Uncanny Presence - Chapter 2

Sitting alone in his cabin, Anthony was typing on his laptop, planning his routine for the coming days.  Normally, his team leaders would be sitting alongside with him. But they weren’t present today as they had to attend a meeting. This wasn’t the first time Anthony was sitting alone in the cabin. There are rare occasions when his work cabin is empty. During lunch time, most of his office colleagues would go to eat lunch. Anthony preferred eating lunch after the usual time i.e. 1 pm. He gets enough space and privacy to sit with Suvesh and Azhar without anyone overhearing their conversations. Suvesh would complain about the delay for lunch, but he didn’t mind this obligation for his friend. The other time the work cabin is empty is when Anthony has to work overtime.

After spending an hour deciding his routine and plans for his work, Anthony felt that he should take a quick break. He took a quick glance beyond the glass wall of his work cabin. He saw that no one was observing him. Most of his colleagues were either concentrating on their work or speaking with their clients. He opened a video on YouTube on his laptop which was produced by one of his favourite channels, Smosh. It was a 10 minute long video and he felt there wouldn’t be any harm in seeing the video. After watching it, Anthony gave another quick glance behind. Feeling safe, he starting watching another video from his subscribed channels.

He kept streaming videos online and didn’t realise how much time had passed. It will be fine, its not like anyone is seeing me right now, Anthony thought. Suddenly, he felt an eerie presence behind him. The presence was strong and Anthony felt like someone was breathing on his neck while watching him. I didn’t hear the door open, Anthony thought. Could it also be that the headphone volume was too loud for me to hear anything, he wondered. He was sure that his team leaders would not return until late evening. He panicked and quickly turned around in his chair. But to his relief, there was no one standing behind him. He quickly got up from his chair and looked outside his cabin. All his office colleagues were busy in their work. Anthony was sure that he felt like someone was standing behind him. He also felt someone’s breath on his neck. Maybe it was the AC wind that I felt, Anthony thought. He took a deep breath and sat back on his chair. He checked his watch and realised that he had spent 30 minutes just streaming videos. Keeping his thoughts aside again, Anthony immediately got back to work and finishing his tasks.

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Anthony checked the time. It was 1 pm, which meant that all of his colleagues except Suvesh had left for lunch. As lunchtime approaches, most of Anthony’s colleagues were move towards the canteen. While Anthony was still working, he heard a few knocks on the cabin door. Some of his colleagues were asking if he would like to join them for lunch. Anthony courteously declined saying he preferred working.

After 15 minutes, Anthony sat back on his chair, closed his eyes, stretched his legs and thought about what he would do during the weekends. But all he could think was about the plans for his upcoming project. He tried harder to clear his mind and relax. As he continued to be lost in his thoughts, Anthony didn’t realize for how long he kept his eyes closed. ‘Maybe its juts been 5 minutes’, he thought. ‘Or has it been more time than that?’ he wondered.

Anthony heard a faint knock on the cabin door. He wondered who would call him as most of his office colleagues should be at the canteen. He opened his eyes. “Suvesh we will eat lunch after 2 pm. Can’t you wait?” Anthony asked aloud. As he turned around, Anthony didn’t see anyone at the door. Anthony was puzzled. He opened the cabin door and looked around to see if anyone was present. He found none. Anthony could hear loud music coming from Suvesh’s desk. “Suvesh, did you call out to me?” asked Anthony aloud. “No,” Suvesh loudly responded. Anthony was sure he heard a knock. Confused he shut the cabin door and sat back on his chair.

I really should relax now. Must be the stress that is making me feel this way, Anthony thought. He closed his eyes and tried to relax again but his attention kept diverting towards the upcoming project. He removed his earphones from his pocket, connected it to his mobile and started playing his favourite playlist. Then he continued with his research on his laptop while listening to soothing music. It helped him relax and complete some of his ongoing tasks.

After a while, Anthony felt a hand on his shoulder. I must be dreaming due to the stress, Anthony thought. He then felt the hand tug him. Anthony felt shivers go down his spine and immediately got up to see who was there behind him. “Hey you alright?” asked Teena. Anthony was looking at her in shock. He took deep breaths to calm himself. Teena was wearing a blue formal shirt that was complimenting her slender body along with black formal pants. She had put a maroon lipstick and tied her hair into a knot. This made her round, slightly fair face look cuter than usual. Anthony didn’t want to confess his feelings for Teena as he was underestimating himself. He felt that a dark skinned, not too tall and thin guy wouldn’t be the type that Teena would want. Yet he kept his hopes.

“Anthony are you okay?” asked a worried Teena.

“Yes yes… I am alright,” Anthony said while taking deep breathes, “So what happened?”

“Um….Nothing much. I was just wondering if you would like to join me for lunch.”

“Oh no I’ll be eating lunch late. But if you wish, you can join us.”

“No, I don’t want to starve myself any longer. I’ll go ahead. You enjoy your music,” Teena said giving a smile. Anthony smiled and nodded back. He slowly sat back on his chair. Teena moved towards the door. “And don’t worry. I will wait for you,” said Teena. “What?” asked Anthony, looking surprised. “I will wait for your answer,” Teena said giving another smile to Anthony and closing the door behind her. Anthony kept staring at Teena as she passed by his cabin towards the canteen.