In between start and end

My previous two updates were a little glimpse of some heart fluttering moments at work. 

At this point, work has really taken over my life. It's something that I'm still mentally getting used to. Not having enough me time sometimes really drive me mad. Occurrences like those previous stories are what makes it a little fun, I guess.

We searched for a quiet place to conduct a hybrid meeting. Today, it was just us two in the office. It had never just been us two in a tight-spaced meeting room before. 

While in the meeting room, our Teams group chat started blaring up when suddenly we were informed that one person from the team just got tested covid positive. 

The convo went like this; 

🥔: 👤 has tested positive today

🥔: He was in office yesterday... We were in office too

🐌: He sat beside me

🐌: Oh no

🥔: We are considered as close contact. Better to go check

🐌: Ok I will go check

🥔: 🌙, please help to inform those in the office

🥔: Just need them to test only

🥔: Now no more close contact rule. We just have to go home immediately

And then he came in with;

🌙: But I don't remember talking to him for long hahaha

🐌: We were eating together

🌙: I sit with 🥔

🐌: I'm so scared

🐌: I haven't got covid yet leh

🥔: I haven't got covid also ah... haha

You have no idea how much I was laughing reading the convo. Everyone was so serious and then there's him 🤣

I was always entertained by his witty remarks, but never laughed out loud in front of him like I did then.

I felt very comfortable with him at that point. It no longer felt awkward and I'm glad. I hope he felt the change too.

Dropping by,

It was 3am when I stayed up with already-droopy-eyelids trying to figure out some system errors. 

Suddenly a Teams message popup with a "??". It came from my shy introverted senior, questioning why am I still awake. 

That pleasant 3am surprise, followed with his offer to help. 

"Come we solve the issue"

Such common gesture from a senior to a junior, was actually his first time to me. I was always the one asking for it, never once offered it.

When other seniors would suggest to hop on a call whenever we're stuck, he carried on with text messaging. When other seniors explain to you like you're 5, he never bothered to even explain. So I wondered what made him change?

We got off the call at 4am. I was touched by his effort to crack our brains together. 

He knew going on a call with me would take at least half an hour. So after taking an hour of his extra work time away, I felt utterly grateful but I still wonder, what was he thinking when he offered to help? 

Ever since then, I have been braver to bombard him with my never-ending problems. Well, he asked for it.

One day, I came to the office after a tough and stressful morning working from home. I had a deadline that day, but problems kept coming.

He physically approached me in the office. The guy who never did, did.

As he was explaining to me, to my surprise, he spoke some Malay. The guy who spoke more Chinese than English with others (most of my team are Chinese), is attempting to speak a language he almost never use before... to me?

Back during our first department trip, when we played a team game together and one person needed to be excluded, I insisted that I wanted to play. He then look at me and said, "Good... here!" as he handed the baton to me and giving up his spot. The person who never acknowledge my existence anywhere else, suddenly giving his way. 

Even after more than a year of being colleagues, it never quite felt like it. We still never talk outside of work and never joke around like how I joke around with other guy colleagues. I still find it funny how he was the reason I got permanently hired after my internship (since he gave his approval to recommend me) and he is currently the only senior left from my internship days, yet I'm still this awkward with him.

I kept telling myself, he's probably just a shy guy.

Dropping by,