It was already going to be one week since I started my internship at ESSPU.
A week.
It felt strange saying it.
When I first stepped into Westbridge, I had expected the worst.
Four intimidating bosses.
An unfamiliar workplace.
A department everyone seemed to whisper about.
But somehow…
It hadn’t been as terrifying as I imagined.
The work had become somewhat routine.
Alexander continued giving me different reports and documents to analyze.
Every day, there was something new waiting on my desk.
And although I still hadn’t discovered anything as significant as my first observation, he never seemed disappointed.
He never praised me unnecessarily.
But he also never made me feel like my efforts were meaningless.
I was heading toward work that morning when something unusual caught my attention.
The moment I stepped outside my apartment, I stopped.
I stared at the scene in front of me.
The corridor looked completely different.
Large boxes were scattered everywhere.
Stacks of papers, furniture pieces, and packed belongings covered almost the entire passage.
For a moment, I wondered if I had accidentally walked into the wrong building.
Then I noticed the apartment beside the staircase.
The door was open.
Someone was moving in.
Apparently, my new neighbor had chosen the worst possible timing.
I looked at the pile of things blocking my way and sighed.
Great.
Now I had to somehow reach the elevator without destroying someone’s belongings.
Carefully, I stepped around the boxes, trying not to knock anything over.
One step.
Then another.
I was almost through when— “Meave.” I froze.
That voice.
I slowly turned around.
The overly excited voice came from a girl.
I looked at her face more closely, trying to place her.
And then it clicked.
Sarah.
The intern from the Finance Department.
The same girl I had met near the washroom a few days ago.
Her eyes widened the moment she recognized me.
She suddenly dropped the box she was carrying and hurried toward me.
“OMG, Meave!
Do you live here too?” I blinked at her sudden excitement.
“Hi, Sarah.
Yes, I live just two apartments from here.” I pointed toward my apartment door.
For a second, she simply stared.
Then her face lit up.
“OMG, we are neighbors!” She looked genuinely amazed.
“Such a small world.
It must definitely be destiny.” I couldn’t help but smile slightly at her enthusiasm.
Sarah had a way of making every small thing feel like a major event.
“We literally just met a few days ago, and now we live in the same building.
How amazing is that?” She continued talking excitedly, barely giving herself a chance to breathe.
I was about to reply when another voice interrupted her.
“You can talk all day after we finish carrying these boxes inside.” A girl stepped out from the apartment behind Sarah, holding a cleaning cloth in her hand.
She was slightly shorter than Sarah, with a much calmer presence compared to her overly energetic friend.
Unlike Sarah, who seemed to have endless energy, this girl looked like she had already accepted that moving day was exhausting.
She barely glanced in my direction.
“Sarah, we still have half the boxes outside.” Sarah immediately turned toward her.
“Right, right.
I got distracted.” Then she looked back at me with a smile.
“Oh, Meave, meet Remi.” She gestured toward the girl beside her.
“She works at Westbridge too, in the Sales Department.” Then she turned toward Remi.
“Remi, meet Meave.
She is an intern at ESSPU.” At the mention of ESSPU, Remi finally looked at me properly.
For a few seconds, she simply stared.
Not rudely.
More like she was processing the information.
Then she gave a small nod.
“Hi.” Her voice was quiet compared to Sarah’s.
“Hi,” I replied.
There was a brief silence between us.
Sarah, thankfully, seemed completely unaware of the awkwardness.
“This is so exciting.
I can’t believe we all work at the same company and now live near each other too.” She looked between us with a huge smile.
“I think we are going to become really good friends.” I smiled politely.
Sarah’s confidence was almost contagious.
Although I had only known her for a few days, she already treated me like someone she had known for much longer.
And now… Apparently, I had two new neighbors.
A very energetic one.
And a very quiet one.
I glanced at my watch.
My eyes widened slightly.
I had spent more time talking to Sarah and Remi than I realized.
As much as I wanted to continue the conversation, I couldn’t ignore the fact that I was already running late.
I opened my mouth to excuse myself, but before I could say anything, Remi seemed to notice my hesitation.
“You must be getting late for work,” she said calmly.
She glanced toward the boxes scattered around them.
“We both could only take half a day off, so we still have a lot to finish.” “I’m sorry, Meave.
You should probably go.
We’ll catch up later.” Sarah immediately nodded in agreement.
Although she looked slightly disappointed that our conversation was ending, she still smiled brightly.
“Yeah, don’t worry.
We can talk later.
We’re neighbors now, after all.” I nodded quickly.
“Okay.
See you both later.” With that, I hurried toward the elevator, hoping I wasn’t already too late.
When I finally reached Westbridge, I immediately made my way toward ESSPU.
But as soon as I stepped onto the floor, I stopped.
All four of my bosses were coming out of the meeting room.
Alexander was walking ahead, followed by Adrian, Damian, and Julian.
For a second, my heart sank.
Did they already have a meeting without me?
Was I so late that they started without waiting?
I quickly glanced at my watch.
Only ten minutes.
Ten minutes late.
I stood there for a moment, confused.
Ten minutes didn’t seem like enough time for them to finish an entire meeting.
Unless…
It was something they didn’t need me for.
I tried not to overthink it.
But still, a small feeling of disappointment settled inside me.
I only received a simple “good morning” from Adrian when I returned to my desk.
That was it.
No questions about why I was late.
No comments about the meeting.
No explanation about what they had discussed.
For a moment, I wondered if I should ask.
But then I stopped myself.
If the meeting was something important for me to know, they would have told me.
I didn’t want to seem like I was trying to interfere in matters that didn’t concern me.
So I quietly settled at my desk and started working.
The day continued like usual.
Alexander assigned me more reports to analyze.
Damian was busy handling different documents related to the investigation.
Adrian was buried under a stack of papers, occasionally answering calls.
And Julian…
Well, Julian was surprisingly quiet.
Which was unusual enough that I noticed it.
But I decided not to question it.
During lunch break, I headed toward the food counter to get my meal.
While deciding what to take, I heard a familiar voice.
“Meave!” I turned around.
Sarah was standing there with a bright smile.
“Hi, Sarah.” She immediately walked toward me.
“I was hoping I would find you here.” Before I could ask why, she continued.
“So, tonight we are having a small celebration.” She nodded excitedly.
“Since Remi and I finally got the apartment, we decided to celebrate at a small café nearby.” “That sounds nice,” I replied.
Although I appreciated the invitation, I was already thinking of politely refusing.
I had work.
And after reaching home, I still had reports to review.
“Actually, I—” But Sarah didn’t even let me finish.
“Great!
I knew you would come.” I blinked.
“Wait, I was going to say—” “Don’t worry, it will be fun.” She smiled brightly.
“It’s just a small gathering.
Nothing complicated.” Before I could find another excuse, she waved toward a group of people sitting nearby.
“I should go.
See you tonight, Meave!” And just like that, she walked away.
Leaving me standing there.
I stared after her.
Did she just invite me…
or did she simply decide that I was attending?
I couldn’t help but smile slightly.
Sarah was certainly different.
I barely knew her, yet she treated me like we had been friends for years.
Looking at the time, I sighed and carried my lunch toward my table.
Maybe…
just maybe…
a small break from work wouldn’t hurt.
It was already past the usual working hours when I finally finished reading the last report on my desk.
I looked around the office.
Everyone at ESSPU was still working.
At this point, I had started noticing a pattern.
They all seemed to work overtime almost every day.
Sometimes, I felt a little hesitant about leaving on time when everyone else was still buried in their work.
It wasn’t that anyone had asked me to stay.
In fact, none of them had ever told me to work beyond my hours.
But seeing them continue working made me feel like I was leaving too early.
Maybe it was because I was still trying to prove myself.
Maybe because I was the newest person here.
But today, I had a reason to leave.
For once, I had an actual plan outside work.
A small celebration with my new neighbors.
I packed my things and finally stood up from my desk.
Before leaving, I glanced toward the others.
Damian was still reviewing some documents.
Julian was typing something on his laptop, surprisingly focused.
Alexander was, as usual, completely immersed in his work.
And Adrian…
The moment I reached the door, he looked up.
“Goodbye, Meave.” His voice carried the same warmth it always did.
I smiled.
“Goodbye, Adrian.” It was such a simple thing.
But somehow, Adrian always managed to make even ordinary moments feel comfortable.
I left the office after that.
When I exited the Westbridge building, I immediately spotted two familiar faces waiting outside.
Sarah waved the moment she saw me.
“Meave!” Beside her stood Remi, looking much calmer but still giving me a small smile.
“You came,” Sarah said happily.
The three of us stood outside the building for a few minutes before calling a taxi.
Soon enough, we were sitting inside, heading toward the café.
Looking out of the window, I realized something.
For the first time since joining Westbridge…
I wasn’t thinking about work.
Not about reports.
Not about investigations.
Not about trying to impress my bosses.
Just a simple evening with people I had recently met.
And somehow…
That felt refreshing.