THE GHOST OF MY PAST(GP)

Chapter Two

Realizing that Gina is already a few meters ahead, I jog to catch up but my eyes keep roaming over my surroundings.

The corridor is not as narrow as it looked from the lobby earlier. A dark blue carpet sprawls along the passageways and glass walls run on either side of us covered by striped glass film. Judging from the absence of light in most rooms, I doubt that this side of the floor is the employees working space. Faintly, I hear murmurs and hums coming from the far end of the corridor.

Heres where all the meeting rooms are. Our working place is on the other side, but we dont have time to check it out now, Gina confirms my assumption. We have a kick-off meeting every first Monday of the month, which is today, and you dont wanna be late for this. She stops at the last door of the hallway and glances at me. Ready?

As ever, I lie, taking a deep breath and walking to the door that Gina is holding open for me.

***

The room is packed with people. Most of them are standing in groups, engaged in a serious discussion, or just talking in a relaxed manner. A few of them choose to sit alone, burying their faces on their gadgets or just spacing out, not seeming that enthusiastic to embrace the day.

People dont freeze dramatically when Gina and I enter the room. They indeed take a second glance before continuing whatever theyve been doing before I walk in. Perhaps seeing new faces isnt something uncommon for them. Does it mean that the company has a high rate of employee turnover? Or is it just me that doesnt look impressive enough when I make my entrance? I glance down at my beige chiffon blouse and black pants to check if my outfit looks somewhat presentable.

It did this morning. But now Im not so sure anymore.

These people are what you can call office fashionistas. Men are in suits or at least in branded dress shirts and pants, while women are wrapped in voguish business attire which screams professionalism and wealthiness. The mixed scent of expensive perfumes and mens aftershaves envelops the air around me. Is it because they want to impress their boss in the kick-off meeting or do they dress up like this every day? Compared to them, I look like a waitress who delivers a tray of drinks and snacks at a gathering party. I feel under-dressed.

Apparently, Im still used to how things work in my previous construction company, where people got dressed merely for practical purposes. As long as we didnt go to work in pajamas and covered the parts that needed to be covered, we were cool. Not that Im against fashion trends, but the nature of business in my former workplace just didnt give me enough room to explore that. Plus, eighty percent of the population were male technicians. Hence, it explains my relationship with fashion.

Gina escorts me to one group that crams the spot at the front corner by the window. Two women are sitting on a desk while two guys stand in front of them. I instantly spot Max, my direct boss who was involved in my interview.

Hi, Jennie. Its good to finally see you here! Welcome to the team! Max greets with a wide grin. He shakes my hand before introducing me to the rest of the team. The other guy is Sebastian, who has been on the team for four years. Before them are Shanti and Donna, the duo who handle the administration work for the team. Shanti has been with the company longer than Sebastian, while Donna just joined last year, around the same time as Gina. After a little chit-chat, Max and Sebastian are summoned by another team to discuss who knows what, leaving me with the girls.

So, whats the meeting about? I ask the girls.

Gina waves her hand in dismissal while her other hand is busy scrolling down her phone screen. Boring stuff. We will give a recap about our last months achievement and whats the plan for this month.