Orphan Callistaa

(AUTHOR'S NOTE: This novel is original and a pure work of fiction. Every character in here is completely fictitious and is born of my imagination. Any resemblance to real name, person, or event is purely coincidental. Enjoy reading.)

.....................

At the CH Advertising and Design:

It was a monday morning. All the employees were busy doing their work there. But the girl who was sitting inside her cubicle, seemed to be lost in her own world. She was an intern business design analyst here. Though she was good at her work, no one really appreciated her for her hard work. But it was her fault that no one wished to sit or talk with her. She deserved it. No one ever talked to her except for when her opinion was needed. But there was one person who used to talk, laugh and eat with her and considered her as her friend. And that person was Jasmine Winter, who was her only friend in the work place. Though other than work place, she had no friends. So, she really cherished her friendship with her.

"Hey, earth to Cali." The voice of her friend, Jasmine, brought her back to reality. She gave her a tight smile. That was all she could do, because every time she smiled, it never reached her eyes. Because she was not happy with her life, and she deserved it.

"What were you thinking missy?" Jas asked her but all she could do was to utter a nothing. But Jas was excited about something. So she said, "Okay, if you say so. Anyway, I am here to give you a big news and to congratulate you as well."

"What big news and why would you congratulate me?" Asked Cali with a frown on her face. To that, Jas replied, "Cali, your idea has been appreciated by the R Industry and they are going to give a big pay check to our company." She announced making the frown on her face to be replaced by a full blown smile.

"What? Wait, you are not kidding, right?" It was hard for her to believe that her design had been selected by the R Industry, which was the biggest diverse business company in the state. For God's sake, she was just an intern.

"I am not kidding, Cali. It is true. So, today we are going to celebrate. Be ready during the lunch time, okay? Cain will be joining too." As soon as that name escaped her lips, the smile on Cali's lips faltered. She could not help but ask, "Are you sure? I don't want to be the third wheel there."

"Oh, come on, you won't be a third wheel and besides, this celebration is possible because of you. So you are coming. See ya later." With that she went out of the door not giving her any chance to refuse. But it was quite difficult for her. Cain Hutton, their boss, the CEO of CH Advertising and Design, would be there too and she was not wishing to face him yet. He already hated her guts. He was Jasmine's boyfriend and everyone in the company knew it. But she always felt uneasy around them and why won't she? After all he was her...

×××××××××

It was time for their lunch and after contemplating for more than an hour, she decided to go there. Only for her friend, Jas and no one else. Yes, no one else. But who was she lying to? Only to herself. She knew it from the core of her heart that she was going there for him. Just to get a glimpse of him. She ran inside the washroom to fix her look. She re-applied her cherry red lipstick on her plump heart shaped lips, that complimented her heart shaped face well and applied a little foundation on her face. All these she was doing only to look beautiful in the eyes of her...boss. Yes, that was whom he was to her, atleast infront of everyone here. She got out and headed towards the cafeteria where Jas was waiting for her already. But he was not there yet. She felt relieved and anxious at the same time.

Not long after, a man dressed up in a charcoal suit, holding his blazer in his hand, entered into the cafeteria. He was looking exquisite in his attire. And her heart started beating at an irregular pace, only at the sight of him. Looking at him after so many days, she felt calm and restless simultaneously. She was staring at his face, memorising every feature of him, from his raven hair gelled to the side to the small stubble that he had grown. Because she would not be seeing him after this for many days again. She knew it. He halted in his track and started looking everywhere around him. Just then, Jas called his name out loud so as to get his attention to where they were sitting,

"Babe. Here." Yes, that was what she called him, after all he was her boyfriend, that too official. Then who was she? Her heart dropped seeing them getting all cozy infront of her. That was the reason she didn't want to come here. As soon as he came to them, he claimed Jas' lips giving her a lingering kiss. Jas giggled and stopped him from going any further.

"Stop, babe. Cali is here as well." As soon as those words left her mouth, his head snapped towards her direction. When his eyes landed on her, they were the same cold, emotionless. While Cali was praying to God to make her invisible so that he could not see her. But it was not going to happen obviously. Slowly, she lifted her eyes from the ground to look at him. When his deep ocean blue ones met her hazel ones, they softened. But that was just for a split second, as they once again turned icy cold. No hint of warmth could be found in them. He was always like this, even when he was with Jasmine. But Jasmine didn't mind as he was just another rich handsome guy for her who was ready to spend his money on her.