[“Can we please get on a call and clarify those things? I’m still new to the company and I want to make sure I’m doing things right.”]

Mika pressed enter, sending his message to Francesco, one of the engineers he had been working with recently. The green circle next to the engineer’s profile picture indicated he was online, so Mika hoped the reply from him would come fast.

As the accessibility project his team was responsible for was in the beginning phase and required lots of planning, discussions with decision-makers, and creating a proof of concept, Natalia asked Mika to help the other team in their department with their issues. Two of their teammates had resigned, leaving them shorthanded. Besides, solving bugs was a good way to quickly get familiar with different parts of the codebase.

Their manager had reached out to Natalia a week ago, saying they were constantly getting new bugs assigned to them, even though everything seemed to be working fine. At least, that’s what they claimed. The task, which looked relatively simple and was estimated to be finished within days, now seemed endless.

While Mika was busy checking his emails, the engineer’s status changed to ‘away’. Furrowing his brow, Mika clicked his tongue irritably. Is he avoiding me? he wondered, feeling frustration bubbling up slowly inside him.

“Mika, what’s happening? You don’t look happy,” Aleksandr noticed, passing by Mika’s back, and placing his laptop on his desk. Coming back from another meeting, he must have seen Mika’s reaction.

“I’m trying to clarify some things with Francesco, but his replies are vague. And the minute I suggest jumping on the call to avoid going back and forth, he disappears and never gets back to me. Am I doing something wrong? Please, enlighten me, Aleksandr, because I think I’ll go crazy,” Mika answered, his voice tinged with a hint of frustration as he ruffled his hair.

Aleksandr couldn’t help but think, He doesn’t know how cute he is when acting like this. But for obvious reasons, he didn’t say it out loud.

“Sure, I have some time now before the next meeting,” he said with a smile, coming closer and putting on his stylish reading glasses, ready to give Mika his full attention.

Sighing with relief that he could discuss this with Aleksandr, Mika showed him the conversation he had been having with Francesco over the last few hours.
 
“May I see the entire conversation, right from the start?” Aleksandr inquired.

Nodding, Mika let him take control of his laptop.

Placing his hands on Mika’s standing desk and leaning towards the laptop, Aleksandr scrolled through the chat messages right to the beginning, where the initial discussion between the two engineers had started.

He looked so focused and composed, resting his chin on his hand as he read. Mika wanted to do more than just steal glances at him, but he had to hold himself back, aware of the camera right behind their seats. But it was difficult to stay calm, and Aleksandr’s perfume, with its pleasant mix of sweet and spicy scents, had made it even harder.
 
“Aleksandr…” Mika whispered after making sure there was no one around, his gaze fixed on him.

He’s going to make a hole in my head if he keeps staring like this, Aleksandr noted to himself. “Mika, I’m trying to concentrate,” he murmured, not taking his eyes off the screen.

“I just have a tiny little question, can I?” Mika continued, his voice low. He wasn’t going to give up so easily.

Aleksandr sighed and replied, still focused on the text. “I’m not going to answer if it’s not work-related.”

“I’ll be really quick. Have you thought about our dat–“

“Mika, stop it. Not here and not now,” Aleksandr cut him off, his tone firm.

Taken aback by his sudden reply, Mika debated whether he should push a little more, but decided to remain silent, letting Aleksandr finish what he had started. He didn’t want to come across as clingy and desperate in front of Aleksandr.

Instead, he drifted back to more pleasant memories.

When Mika woke up the next day after Aleksandr had declared his support for him, having slept for 16 hours, he discovered that Aleksandr was nowhere to be found. However, his presence was evident in the tidiness and cleanliness of Mika’s apartment.

He had even made sandwiches, leaving a small note on top of them that read, “I’m sorry I couldn’t stay longer. I had some urgent things that I had to take care of. I’m sure you’ll be hungry once you wake up. Please, eat these sandwiches.” Mika not only took a photo of the note but decided to keep it on one of his corkboards.

Tilting his head, Mika observed Aleksandr, marveling at the stark contrast between his professional demeanor and the tender, passionate man who had recently vowed to help Mika regain his smile by becoming a part of his life. The difference was striking. Mika felt a rush of excitement knowing he was the only one who had seen that side of him. At least, that’s what he hoped for.

“If you ask me, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your communication,” Aleksandr started, finishing going through messages. “But it’s clear Francesco is avoiding you and not really willing to collaborate with you,” he added, pointing to the sentences “Maybe someone else should look at this if you don’t know”, “Why is it taking so long?” and “I’m sure this can be done faster.”

“I feel like he is trying to blame me for the things I haven’t done, even though they’re the ones who requested help from our team. It’s kind of strange behavior; I didn’t expect it here…” Mika noted.

Aleksandr smirked. “And what did you expect? That everyone here is friendly and holds hands while dancing in the open space?”

Mika’s eyes narrowed into slits. “Are you making fun of me right now?”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“Well…maybe not exactly holding hands, but from what I have read on social media and various forums, people working at big tech companies are friendly, polite, and always willing to help. Just like you.”

Aleksandr stared intently at him. “Mika, forget about what you read. Some of this is definitely true, yes. But you know that all that glitters is not gold? Have you watched ‘Game of Thrones’?”

Mika’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. After a short pause, he added, “No… no way, you cannot be serious”. Aleksandr’s expression seemed to say, “This is true.”
 
“The higher you go, the more it becomes a political game. It’s all about who knows whom and who has a better job title. Sometimes decisions are made not based on facts or data but on who is louder in the room. If you’re a white man, you automatically get credibility. If you’re a woman, then…well, it gets worse. You wouldn’t believe the conversations Natalia had here and how she had to prove her technical skills while talking with other managers.”

Shit was the only word Mika could think of as Aleksandr made him realize what kind of environment he had gotten himself into.