—The Shock—

You know that feeling when your mother wakes you up early in the morning, screams at you to get ready so you won't be late for school. But, you are adamant and not ready to increase your pace, reluctant to go to school because you know you have not done your homework.

You are afraid of going to school because you fear that one tyrant teacher, who will make your whole day in school hell because you forgot to do his/her subject's work.

You simply try everything to avoid going to school and swore to yourself that you will complete your homework in future, diligently and regularly. But still, when your mother sends you to school, the whole way you pray for things like the teacher being absent, teacher forgetting about the homework, the whole school burning down and so on.

Well, I am that student right now because I am pretty much in the same situation. I am trying every other possible antic to save myself from visiting the new boss. But, nothing seems to be working. I tried my best to get myself some work and get busy, hoping that by some magic, I won't have to meet the new C.E.O. Maybe he will have some meeting and forget about me, but nothing is working.

Axel after five minutes came out of his room and commanded me to go to his office, into the tyrant's territory.

"What are you doing here? Just go and meet him!" For the first time, Axel practically almost shouted at me.

"I don't want to. wh-what if he fires me?!" The only thought of getting fired had my palms sweating.

"Nothing and I tell you nothing wrong is going to happen. You are not going to get fired. Get over your paranoia and head towards his office. Go!" His voice had a finality. I tried saying something but closed my mouth instantly when I saw his dark expressions.

I turned around and started walking towards the elevator, I could feel Axel's eyes on me, he definitely didn't trust me with this, well I don't blame him. In a two minutes walk to the elevator, the thought of running out of this building came to my mind like 20 times!

I could feel some of my co-workers giving me a sympathetic look, I ignored them because I don't sympathy. It is not like their sympathy will save my ass from getting fired. I entered the elevator and pushed the button for the top floor.

I was hoping for this elevator to stuck in middle, or suddenly fire alarm going on or anything that would save me from this visit. I know, maybe I am just overreacting but the truth is my instincts told me that this meeting with the Boss is going to be bad. Something is wrong, something bad is going to happen.

I trust my instincts, I know I am in for some trouble, if not a lot. 

I reached the top floor, I was nervous because I was not familiar with it. It was my first time here. The unfamiliarity with the floor only worsened my position. I had no idea about what this floor looked like or felt like. I walked out of the elevator and well..this floor is..normal..nothing exceptional really. It was plain white like the rest of the office. Boring.

Painted White and Grey like most of the building, a desk for receptionist or secretary which was...well empty. And the huge wooden door, bearing a sign in which the words 'C.E.O' were carved boldly on a golden plate. I gently knocked on the door four times, as was my typical.

"Come In." It was different from most of the "Come ins" I've heard in my life. The voice held authority, command, firmness, arrogance...and a sort of familiarity, all at once.

I pushed in the door, and for the first time, set the foot in C.E.O's office. The moment, I opened the door I was hit by a very strong but pleasant scent. I looked around and was astonished to see the office. It was not white but grey, a very nice shade of grey, in fact. Some parts of the room were painted in metallic grey. The office looked modern and everything there looked like brand new.

The big metallic desk, coffee table and couch on the side, they were all new. Seems like new boss had made some changes, and surely had a very expensive and exquisite taste.

I looked at the figure of a man, who was looking out at the outline of New York City. The whole wall was made of glass and provided a great view. It looked like something straight out of a movie. It was just that breathtaking.

But, I was captivated by the man standing with his back towards me. Dressed in a dark navy blue suit, his hands in his pant's pockets, and his shoulders broad giving him a confident aura. I, at the moment, knew that he is not old like I imagined him to be. Well...yeah I imagined him to be old, despite knowing his position as one of the youngest billionaires.  It is just hard to imagine young billionaires, I mean most of the billionaires I've seen or heard about are old, but he clearly was not.

I was nervous and even though his back was towards me, I was intimidated by him. There was an air of familiarity around him. Should I just turn around and run? I am sure he hasn't noticed my arrival inside his office yet. 

Maybe, I should just go back to my floor and pretend that I never came here and at the same time give everyone the illusion that I indeed introduced myself to him. Or maybe I should...

"Are you going to keep standing there and continue burning a hole in my back?" I was startled, how did he know I was there? He is not having an extra pair of eyes at the back of his head right?

"Good morning Sir, Mr. Anderson told me you wanted to see me." I was trying my best not to stutter. I had to look confident.

Confidence is the damn key!

"Well, I think you know the reason as to why, don't you?" His voice was firm and there was this authority in there, which can not be denied. But I did not like the fact that he kept on talking to me with his back towards me. It was very disrespectful.

"Yes, sir. I do" I said hoping for him to turn around. I wanted to see his damn face, only out of my curiosity of course.

"Then?" He asked. and I was about to blurt out a large 'WHAT!' but instead muttered, "I am sorry?" Oh yes, it did come out as a question. Stupid me! 

Suddenly he turned around and looked at me straight in the eyes. And the moment I saw him, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack!

It can't be him! It can't be him! 

I chanted in my mind like a life-saving mantra. You are dreaming, Stupid. Wake up! Wake up before this nightmare becomes reality!

I was looking at him in utter shock and he had this smirk on his face, a smug expression which scared the shit out of me, to say the least.

I now know what was that familiarity about. The familiar scent, the familiar voice, the very familiar man I kicked in the groin at the Airport back in India!

I mentally slapped myself for acting on my impulse back then. I am sure I am going to get fired now. Even my 3 months contract was over, dammit!

He started walking towards me, but I stood rooted to the ground. I was transported back to that time when I collided with him at the Airport, the argument, his rudeness, my kick, everything came back and hit me like a rock. And something else also hit me, but I don't know what. It was just a very heavy, sinking feeling which dropped from head to my stomach.

"So, you do know the word huh?" His strong musk scent, a combination of sandalwood and some spices hit my nostrils before his words entered my ears. I just stared at him. He was less than a foot away from me and was still moving forward.

I just stared at him. My mind ordered me to take steps back but my body remained rooted, stiff like a tree trunk.

He was now only a few inches away from me. My heartbeat was abnormally fast now, my palms were sweating and my breathing was getting ragged. I took a few steps back and he stopped only a few inches away from me. I am so screwed!

"So, Ms. Shah, do you have anything to say? I hope you didn't forget me." He asked, his face was expressionless, but his tone mocking. I opened my mouth to say something but closed it immediately.

No, Focus! You have to say something! This is war! And you are in it to win it!

"I apologize for turning up late for work today." I held my chin up high and hoped that my words conveyed the confidence, which I was actually severely lacking at that moment.

"I do not tolerate late employees, Ms. Shah. The rules are going to change. From now on, your life is going to take a full 360-degree spin. It is not going to be the same anymore." He said and somehow, his words were much deeper than they should be. They were said in a way which made me jittery. "Do you understand?" He asked me, his eyes were trained on my face.

I nodded my head. The close proximity was not doing me any good, it was suffocating, it was getting difficult to breathe, it seemed like my freedom was slowly drifting away from my grasp.

"Now, do you have anything else to apologize for?" He smirked, and this somehow annoyed me.

"No," I replied curtly. I realized the most he could do is fire me, it looked better to me at that moment when I compared it to interacting with him. I don't know why but his familiarity to me kept on increasing with each passing moment. What exactly was so familiar about him? 

"Really? The last time, I met you, you had some reasons to apologize to me." He was really going to take the full advantage of the power he had over me. But I was not going to give in. He may be my boss now, but he was a jerk first.

"Well, I highly doubt that," I replied, without letting any of my apprehensions showing.

"But I don't. And as far as I remember, you had a reason to say Please too, but I guess, you prefer attacking a man's sensitivity more rather than saying your courtesies." He clenched his teeth, his face showing a mix of pain, anger and amusement. I could feel my cheeks warm up in embarrassment.

"Some people don't deserve courtesies." I tried to keep my replies short and simple. I didn't want to cuss at him, for obvious reasons. At most he could fire me, it was not something I wanted to happen, but he doesn't seem like a pleasant man to work under.

His face was dark now and I was not having a nice feeling about it. I took in a moment to look at his face. And he was undeniably handsome. His face was angular, beautiful hazel eyes, jet-black hair, fair complexion, muscular. Handsome than most of the average Indian men. But, still he was a jerk and it was all that mattered at that moment.

If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, my eyes were surely failing to behold his.

"You know, you have one more reason to say Sorry to me." For the first time, the aura of power, authority and arrogance dissipated from around him. 

He looked like a man in pain...in sadness and suffering. Was it because of my kick? Oh gosh! Did I damage his manhood? But, it is not possible...I mean a kick can never do that. Can it? I should have studied biology more carefully.

"See...look, I regret kicking you but...." Before I could say anything else he held me by my shoulder and looked straight into my eyes. Those hazel eyes with a tint of gold almost hypnotized me. His touch sent shivers down my spine, for some unknown reason, I was very, very scared. His face was so close to mine, it looked beautiful. If I failed before, I was definitely succeeding in beholding his beauty now. I was mesmerized, but those were not the feelings I was supposed to be having.

Snap out of it, you foolish girl!

"Are you really that oblivious? How can you be so ignorant?" I was confused, it was now no longer about me being late or kicking him in his groin. It was something else. Something I didn't know and had no wish to know either. I am not the most aware person in the room most of the times and I am okay with that.

"Sir, I do not have any idea what are you talking about?" I felt his grip tightened around my shoulder, but I was too shocked and confused to protest or say anything. I should though, this was definitely harassment. 

"Do you know me? Do you know my name?" He shouted at my face, snapping me outo f my thoughts. His face was in an angry scowl. 

And at that moment I realized that, in fact, I did not know his name or anything about him except for him being an Indian. His face looked pained but at the same moment, still not giving away anything that might have been going through his mind.

He was a weird man. I wondered if his childhood was traumatic. 

His childhood was none of my concern though, for all I know, he might be planning my murder in his head and I can't take any idea from his face. "Do you know my name?" He asked again and brought me back to reality.

I shook my head instead of saying No because words betrayed me. Did I know him? Why do I feel like I do when I don't. Have I seen him before the airport incident? I can't tell. I am not the brightest crayon in the box, but I am not that dull either certainly.

He suddenly freed my shoulders from his grasp, and I suddenly felt a feeling of loss..for what? His muscular hands? Nah..no way! nada!

He walked towards his table and point towards the nameplate on it. I walked a few steps to look at it because well, eyesight problems. I squinted a bit to look at it clearly.

I saw the name. I then read it once, then I read it twice, thrice, and by the fourth time, I felt my head spinning. There was written in big bold letters, the name...

Vivaan Kapoor

How? Why? And so many other questions overloaded my mind. Everything became a big storm of confusion. I looked at the nameplate and him. Him and the Nameplate. This could not be happening, not now! Please no!

My head was spinning and I was dizzy. It felt like I was losing touch with my reality, this earth, this universe. The last thing I saw before being consumed by darkness, was his motionless face..and then everything, pretty much like my life went blank.

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So..........any thoughts?

How was the chapter? I tried making it long..What do you think about the situation? Well, I am pretty much confused about it myself too..but what I know is that next chapter can be Vivaan's P.O.V. *hint* *hint*

And this story crossed 200 Reads! Zero marks for guessing who is doing the happy dance!

And well...I was hoping maybe if you all amazing people can vote for this story? I think, this story deserves that. Do you think so too? If yes, please vote. It might only be a button for you but it will mean the world to me!

Love to every amazing person reading this!