‘Forget it, Megha. I don’t even want to talk about all this shit.’ Vijay grabbed my laptop and yanked me up by the hand. He held my laptop aloft in one hand and spoke in a deep baritone ‘Forget all about work! For the next three days, ladies and gentlemen, as those clichéd travel brochures say, we are going to be in the land of shimmering sands, dazzling waters and overflowing Feni! The land where the sun never sets! Goaaahhhh!’

Five

The bus jerked to a stop outside the palm-fringed precincts of the Park Splenda with an ear-splitting screech. I looked around woozily. Next to me, Priyanka whipped out a duffel vanity case and began applying eyeshadow with the precision of a military drill sergeant. I looked at her in awe. This, I told myself grimly, was what separated the girls from the femmes fatales. After a graveyard-shift flight which had been delayed by more than an hour, forty-five minutes at the chaotic Goa airport where the vast multitude of the GF marketing and agency teams bustled around like cattle trying to collect their luggage, and a two-hour drive to the resort which would house us for the next three days, I was ready to hand in my brains for fried eggs and call it a day.

Priyanka, on the other hand, was strategically applying eau de cologne to her pulse points, looking fresher than a daisy blessed with more than its fair share of morning dew. No wonder Shiv was considering her for a promotion next year, I thought to myself bitterly as I staggered out of the bus and tried to locate my battered but trusty purple VIP suitcase somewhere in the pile of bags deposited in a heap outside the hotel lobby.

A whiff of Old Spice tingled my nostrils and I looked up to see Yudi walking past in a black graphic tee and knee-length cargos, a bright yellow rucksack slung over his shoulder. Papa used to use Old Spice, I thought to myself, feeling a familiar pang in the pit of my stomach. It was Papa’s scent. How dare this ingrate use it! I scowled at Yudi who suddenly wheeled around and looked straight at me. He looked amused for a split second before composing his features into a more serious expression and began walking towards me. Abandoning all thoughts of my suitcase I bolted for the reception where Vijay, who had been put in charge of administrative duties for the trip, was handing out room keys and welcome kits. The last thing I wanted to do right now was have another showdown with Yudi. A few minutes later, reunited with my beloved suitcase, I plonked myself in the golf cart designated to ferry me to my room and looked around in appreciation at my surroundings.

The email alerting us about the team outbound programme had described the resort where we would stay as a ‘world-class, tropical slice of paradise in the magical land of Goa’ and from the looks of it, the Park Splenda certainly seemed to live up to its promise. The resort was built in a Gothic architectural style with large sprawling residential blocks strewn around well-kept lawns overflowing with masses of bougainvillea and dotted with stone fountains. The rooms were large and luxurious with parquet wooden flooring, a spa-style sunken bathroom with an open-air shower and a little sit-out, which much to my delight opened out on to the pristinely beautiful beach. I felt a rush of adrenalin course through my veins as I feasted my eyes on the shimmering blue waters and the sun-baked sand. I loved Goa! Uttering a whoop of joy, I flung off my sneakers and danced barefoot around the room, luxuriating in the soft, plush carpets my feet were sinking into. I loved the Park Splenda! I flung myself head-first on to the large double bed and shrieked with delight as I nearly sank into its soft, feathery confines. I had just buried my face into a large pillow to inhale the smell of freshly laundered linen when I heard voices, and someone walked in before I could upright myself.