Scarred Lies

Chapter 1: @/xo_ghcst

"What the fuck were you even thinking Knox!" I rush inside his cabin and slam my hands down on his table- "We were so close to losing the project we've been working on for months now, at least think before you speak in front of the dealers."- my voice is way too high right now and I know this a bit too well that the other employees aka my colleagues are already peeking in to look for some fresh gossip.

Not that I'm not interested in them (I'm an "innocent" Indian girl who loves gossip) but not when it is about me. I've worked really hard to get where I am today.

"Why are you getting so worked up, Bedi? It's not that I ruined a deal with your personal client." - ughhh, this arrogant mf does have a point. I can't argue with him when it was his deal to begin with. Being one of the 5 group leaders in a multinational software company is not a very pretty thing as it sounds.

We face a lot of pressure from HR to maintain a civil image even when we are against each others' throats. Yansh Arora, who also gave himself this weird ass nickname "Knox," is also one of us group leaders and also a pain in everyone's ass in the company. He's known for his unusual behavior during meetings.

"Calm your horses, kids. The entire office is gathered outside this cabin to eavesdrop." - here comes another one who would rather be kept in a museum than in an office. Aahan Desai- the fixer or the unpaid therapist. You will always find him being the middle man in a problem. It's like he has taken the responsibility to try and solve out everything. Hahaha, you might find it a green-flag behavior, but trust me when I say it's anything but annoying.

"You might end up on the gossip page tomorrow how the 2 hot-headed group leaders were trying to kill each other."- he says with a calm I don't feel as he gets between me and Knox.

"I won't mind that though my nails will get dirty, but HR will be questioning us all in the next meeting how we lost a deal because of one. It might be his deal, but it's our responsibility to work as a team." I say, looking straight at Knox who's- wait playing video games? No wonder why Aahan calls him a kid.
Aahan chuckles beside me, "Knox, wanna say something in your defense?"
"Don't forget I'm the one known to have Intel on everyone. There's a reason HR trusts me blindly." - Knox replies without looking up from his phone.

"Is there anything you want to - Paheli?"- I don't let him finish his sentence and storm out of the cabin. Everyone has gathered outside to know what's going on. I need some fresh air and a strong dose of caffeine to calm myself, so I continue to stride off and go out. They don't know this deal was important for me to get information about some people. It's not that I don't keep a plan B, but now I have to waste more time to get all my pieces in place.

Me, Yansh, and Aahan were the only 3 offered this job from our uni 4 years back. We've been in the same vicinity before that, but I never paid them much attention until we started working together. I know enough to know that they are  joined to their hips since birth and are best friends or "bros" as they say. Their families are related according to my research, and they are nothing more than 2 useless pieces of trash that don't fit anywhere in my game. Their families are settled here in NYC, but they've been in India for their uni years as it's kinda their "family tradition." They be knowing nothing about their family and their business intentions. At first, I used to think they knew everything, but the more I dug, the more I realized they've been sheltered their entire life. They are good at their work with manwhore personalities.

I do have to say both are good-looking men. Yansh gives off the calm and sweet vibe with his childish looks complete with those deep blue eyes that say some other stories. He's a man with the "good-boyish" looks whereas Aahan is something else, you won't see him in anything except for black, just like the color of his eyes. It's like a deep pool of black ink where you can't find anything but mystery with no answers. He looks like death himself, but that's all covered up with the play-boyish smiles and dead humor.

Both of them have charming and easygoing personalities, and the only difference you'll find is one is composed, whereas the other is messed up in a good way. But they're both too annoying, and for some reason, they are the only ones who can actually annoy me, a person who has a tight grip on her emotions.

I order my cappuccino and take a seat at my usual place in the cafe just outside our office building. I guess I need to look more into each and every person related to what I've planned. Nothing can go wrong. It's important for me to find my closure and avenge Nanu.

I slide out my phone from my pocket to wait for my coffee, and that's when I see the notifications - "@/ace_08" and I smile. The person might be an online stranger whom I know about, but they say we find comfort in strangers. The conversations between me and that person are as addictive as my daily need of caffeine. It's been 4 years now that we've been texting back and forth. We're nothing but 2 strangers in an anonymous online community who share some similar interests.

@/𝑎𝑐𝑒_08: Mᴀᴋɪɴɢ ᴅᴇᴀʟs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴠɪʟ, Wɪʟᴅ ᴏɴᴇ?

I swear to god, sometimes the texts are so random that you'll be confused about what it actually means.

𝑚𝑒: Tʜᴀᴛ's ᴡʜᴀᴛ ɪ'ᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴅᴏɪɴɢ sɪɴᴄᴇ ɪ ᴡᴀs ʙᴏʀɴ. Nᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ's ɴᴇᴡ ɪɴ ɪᴛ.

@/𝑎𝑐𝑒_08: Sʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ɪ ʙᴇ ᴊᴇᴀʟᴏᴜs ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴠɪʟ ɴᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇ ɢᴇᴛs ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴏғ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴀᴛᴛᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴍᴇ?

𝑚𝑒: Wʜʏ, ᴡᴀɴɴᴀ ʀᴇᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ʜɪᴍ?

@/𝑎𝑐𝑒_08: Wʜᴀᴛ ɪғ ɪ'ᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴡʜᴏᴍ ʏᴏᴜ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ᴛʜᴏsᴇ ᴅᴇᴀʟs ᴡɪᴛʜ, ʜᴜʜ?

That makes me smirk - this person surely has a way with their words. It's nothing complicated but will leave you hanging at the simplest topics. It really does make me question myself : How can I be so engrossed in something so mundane.

"Who got you smiling liking that Paheli Bedi?" - a very recognizable voice says behind me, and my smile immediately drops. Not again!
Here goes my self coffee date.

Yayy I posted the 1st chapter as well!!! I don't know what I'm writing it's just a very dramatic plot that my brain created, so I'm just kinda noting it down and sharing with y'all. You can find mistakes, so don't hate me for it, and I would really appreciate you to point out my mistake in the comments (don't be rude, please😭🤌).
Don't forget to vote, and feel free to ask me anything.
~Xo, Melo <3