15: an Annoying fly
As the days went by, both my office life and personal life got seriously messed up. Not only I had to work under the person I hated, but to top that off, I had to live in the same apartment as him due to which he annoyed me now and then.
He not only rang my doorbell until I opened the door, but he also insisted on eating together sometimes. I mean, this might be fine for others but for me, this was too annoying and repulsive. So I just declined. But as persistent as he was, he would greet me everyday in the office even though I wanted to avoid him. Also, he would call me now and then to assign me work which could be done by others as well. Like, what the hell, man.
Anyways, I too being stubborn, didn't gave up and never let my emotions be displayed through my expressions. I definitely knew that his motive was to annoy me and tease me until I start to react to his every little stupid action. But, nah-uh, I am not that naive. Reacting meant he had an impact on my life but for me, I don't care about him, at all.
So, inspite of his repetitive provocations, I just calmly responded to each of his actions, whether it be in the office or in the apartment. With how much I wanted to spent a normal, event-less life, I was determined to ignore and avoid any unnecessary elements or ripples arising in my journey of life. Yes, I will definitely strive.
With the days passing, it had already been two months now since Jaso- no, Jaehwan's arrival. With his irritating attempts to grasp my attention going on, overall, my days were quite peaceful until, the present situation arose.
Why the hell is he here? Damn it....
It was on the day of the annual meeting where, the representatives of all the departments in S. Corp. needed to attend a conference to be held in the S. Corp.'s main Headquarters, which was located in Scotland. And due to my rotten luck, as usual, the team leader had chosen me and none other than, Jaehwan to be representatives for the department.
At first, I thought of declining the team leader but one of my work colleagues told me that it would be a great opportunity for me to improve my record within the working span of mine in S. Corp., further, it could also increase my opportunity to get a promotion, which could raise not only my pay scale but also enable me to get hold of better projects which could help me to broaden my horizons.
So, I definitely didn't want to miss my chance of going to the conference. Thereby, I just reluctantly agreed to the team leader's decision and so, both of us began to get ready for the annual meeting. The discussions in the meeting mainly consisted of the budget of the department, the projects undertaken, contributions made by the employees and finally, the overall contribution of the departments in the earnings or profits of the Company.
One more thing to be noted was that, if a Department contributed less than a predetermined scale towards the earnings of the company, the Committee Heads in the HQ could fire all the people in the department and thereby a new recruitment session would be held to employ new workers. And this very aspect, made recruitment in the S. Corp. so very competitive.
Further, the department which performed best would be awarded and thereby, the best facilities would be provided to them. And according to the team leader, since the past consecutive three years, it was the department of the logistics that had been getting the best department tag.
I really need to work hard for our department to strive. This time, it will definitely be us. The best department.
And this confidence in me didn't take root from baseless aspects but rather from facts. The team leader, though didn't engage in the on-site inspections, but he definitely had an eye for searching locations which were ideal for various kind of projects. My work colleagues were also a hard working batch which enabled the efficiency of our department to skyrocket. As for me, of course, I was the best rookie so yeah, a major contributor. But finally, inspire of his annoying actions towards me, Jaehwan was definitely was definitely great in his work.
I mean, how can a person not a single mistake in each of their projects... Like even I made mistakes sometimes, not major ones, of course, but yeah, silly ones (smiles in a pale manner)
So, after all our preparations including the presentation and answer formulation for expected questions, we were good-to-go and now, it was show time.
All the dept. representatives were instructed to arrive at the venue at least one day earlier so that a fruitful and production conference could be carried out within the time constraints. So, the representatives were suggested to check out the venue earlier than the day of the conference so that no one gets late and the conference can begin smoothly.
However, in case of our dept., we were instructed by the team leader to go two days earlier and so we did. First, after checking out the route and venue of the conference, that is, the HQ Building where the conference hall was situated. Both of us decided to book our rooms in the nearest hotel.
My plan of receiving the best dept. award is going smoothly. We'll definitely be the best. Hehe...
On the day of the conference, even though I had been in so many conferences with the team leader, I couldn't help but feel nervous for this one. And the worse fact was that, I also began to feel worse physically as time passed.
Calm down me. Stop being a scaredy cat...
As I went on calming myself, I don't know if he noticed my condition, but Jaehwan approached me and patted on my shoulders and spoke up.
"You don't have to be so nervous. It's just a conference and you know it, you're not alone. I am here with you. If you speak without any mistakes, I will be there to cheer and compliment you. While if you make any mistakes, I'll be there to follow you up. Don't worry. We are together in this." And then he handed me something in my hand and it was a candy.
What the ---, does he think I am a kid...
Seriously *smirk*
Of course, I still hated him, but still his words were enough to boast my confidence again. And he was right. The conference ended on a really good note. Yeah, our dept. didn't win the best dept., but still we were in the top five positions of contributors. Further, even the committee congratulated us on our amazing performance. I definitely was not satisfied but still, it felt good to be appreciated and as Jaehwan said, he was there to cheer with me in our grand achievement.
After the conference, there was a party being held for all the representatives and delegates of S. Corp. And the party was marvelous. All kinds of delicacies were served along with musicians and other famous performers performing on the area allotted, which added to the ambiance of the evening. It was really great to be a part of such an event.
I definitely would have regretted it if I didn't come.
As this very thought were on circling within my head, there came in a nuisance. Jaehwan, who looked as stunning as ever in his dress shirt and tuxedo and as always, he was famous among the ladies. As he chatted and laughed with his admirers, he suddenly looked towards my direction.
I don't know what he said to the others, as he said something to them, smiled and then began to make his way towards my durection. It felt kinda weird but decided to not react and just stood still with a champagne glass in my right hand and a plate of starters in the other.
After a couple of seconds, he was right in front of me, standing and smiling and then he his head near my ear and whispered, "You look realy great in your suit." Embarrassed by his action, I pushed him hurriedly and glared at him.
What is he even doing???
When he saw my reaction, he began to smile even more frivorously while staring at my face. As both of us kept on standing beside each other and drinking our respective champagne, one of the committee members approached Jaehwan.
"Oh my god, isn't this Jason?" When we heard the voice, Jaehwan turned to see who it was, and I too followed behind. And after that, Jaehwan's confused expression immediately changed into a happy one.
"Oh my, hey there Noel. How are you, my man?" And after saying that, both of them hugged each other and they began to chat among themselves but as if, something struck Jaehwan, he suddenly looked at me and asked me to come forward. I was kinda reluctant but finally, just gave in.
"Noel, I wanted to introduce someone to you. This is Finn. Finn Park." I didn't know why he introduced me to his friend, but I just respectfully nodded. His friend, just like him, acted weird. I mean, it felt as if he was checking me out from head to toe and he just nodded with some kind of satisfaction smirk and again nodded at Jaehwan.
What the hell is even going on? *sigh*
After the awkward introduction, both of them again started talking while including me in their conversation, once in a while. As the three of us kept on discussing about various things, I noticed someone among the crowd. Someone whom I seriously loathed. But I just dismissed it as my delusion.
However, when one of the committee heads approached Jaehwan and acted as if they had a close relation, the night which was supposed to be delightful, turned into a worse one. As along with the head came a very familiar but loathsome person.
He pushed the person behind him to come forward and began to introduce Jaehwan and him. And then, I saw him, and my delusions were turned into reality.
It was him, the only person in the world whom I hated the most. The person with whom I wished I had never made any contact with. The person who ruined my friendship with the only friend that I had made in high school... It was Marcus.
As the both of them were introduced to one another, I stood still behind Jaehwan and then before I knew I began to ran. I could hear the faint sound of Jaehwan screaming out my name, but I didn't stop. I just had to leave. I had to run. The memories that had been hidden away in my mind began to resurface once again.
Why the hell was he even there?
Even though I was trying to live my life on my own terms, fate always had a way of breaking down my will.
When I finally reached my hotel room, I hurriedly booked a flight ticket for early morning and so, I decided to leave before Jaehwan. Before boarding my plane, I texted Jaehwan that I had some urgent work to complete so I had left earlier than planned. And to that he just replied with an "Okay, got it."
I guess he doesn't care. Of course, he doesn't, I bet he still doesn't trust me and thought of playing with me to pass his time... Reality check was what I needed... Let's just leave useless emotions behind and focus on yourself and don't bother with others...
As I headed for office with a refreshed mindset, I was determined to ignore any unnecessary things. But as usual, my expectations were already shattered as soon as I entered the office building. The reason being, I saw an annoying fly greeting everyone in the entrance of the lift, with the most fake and professional smile.
Fuc-, why the hell is he here? Earlier it was Jaehwan and now it's this bastard, Marcus. Why can't my life go the way I want it to????
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