I lean on the cool glass panel and sip my zero-sugar cola. I realise I did not brush my teeth this morning, therefore my teeth remain grimy. My hair is tousled. My tie was undone and my shoes in the leisure room. I am comfortably in my socks as they sink into the carpeted flooring.

I grasp my notebook from within my shirt pocket and start penning down my thoughts. I need to make this audit work on the first visit. If not, there goes my precious weekend. And my date with Sheryl.

Sheryl is my fiancé. She and I met five years ago at a graduation party in the next city. We have been dating for two years and have been friends for four. It did not start out that way. We are the awkward ones among our friend groups. In fact, that was the only party I was invited to in three years.

I noticed her as she was the quiet one in the group, yet she seemed smart and charming when she spoke. Her words are deliberate and well-thought-out. She has the best personality out of everyone in her group. That is how I see her anyway. In between sips of wine and beer, is a maiden who is classy and polite. There are some things you cannot buy with money.

When push comes to shove, I tried inviting her to a movie with my friends after the party. She was pleasantly surprised. Yet she was not pleased at all. She wanted to go out with me alone.

And that was how I got to know Sheryl and how we started hanging out as friends. Later we would become best friends, then lovers. It is a typical romantic story that was nothing out of the ordinary. Yet Sheryl herself was anything but.

Sheryl has a great personality. While she can be initially quiet because she needs time to settle in and get into the mood of the group. Her replies are always sharp and to the point. While this makes her unpopular with some people, it makes her super relatable to others. I am one of them. And I love to admit that in groups of friends and even strangers.

Sheryl usually wears a black turtleneck with librarian-esque vibe round glasses. That makes her stylish and stand out among the crowds of people. I never have any trouble finding her among the sea of crowds around downtown. She stands out even among those that stand out. I feel so lucky to be able to date her. Sometimes I pinch myself to make sure I am not dreaming. Sure enough, I never woke up from the dream.

Sheryl and I would go on dates to libraries where we would read on those chairs that let you lie down and see the sunset. We would face each other and hold each other's hands while with our faces deep into our books. She would also regularly recommend me indie authors and books that are not popular but turns out to be so so good. I did not know where she found the time to read all of them. Perhaps she was and is reading at a thousand words per hour. And counting.

Besides our shared love for books and reading, Sheryl would bring me out of my comfort zone. She would bring me on treetop walks around South-East Asia and hike hills and mountains on good days. There is never a boring moment with her and we are almost always on the move, literally and figuratively. Sheryl is a big fan of the outdoors. She knows that people are not meant to be cooped up in the house and rot there. Hence she always makes it a point to go out every day and see the world. After all the world is much much bigger than us and we all live it in. We cannot possibly explore all of this world even within ten lifetimes, let alone one. Yet she makes a concerted effort to see something new every day, and talk to a new person and make a friend when she can. Sheryl truly lives her life to the fullest in this respect.