The Promise by Nikita Singh

asked, turning to Faisal.
    'Actually, no. This is just one floor; there are three more floors of this,' Arjun replied, before Faisal could say anything.
    'I know that, Mr Datta. Faisal here told me about that. But I just wanted to see these pieces in person. I have seen the catalogue of the rest of your pieces,' Shambhavi said.
    'Yes, Mr Datta. These are the newest of your designs. We do not have them on the catalogue yet,' Faisal added.
    'So, you have already selected whatever you needed?' Arjun asked Shambhavi, ignoring Faisal.
    'More or less. I have marked them in the catalogue. We have a few confusions, which we would like to clear with you. Other than that, we are done here.'
    'Good. What kind of confusions?'
    'I'll have Tutul send them over to you?' Shambhavi asked.
    'Sure.'
    'Great,' she said and turned to Tutul. 'Add the model numbers of the pieces we selected from here on this list. We'll go through it and finalise the final list tonight, okay?'

    'Okay. And Shambhavi, I think I should check out the selected articles in person once?' Tutul suggested.
    'Yes, good idea. Go with Faisal and take a look? Fill me in later?'
    'Yes, I will. You go now. Take care of him, okay?'
    'Of course,' Shambhavi said and turned to the men and bid them goodbye. 'Gentlemen, I will see you later.'
    'Later,' Faisal said cheerfully.
    Arjun nodded. He wondered whom Tutul was referring to when she asked Shambhavi to take care of him. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. It was none of his business.
    As soon as Shambhavi left, Faisal and Tutul also took their leave for the first floor, leaving him standing there alone. For some reason, he felt lost, even though he was standing at the one place which was truly his own-his factory, his office, his home.

    The next five weeks went by at an unrealistic pace, or at least that was how Arjun felt. Working with Shambhavi was an overwhelming experience. Even though he had always been good at what he did, he had never been so enthusiastic about his work. That was probably because the money had always mattered more to him than the work he was doing. But with Shambhavi, it was different. Just seeing her work was an experience.
    He had gone through her portfolio, the one she had left behind in his office after their first meeting. He had grudgingly admitted to himself that he was impressed by her work. That was partly the reason why he had even looked at the sample designs she prepared for the Ahluwalia mansion. Otherwise, he had planned to brush her off directly, when she called on the personal number he gave her on his visiting card. But her work had not let him do that. On working together, he got to witness the process through which such impeccable designs came into existence.

    She got engrossed in whatever she was doing, be it something as important as detailing her designs or as insignificant as taking printouts. She put her heart into everything. He also realized that she had not been faking aloofness and pretending to have got over his decision of not having anything personal between them. She had genuinely forgiven him and moved on. She was not the kind of person to hold grudges. Like a child, she was easy to please and could never stay mad for long. Not once, in the whole time he had worked with her, did he feel like she held something against him. She was back to calling him Arjun and behaving normally around him.
    He was grateful to her for that.
    That night, they had a housewarming party at the Ahluwalias' mansion to attend. Arjun was against the idea of going there, but changed his mind, when he found out that Shambhavi would be there.
    It was probably his last legitimate chance to meet her and he was in no mood to miss it. Over the weeks they had spent working together, she had slowly grown on him. If nothing else, he was just used to having her around. Her laughter, her chirps, her bright eyes and her ... sheer presence had become a part of his routine. He had no idea how she had managed