The Rose & Her Thorn

Part 8

"Office? You mean cubicle, right?" asked Rohan incredulously, with an arched eyebrow.

"No, I mean officer. Why? You didn't get one?" asked Shikha, slurping the melted ice-cream. Despite their unmatched working schedules, Shikha and Rohan had adjusted their schedules to catch up with their best friend about their first day at work, and there could not have been a better place for the meeting than their favorite ice-cream cart.

"Yaar Shi. You are talking of an office when they allotted me a workspace in the corner, not even a proper cubicle. How did you end up getting an office and where is this office of yours?"

"My office is beside Vikram sir's. But seriously? You didn't get one?" she quizzed, astounded. His answers aroused several questions in her mind, and the most prominent of them was that why was she bestowed with the rare honor?

"Beside sir's office? WHAT? Shi, something is off, yaar. Why would an intern get the office beside to that of the boss?" pointed Rohan, leaning towards her as she appeared perplexed and conflicted as she struggled to answer the question raised by Rohan.

"I don't know." Shikha shrugged. "Maybe, to make the working experience better. I don't know, Rohan. Maybe the interns under his mentoring receive cabins because he is the boss," said Shikha, trying to ignore the undercurrent of panic in her own mind and the fear instilled by her family which was threatening to resurface.

"I hope, for your sake and mine, that you are right, Shi. Just be careful and if you ever feel anything is wrong, please tell me. I know I don't stand a chance against him, but you don't have to be alone against him," he iterated, intertwining his fingers with those of Shikha, and looked straight into her confused orbs. His concerned pools soothed her and made a smile hover over her lips.

"Thank you."

"Don't think that I am doing it for you! I expect to be treated with that Special Thali from Shekhawat Rasoi for having your back, understood?" he joked, lightening the atmosphere, and she slapped his arm playfully.

"Careful! You'll drop that ice-cream on me, and I am not buying another if you drop yours or mine. It is your turn next to buy the ice-cream. Remember that before pulling any stunt," threatened Rohan with a playful smirk and naughty glint in his eyes.

"Oh?" she asked, before slamming his ice-cream onto his face and running for her life as she licked her own ice-cream, with every worry forgotten in that absolutely carefree moment.

"Hey Shikha! What's the update?" asked Vikram, strutting into her cabin as she jumped to her feet in surprise.

"Hey, relax. I should have knocked or something. You look like you have seen a ghost!" joked Vikram, taking the seat across hers and signing her to take her seat as well. She nodded and hesitantly took her seat as she questioned herself if she could pose the questions which were troubling her since her talk with Rohan.

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"You should have called me, sir. I would have come to your cabin."

"Come on, Shikha. I needed to stretch my legs and I go on rounds every day to check on my staff. There's no trouble in this. Anyway, what's the update?" he questioned.

His lips stretched into a tight smile as she fiddled with her hands nervously before she turned the laptop towards him and gave a rundown about the progress.

"Sounds good! Keep in mind that our data is humongous, so you will have to be patient with it. I am sure that you will do well. I will send out an email instructing the Head Analyst to send the data that you require," stated Vikram in a business-like tone.

He had not expected her to show the ability or the efficiency she had showed since he displayed his trust in her, and it only made him wonder if she had several other skills buried under her insecurities.

"Thank you, sir!" she replied, smiling weakly at him. Astute observation skills were quintessential to live the life of a mafia overlord and lead a double life, and Vikram Singhal was adept at the same.

"You look disturbed. Are you fine? Did you anyone else tell you something?" he demanded, arching his eyebrow at her.

"I am fine, sir. I wanted to ask you something. May I?"

Her eyes remained trained on the ground and her hesitant tone made him wonder if she had looked through his charade. "Of course. Anything," he answered, mapping out the questions and their answers to keep his facade intact.

"Sir, I heard the other interns did not receive any cabins. I was wondering about being allotted this cabin beside yours," she questioned, hoping that he would not be offended by her question and terminate her like he had terminated Sukriti the previous day.

His jaw clenched and balled his palms into fists as he struggled to maintain his composure. Vikram knew her source was none other than her best friend Rohan. That man was making his journey towards possessing the woman in front of him harder in more ways than he could accept.

"Well, I gave full autonomy to the other mentors and if they did not allot cabins to the other interns, it is because of their choice, which is rather poor in this case. It looks unfair at this point. I cannot ask you to vacate the cabin, so I will make sure that they get their cabins as well. How does it sound?" he asked, masking his annoyance with the best tender smile that could grace his rough lips.

"I knew you would be understanding about this and that you will come up with a just solution!"