*Chapter 1: Nayi Seat, Naya Sir*
Mera naam Riya hai. 25 saal. Nayi job, nayi city, naya laptop. Bangalore. "TechNova Solutions" naam ki company. Mera designation bada fancy tha—"Associate Product Manager". Asliyat mein matlab tha Excel, meeting, aur coffee.
Pehle din, HR didi boli, "Tumhara bay Cabin 9 ke paas hai. Sirf ek baat dhyan rakhna, Cabin 9 wale sir se behas mat karna. Thode gusse wale hain. Par kaam mein genius."
Main boli, "Theek hai, didi."
Cabin 9 ka naam plate pe likha tha: _Aarav Malhotra – Senior Product Head_.
Main apni seat pe baithi, laptop khola, aur pehla kaam kya mila? "Cabin 9 ke liye weekly report banao. Last quarter ka data. Kal 10 baje chahiye."
Welcome to corporate, Riya.
Main 9:58 pe Cabin 9 ke darwaze pe knock kiya. Andar se awaz aayi, "Haan."
Main andar gayi. Woh laptop mein ghusa hua tha. Baal halke badhe hue, shirt ki sleeves fold ki hui, coffee ka cup aadha bhara. Usne upar dekha nahi.
"Ji, report," main boli, file aage ki.
Usne haath badaya, file li, ek nazar maari. "Yeh graph galat hai. Churn rate Q2 mein 4.2 tha, tumne 2.4 likha. Wapas jao."
Mera muh khula. Pehla din. Pehli report. Aur "wapas jao".
"Sir, maine data team se liya—"
"Data team insaan hai, bhagwan nahi. Cross-check karo. 11 baje tak chahiye." Phir woh laptop mein ghus gaya. Baat khatam.
Main baahar aayi. Chehre pe 100 watt ka gussa. Pehla din, aur Cabin 9 already mera villain.
*Chapter 2: Coffee Machine*
Office ki coffee machine sabki therapist hai.
Main 3 baje wahaan khadi thi, doosri baar report theek karke, teesri baar himmat juta ke. Machine ne dhoka diya. "Error 404: Bean Not Found".
"Isse thoda pyaar se maaro," kisi ne peechhe se bola.
Main palti. Aarav Malhotra. Bina cabin ke. Insaan lag raha tha.
"Yeh machine bhi aapki tarah hai?" main bol gayi. Phir jeebh kaat li. Pehla hafta, boss ko taunt. Wah, Riya, wah.
Woh ek second ruka. Phir hasa. Thoda sa. "Machine se kam gussa aata hai mujhe. Yeh lo." Usne machine ke side mein ek button dabaya, do thapki di, aur coffee nikal aayi. "Purani hai. Samajhna padta hai."
Usne apna cup liya. Meri taraf dekha. "Report?"
"Bhej di. 10:59 pe. 4.2 wala graph."
"Good." Woh jaane laga, phir ruka. "Riya, right? Nayi PM?"
"Haan, sir."
"Aarav. Sir mat bolo. Sirf client ke saamne."
"Okay... Aarav." Naam lena ajeeb laga.
Woh chala gaya. Main coffee peeti rahi. Kadwi thi. Ya shayad pehla din kadwa tha.
*Chapter 3: 11 PM Ki Meeting*
Startup ka matlab hai "kabhi bhi meeting".
Raat ko 10:30 baje Slack pe message: "@Riya, Cabin 9 mein aao. Urgent deck review. Client call 9am IST."
Main ghar jaane wali thi. Wapas kursi pe. Cabin 9 mein light jal rahi thi.
Andar woh akela tha, whiteboard pe diagram bana raha. Kurta-style shirt, ab aur zyada fold. Thaka hua lag raha tha.
"Sorry," woh bola bina dekhe. "Tumhe rokna pada. Naya client bada hai. Agar yeh pitch gaya, toh... gaya."
Main baith gayi. Humne deck khola. Slide 7 pe mera banaya hua user flow tha.
"Yeh bekaar hai," woh bola. Seedha. Chaku jaisa.
Meri aankh garam ho gayi. Raat ke 11 baje, "bekaar" sunna easy nahi hota.
"Toh bata do kya bekaar hai," main boli. Awaz thodi oonchi. "Sirf bekaar bol ke chhod doge toh main sudhaarungi kaise?"
Woh ruka. Meri taraf dekha. Pehli baar, sach mein dekha. "Tumhe bura laga?"
"Haan. Laga. Main 12 ghante se yahin hoon."
Woh marker neeche rakha. "Riya, suno. Tumhara flow galat nahi hai. Incomplete hai. Client ko 'why' chahiye, sirf 'what' nahi. Yahan user ka pain point dikh nahi raha. Samjhi?"
Samjha.
Main 2 ghante tak uske saath baithi. Usne daanta nahi. Samjhaya. Whiteboard pe, mere notebook pe, kabhi apne haath se mere haath ke upar pen pakad ke. "Idhar se arrow jayega, dekho."
12:45 pe deck khatam hua.
"Coffee?" usne poocha.
"Machine band hai."
"Chalo, neeche tapri pe. Meri taraf se. Sorry ke liye."
Hum raat ke 1 baje tapri pe chai pe rahe the. Bangalore ki sadak, khaali, thandi.
"Tum hamesha itne... seedhe bolte ho?" main poochi.
"Haan. Time kam hai, Riya. Ghooma ke bolne se kaam late hota hai." Usne chai ka kulhad khatam kiya. "Par tum sahi thi. Main tareeka seekh sakta hoon."
"Seekhoge?"
"Koshish karunga. Tum sikhana."
Deal?
Deal.
*Chapter 4: Slack Par Sticker*
Uske baad kuch badla.
Woh ab bhi Cabin 9 ka gusse wala sir tha. Sabke liye. Par mere Slack pe woh sticker bhejta tha. Kaam ke baad. "Great job on the deck" ke saath ek chai ka sticker. "Client impressed" ke saath ek nachti hui billi.
Main reply karti: "Sir, yeh professional nahi hai."
Woh bolta: "Aarav. Aur billi bahut professional hai. Dekho kaise deadline pe nach rahi hai."
Ek din 7 baje, sab ja chuke the. Main akeli PPT bana rahi thi. Woh cabin se nikla.
"Abhi tak?"
"Haan. Kal ka review hai."
"Ruko." Woh mere desk pe aaya. Mera laptop dekha. "Yeh slide boring hai. Font badlo. Isko story banao. Dekho, yahan se start karo..."
Aadha ghanta laga. Slide chamak gayi.
"Thanks," main boli. "Tumhe ghar nahi jana?"
"Ghar pe kaun hai. Yahan AC achha hai." Woh hasa. Phir shant. "Actually, kaam ke baad ghar kaatne ko daudta hai. Yahaan... log hain."
Main samjhi. Kabhi-kabhi gusse ke peechhe sirf akelapan hota hai.
"Chalo," main boli. "Maggie khaate hain. Neeche canteen mein banti hai."
Woh chaunka. "Tum... mere saath?"
"Haan. Dar lagta hai? Senior se Maggie khane mein?"
"Nahi. Achha laga."
*Chapter 5: Appraisal*
Teen mahine ho gaye.
Mera appraisal tha. Aarav mera manager tha. Meri phat rahi thi.
Meeting room mein woh aaya. Mere saamne baitha. Ek folder khola.
"Riya," woh bola. "Tumhari strength: Tum ladti ho. Tumhara kaam kharab ho toh maan leti ho, phir theek karti ho. Tum team ko sikhana chahti ho. Ye rare hai."
Main saans roke sun rahi thi.
"Weakness: Tum sabko please karne ki koshish karti ho. Har baar haan mat bolo. 'No' bhi ek answer hai. Seekho."
Main boli, "Toh... pass ya fail?"
Woh hasa. Pehli baar dil khol ke. "Promotion. APM se PM. Aur salary hike 20%. Aur..." usne folder band kiya. "Aur please, meri team mein hi rehna. Dusri team maang rahi hai tumhe."
Mera gala bhar gaya. "Thank you... Aarav."
"Tum deserve karti ho." Woh utha. Darwaze pe ruka. "Aaj treat tumhari taraf se. Promotion wali."
Hum CCD gaye. Usne cold coffee li. Maine hot.
"Riya," usne kaha. "Ek baat bolun? Bura mat man'na."
"Ab toh aadat ho gayi."
"Tum office mein sabse zyada bright ho. Dimag se bhi. Dil se bhi. Kabhi kabhi lagta hai tum yahaan ho kyun. Tum toh... duniya ghoom sakti ho."
Main cup ghuma rahi thi. "Shayad ghoom lungi. Par abhi... yahaan achha lag raha hai. Cabin 9 ke aas-paas."
Woh chup ho gaya. Coffee dekhta raha.
*Chapter 6: Confession, Excel Mein*
Bada project aaya. US client. Raat-raat bhar kaam.
Main aur Aarav, lagataar saath. Kabhi whiteboard, kabhi Figma, kabhi bas dimaag.
Ek raat 2 baje, hum dono office mein akle. PPT khatam. Dono thak gaye.
Main floor pe baith gayi, diwar se tik ke. "Bass. Ek minute. Phir ghar."
Woh mere paas baith gaya. Do foot ki doori.
"Riya," woh bola. "Agar main tumhara boss na hota, toh..."
"Toh?"
"Toh main tumhe abhi coffee pe le jaata. Bina kaam ke. Bina deck ke."
Main uski taraf dekhi. Uski aankh laal thi. Neend se. Ya kuch aur se.
"Aarav," main boli. "Tum mere boss ho. Par... tum sirf boss nahi ho."
Woh samjha.
Par bola, "Office romance messy hota hai, Riya. Main tumhara manager hoon. Power dynamic. HR. Sab."
"Main jaanti hoon." Main uthi. "Isi liye hum bas coffee peete hain. Kaam wali."
Main jaane lagi.
"Riya," usne awaz di.
Main ruki.
"Excel kholo. Sheet2. Cell Z100."
"Abhi?"
"Haan."
Maine laptop khola. Sheet2. Z100 pe scroll kiya.
Wahaan likha tha: _"I like you. Not as PM. As Riya. If this is wrong, delete this cell. I'll understand."_
Meri saans ruk gayi.
Maine uski taraf dekha. Woh khidki se baahar dekh raha tha. Jaise usne kuch kiya hi na ho.
Main wapas laptop pe gayi. Z100 ke neeche, Z101 mein likha: _"Don't delete. Ever. – R"_
Main save kiya. Laptop band kiya.
"Goodnight, Aarav," main boli.
"Goodnight, Riya," woh bola. Khidki se hi.
*Chapter 7: HR Aur Dil*
Humne koshish ki. Sach mein.
Professional rahe. Meeting mein "Aarav sir" aur "Riya". Slack pe sirf kaam. Par aankh mil jaati thi. Coffee machine pe haath takra jaata tha.
Ek din HR ne bulaya. "Kuch sun'ne mein aaya hai. Tum dono ke beech... kuch hai?"
Maine na bola. Aarav ne bhi.
Par ghar aa ke main royi. Kyunki jhooth bolna pada.
Aarav ne raat ko message kiya. Pehli baar WhatsApp pe. "Kya kar rahe hain hum?"
Maine likha: "Pata nahi. Par jo bhi hai, galat nahi lagta."
Usne likha: "HR se baat karta hoon. Ya main team badal leta hoon. Tumhari growth nahi rukni chahiye."
Maine likha: "Pagal ho? Tumhari wajah se main yahan hoon. Tum gaye toh main kya karungi?"
Woh call pe aa gaya. "Toh solution?"
"Solution," main boli, "yeh ki hum samajhdaar banein. Jab tak project khatam nahi hota, hum wait karte hain. Uske baad... dekhte hain. Ek dusre ko choose karte hain, ya career ko."
"Agreed," woh bola. "Par Riya?"
"Hmm?"
"Main wait nahi kar pa raha. Main har roz tumhe dekh ke..."
"Main bhi," main boli. "Toh hum kya karein?"
Woh hasa. "Kaam karein. Aur Excel mein likhein. HR Excel nahi padhta."
*Chapter 8: Pitch Din*
US client ka pitch tha. Puri company ka pressure.
Subah 8 baje hum office pahunche. Aarav suit mein. Pehli baar. Main black dress mein. Pehli baar.
Usne dekha. Ek second ruka. "You look... powerful."
"You too."
Pitch shuru hua. 45 minute. Main boli. Woh boli. Humne ek saath kiya. Jaise dance.
Client ne aakhir mein kaha, "Impressive. And your chemistry... it shows. Teams like yours win."
Hum dono ne ek dusre ko dekha. Chemistry. Sabko dikh raha tha.
Deal mil gaya. Office mein taaliyan, cake, shor.
Aarav ne sabke saamne mera haath pakda. "Tumhare bina nahi hota."
HR didi ne dekha. Smile kiya.
*Chapter 9: Chhat*
Shaam ko, sab chale gaye. Main aur Aarav chhat pe gaye. Office ki chhat. Bangalore ki hawa, thandi.
"Toh," woh bola. "Project khatam."
"Haan."
"Ab?"
Main uski taraf mudi. "Ab HR se baat karte hain. Sahi se. Policy padhi hai maine. Bas declare karna hota hai. Conflict of interest nahi hona chahiye. Main dusri team mein ja sakti hoon. Ya tum."
"Tum nahi jaogi," woh bola. "Main jaunga. Tum yahaan badi ho rahi ho. Main APM ban ke bhi khush rahunga agar..."
"Agar kya?"
"Agar tum haan bolo."
"Kis liye?"
Usne jeb se ek chhota dabba nikala. Ring nahi. Ek pendrive.
"Isme kya hai?" main boli.
"Hamari sab Excel sheets. Z100 se Z500 tak. Jo hum likhte rahe. Aur ek folder. Naam hai 'Future'."
Main has di. "Romantic ho tum."
"Kaam wala romantic." Usne pendrive mere haath mein di. "Riya, main tumhe pasand karta hoon. Boss se pehle, insaan se. Tumhare bina meri subah chai jaisi nahi, bas garam paani. Haan bolo toh... hum try karein? Sahi se. Duniya ke saamne."
Main pendrive li. Uska haath pakda.
"Z501," main boli.
"Matlab?"
"Excel kholo. Z501 mein likho: She said yes."
Woh hasa. Phir ruka. Phir bola, "I love you, Riya."
"I love you, Aarav," main boli. "Cabin 9 wale sir."
"Ex-sir," woh bola. "Kyunki main transfer le raha hoon. Kal se."
*Chapter 10: 6 Mahine Baad*
Main ab bhi TechNova mein hoon. PM. Dusri team.
Aarav bhi yahin hai. Senior Architect ban gaya. Nayi team, naya cabin. Cabin 21.
Par coffee hum saath peete hain. Lunch saath. Aur raat ko ghar bhi saath jaate hain. Haan, ghar. Ek hi.
HR ne cake khilaya tha. Policy ke under. Sab theek.
Aaj bhi kabhi woh gussa karta hai. Main ab darte nahi. Bol deti hoon, "Aarav, tareeka."
Woh bolta hai, "Sorry. Seekh raha hoon."
Aur seekh jaata hai.
Kal raat usne Excel khola. Z600 pe likha: _"Marry me? Cell Z601 mein jawab do."_
Maine Z601 mein likha: _"Haan. Par pehle coffee. Tum pilana."_
Usne padha. Hasa. Aur bola, "Z602: Always."
---
*Antim Line:*
Office romance messy hota hai. Par agar saamne wala aapki Excel ki galti sudhaare, aapki coffee banaye, aur aapke sapne ko "bekaar" na kahe balki "incomplete" kahe—taaki aap poora kar sako—
Toh woh messy nahi, magic hota hai.
Cabin 9 se shuru hui kahani, ab Cabin "Hamara Ghar" pe hai.
Aur haan, coffee machine ab bhi kharab hoti hai. Par ab hum dono ko pata hai usko kaise theek karna hai. Thoda pyaar se. Do thapki. Jaise rishte.