Cold air seeped through the cracks, faint ticking from my analog watch, the wall on the roof strangely getting darker with every passing minute. My eyes burned with heat, yet I refused to close them even for a second. The moment I did, all the thoughts poured in, everything rushing at once. His voice, the kiss, his eyes. The way he looked away from me.
When I stared at the ceiling, hunger took over, squeezing my brain. The lack of water was the only thing keeping me sane, alive.
Soon it was morning. The alarm buzzed, and the light spilled in, the couple next door starting their routine. I got up, put on my heels, grabbed a different coat, and walked out.
Things were not going well for me today. I missed my bus and had to walk extra to reach the office. It was as lively as ever, but with an addition. Harry's crush was meticulously rearranging her things, labeling each item and checking her reflection six times an hour. And Vick was absent? I wasn't particularly waiting for him, but I didn't imagine him, right? A small sense of relief resurfaced.
She was eating her macaron.
"Hey, come over here!" Den whispered and turned toward Sara, who was lost in eating her cookie.
I got up. Until Harry gets here, we are unofficially off duty. He's going to be back in a couple of days. Then maybe I could just resign, walk away as if nothing happened.
"You alright?" Sara asked, putting her cookie down.
"Yeah," I nodded. I must have looked extra zombie-like today. I wished I had looked at myself at least once.
Den handed over a cookie box.
"Eat it, it's good," he insisted, his eyes fixed on me.
It felt easier to eat than to reject it and be asked follow-up questions.
"So, have you talked to her yet?" Sara's eyes followed the woman working on those labels again.
"No, not yet." I swallowed the cookie dry in my mouth. I hadn't even brushed my teeth, and I realized too late. Or maybe not too late. I could still go brush. They had the whole system in this room, various toothpastes and cute brushes.
"Where's he?" Den asked.
"I don't know. Wendy from the QC department is dead set on making him her boyfriend," Sara sighed.
"Haha. He's got it, man. Something's off, though," Den said.
"Yeah, well, they say there are rumors he's Freya's toy now. I didn't believe it, but she has a photo with him on her private account," Sara said, showing the photo. They stood close with others around, not enough to definitely say they were exclusive, but enough to know they weren't strangers.
"I think he's just popular. I mean, look at that guy. He's practically emitting pheromones," Den said, taking a cookie from the box he had given minutes ago.
"You know that guy?" Den asked.
"Why do you ask? She never spoke to him," Sara questioned him back.
"It's because he was glancing at her, as if he was trying to avoid and speak at the same time," Den replied.
Maybe I should clear a few things up.
"He and I were colleagues," I said.
"What?" Both of them spoke at the same time, drawing attention from her. She stared briefly, then looked away.
"It's just that it was a year ago. I used to work at this company. We were on different teams, though. Not much connection," I added, trying to share only what mattered.
"Oh, different teams," Den remarked.
"So how is he as a person?" Sara asked.
"Are you crushing on him?" Den laughed, making a silly face.
"Gosh, no. It's for my friend," Sara hissed.
"He was smart and well-liked. I don't know more than that," I replied, eating my cookie. Now I didn't want to stop. The sugar was slightly comforting.
"Figures," Sara nodded.
"Wow, we really have Mr. and Mrs. Beauty," Den remarked.
"You might not know this, but here they have something like a year-end party. They give prizes and crowns for different roles. Handsome and beautiful, friendly coworker, best employee. It's an event we'll be organizing this time," Sara said, getting excited.
"Hey, hey, he's here," Den said.
Vick didn't look at us and sat next to her. They started talking casually. Nothing unusual. Nothing really. She was just blushing for no reason. Probably something else.
"He just called her pretty," Den said, dropping his cookie on the floor.
Sara and I looked at him.
"Don't freak out. I can read lips. Simple lines like those are easy. Damn, she just blushed," Den laughed.
At this rate, I might get fired before I even submit my resignation letter.
"Come on, Lia is also pretty. Well, usually. Maybe not today," Sara said, her voice trailing off as she studied my face, tracing back to the first thing she asked me this morning.
"I had a rough night. The neighbor couple kept yelling at each other," I said, a half-truth. It somehow hurt to be called pretty and then have it taken back.
"Oh, that's why you look like a ghost. Did you place a complaint?" Den asked.
"Yeah, three times already," I replied.
"Did you confront them?" Sara asked.
"It could be dangerous. Best if you put more pressure on management. You live alone, right?" Den said.
"Yes, I will," I agreed.
They moved on to other topics. I started getting sleepy and eventually dozed off. They later gave me a blanket and closed the curtain around me.
I slept, or maybe I passed out. Having something in my stomach sure made me relax.
I wanted to open my eyes, but I felt so drained even after all that sleep.
I felt a soft brush against my face and a kiss on my lips.
"I finally found you," Vick whispered, then left, closing the curtain.
"She's still sleeping. Let's go eat," Vick said aloud.
"Let's bring her food," Den replied.
"What does she like anyway?" Sara asked.
"Maybe cookies. She ate them well," Den said seriously.
"She was just hungry, you idiot," Sara laughed.
"You might know what she likes, Mr. Ex-coworker," Den laughed.
"She knows who I am?" Vick asked, surprised.
"Wow, that's funny," Den's voice faded into the background.
I opened my eyes. My hair still felt his soft touch, my lips still imprinted with his.
My world was upside down once again. This time, I'm in it much deeper.