Hello, before you start reading chapter 5, I'd like to use this opportunity to say "THANK YOU" for reading "Love In The Binary World". On Saturday, I woke up to the news that my novel made it into top 10 “Most Talked About Community Novels” in July! 🥳 This wouldn't be possible if not for your support - be it like/comment/subscribing to my novel here on Tapas and/or sharing it with others via social media. As a newbie (& indie) author I have limited resources, so all kind of help is really appreciated. Thank you for being here and supporting Mika & Aleksandr's story!

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Mika slowly opened his eyes and took a few deep breaths while lying on his bed. He took a short nap as he was too tired and couldn’t focus on the work. What a lucky person I am to be able to take a break in the middle of the day just because I feel like doing so.

Working in the tech industry has changed his life for the better: he was earning more money, thanks to which he didn’t have to worry about paying the rent on time, and there was always some sum left. 

He started making savings as well, and he decided to send some amount to his parents - they both had some health issues and couldn’t work longer hours. Even though they had never complained and didn’t want to bother Mika with their problems, he knew this was the least he could do for them. 

My dear parents... I received so much love and support from them... They set an example for Mika of what a relationship should look like and why it’s important not to give up so easily. Always together, through good times and bad…

He stood up and stretched his stiff body. “Where did I leave my phone?” he asked himself as he looked around the room.

He moved from the bedroom to the living room and went to the kitchen. His phone was lying on the windowsill. This wasn’t the usual place to leave his belongings, but just one look at it made him recall all the details of the conversation he had yesterday with Chris over the phone.

They had this cute habit of calling each other every day just before going to sleep. No matter how tired both of them were, they were always happy to hear each other’s voices and usually spent a long time talking. The topic didn’t matter: in most cases, they discussed what had happened to them during the day or what problems they encountered while coding. 

Mika was always open to sharing the technical challenges he was having, as he knew that he was not alone and had Chris’s support. The fact that they both worked as Developers was a huge plus, as they could understand each other immediately. They even had the same sense of humor and were often making jokes. 

Mika felt he was loved and was always trying his best to show his partner how much he meant to him. Chris was the same – always encouraging and happy around his boyfriend. What is more, it was Chris who sent Mika’s application to that job posting for a Software Engineer role at Mika’s dream company. 

I was always telling him how much I wanted to work there, but I didn’t apply myself because I was too scared to do that. If not for him and what he did for me, all of the interviews would never have taken place. I wouldn’t have met all those people and visited that office.

This is why all of the recent events made him even more confused. He couldn’t understand why Chris got mad at him yesterday, and how to fix it. Why did they stop calling each other every day as they used to? Why have their conversations become shorter, and the silence has grown longer? Mika didn’t have an answer to any of those questions.

The only thing Mika was aware of was that their relationship was moving in the wrong direction, and he needed to do something about it. He didn’t want to leave matters unresolved between them.

He ran his fingers through his hair several times - he was always doing this every time he got nervous. Then he made a loud and long sigh. He wasn’t sure he was ready to face Chris and what was about to happen to them, but this was the best he could do given the current circumstances.

Mika picked up his phone, intending to give Chris a call, but realized he had many unread notifications. As he was scrolling through them, he noticed a familiar sender. He paused for a moment. His hands began to tremble, and his fingers were shaking as he pressed the ‘read more’ button.

[Dear Mika,
I’m happy to inform you that you have been accepted for a Software Engineer role at the Mnx company. Please find attached the details of the contract. Once you review it over the weekend, please reply to me so we can schedule a call to move things forward.  
Congratulations,
Anna]

Mika didn’t know if he was still dreaming or if this was real. He re-read the short email several times, unable to believe his eyes. Each time he scanned those few lines, his heartbeat quickened, pounding in his chest like a drum.

He began to sweat and struggled to catch his breath. With a trembling hand, he reached up to check his forehead, then moved to his cheeks. They were both burning, and he was certain his face had turned bright red.

Tears of joy started to well up in his eyes. At this very moment, he felt like the happiest man in the entire universe. Something he had only dreamed of not long ago was now about to become a reality.

“Omg, omg, I made it! I made it! I’m the best!” He shouted as loud as he could, not caring that it was late, and the neighbors might hear him. His excitement was too overwhelming to contain.

After finishing his ‘celebration dance’, which he performed throughout the entire apartment, he finally managed to calm himself down. He looked out the window and watched the sun setting, casting a warm glow over the city. He reflected on his coding journey – from the moment he decided to start learning programming to the intense job interview process.

He remembered every single line of code he wrote, all the sleepless nights spent thinking about solutions to his problems. He recalled the ideas he came up with and the times he doubted his skills so much that he considered quitting. It had been an emotional rollercoaster.

All the efforts and sacrifices he had made had finally paid off. He had achieved something that seemed unreachable, even for those graduating from the best tech universities. Tomorrow, a new day will come, and with it, new challenges will await him.

“I can’t believe this is really happening,” Mika said, a huge smile spreading across his face.

His happiness didn’t last long as another thought came into his head. What am I going to do about the situation with Chris? Should I call him and share the outcomes of the interview? That is great news for me, but right now I’m not sure how he will react...


He could feel the wave of negative emotions flowing slowly through his entire body like a poison. He didn’t want to be overwhelmed by them, so he shook his head hoping they would go away. This is not how he imagined his day would look. He should have been celebrating, but instead, he was worrying about his relationship.


Then the idea came to his mind, It’s Friday, so Chris will meet his friends at the club. I should go and talk to him personally instead of sending him a text message or calling.


Even though Mika wasn’t quite sure he was ready to confront Chris, he didn’t want to lose even a second. After taking his phone and putting on a jeans jacket, he left his home.