eyes on.

"I didn't say thank you." The man says, his voice thick with annoyance.

"That's right." Kairav gives him a little closed mouth smile.

Kairav shuts his mouth and looks ahead of himself, avoiding the man's scrutinising eyes. For some reason, he doesn't look too pleased with Kairav.

Why isn't the 25th floor coming yet?

Kairav keeps counting floors until the 25th floor comes. He is happy to be away from the odd man's presence. He is ready to set but the door never opens. Instead, the lights on the lift start to flicker and eventually the lift gets as dark as Satan's soul.

"What the fuck?" The man curses, furiously pressing on the emergency button.

"Open this shit right now or else I'm gonna fucking kill everyone responsible for the lift." The unnamed man literally growls, trying to contact the other side but failing miserably.

Kairav, for sure, should be afraid. The man beside him seems angry enough to commit a massacre. For the life of him, he can't contain his laughter anymore and soon enough, he started laughing, albeit, soundlessly. There's not a shadow of doubt that he is out of his mind. While the man is yelling colourful profanities, he is laughing his ass off.

It's about time that the man notices his weird behaviour. The man is taken aback by Kairav's lack of panic or more like he is surprised that the boy finds the whole ordeal funny.

"What's wrong with you, kid?" The man asks, his voice cautious, as if he were dealing with a lunatic.

Just to prove that man right and spook him even more, Kairav starts laughing loudly.

"I'm… sorry." Kairav apologies in between his laughter.

"I just… it's that I've read a lot of cliche romance and when the lift suddenly stops, the main characters kiss." Kairav says with much difficulty, trying to stop himself from laughing further.

The man looks disgusted by his explanation. They can finally see each other as the emergency light of the lift has already been turned on.

"I can't imagine you kissing anyone with that angry scowl across your face. You look like you will suck someone's life away like a vampire instead of kissing them." Kairav slaps his knee as he keeps laughing, not minding the fact that the man looks like he will explode soon.

"You piece of-"

"Art, I know, I know." Kairav cuts the man off, still laughing a little.

"I'm sorry. I'm just laughing because I find it hard to picture you as the main character. You will be better as the antagonist. No kisses for the antagonist, so relax. I will wait for my counterpart." Kairav puts his hands around his mouth tightly, placing the boxes of pizzas on the floor so that he doesn't laugh more and get killed by the man.

"When we are out of here, I'm taking you to a mental asylum." The man comments, sounding as serious as a man on the dock, confessing to his crimes.

"That's so kind of you." Kairav scoffs, sitting down on the ground. He is tired of standing, tired of laughing.

Time goes by but nothing happens. Kairav's cheerfulness has already flown through the little drift between the lift doors, what remains is now hunger and anger. He thought the lift would open up in a few minutes. He was just so excited to experience a cliche moment in real life that he didn't realise the gravity of the situation. They have been stuck here for more than 15 minutes and there is nothing happening. It's such a big corporation, why isn't anyone using the lift?

And then it hits him! It's Sunday! Everything is off. Why is he here then? Did he get orders from ghosts? Ehh, it's better to be eaten by a ghost than to be stuck with a man who is still cursing under his breath though he has lessened his pace and intensity of his curses. Slamming his phone on the ground, he curses again as there is no network. Alright, Kairav is fearing for his life. Did he get stuck with a murderer or something? This man looks like he sacrifices little children for breakfast and cuts throats of annoying shit like Kairav for dinner.

Kairav tries to move further away from the man but he is already pressed against the wall. Maybe if he keeps quiet, he can be spared. If only his mind cooperated with him. He is so hungry that he is willing to play a Daredevil!

By eating and sacrificing, he remembers that he is hungry. Again. He stares at the boxes of pizza. He will never get to deliver them today, will he? He can't be held responsible for the malfunction of the lift. To hell with the miser ass who never tips! He can feast on these. He is hungry.

When he is done with one slice, he can feel a burning gaze on him. With his mouth full of pizza, he takes one slice and offers that to the man who is still standing.

"Fancy a pizza, Mr. shiny shoes?" He tries to say but he knows he sounds gibberish right now, with food stuffed in his cheeks, making him look like a bunny.

The man just keeps staring at him, judging him for eating the pizza which he was supposed to deliver. Kairav shrugs his shoulders.

"I don't want a stomach ache. I already get enough of them. You are free to have a slice or two but stop looking at me like I'm the 8th wonder of the modern world." Kairav mumbles under his breath after finishing the slice. Now that the man is calm to some extent, he gets his bravery back.

"Why are you eating them? Weren't you supposed to deliver them?" The man asks, trying to sit down finally, being tired of standing for a long while.

"Ehh…Do you see the lift moving?" Kairav asks instead, taking a bite off the last slice.

Kairav watches the man fishing out a fancy handkerchief and cleaning the dust off the floor. But the man still doesn't look satisfied. If he wore a suit that was worth more than a million dollars, maybe he would act like this too.

As Kairav is done with a box of pizza, he gives the empty box to the man, looking at him innocently.

"You can sit on it." He offers, gaining the man's attention.

The man looks at the box for a few seconds, appearing to be in a pensive mood. Then, he makes a disgusted face, silently telling Kairav that he doesn't want it. Kairav shrugs his shoulders, cursing the man in his head.

The man finally sits down on his expensive handkerchief, observing Kairav like a lab rat. He doesn't say anything though. He just silently judges him, probably taking a mental note to report Kairav to one of his colleagues who ordered this. But he doesn't care right now.

"Don't worry, Mr. Shiny shoes with a handkerchief which is worth more than my whole wardrobe, this order belongs to a miser ass from the 25th floor. He can survive without a pizza. He has some more to feed his huge appetite and ego." Kairav goes into a full blown rant, being annoyed by this particular customer.

The man doesn't even show up to take the orders. He sends his secretary who flashes a bright smile at him and pats his head like he is a child and takes the order. That's it!

"I'm telling you, his ego must be much bigger than your broad shoulders or your giant like height or the grease in these pizzas combined. Though he is an asshole, he won't mind if I eat one of pizzas as a dying man's last wish, right?" Kairav asks, tilting his head innocently at the man who looks too stunned to speak.

"Who.. who is the customer?" The man asks.

"Do you work here?" The man hesitantly nods his head.

"Then you must know who I'm talking about, well, if there is only one asshole in your workplace." Kairav shrugs his shoulders.

This man looks like an asshole himself but Kairav doesn't want to get strangled by him. So, he keeps his mouth shut.

"What's the name, kid?" The man asks again, this time with more authority.

"Vikram Singh Arora." Kairav huffs under his breath, regretting bad mouthing the man. He swears if this man works for that asshole then he is gone for!

Kairav doesn't care now though. He rather enjoys the cheese pull, stretching as far as he can.

"Take your hands off my pizza!" The man suddenly roars, scaring the shit out of him.

The cheese gets stuck at his throat like glue. He chokes.

His pizza? It can't be what Kairav is thinking, can it?

A/N: try not to be bothered by the grammatical errors, I don't have enough time to proofread T~T

Anyway, how's the chapter? I liked writing it.

Fun fact, if you follow me for long enough, you would know that the lift thing did really happen to me lmao, not the exact scenario but yeah ☠️☠️

Do comment down your thoughts!