A Time Mistaken

Gray clouds gathered in the sky. The twilight that had once been painted now turned gloomy. Drop by drop, the rain slowly fell, wetting the ground. The cold air began to rise, piercing deep into the bones. It made a black-haired man with an undercut hairstyle stare intently at the dew formed by raindrops clinging to the windowpane.

“Vijendra!”

“Vijendra!”

A voice — a girl’s voice he knew very well — reached his ears. He turned toward the classroom door and saw a ponytailed girl in a messy uniform entering the class with small running steps.

The sweet smile on her face made Vijendra press his lips together. His eyes focused on her rosy lips that looked soft and red. The girl looked lovely and sweet, but unfortunately, Vijendra didn’t like her wild behavior.

“Vijendra, don’t ignore me anymore, okay? I’m tired of chasing you all the time. But instead, you keep glancing at that girl from the next class rather than me.”

Her voice was addictive to hear over and over again. Even the sound of raindrops hitting the classroom roof didn’t bother Vijendra at all. His attention stayed focused on her face.

“You don’t need to go this far, Kanaya. I’ll never—”

“Ssshhh... I don’t want to hear another rejection. No matter what, I’ll always chase after you.”

Her words remained clearly recorded in his memory. The sadness and hope in her eyes, and the trembling corner of her lips when she heard his rejection again. Yet, she still managed to draw a smile.

Vijendra clenched his left hand. His body jolted in surprise when someone hit him with a basketball. The memory he was lost in shattered instantly. A curse slipped from his mouth as he turned around to see who had thrown the ball.

“Daydreaming again? You remembered something?”

Vijendra blinked twice, looking around to make sure of something. Just moments ago, he felt like he was standing in front of that girl, hearing the soft rhythm of the rain. But everything he had just felt was nothing more than a memory neatly stored in his mind.

“Do you regret it?”

Vijendra glared sharply. He hated being accused like that.

“Don’t look at me like that. Here,” said the man named Adam, tossing a cream-colored paper with lace-like patterns on the edges.

“What’s this?” Vijendra flipped the paper, reading the words neatly written on it one by one.

“A school reunion invitation. Don’t forget to come. Who knows, maybe that wild girl will show up too,” said Adam.

Vijendra gave a faint smile, tossed the invitation paper aside, and grabbed the basketball that had hit his back earlier. He bounced it on the court floor, dribbling while jogging toward the hoop. Then, in one swift motion, he jumped and shot the ball straight into the hoop.

Adam noticed it all. He pitied his friend — the one who buried his feelings for the sake of pride, only to end up feeling nothing at all.

“She won’t come to that reunion, Adam. I’ve waited for her before, and she never showed up,” said Vijendra.

“Maybe she was too embarrassed or hurt to see me again,” he added.

Adam let out a quiet sigh, stepping closer to Vijendra. If only he hadn’t mocked his friend’s feelings back then, maybe now he could have seen him happy.

“Let it go, Jend. Don’t think about it anymore. If you don’t want to come to the reunion, it’s okay,” Adam said gently, patting his friend’s shoulder softly.

“But don’t neglect your employees either! I didn’t come here to give you a reunion invitation, I came here to tell you something!” Adam stared sharply, annoyed that Vijendra could relax at home, reminiscing about the past, while he himself was busy at the office handling the new employee recruitment.

“You’re the director, so it’s only fair that I give you some of the workload.”

“Yeah, but what you dumped on me is too much!”

“You complain too much. I shouldn't take away your position so you’ll know how it feels,” said Vijendra apathetically, walking away from the basketball court and heading into his house.

The two-story building with a sea-blue color looked simple. Every part of Vijendra’s home was designed in a classic European style with large glass windows. No luxurious items were displayed inside. For Adam, stepping into Vijendra’s house always felt dull—too plain to even be called a home.

“What’s my schedule today, Harris?”

After dressing formally and neatly, Vijendra walked out of his room confidently while putting on his wristwatch. The person he addressed followed behind him, handing over his phone.

“As Mr. Adam mentioned earlier, you have an interview schedule for candidates applying for the nutrition specialist position,” replied Harris.

“Now that’s better. You actually look handsome,” Adam commented, who had been waiting for Vijendra in the living room all this time.

Vijendra didn’t reply. Instead, he continued walking out of the house, getting ready to leave for the office, leaving Adam behind who muttered curses at him under his breath. Harris — his secretary — hurriedly followed his boss from behind.

The noisy chatter in the OkNak office suddenly quieted down after Vijendra’s arrival. He briefly greeted the employees who held high and important positions in his company. Then he walked confidently through the production, marketing, and even nutrition departments.

However, his steps halted when he felt the presence of someone familiar — seeing the silhouette of a girl he often missed. His eyes stayed fixed on the girl with long, wavy black hair in the nutrition department. The sight stirred memories from the past that rebelled in his mind. His feet unconsciously took him closer to the room as he gently tapped the girl’s shoulder, wanting to confirm his curiosity. Could it be that God had finally answered his prayer to meet her again?

The tap on the shoulder made the girl turn around with a questioning look toward Vijendra, while he froze for a moment and quickly apologized after realizing that she wasn’t the one he had been missing for the past five years.

“Sir, will you be conducting the nutrition specialist interviews here directly?”

Harris’s voice startled Vijendra. He glanced briefly at him, letting out a quiet sigh. Damn it, she had crossed his mind again. From the girl’s figure, hair, and silhouette — everything reminded him of the past. He didn’t answer Harris’s question, choosing instead to leave the nutrition room, walking down the corridor toward his private office.

“Bring me the files of the applicants who passed the first selection,” Vijendra said once he arrived at his office, then sat down on the sofa a few steps away from his desk.

"Alright, Sir. I’ll take my leave and bring you the files you requested."

The office door closed tightly as Harris stepped out. Vijendra leaned his back against the soft sofa. Staring at the ceiling of his office, memories from his high school days crossed his mind once again. No matter how hard he tried to forget, those memories still clung tightly to every step of his life.

“Vijendra, why don’t you like me?”

“Am I ugly?”

“Because of me, did you get bullied by your classmates, Vijendra?”

“Am I disgusting?”

“Vijendra, you have to remember this — Kanaya still likes you and will always chase after you. Yeah… even if you never look at Naya.”

His breath escaped roughly. Those words kept replaying like his favorite tape. If only he had given that wild girl a little attention back then, maybe his heart would have felt calmer now. Maybe it wouldn’t have been this heavy.

“Ah, I’m remembering her again,” Vijendra muttered softly.

Time had passed so much, making him wonder how that girl was doing and what she looked like now. The longing he never wanted somehow returned and settled quietly in his heart.

“Kanaya, if we ever meet again, I really want to apologize to you in person. If I could, I’d want you to know what’s truly in my heart.”