Chapter 10

• I pressed my lips into a thin line, not saying a single word in reply, but my silence was more than enough for him.
• "I guess I'm still learning new things about you after 11 years of friendship." He leaned back onto his heels with blown-away, wide eyes, giving a low whistle. "Is she cute?"
• I nodded quietly.
• "Smart?"
• I nodded again.
• "Knows who you are and doesn't care?"
• I nodded once again.
• He rocked lightly on his heels as his lips dropped open in amazement. "Sounds like a keeper. Can I meet her?"
• I shook my head.
• He paused in his motion and sat up rigidly with a questioning expression. "Why not? I promise I'll be serious and not act like a fool."
• I shook my head again. "She doesn't know about my feelings, and..." I clenched my jaw as my grip tightened around my papers, trying to find the right words without sending myself down a heart-numbing hole again. "And she never will."
• He frowned and pushed, "Why not?"
• I tried to ignore him, turning away from him to put the last of my papers back.
• Based on the light creaking of my floor, Benedict stood up from his seat on the ground and walked closer to me. He tried again, "Rafael, why won't you tell her?"
• I continued to ignore him, pretending to rummage through my drawers in search of something that didn't exist.
• He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Look, I'm sure that she wouldn't mind if—"
• "Stop."
• He froze and hesitantly tried again, "Come on, Rafa—"
• "I mean it, Benedict. She would never return my feelings even if I told her, so just forget about it."
• He flinched at my cold tone and pulled his hand back. "O-okay." He backed off from me. "I'll leave you alone, I guess."
• I didn't make any move to turn toward him as he slowly walked toward my office door. I waited for the sound of a door opening, but it never came.
• Instead, Benedict mumbled quietly from the doorway, "I still think you should just tell her. She's the first one I've ever seen you show interest toward in all my years of knowing you. You never know, she might actually feel the same. Just... Just think about it, alright?"
• Then, a familiar creak and slam of my door echoed through my office.
• I sighed heavily as I dropped my face in my hands.
• Benedict, if I didn't think there was even an ounce of possibility that she may return my feelings, don't you think I would've already told her? It is only because I know that she never will, that she's already in a committed relationship, that I have to just forget about my rotten feelings.
• Just a month and a half more.
• Then I can return to my usual isolated and lonely life, one void of any unnecessary emotions. To return back to a heart that had always been meant to be left unmoved.
• Benedict hadn't tried to contact me again since that day. It had already been three days, and he had never let a day go by without filling my inbox with clutter.
• I probably shouldn't have snapped at him like that.
• Despite his outgoing and obnoxious personality, he was still a child at heart and easily got his feelings hurt. Maybe I should pick up some pastries at his favorite dessert shop on my way to work tomorrow.
• I sighed as I tossed my papers back onto my desk, noting the setting sun just outside my office window.
• An entire day had gone, and I had barely been able to get anything done between the heavy guilt sitting on my consciousness for lashing out at Benedict and my inability to prevent my mind from drifting off to a certain little brunette.
• Gathering up my revisions on the blueprints and contracts for my joint project with Benedict's firm, I decided to search for Ms. Belcalis and hand her these changes before heading home early, even though I knew I wouldn't be able to get any rest or sleep at home either. I just wanted to avoid my problems and isolate myself for a little bit, even if it was just for a single night.
• I walked out of my office with an armful of scrolls and files, making my way to Ms. Belcalis's office. When I turned the corner, I realized her office was completely empty. Through the transparent glass walls, I noticed that her bag was still hanging off her chair, and her laptop was left on her desk.
• Thinking that she would be back soon, I decided to wait in her office. I set the changes down on her desk and sat down on one of the spare chairs in her office to wait.
• I just need to speak to her briefly to go over the changes, and then I could leave. Maybe I coupd pick up a wine bottle on my way back home and order in for tonight.
• Several minutes passed by without any show of Ms. Belcalis.
• I quickly checked her public calendar on my company's internal system, but it showed that she didn't have any meetings at this hour. Where was she?
• Should I just leave and let her know tomorrow?
• No, she always arrived before me in the mornings, and she needed this information before then.
• I sighed and walked out of her office, glancing up and down the corridor in search of any hint of Ms. Belcalis to no avail. I walked up to one of the cubicles across from Ms. Belcalis's office and tiredly asked the lady sitting inside it, "Do you know where Ms. Belcalis is?"
• The young lady immediately perked up at the sight of me. After all, it wasn't often that the CEO of Cordova Industries would walk up to a anyone less than a VP or department head for a one-on-one talk. She stuttered, "N-no, Mr. C-cordova."
• I frustratingly ran my fingers through my hair. "Thanks anyway."
• As I was about to walk up, the lady suddenly popped up from her seat and exclaimed, "B-But I-I h-heard that T-Jimuel was also l-looking for her. He said t-that he had something to d-discuss with her in o-one of the c-conference rooms i-in the b-back."
• I nodded and waved goodbye to her as I started to make my way to the end of this floor. It wasn't all that odd to hear that Jimuel was looking for her. He was one of my VPs that I had assigned to Ms. Belcalis to aid her with a project as an representative that could answer her questions about how things were processed in my company.
• I started to hear a muffled voice when I neared the closed but obviously lit conference room. Although I couldn't see into the conference room, I could clearly tell that the voice belonged to Jimuel.
• Was he inside with someone?
• As I stepped up to the door, his voice became significantly clearer.
• "Why aren't you saying anything?"
• ...
• "I just asked you out on a date. You should at least give me a proper answer."
• ...
• "What's wrong with you? Why can't you just say yes? You won't speak to me because I'm not Mr. Cordova? Is that it?" He scoffed, "You must be a little whore, dressing up like that to try to seduce the boss, right? I don't even know what you women see in him."
• I frowned at his words. Who the hell was he talking to? Especially in such a disrespectful manner.
• Before I could think about it any further, there was a loud crash, and I heard Jimuel suddenly shout, "For fuck's sake, just let me touch you! Didn't you dress like this because you wanted—"
• I immediately swung the door wide open before it—what was obviously a sexual harassment case— could escalate any further.
• My heart pounded when I caught sight of a familiar pair of shining violet eyes staring at me in fright. Tears pricked at her eyes as she tried not to let them fall.
• Ms. Belcalis was backed into the corner with a bright red mark on her face as she held tightly onto her ripped blouse to prevent it from billowing. Her skirt had been hiked so far up her thighs that I could see the edge of her panties.
• My blood boiled at the sight of the man who had dared to lay his hands on her.
• He had immediately jumped back from Ms. Belcalis when I opened the door and turned toward me, stuttering, "I-I was j-just—"
• Giving no care for his unnecessary lies, I stalked straight toward this pathetic excuse of a man and grabbed him by the collar, easily lifting him inches off the ground.
• He was practically trembling in my hold and held his hands up in surrender. "M-mr. C-cordova, p-please let me e-explain—"
• I cut him off. "I don't give a flying fuck about any of your lies, Mr. Vera. I had already heard everything and know the type of revolting man you are. And I bet that you probably would've tried to rape her if I didn't step in, am I right?"
• "I-I w-wou—"
• "No, you listen to me here, Mr. Vera." Tightening my grip around his neck, I continued, "The only reason I won't end your life here and right now is because I don't need the extra work that comes with murdering a pest like yourself. Instead, I will simply ruin your life so badly that you would wish that you were dead. It is obvious that you will no longer work for me from here on out, and neither will you be able to get a job anywhere else in this country. I will make sure of that. To add on, I will be filing a case against you for the sexual assault of a fellow coworker and ensure that you will get no less than a ten-year minimum in jail." I tightened my hold on his neck even further, making him desperately scratch at my arm for breath. "And, if I ever see your wretched face again, just know that you definitely won't live to see the next day. Am I clear?"
• He nodded furiously as his face started to turn blue due to the lack of oxygen.
• I tossed his disgusting body against the wall, making him hit it with a large thudding, leaving a giant dent in the wall as he slid down to the ground. Wiping my hand off with my suit pants, I barked at him, "Get out now! If you aren't out of this building within the next thirty seconds, I will make sure that security tosses you out themselves."
• He nodded his head rapidly again. The disgusting bastard scrambled to his feet, gasping for air along the way, as he hurriedly ran out of the room without another word.
• Once I heard the door slam shut behind him, I pinched the bridge of my nose as I let out a heavy sigh. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves before turning around. Even though every nerve in my body was aching to go after that bastard and give him a good beating, Ms. Belcalis's well-being came first.
• Slowly letting out a shaker breath, I cautiously turned around to Ms. Belcalis, not wanting to scare her with any sudden movements.
• It felt like a punch to the gut when my eyes finally landed on her. She was curled up in the corner of the room, desperately holding onto what was left of her clothes. She was staring at me with wide eyes filled with fear, completely unblinking like a tiny animal cornered into a trap. She didn't even move a single inch to wipe the tears pouring down her cheeks.
• I bit the inside of my cheek, not 100% sure of what to do in such a scenario. I never had this happen before, but I knew that I had to be careful.
• I slowly shrugged off my suit jacket, maintaining eye contact with Ms. Belcalis to make sure she didn't cower away. She stiffened when the jacket fell completely off my shoulders and eyed me fearfully.
• I carefully held my hands up in front of me as I slowly inched toward her. In a low and soft voice, or at least as gentle of a voice as I could manage, I explained, "I know you are feeling scared right now, Ms. Belcalis, but I'm not trying to hurt you, alright? I won't do anything that you don't want me to. I only want to give you my jacket so you can cover up a bit. Is that alright?"
• She eyed my hands hesitantly and seemed to be debating it in her head for a second before giving me a timid nod.
• I cautiously stepped toward her before draping my jacket over her shoulders. She immediately clung to the large piece of clothing and hide her entire body underneath it.
• I kneeled in front of her, trying to make myself look as small as possible to avoid making her more afraid of me than necessary. I knew that I had a larger frame than the majority of men, and although it would normally be positive in most scenarios, it was something that would be working against me at this moment.
• "Ms. Belcalis, would you be willing to come out of the corner so I can check you for injuries? I promise I won't touch you inappropriately, and if you feel uncomfortable at any time, you can tell me to stop, and I will listen to you immediately."
• Her eyes widened at my words as she shook her head furiously. Her grip had tightened so much on my jacket that her knuckles had turned white.
• I quickly backed off and held my hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. I won't touch you, but we need to get you to a hospital to get you checked."
• Her eyes became even larger than before, shaking her head negative even harder. She whimpered softly, "No hospital... please..."
• I pressed my lips into a thin line, not knowing what to do. I really wanted to bring her to the doctors to at least get her checked out, even if it really turned out to be nothing. I was worried about the little trail of blood running down the side of her neck and the rapidly forming bruise on her cheek.
• Noticing my hesitation, Ms. Belcalis desperately tried to push herself up, muttering something about needing to go. Her legs were shaking from today's stress, but she continued pushing against her body's capabilities.
• She needed to rest, but she was much too wound up to do so. Was there anything I could do to help?
• Right as her legs were about to collapse under her, I instinctively reached out and caught her little body before she hit the ground.
• She stiffened immediately upon impact. Her eyes widened as they trailed up down my arms to where my hands were holding her up under her back and thighs. Then, she started panicking, thrashing in my arms, trying to get out of my hold.
• My hands reflexively tightened around her, not wanting to drop her on the ground and give her any more injuries than necessary. "Ms. Belcalis, please calm down. I don't want you to get—"
• She shook her head harshly once again. She clawed at my dress shirt desperately, trying to push me away from her in futile. Her eyes darted like a trapped animal as she incoherently muttered a single line repeatedly, "No hospital... I need to go back to Liam..."