Pia took a deep breath and then begun "Sir, I myself was interested in the subject of how, knowing the exact pathways that may be responsible for the changes that associated with MS, specially the cognitive changes. So, when I was going through the files of patients who were treated here in the hospital beforehand, and I found out few very specific connections, studying them further had shown me, that there are very few areas where the problem seems to start from, though it is not sure from where, and since it is a degenerative disease, there is no cure once the onset had begun" She said.
"Please do explain further Miss Ray, to the things you had found, can you show us some of the reports?" "Yes Sir, I have collected them for my own use, but..." She produced the report, "Sir as you can see here in this area of brain, most of the effects have been shown, so we can conclude that maybe this is where the problem..." He was listening to her.
In fact, everyone was listening to her, there was a pin drop silence in the room as she explained. "And as there many experiments have proved before that these specific zones are related to memory. We can conclude that, if we target these areas maybe we can stop the progression of disease, but this is all the matter if we can pin point exact location, of the origin of the disease, sir."
The room fell silent. Pia was looking at them. She was now very much afraid, maybe it would have been good if she had kept her mouth shut. But she has to tell this, her and her big mouth always causes trouble. "Miss Ray, I can see why my own intern once had picked you as his own intern you truly have a great potential to be a next big thing in field of neuroscience."
Pia shied, first words since she had finished her presentation. "And the evidences you have shown us, they are quite remarkable Miss Ray, I am impressed truly, but the thing is we need to gather a little more, before we can take this to the people who will grant us funding, till then, why don't you gather more information to support the theory, run some tests and maybe we have a solid thing to procced with."
"So, you all are telling me that, we need a little more evidence and that's it? I can research on this?" Christopher asked. "Not you Chris, both of you, how about appointing Miss Ray as your research assistant? She will be a big help and frankly I think she is the best to fill the spaces, you may overlook. You both are the perfect team, I think if you combine forces, nothing can stand in your way. Till we meet again Miss Pia Ray, I wish you all the best for your future."
The conference was concluded but he was still sitting there not saying a word. She can sense that he was angry and she knew that it was her he was angry at. For she had just ruined his chances to shine. And that is something she knew very wrong thing to do. She was afraid that he might just not someone you can reason with. She cannot even try and make him understand that she was only trying to help.
She started to walk away when she felt someone hold her dupatta. She looked at him and surely enough he was the holding it. "Miss Ray, I didn't tell that you can leave, did I?" He asked. "I thought perhaps, you wish to be alone." "yes, Miss Ray as you think that it was alright if you can speak out of your turn? To impress my own mentor, you think awfully lot and you think awfully about many things which are never be useful for you."
"S...Sir I was only trying to help" She said shuttering badly. "By keeping this vital information from me? Something that can help in my own research? Whose side you are on actually Miss Ray?" He asked. "No one's sir, I was just trying to make them understand, how this research can benefit many people."
"Did I told you Miss Ray that I needed help? Have I ever asked for your help?" She was afraid again. Maybe she had just over stepped the boundary. Maybe she should have keep quite. "Keep one thing in mind Miss Ray, you and I can never ever be a team. However, if you do find something which is relevant to my research or yours, you may want to consult me first before blabbering about it in front of my medical board"
"Yes sir, I understand, I will keep this point in mind sir." She whispered looking down. "Fetch me some pills from my desk and call Forrest, tell him I want to meet." She nodded. "NOW" He shouted and she jumped in fright. "Yes sir, right away sir" She whispered walking away from there. Her heart was beating faster and faster, she doesn't know why she had done what she had done, maybe that time she just wished to save him, help him anyway she can. Her intention was never to get credit for all his work.
"Sir?" She knocked at the door of Forrest's cabin. As soon as she entered, he looked at her face. "What he did now?" He asked. "Nothing, absolutely nothing sir, he never does anything, It is all me. Just me. I interrupted his meeting and put forward some theories of my own, maybe I should have kept my mouth shut." She whispered looking down. "And he should have respected your efforts of trying and help him, but he doesn't."
"Sir he is..." "Let me think, want to meet me in the conference room and must have told you to fetch his pills." She nodded. "How do you..." "Because we grew up together, he is my very best friend and we share a special bond. So I know what is right for him, and all the pent up anger he have isn't doing him any good not to mention increasing his migraine. Pia, do me a favour and wait for him in his office will you? Let me settle this." She nodded.
Forrest left her standing and walked towards the conference room. As she watched him walk away, she cannot help but still feel that she had done something so wrong. Maybe speaking out of her turn wasn't such a good idea after all. It was his work; he shall only be the one who will be credited for him anyway. Not her. But here his mentor was impressed by her, not him. It is natural that he is feeling down. In a way she is his competition. In a way she is standing in his way of success.
But not for long, she merely will be here for few more month, most a year, and also, he will be married to Mia, till then. He would have many things to take care of to come and look after her. She put her crutch down and started working on the recent case files. For entire day she kept herself busy. Back to back classes, and then clinics.
It was good, that she didn't have see his angry face for rest of the day, just to be disappointed again and make her realise what mistake she had made. She decided to walk towards the bus stoppage to catch the bus, though Mia had told her not to take the public transport and call her when she is ready to leave, but she doesn't wish to depend so much on her.
Suddenly a car stopped in front of her. She wasn't paying very much attention to it. Someone honks the horn. She still didn't paid attention to the car or the person. Suddenly she felt someone pulling her towards the car. She saw very angry expression of Mr. Christopher Royce Woodland. "S...Sir" She asked shuttering.
"Mia called me; she was asking why you weren't there when the driver went to pick you up. I thought you might try something like this." He told her. "Sorry, I didn't wish to worry you or Mia, Sir. I thought it would be better if I stopped depending on them so much for little things." He made her sit inside his car. "But you can inform her, where do you keep your cell? Cant you hear when someone is calling you?" He asked.
"Must have gone on silent, it happens sometimes. You don't have to take me anywhere sir, I can manage, if you may you can just leave me here and I can take the..." "Shut up Miss Ray, I am not in mood, especially since my future fiancée has put me on baby sitting duty." Oh so Mia knows, finally she can relax now. No need to worry. No need to think about not telling her anything about this.
"You don't have to take care of me Sir, you can take care of my sister, and that will be enough for me. I can take care of myself." She told him. "I can see how much you can take care of yourself. You shouldn't be walking on that foot but you? You are one of the most stubborn, determined and utterly foolish woman I have encountered in my life. And I am still trying to figure whether to be impress of your qualities or just resent that you have them."
"You don't have to sir, because I will not always be here next to you. You don't have to think about any of my qualities or if in any way it will bother you again." That comment had taken him by surprise and for some reason had tugged his heart. If she wasn't here, who he would be fighting with? The thought of not seeing her around is painful. For some reason he cannot make himself think of a scenario when she won't be around.
You have until Feb 14th to figure this out
Forrest's words came back in his mind, the time is very limited, what he wants to do is just do not think about this at all. "Where are you going? This is not the way to my home," She asked. "Your Uncle called, he wanted to meet me and yes, if possible take you with me, Mia will be here. I think it is about the wedding and he wanted his both daughters to be present there Miss Pia Ray D'Silva." She gasped.
"What? Why are you so shocked? I have employed you, haven't I? that means I have gone through every bit of information I can find on you. I know very well that you were adopted age sixteen by D' Silva and that you don't use his name, instead you use your mother's maiden name as your surname, but that doesn't changes this fact that Miss Ray, you are his daughter, adopted or not."
"You have no right, you cannot do this, going through my personal information, it is only I who can decide which information I wish to reveal to you and which I don't, and my adoption was never made public, so you do not have right to access my private records." She told him and he parked the car.
"You are in my world now Miss Ray, and in my world, there is a very specific rule, if there is no transparency, you cannot work for me. And that in all the sectors of your life. Woodland have made carriers of many; the scholarship has been provided a way of fulfilling the dream of those who cannot by themselves, and we have to protect that so that, only those who really deserve this gets it."
"Still, accessing my records isn't what you should have done sir, you cannot just go an snoop around in my private life." "I can Miss Ray, if my mentor think you can be my perfect research assistant. I need to know exactly whom I am trusting my work with," He paused and moved closer and closer until there was no space between them. Until she can feel his breath on her face. All those images she was keeping locked in flashed before her eyes, his lips on her, his skin against hers, the warmth of his body seeping into hers...
"I need to know whom I am trusting myself with" His voice was barely a whisper. He remembers how close he was to her once, how good her skin felt against his, how well she fit with him, molding against his body, how good it had felt to kiss her. His hand raised and touched her cheek brushing his fingers on her face. She wasn't immune, neither was he,
But the denial was there, neither of them were going to accept the obvious, they needed each other in their life, because they are made for each other. And this is not just a coincidence that they had met, it was more than that. Mia was watching from afar, a little encounter.
She had known this all along, about the obvious. She smiled and walked inside, time to talk to her father about some wedding arrangement, all they needed was a little push and she knows how that exact push can be given.
Word Count: 2249 Words