I Was, I Am.

-OFFICIAL-

EDITED CHAPTER#17:

 "Something sassy."

Adrija raised her brow to me at that as I shuffled in my seat.

"I mean...the designs are for couples in their early thirties or late twenties or something; they're young and they have a whole life to live. What we need is something bold and...and sassy." I tried to explain.

I looked up at her eyes that hid behind her thick rimmed spectacles doubtfully, hoping she got my point and wasn't offended in any way; holding my breath.

Adrija Mukherjee was about a year or two older than me; an old employee of SENSES and as the name suggests; a Bengali. Yes, I manage to find at least one Bengali acquaintance wherever I go. My three months as a trainee in SENSES passed by in the blink of an eye. At the end of the program, three out of the nine of us were offered posts to stay and I was one of them. Apart from me, there was Ishaan and Veronica.

Seniors were quite pleased with my performance and ensured that I was put in the core designing team along with Ishaan and Veronica. Nothing could be more perfect for me. 

Mihir and I no longer worked around each other; and just as he had mentioned on my first day as a trainee; I now reported directly to the Design Head. Mihir was not my boss anymore, and our departments were far too different for us to share the same workspace.

Every now and then however, I would bump into him in the office; and see him with a new batch of trainees. Just like ours, almost every new batch of trainees would have multiple lost; and nervous faces.

Mihir would always flash me a smile from his cabin when I'd catch his eye though; and I'd give out a similar smile with a nod. Overall, I was finally beginning to feel like I had adjusted to the organization.

Today, I was working on something new and major and Adrija was the one assigned with me for this particular assignment. We both were personally responsible for the designs for this one; had been burning the midnight oil for it and at that point of time, she had just shown me her designs.

They were too plain to say the least. For starters, which young couple would want white furniture? Or an extensively carved wooden sofa?

They will obviously look for a colour that will be safe from drink spills and food stains and would want a comfortable couch where they can have their friends to chill. I'm talking about a middle class couple. Being the only daughter of an established real estate king; who was constantly on and off the newspaper for all his business deals, Adrija; obviously didn't know what it was like to be middle class.

And this was the reason I felt that her designs were not good enough; not when we were to design a wide range of home furnishings for a middle class household with only two people; a young husband and a young wife. 

Relatability. It was the first lesson Mihir had imparted on our first week of the training. And to put it simply; her designs were not relatable.

Upon hearing my views and letting out a scoff; she studied her own designs thoughtfully for a while after which she nodded,

"Okay. But I for one; wouldn't mind having these designs for my house when I'm married. That's the first rule of designing Aditi; design as though you were to use it. Remember?" She said to me, her tone dripping with mockery.

Of course I remember! I clearly remember better than you!

Needless to say, she disliked me beyond measure; quite possibly from the very first moment she laid her eyes on me. The reason behind this hatred though; was a complete mystery to me and no amount of attempts on my part could solve or resolve it.