"I think most of you already know why you're here; we've received what will be the most important project of the year." My eyes stop staring out the window beside me and focus on his voice. I have no idea why I'm here, and the fact that everyone else seems to know everything makes me panic even more. The only thing I know is that I'll have to cover for Justin since he told me he wouldn't be able to and that he suggested my name when asked who could replace him. I'd like to say I'm happy about this, but I feel like it's way too much responsibility for me. The only thing that makes me feel a little better is Krish sitting beside me, looking like he's about to fall asleep. Except for him and Sasha, I don't know anyone else in the room.

I try to focus on what Mr. Harper is saying, but my mind keeps wandering. I don't think I've ever seen such an enigmatic person. Everything about him seems meticulously calculated, from his likely tailored clothes to the way he maintains eye contact with each person in the room, showing he's not afraid of confrontation. His posture is perfect, back straight and shoulders forward. For a second, his gaze rests on mine, and this time, I don't look down like I did that day in the office. He locks eyes with me, and for a brief moment, the mask he wears seems to crumble, but only slightly—not enough for others to notice.

"We received a significant order from Qatar, which will be our gateway to expanding business in the Middle East. That's why I will personally be overseeing this entire project. I want perfection. This is the first time we're working with this company, and everything must be flawless. I've gathered you all here today, from marketing representatives to technicians, engineers, and researchers, to discuss this project in general terms."

Now it makes sense why we're all here and why I don't know any of these people.

"Sasha will send you an email later with all the details, and I will personally supervise each of your contributions. I know you're used to having some autonomy in your decisions, but we can't risk it this time. I don't want to be repetitive, but again, this project needs to be perfect. I hope I've made myself clear."

I stop myself from rolling my eyes, this man is not able to even say one single sentence without the word perfect. I wonder how would he react to Aristotele saying that perfection doesn't exist.

And with that, my mind starts to wander. I've never had such responsibility, but I'm relieved someone will be supervising my work. I'd go crazy if I had to do everything on my own. After what seems like an eternity, everyone is dismissed, and we start heading back to our offices. I look for Krish, who still seems half-asleep, and then start walking beside him.

"Krish?" 
Despite the bags under his eyes, he smiles at me as soon as I speak to him. "Yes?" 
"Want to grab some coffee before we go back to work?" 
"Sure, I could really use some."  He says with an unusual voice.
"You seem very tired these days." 
"I know. It's just that, well, it's a complicated story," he says, a flash of sadness crossing his eyes. 
"Oh, well—whenever you want to talk about it, I'm here. Even if we're just coworkers, I'm always available." As soon as I say that, I worry it might sound stupid. Why would he want to talk about his problems with someone he's only known for a few weeks? 
"I'm just... I had an argument with my girlfriend, and we haven't talked for two weeks." 
"That sounds... awful." Now I understand the reason for the dark circles under his eyes. 
"She thinks I'm too focused on my career and feels like I'm neglecting her. The thing is, I'm doing all this for her. I want her to have a good life without ever worrying about money, but she doesn't understand that." He takes a sip from the cup of coffee I handed him. 
"She's been driving me crazy." 
"Well if I can give you some advice; there are many ways to show love, and money isn't one of them—or, let me correct myself, it's not enough. It totally makes sense if your way of showing love is through acts of kindness and showering her with presents and providing for her, but how does that makes you different from her dad?" 
He looks at me, about to respond, but then a voice interrupts our conversation. 

"I do not pay you to give love advice to my employees, Miss " I would recognize that voice anywhere. As soon as I hear it, my body goes stiff, and I don't dare look around before taking a deep breath. 

"We were just having a coffee break, Mr. Harper. I didn't know that was forbidden," I say, immediately regretting it as soon as the words leave my mouth. He looks at me like I've just insulted his entire family. He's going to fire me; I know it. I'll be fired after just three weeks at my first job because I couldn't keep quiet.

He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at Krish. 
"Krish, take a week off work. I think Miss Jasmine will be more than happy to take full control of the technical aspects of our next project since she's so keen on helping." 
A sly smile appears on his face, and all I want to do is punch him and wipe that expression away, but I don't want to end up in jail or worse, so I stop my self and look at Krish who surprisingly looks very happy.

This scoundrel!

"Thank you so much sir" and with that he walks away.

I don't even bother to look at him, he probably still has that stupid smirk on his face.

"I want you I'm my office, in five minutes, don't be late Miss Jasmine" it's eight pm and I should be already home by now if it wasn't for the meeting we had, this goes beyond overtime work. So I gather some courage and try to tell him, he'll understand he's not that ruthless right?
"But-"

"4 minutes and 57seconds now" and with that he walks away.