Smirk Of A Jerk

4. Chaar

"Natasha, Mr. Viaan asked to get those files to him by evening. And also wanted me to inform you that he is attending an event in the evening, in case you miss him at his home," spoke as soon as she reached me.

"Where?" That was all I asked to which she waved her hand dismissively, "I'll text you the address. Just finish those quickly."

She turned around and left the cabin, not before delivering a glare at the receptionists who were giggling to themselves. It wasn't new. Whenever Lana-Grace came over to do her job, the girls around here made fun of her because of her surname. Parag.

No, it wasn't an unusual surname but they liked to taunt her by calling 'Lana-Grace par aag'...

Not that she was a friend of mine but she was the only one around here to be friendly enough for me, others were jealous bitches but none dared to mess with me. That had me almost feel bad for her. But then, if one is ill-treated, it's not the ill-treaters but the person's fault.

Don't get me wrong, I don't say ragging is good or should be done but if you don't stand up for yourself, no one else will.

It had been a few months since I started working at the ARAIV group and first day was very much enough for everyone to understand that I wasn't someone they could pick on. I was a firm believer of tit for tat policy. An eye for an eye. Or I could rather say, an ardent practitioner of those policies.

Swathi Shetty, the apparent, self made queen bee had buzzed towards me with her little following on the very first day. I don't know what gave her an idea that she was a queen bee or that I could be walked all over. Oh yeah, might be my conservative, geeky looking clothes and that neatly plaited hair into a French plait. Kudos to my stubborn mother who had been horrified by looking at my pencil skirt and high neck halter top.

She almost had fits. Or more rather pretended to have fits and create a scene in the morning. Later, my father saved me from getting more late by getting me to change my dress and braid my hair.

That day was the day when my dressing style went down the drain to rest in peace for my career in ARAIV group.

Though I didn't believe in first impression is the last impression, but it got me to believe in it. To be frank, it played a little advantage on my part. The guys flocked around me a little less. The girls didn't look at me with that mean glare filled with envy or whisper that much to each other. Rather, they now dismissed my existence and thought they should establish an hierarchy with them at the top and me at the bottom.

That didn't matter much anyway. I kind of enjoyed the new found freedom out of limelight. So that was the reason for me to continue my conservative clothing but that didn't mean I was ready to take any shit from anyone. When Swathi Shetty had tried to enjoy her existence at my expense, I had retaliated passively leaving her speechless and out of my hair.

I still remember that day...

"Newbie, what are you doing? Don't you see Swathi is standing before you? Greet her and ask what she would like to have!" The sidekick of Swathi's from right barked and I didn't reply, just stared at them before getting back to the paragraph I was reading.

"Are you deaf?" She shrieked in that octave voice of hers. I suspect it to be an E5 at the least.

"Tone down that broken throat of yours, you will definitely make everyone deaf by damaging ears," I grumbled having to endure with this nuisance early in the morning.