chapter 21

SerendipityEpisode-21Megha’s office car slowly crawled toward the Sehegal office in Bandra Kurla Complex.Cars surrounded on all sides—the Western Express Highway was packed.It was a typical Monday morning rush, with everyone scrambling to get to their offices, adding to the gridlock caused by ongoing municipal work.The metro construction only made things worse. The constant screeching of brakes kept anyone from drifting off into a nap.Megha kept her eyes glued to the laptop screen in front of her. Not even a minute of this slow journey is going to be wasted. The Sehegal project presentation lay open before her, and she was on a call with her team, discussing the final points.She checked in on everyone’s status—where they had reached. The clock showed 9 AM... 30 minutes to go, and just 10 minutes left to cover.I messaged Purab this morning to wish him good luck for the Supreme meeting... Why hasn’t he replied yet? He usually responds within seconds...Setting aside her laptop, Megha absentmindedly ran her fingers over the soft fabric of her saree.She would need to walk straight into the conference room once she reached.Today, she wore a delicate Batik silk saree with pale blue and white floral embroidery—it reminded her of Radha Tai.Radha Tai had always insisted that Batik silk sarees brought luck. “Megha Tai, this saree is your lucky charm,” she would say.The saree had earned that title after a few unrelated events.The first time Megha wore it, Arya’s team won a football match. The second time, a nutmeg grater, lost for a month, reappeared the same day she wore the saree.Another time, a lotus that hadn’t bloomed in ages blossomed the night she donned the saree. And the most recent incident—Radha Tai’s son, Akash, aced his fifth-semester engineering exams when Megha wore it again.Of course, Megha had nothing to do with any of these events, but this morning, while chatting with Radha, she had casually mentioned her important presentation.Radha Tai instantly suggested, “You should wear your lucky saree!” Megha had laughed it off, but without realizing it, her hand had reached for the same saree.Though Megha firmly believed that 90% of success came from hard work and only 10% from luck, she found herself curious to test the saree’s so-called luck today.The hard work was done—the last 45-minute presentation, a little discussion, and lots of negotiation would bring the Sehegal project to a conclusion at the SWC level.As her car finally left the Western Expressway and turned toward Bandra Kurla Complex, Megha finished her call, giving some final instructions to the team.She put her laptop to sleep, packed it in her bag, and prepared to step out at Sehegal Towers.Just then, her phone rang. Seeing ‘Gupta Sir’ on the screen, she answered quickly.“Good morning, Gupta Sir,” she said.“Morning’s not that good, Megha,” his voice sounded off, unlike his usual upbeat self.“What happened, sir? Are you okay?” Megha instantly picked up on the change in his tone.“I’m fine, but Purab isn’t. He’s down with a fever... possibly viral,” Gupta Sir replied, sounding concerned.“Oh no! I spoke with him just last evening—he seemed fine. What happened all of a sudden?”Megha recalled their video call about the Sehegal project, with Purab, Siddharth, Rashmi, and herself.“He wasn’t feeling well last night, and the fever hasn’t broken since,” Gupta Sir explained.“But... the Supreme presentation? Who’s going to handle that now?” Megha immediately understood the source of his worry.“That’s why I called. Megha, I need you to attend the meeting with me. Can you step in?”Gupta Sir’s request weighed heavily on her.Her car had just pulled up in front of Sehegal Towers, the building’s name glistening in the morning light.For a moment, Megha felt paralyzed. Her mind raced as she stood there, not knowing what to say.She had worked tirelessly for the past 15 days preparing for the Sehegal meeting, and the presentation was set to start in 15 minutes. How can I cancel now, at the last minute?Would Sehegal Sir allow the meeting to be rescheduled? What if I don’t get another chance?But then again, what about the Supreme Group meeting? Purab was the only one fully familiar with the project. Due to confidentiality, no one else knew the details before the project was finalized. They had worked on the presentation together, and Purab was supposed to handle it while Gupta Sir attended as support.What should I do now?If I skip the Supreme meeting, what will happen to SWC’s reputation? But why should one client be prioritized over another? I’ve never done that before. I can’t neglect one for the other... not me.Questions swirled around in her mind, pulling her in every direction. She felt trapped between two critical decisions.To be continued....© ®️ Meghna_Yadav 2021Special Thanks to friend Gayatri and my loving daughter, my buddy.Hello Readers,Illuminate the five stars of ratings with your gentle touch. Do let me know your thoughts via comments..Thanks and Regards,Meghana Yadav...