Elevator | Episode 02

He tapped his ID card against the small device, its green light blinking rhythmically. The glass doors swiftly slid open, revealing the path to the outside world. Though a sense of lightness filled his steps as he exited his office, he still found himself dragging his feet to the elevator. With a press of a button he waited for the elevator to arrive, aware of the fact that his office was on the 10th floor of the twelve-story building.

Removing his ID card from around his neck, he felt the weight of pretense and theatrics slowly wearing off, as he tucked it into the side pocket of the backpack hanging over his right shoulder. He pulled his phone out of his pocket as he waited for the elevator, only to check the time before pushing it back in. It was 7:37 in the evening. Doing a quick mental tally, he felt a sense of accomplishment envelope his being, realizing he had clocked close to 54 hours for the week against the mandatory minimum of 45 hours.

Dressed in ash grey trousers and a plain black long-sleeved shirt with rolled up sleeves, he exhaled a small sigh. Standing at 5 feet 9 inches, he wasn’t towering, but stood taller to most around him. With broad shoulders and coarse, thick black short hair, he preferred an unkempt beard over a clean-shaven look. He maintained a fit physique, weighing anywhere between 65 to 68 kilograms, appearing more athletic than muscular.

As it was a Friday evening, he found it amusing how the work-week ended after just five days at his new job, unlike his previous employer where he had to work even on Sundays at times. It was only his second month since he joined this new workplace. Relocating to Pune, a hub of mechanical industries, meant leaving his hometown behind and embracing the hustle and bustle of a big city.

Glancing from the end of the corridor stretching towards his office, he noticed not a single soul in sight making their way to the elevator. Soft taps of keyboard keys drifted from within the office. In the distance, faint honking of vehicles echoed from the main road that connected to the office cluster. Beyond the expansive floor-to-ceiling glass windows on his left, the night sky appeared clear, adorned with twinkling stars.

Checking the elevator display, he saw it was held up on the 8th floor. Reaching out for his phone again, he scrolled through the Query app; ignoring the three notifications on his homepage, he skimmed through his feed filled with posts discussing and debating the recent demonetization in the country.

Switching to his messaging app, he did a quick check on Palak’s number, sneaking a peek at her display picture. He caught himself smiling looking at her picture as he bit on his lower lip. The elevator chimed with the doors sliding open. He locked his phone and returned it to his pocket before stepping into the empty elevator. He could sense a feeling of aloofness creeping into his senses as it dawned upon him that he could be spending the weekend all by himself yet again, as he had been doing since he moved here.

As he entered the elevator, a loud call from behind abruptly broke his chain of thoughts. “Hey Shantanu, wait for me please”, came the voice. Turning around, he saw Swara walking towards him. He vaguely remembered chatting with her on their induction day when they both joined the organization. Hastily, he pressed the door button as she approached in her high heels, the click-clack of her every step echoing in the empty corridor.

She was slim, with slender wrists and pronounced collarbones. Her shoulder-length hair, a deep black with subtle hints of blonde at the tips, swayed gently as she moved. Her skin, with a light almond hue, radiated under the amber glow of ceiling lights in the corridor. She was clad in a yellow embroidered kurti paired with light blue jeans. His gaze quickly swept over her face, catching sight of her silvery nose pin and the shiny jhumkas hanging from her ears. They both exchanged pleasantries as Swara stepped into the elevator. Mild scent of her perfume wafted into the elevator alongside her as Shantanu - sensing a slight uptick in his heartbeat - reached for the basement button.

He could tell she stood taller to most women in the office as she stood beside him, both facing the empty corridor from inside the elevator. He pulled his phone out yet again and went back to the posts he was scrolling through on Query, doing his best to avoid any further eye contact. He could sense an awkward tension filling the air as he watched her pull out her phone from her handbag from the corner of his eye, just as the elevator doors closed in on them.