A bright ray of sunlight burst through the curtains of my window. I squinted, groaning as the light rudely interrupted my peaceful sleep. Slowly, I opened my eyes, stretching my arms as if trying to hug the morning that was smiling at me. I gave myself a quick freshen-up and dressed perfectly- today was my first day at work after all!
As I strutted down the stairs, I spotted Ron who I call my bestie pacing around, clearly in a hurry.
"Eline Wu, seriously? You are late!" Ron said, his voice tinged with impatience. "We are going to be late for work if you don't speed up!"
I rolled my eyes, grabbed his phone, and glanced at the time before tossing it back.
"Late? It`s only 8:30 am! I still have an hour and a half", I replied unbothered.
"An hour and a half for you! Some of us need to get moving now! "Ron replied, his tone, a mix of impatience and urgency. "I don't have all morning to wait around" he said.
"Sweetheart, I have told you already- you don't have to worry about going to work. You are daddy`s little princess, remember? Everything I have is yours. I can`t bear to see you worn out every day because of a job", a man said, walking in my direction.
"Dad, we have talked about this!" It`s my life, and I just want to live the way I want, No interference, okay? And for the love of all things holy, my friends cannot know that I'm ridiculously rich. I'd never hear the end of it."
"But sweetheart," Daddy grinned.
"Uh, hello, are you two still not done yet?" Ron busted in, waving his hands.
"At least take the Lamborghini," Dad says, as if that doesn't make me look like a rich guy.
I stopped, blinked, and rolled my eyes. "Are you serious, Dad?"
Before I can recover, Ron bursts in, looking like he's enjoying this way too much. "Wait, wait," he says, laughing. "What about the Porsche? That's perfect for slamming it, right?"
And of course, Dad nods thoughtfully, as if this is the best idea, he has heard all day. "I mean, yeah, it'll really sell the whole 'poor' vibe", he adds, completely straight-faced.
I stared at both of them, hands on my head, wondering how I ended up in this drama. "Oh my god, are you two for real right now?"
Ron, always the drama queen, sighs heavily. "Shit, I'm late…..."
"That's it, I've had enough". I grabbed Ron by the arm and dragged him to the car, ignoring his protests. "No, Dad, stop. I'm going". I threw Ron into the driver's seat, slammed the door, and we sped off like we were escaping some ridiculous circus.
(Ring, ring, ring.)
The phone blared, snapping me out of my thoughts. Without thinking, I grabbed Ron's phone and glanced at the screen. "Who's that?" I asked, holding it up.
Ron's face went pale. "No, no, don't answer it," he shouted, looking terrified.
That's when I noticed it was his boss calling. Too late. I swiped to answer just as Ron was begging me not to.
"Hey, Ron! if you don't get your butt in the office before 9:15 a.m., I'm going to fire you," his boss snapped before hanging up.
I was too stunned to speak. "Oh, that's fierce!" I exclaimed, leaning back in my seat.
Ron shrugged, a smirk drifting onto his face. "Well, he always does that when he's annoyed."
I chuckled, shaking my head. "Yeah, but I thought today might be different. I mean, it's like... your last day on earth."
Ron asked, "Last day? What's that supposed to mean?"
I grinned. "Just figured you'd make a dramatic exit. You know, go out with a bang. So, what's the plan? A final dance party? Or a grand farewell speech?"
I leaned in closer, lowering my voice. "How about both? And don't forget to invite me."
"Of course, I'll throw a party in your honour," Ron smirked. "But you... you better collect my body when it's all over."
After Ron dropped me off at the office—probably racing back to park his butt in his chair just in time—I was practically vibrating with excitement. Why? Because I was about to start my new life at Gen Z, my dream company. Scratch that, everyone's dream company.
This wasn't just any gaming company; this was the Gen Z, the top-tier giant behind Gensha, the game that took the world by storm. Every game designer dreams of working here.
Now, I know what you guys are thinking: How on earth did you get in? Right? Let's just say I pulled a few strings, but that's beside the point. What matters is, I got in! I'm officially part of Gen Z, and I couldn't be more excited.
But, of course, I had to play it cool, so I buried the excitement somewhere deep down, put on my "I-belong-here" face, and stepped inside.
And there it was—the first thing I saw—a towering, ten-foot-tall figure of Blaze, one of the iconic characters from Gensha. I might have squeaked a little inside. Did I mention he's one of my favourites? Because, yeah, Blaze is a legend.
The moment I saw the breath-taking scene, I dropped everything in my hands, and honestly, my jaw dropped too. I was so stunned I could barely speak, but I couldn't contain my excitement any longer. "Oh, my goodness, it's amazing!" I screamed.
Suddenly, a keen silence enveloped the hall. I turned around to find all eyes on me, looking as if they were about to eat me alive. "Uh, you know, I'm just... too excited. Sorry, sorry," I apologized to everyone. Thankfully, they went back to what they were doing.
I snapped a few selfies with Blaze to show off to my friends before heading straight to the lobbyist for directions. He informed me that I needed to report to the CEO's office, which was on the tenth floor.
I squeezed myself into the crowded elevator until I reached the back.
(Overload, overload.)
The elevator flashed an overload sign, and everyone looked at me—the last person to enter. I could practically hear their thoughts: "She needs to get off." People will only ask me to get off if I see them. What if I don't? Smart, right? I thought, giving myself a little mental praise as I pretended not to notice.
Luckily, I have this weird habit of wearing headphones everywhere I go.
Soon, there was a commotion in the elevator, and people started pointing at me, urging me to get off.
"No, no, no. God, not me." I panicked. Luckily, a kind young man volunteered to step off the elevator. Thanks to him, I didn't have to endure those dreaded 10 minutes.
You guys might ask: "Can't you just wait 10 minutes?" No! What I hate most is waiting. Even a single moment feels like an eternity to me.
The elevator was almost empty when it reached the ninth floor. Suddenly, it started to shake, and the lights flickered on and off, like there was some kind of ghost attack.
To make things worse, the elevator got stuck between the ninth and tenth floors. Just my luck! I pressed the emergency button like twenty times, but still, there was no response.
"I think the ghost attacked us. It wants our lives! Or maybe.... it wants to take over our bodies? Ahh!". I screamed.
"Can you stop screaming?" A gentle voice asked.
My eyes turned to the man standing beside me. I was too stunned to process who he was. Probably in his twenties, maybe?
His slight slit hairstyle, sparkling bold eyes, a strong nose, and full red lips... "Oh my god, what a handsome man". I whispered to myself.
"No! Is he important now?"
"Like an angel. Wow!" I blabbered to myself, feeling like I had a personality disorder.
"Mr. Ghost, Mr. Ghost, please don't kill this innocent, sweet, cute little girl who just started to live her life! You can take him if you want, but not me, please!"
While I was busy talking, the handsome guy was fiddling with a selfie stick in his hands.
"What are you doing?" I asked. He gave me a strange look and explained that he was trying to open the door at the top of the elevator so we could escape.
"Can you just stop blabbering and help me? Otherwise, the ghost will take us for real," the handsome guy said.
He was totally rude but never mind. A handsome guy can get away with anything.
He got into a running position and told me to hop on his shoulder. I stepped up, holding onto the elevator wall for support.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes, on three."
"One. Two. Three..."
He stood up with me on his shoulder. After a brief struggle, I opened the door but couldn't climb up. It was too much for me. So, I got down.
He stepped back, ran at the elevator wall, stomped on it, and jumped all the way to the top, climbing up like it was a piece of cake.
"Wow!" I exclaimed.
After he reached the top, he stretched out his hands to help me up, his hand was warm and firm around mine, a comforting grip.
At the moment his hand touched mine, a sudden spark jolted through my brain, electrifying and vivid. My eyes widened as a wave of Deja vu crashed over me, so intense! It was as if I had lived this very moment before.