Page 73 of Red Flags and Rishtas
‘Do you know how many people have access to him? Hell, even I’ve never spoken to him directly,’ she said, shaking her head.
I looked down at my hands, feeling the weight of my irresponsibility crashing down on me.
‘Am I … getting fired?’
‘Fired?’ Pooja creased her forehead and said, ‘Of course not. We owe you a promotion.’
‘Um … I don’t …’ I said, squinting my eyes in confusion.
‘No one expects you to be perfect, Ananya,’ she said, tracing her finger along the mouth of her coffee mug. ‘But you can’t just disappear into thin air without a warning.’
I mumbled an apology, unable to meet her eye. She exhaled loudly.
‘It’s going to be fine. I’ve already done some damage control. Now all we need to do is get you on a call with Michael, and then we can finalise your promotion.’
‘So …’ I was still trying to connect the dots as I asked, ‘I’m getting a promotion?’
She let out a short laugh. ‘Yes, genius. After you fix this, though,’ she said.
The air conditioner was blowing directly over my head, and I had to pull at the sleeves of my hoodie to cover as much of my hands as possible.
‘It’s not a regular promotion,’ she said when I didn’t ask her further questions. ‘If you’d come in to work after the wedding, you would’ve known how big a success Best Man has been.’
‘That’s great,’ I said, forcing some pride into my voice.
‘International has decided to convert the event into an editorial property,’ she said. ‘And they want you to head it.’
Her voice was loud and clear, but I was having difficulty registering what she was saying, or rather, what it meant for me.
‘Your own team … six to seven weddings every year … sponsors and clientele … collaboration with celebrities …’
‘W-w-wait. Hold on,’ I stammered. ‘You want me to do this full time?’
She looked a little bit surprised by my lack of enthusiasm.
‘Yes! You’re absolutely brilliant at it.’ She was smiling at me.
‘Pooja …’ I closed my eyes for a second, trying to steady myself by holding on to the armrest. ‘I hated working on this project.’
She was taken aback by my reaction. ‘But … it was your idea in the first place!’
‘I know,’ I said, breathing loudly. ‘I was trying to give you something you’d like. Something that would get me this promotion.’
‘And it worked …’ She was now looking at me with concern, as if she was scared I had a screw loose somewhere.
I thought about what she was saying for a tiny minute. If Best Man became an editorial property, I’d be organising sponsored weddings all year round. That would mean months of planning, finding sponsors, catering to their wishes, getting influencers on board, accommodating their demands and so on. I wouldn’t have any time for myself, ever. And all of this for what? So I could give undeserving couples a ton of content for their soon-to-fail marriages?
‘Pooja, I know I should’ve said something sooner, but I’m sorry,’ I said. ‘I can’t accept this offer.’
There was silence.
‘Why?’
‘Because I woke up one day and realised I don’t like my job.’ I couldn’t deny it any longer. ‘This isn’t the right place for me anymore.’
‘You need to think about what you’re saying,’ she said, her voice stern. ‘Decisions like these are not taken on an impulse.’
I stood up from my seat and offered her a heartfelt smile. ‘I hope you’re wrong,’ I said, ‘because I quit.’
