3
When I heard her footsteps nearing, I panicked and slammed my hand on the desk. The loud noise startled Aurora, and for a split second, her confused expression made her look… kind of cute.
It was at that moment I had a sinking realization: the Aurora in front of me and the Aurora I’d been texting online were the same person.
I cleared my throat awkwardly. “Sorry, Aurora, I, uh… just got a sudden stomach ache. Let me run to the restroom real quick. You can take a look at the document while I’m gone.”
Aurora blinked, still a little flustered. “Oh… okay?”
Grabbing my phone from the desk, I rushed to the restroom.
My heart was pounding as I opened the app. Thankfully, there was a quick logout button, and I immediately hit it. Only then did I feel like I could breathe again.
The issue was, Aurora was the kind of person who liked to explain everything in excruciating detail. If a notification popped up on the bottom right corner of my screen, even if she didn’t open it, she might accidentally hover over it. And that would be game over.
After answering her messages one by one, I spent a few extra minutes stalling in the restroom before finally heading back.
When I returned, Aurora had already gone through the document and was waiting for me. She gestured for me to sit down so she could explain the changes.
Once she’d gone over all the edits, she stood up and said, “I’m going to grab something from my office. Be right back.”
Be right back?
Internally, I wailed. Couldn’t she just go home? But I bit my tongue and focused on the changes she wanted.
Aurora truly lived up to her reputation as a workabolic. With her hovering over me, offering “helpful guidance, it was almost midnight by the time we finished the proposal.
“Looks good. Let’s go with this,” she finally said, nodding in approval.
1 exhaled in relief. “Great. Glad we’re done.”
But deep down, I was groaning.
Just as I was getting ready to pack up, Aurora suddenly asked, “You live in the company dorms, right? Want me to drive you home?”
“Huh?”
I froze, waving my hands quickly. “Oh, no, no. That’s okay. It’s not far–I’ll just walk.”
“It’s not safe to walk alone at this hour, Aurora insisted.
I tried to decline again, but she wasn’t having it. In the end, I had no choice but to accept her offer.
As I climbed into the passenger seat, Aurora quietly sent a message.
“Driving a coworker home, Didn’t let him sit in the front seat?
I replied with a simple: “ok.”
The car ride was awkwardly silent, I felt too self–conscious to pull out my phone, so I just stared out the window like an idiot.
Out of nowhere, Aurora broke the silence. “By the way, if you were a guy… I mean, since you are a guy, what kind of gift would you want from a girlfriend?”
I blinked, caught off guard. Oh, right. My birthday was coming up.
M
<
I scratched my head. “Uh… honestly, it’s not about the gift itself. It’s the thought that counts”
She frowned slightly. “The thing is, I’ve given my boyfriend gifts before, but he didn’t like them and returned them to me. I don’t know what to do anymore,”
I almost choked.
Seriously?!
Aurora had given me expensive gifts like luxury watches before. My family is middle class at best–I didn’t even have the wardrobe to pull off something like that. If I wore it, people would probably assume it was fake. Returning it was the only logical thing to do,
After a moment, I suggested, “Maybe try something handmade? Like a craft project or something small and personal. It doesn’t have to be expensive–what matters is that it’s thoughtful,”
Her expression turned contemplative. Then, she changed the subject. “You look pretty young. How old are you?”
My heart skipped a beat. “I’m a year older than you”
“What month?” she asked.
“August,” I replied,
She made a small noise of acknowledgment, and then hesitated. Finally, she said, “You know… I just realized I don’t know your name. What do people call you?”
I froze for a second before answering. “Mason.”
After that, neither of us said much. When we finally pulled up to the dorms, I thanked her politely.
“Thanks for the ride, Aurora”
“No problem. Go get some rest, she said with a small smile.
I nodded and turned to leave,
“Mason!” she suddenly called out.
I stopped and turned back, confused. “Yeah?”
She opened her mouth, hesitated, and then shook her head. “…Nothing. Get inside safe”
A couple of weeks later, Aurora and I landed a big client thanks to the proposal we worked on. Her mom, the company’s CEO, was so thrilled that she treated the entire office to dinner.
At the restaurant, people were busy drinking and socializing. I wasn’t much of a drinker, so I kept my head down and focused on the food.
That’s when Kenneth decided to put me on the spot.
Hey, everyone, let me introduce Mason from our department. Don’t let his age fool you this guy is incredibly talented. Even Aurora praised his proposal from last time, didn’t she, Mason?” Kenneth grinned as he clapped a hand on my shoulder.
I forced a smile, suppressing the urge to roll my eyes. The only reason that proposal even ended up on my plate was because Kenneth had pawned it off on me.
Online, I could trash–talk all I wanted, in real life, though? I was a doormat.
“Oh, it was nothing I just did my part,” I said, trying to downplay it, “Really, it’s all thanks to Kenneth’s leadership.”
Kenneth beamed. “Come on now, don’t be so modest! You’re a top graduate from a great school–your talent speaks for itself. Mason, why don’t you raise a toast to everyone?
D
1:12 PM
