Page 17 of Return on Love

“Nothing. I won’t let Ryan and his weird behavior get to me, Lils. I’ll do my job and do it well. We’ll see what happens when the time comes.”

“That’s the spirit. Now tell me, how’s Gabriel?” Her tone has shifted from serious to teasing. “Is he cute?”

I laugh. “Yeah. I think you’ll like him. Why don’t you come over for a weekend and meet him?”

“Maybe I will.” We laugh, and then Lily tells me about her new boyfriend. They seldom go beyond a few dates, so I don't retain much about them. Lily hasn’t dated anyone seriously since after school, at least as far as I know. And I mostly know everything about her life.

I order some Chinese food for dinner after the call. Throughout the meal, my thoughts go back to the office. Could Weber be sidelining me? Is that why he gave me MooreGames? To ensure I fail? If Priscilla indeed had any say in the decision, I’ve obviously got the short end of the stick. She’s capable of pulling such tricks, that much I know. But why Weber? I’ve had no problems with him. True, I don’t suck up to him, but I always thought that in his heart, he’d actually appreciate that. I mean, you need someone to call a spade a spade, right?

I pick up an Agatha Christie novel, but my mind keeps wandering. So I do the only thing that’ll take my mind off this mess—play games. I’ve barely logged in when I see RamBam online as well. He pings me.

“Good to see you, Princess. Started your new project?”

“Yup. Don’t even ask about it?”

“That bad, huh?”

“You tell me. How’s the new person you were to start working with? Any good?”

“I’ve heard from reliable sources that not only is she not good, but that she’s here to put me in deeper shit. I plan to steer clear as much as I can. Anyway, let’s forget real life, shall we? Ready for a one v one?”

“You bet,” I reply. I enjoy playing against him. It’s like an adrenalin rush to my system. There was a time when I played with the idea of meeting up. I somehow felt we’d hit it off in real life as well. That was around the time when ‘Eva the Emetic’ was at its peak, and I hated leaving my room. I even hinted at him once. But he had a crush on someone else, so I backed off. I never asked again. For the past few years, I don’t play regularly, given the excessive travel I have to do. So we don’t really see each other online much. But it’s nice whenever we do—it’s like meeting an old friend.

We play for over an hour and stop when RamBam says he has to leave.

“GG. See you soon. Maybe you can turn your losing streak.” I type out some laughing emojis.

“Ah, I let you win, Princess,” he replies. “Next time, I won’t be so lenient. Cya”

I smile as I shut down my laptop. I wonder where RamBam is going. Did he end up marrying the girl he had a crush on? It’s silly to ask him. I somehow don’t want to let him know I remember something he told me years ago. What kind of stalker would that make me? Perhaps he lives in a different time zone and was heading to work. Yeah, that could be it. Maybe he’s in Japan or India, where it’s day right now. Given our intermittent chats, I try to imagine how he looks. He doesn’t flirt with me, neither does he joke around. But he’s not too serious either. Would he be like that in real life, or would he be someone like Weber, a backstabber? Or like Ryan! Who hates me but has these perfect arms? I drift off to sleep soon after.

The following morning, I stand in front of my wardrobe, obsessing over what I should wear, something ‘more appropriate.’ I wear a blue pant-suit. Nothing can get more appropriate than this. I email Ryan that we need to talk and get his one-line reply: “I’m sorry. Not today. Can meet on Friday.”

I reply. “Okay. Gabriel said I need to talk to you regarding meeting the coders. Please let them know I’ll be meeting them today.” I feel happy as I press send. No requests. Only a demand. I hold the funds, I remind myself as I walk to the office.

But his reply just as I enter the office doors puts me back in my place. “They’re all busy. Maybe later. We’ll talk further on Friday.”

Yeah. Just the words ‘piss off’ are missing from the email. Maybe he wrote them and then deleted it. Rude. Rude. Rude. I feel like marching into his room and giving him a piece of my mind. To be honest, I would’ve done it too, but he’s meeting with his coders in a locked room. I spend the day playing a few of their recent games. Quite uninspiring, I must say. They’re not bad, but they’re not what gets people talking. Nothing that’ll take the company into the next sphere. And the head of the company doesn’t even want to hear about it.

In the afternoon, I spy Ryan entering the tiny cafeteria, or rather coffee dispensing place with two tiny tables. I see it as an opportunity to confront him. I’m not even sure what I’ll say to him, but I have to say something. I can’t be wasting my time here. He’s filling his mug and turns around just as I enter. There's no escape for him in this tight space. His eyes become wide like a deer caught in headlights. Before I can even open my mouth, he begins coughing, like a hysterical level of cough.

Have I done it again? Is he going to puke on me? He spills a bit of coffee and I cannot help but step back to give him space and also avoid being puked on, if it comes to that. God! What is with this man? He can’t stand seeing me without turning out his guts.

He puts his coffee mug back on the counter and steadies himself, taking support of the wall. My eyes wander and settle on the movement of his muscles as he leans on his arm. Before I can speak a word, he excuses himself, mumbling something about having to change his clothes, and I’m left standing there. Did he do that on purpose to avoid me?

Ryan and the coders leave in the early evening. Gabriel suggests an awesome Italian restaurant nearby. I almost want to accept his invite to dinner, but I feel he might take it as a date. That’s not the impression I want to give him or anyone else, so I refuse, making a note to try it out some other day.

The next morning, as I wake up, I remember—His Highness will not be in office till Friday. The thought itself puts me in a happier mood, and I quickly choose a beige skirt and matching blazer to wear for the day. I comb my hair. They’re a little rambunctious today, but I let them be. I’m in a generous mood. If I wasn’t wearing these high heels and the weather wasn’t so chilly, I’d do a little hop-skip-and-jump as I walk the short distance to the office.

I enter the door to MooreGames, and the vibe seems completely opposite to mine. It’s quiet. Like, eerily quiet. I see Gabriel in his office and knock at his door.

“What happened? Everything okay?”

He gives me a confused look. “Yeah. Why?”

“It’s so quiet in here today.”

“Ah, Ryan and the coders are gone. That means more than half the staff isn’t here. That leaves me, Nora, the testing team, and the HR cum admin team.”

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