Micheal. I stood on the soft grass in front of a beautiful canopy as I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. The air felt refreshing and the sun was shining brightly though obstructed by some clouds that covered it from time to time. There was a calm breeze that softly blew passed my black long sleeved shirt and I smiled. My grip tightening on my camera, I zoomed in a little and let the lense focus. A ray of sunshine on the right was a bit of an attention whore to my lense so, I moved a little to the left to cut a bit of it out. Click. Perfect. I took two steps back, examining the landscape and thinking of what angle I should do to fit in the strong ray of light. Just like life, some things could be made beautiful when you looked at them from a different angle. Despite me not liking the unwanted brightness, I knew that I had to at least find a way of using it to enhance the gracefulness of the pict
Michael. "Good morning, sir." The usual greeting every morning with radiant smiles and cheerful moods from employees rang in my ears over and over in endless repeatation as I made my way towards my office. It all showed how lovely their morning was. If compared to mine, my morning was quite shitty if I do say so myself. After taking a shower, my favorite shirt got accidentally burnt by one of the new staff and I stubbed my big toe on one of the living room table's legs. My left shoe felt uncomfortably tight as my big toe was seemingly desperate and gasping for air. What an uncalled for twist to yesterday's euphoria. Reaching Alexia's desk, I noticed an unfamiliar blonde ponytail. When I neared, I realised that it was Bianca and I kept myself from groaning. Since we were in a work enviroment, I didn't think that she'd be able to cross any lines. "Good morning, Michael," she greeted with a wide smile. "Mr. Clarkson." I corrected. "We are at work therefore you have no right to add
Alexia. Makeover. This word rang in my mind like an annoying bell all day. I wasn't really up for it but since my competition was eye candy, I was willing to give it a try. I was once told that everyone was beautiful, you just had to find a way to express it more or look at it from a different angle. I was honestly okay with the way I was because I didn't like to gain too much attention. The compact Luis sometimes shared with me made my face feel weird and everytime I put on lipstick, I couldn't stop licking my lips. It was as if my body was naturally rejecting the product. But I wanted Michael to look at me and it scared me that his feelings might falter. Maybe it would be safer if I broke things off? No, I was already in too deep that doing that would disturb me greatly and I was sure that Bianca would make her advances stronger if I did that. I was literally delivering him to her. I sighed and shook my head to get rid of these thoughts and I decided to think about something else
Gabriel. I rolled off Bianca, panting as I tried to catch my breath and I rushed a hand through my hair before looking to the side. "Holding a grudge?" Bianca asked as she covered her naked body with a bedsheet and my gaze shifted to her. "Why do you ask?" "I think that you broke me somewhere," she said with a teasing smile but I wasn't in the mood for it. "Stop being a whiny little bitch." "You're always so rude." She pulled back her hair with her hands and sighed. "I heard that you were talking to Michael's girl earlier today. What were you talking about?" I smiled. "I was telling her about the type of women that Michael likes." I went back to the memory of her big, innocent mismatched eyes filled with excited curiosity. Her small, shy smile and the way she listened carefully to every word that I had said. It was easy to trick her because she was too trusting and willing to make him like her more. Did she love him so much that she'd change herself for him? When I was young,
Michael. After leaving Alexia in the bathroom for her bath, I sat on the bed and succumbed to my thoughts. Letting out a frustrated sigh, I rushed a hand through my hair as a swirl of emotions filled my chest. I couldn't swallow down the hate that I felt for myself for doing something so brainless and drastic. Alexia was such a delicate person and the way I had just handled her made me feel terrible. I really regretted it. Before we could even be that passionate, I just had to fling my possessiveness and jealousy at her. The way she didn't dwell on it made me feel worse and told me just how much I didn't deserve her. She was supposed to be afraid of me or angry at least but in all honesty, I wouldn't know what to do with myself if she hated me. Before I even realised it, she had become a big part of my life and my eyes would unconsciously seek her out whenever I was at work. I wasn't willing to toss my relationship with her away and I knew that I had to make it up to her one way or
Alexia. I woke up feeling depressed and sluggish. The weekend that I was really excited for began so badly. To add on to my mix of emotions, I had accidentally kicked Cookie off the bed when I was turning in my sleep and now she didn't want to be anywhere near me. Luis said that she wouldn't be able to come today and Tony was going to get his sister from the hospital. That meant that I'd be by myself this warm Saturday and I scolded myself for not having enough social skills to make more friends. Seeing that Cookie was totally moody, I had so much free time at my disposal that I didn't know what to do with it. I sat up in my bed and ran a hand through my waves. I felt like garbage because I couldn't sleep peacefully at all. Despite my efforts to ignore what Gabriel said, his words kept popping up in my head. A toy. Nobody has ever called me that. A broken toy. I've been called many of things because of my disability but a broken toy has never been one of them. Why did he even s
Alexia. I rested my head on the pillow as I lay on the bed. I tried to not be too self conscious and focused on the man on top of me. Michael looked down at me and the heat in his eyes made my stomach tighten in excitement. I could tell that he was impatient but was trying to hold himself back and honestly, I just wanted to feel all of him at this point. He leaned in and graced my skin with soft, gentle kisses on my face before lowering himself to my chest and stomach. My mind was fuzzy and I couldn't think straight. All my concentration was on the pleasurable touches and kisses that Michael administered on my body. Despite being completely naked on the bed, I felt hot. I looked at Michael who slowly lifted my right leg over his shoulder and ran his tongue along my inner thigh. I let out a small gasp when I felt his breath near my center and he chuckled. "You're getting impatient too, right?" I nodded and slightly sat up. Lifing my hand from my side, I ran my fingers through his ha
Michael. I walked to my office with a bounce in my step due to my happy mood. My weekend with Alexia was more wonderful than imagined and we had a great time exploring the forest. I was sure that nothing could ruin my day. I reached the P.A desk at the front of my office and greeted Bianca. Alexia wasn't in her seat but I was sure that she was already in, seeing that her desk was already occupied with her stuff. "Good morning, sir," Bianca greeted back with a gentle smile. "You seem to be in high spirits." "I am. Where is Alexia?" "She's getting you breakfast. She'll be up soon." I nodded and got into my office before sitting down. I looked at Gabriel's desk and sighed in relief because it was empty. Actually, I wouldn't have minded if he was around today. I was sure that my happy mood would piss him off one way or another and I was more than willing to rub it in. I turned on my computer and went through some emails that Alexia had just forwarded to me this morning. I was starti
Alexia. "I had a talk with the wedding planner yesterday and let me just say, the lady knows what she's doing," Luis said as she poured a bit of milk into a bowl and mixed it all together. I laughed. "I almost thought that you were going to complain." "Why would I complain?" She began to mix the dough. "The woman's a goddess." "I was worried that you wouldn't like her." She looked up at me and grinned. "Well, despite being a chatterbox, she's damn good at her work." "You're a chatterbox as well." I laughed and got the bowl from her before pouring it's contents into a baking tray. Luis and I were baking cupcakes for desert. Tonight, we were all gathering for a family dinner at my house and Luis and I decided to cook up something more refined than our everyday meals. I was a little disappointed that Michael's dad couldn't make it. He said that it was because he was busy but I felt like it was be
Micheal. My eyes were heavy and I felt like I was floating in an endless, dark void. The sounds around me were muffled and my temples had a mild ache. The pain in my chest was minimized though. I could breathe better and the tightness that I felt earlier was gone. My mind drifted to what happened at the cafe. When Bianca drove that knife into me, I was shocked. Even more than that, I was scared. I didn't want to die. I didn't want to leave my family, Alexia and my unborn child behind. I could barely remember what happened after that. My memory was fuzzy and Bianca was saying something that my ears couldn't register. A part of me felt bad for her. I didn't think that she'd be pushed so much into a corner and thoughtlessly attack me. Maybe she planned it. Who knows? But I was dumb for not considering it. That woman was crazy and I hoped that wherever she was right now, she could get help. I groaned and tried to move my body but I couldn't. I had to wake up. I didn't want to die. Ale
Alexia. "I didn't expect the Head of Department to do that," Luis said with a laugh. "He doesn't look like the type." "Well, there's more to people than what meets the eye," I said before looking up at her. She was seated at the corner of my table and was telling me about how her supervisor suddenly cracked a joke that completely put her department in shock. Hearing that the joke was actually funny took me by surprise as well. Mr. Johnson, her supervisor, was known as a strict man who talked as much as he smiled. Which wasn't much. "Exactly. It makes me want to be more aware of the people around me. Maybe I should approach Grace. She's the most introverted person in the office," she pondered loudly. "Don't go around harassing your co-workers." "I'm not harassing them. It's called socializing." "Don't take it too far though." I thought for a moment and asked, "Hey, won't you be yelled at for slacking off here?" "I'm not slacking off. I've come to pay you a visit." "During work
Michael. The day gradually became hotter as the afternoon approached and I loosened my tie to allow space for breathing. I looked at my phone. It's been over a week and Bianca hadn't tried to communicate with me. Didn't Madison tell her anything? I looked at the ceiling and sighed. The private investigator, that Gabe hired, followed Bianca after she met up with some friends and found out that she was staying in an apartment on the other side of the city. I didn't want to follow her to her house but if she didn't reach out to me soon, I'd have to start considering it. The case about Alexia's apartment didn't seem to be going anywhere and I wasn't happy about that. I wasn't in a position to press charges against Bianca since I didn't have any evidence and nothing could connect her to this. I wanted to at least have a talk with her so that we could sort this out as soon as possible. I heard the door swing open and I looked up at Alexia, who had just entered my office with a red file
Michael. Click. The soft shutter of my camera registered in my ears, making me hum in appreciation. I looked at the pictures that I had been taking for a while and brought the camera back to my face to take more pictures. I smiled as I watched Alexia and Luis play in the water. They were laughing as they splashed water on each other and talked. My heart warmed up at how great the day was going and I felt fulfilled to spend so much time with these people. Taking pictures with my camera fully awoke the photographer in me and before I knew it, I couldn't put it down. I started taking pictures of the sky, the trees, the water and with consent; some strangers. I had fun and I looked at the warm sand under my feet. Closing my eyes for a moment, I basked under the sun and opened my eyes to look at anything else that I could take a photo of. "You're sucked into that camera, huh?" Tony said as he stood next to me and kept his eyes ahead. I chuckled. "It's been a while since I've taken ph
Michael. The day was finally done and after paying the doctor a visit, we went back home. The drive was slow and I appreciated that the driver did so. Alexia rested her head on my shoulder as she dozed off and I kept my gaze at the passing houses and pedestrians outside. Fortunately, there was nothing wrong with the baby although we were told to be careful. Alexia was also given some medication for a few days and I hoped that they would do their part. The car slowed down when we reached the front of the house and lightly tapped Alexia's cheek, making her sit up with a groan. "We're home," I said with a light chuckle as she wiped a trail of drool from her cheek. "Oh, my God, I'm sorry," she said and wiped my shoulder with the sleeve of her blazer. "I never drool. I wonder what happened today." "You're tired. Let's go inside." "Yeah." I got out of the car and offered her my hand as I helped her out. Yawning, she held my arm and we walked into the house. I looked up at Jim, who wa
Alexia. "Is that all?" Michael asked as he watched me walk down the stairs and I nodded. "I hope so. I'm so sorry about this," I said apologetically. He smiled at me. "It's okay. You didn't do it on purpose." "I still feel bad though." I reached the bottom of the stairs and we quickly walked out of the house. The car was already parked and ready when we walked passed the doors and Michael walked to the other side of the car. Opening the door to the backseat, I put my handbag and some files on the seat before sliding into the car. I looked at Michael, who was seated next to me, and he was looking at his phone. I could see that he was impatient but he didn't express it in words. I felt guilty. It was only my first day here and I made us late. The morning started horrible and I spent the first few hours, vomiting and groaning on the bathroom floor. Michael stayed until I was okay despite being ready before me. I told him to go on. That I'll be okay but he didn't listen to me. Mich
Michael. I tried to calm my racing heart as I tapped my foot impatiently against the metal floor of the elevator. Couldn't this thing go any faster? Just as I was about to leave the office after working overtime, I received a call from Alexia. Picking it up, it was actually Luis who called and she said that somebody had broken into, and trashed, Alexia's apartment. I was baffled. Alexia's apartment had good security so, how could this be? I sighed as I looked at the numbers nearing Alexia's floor and prayed to the greater being above that she was okay. The bell of the elevator made my heart jump and I pushed past the sliding doors before they could fully open. I felt more anxious at the sight of two police officers standing outside the apartment. Some of the neighbours stood in front of their doors as they looked at the scene in worry and curiousity. I quickly spotted Luis because the red dress that she wore stood out from the colours ahead of me. She held Alexia's hands while she
Alexia.I hummed as I examined the document in front of me. Being unsure of what to do with it, I forwarded it to Michael and began to work on another document. Michael and I had got back a few days ago and we were back on schedule the very next day. To be honest, I felt like we took too many leave days this month and I was slightly embarrassed for taking advantage of them. I was happy to have talked with my parents and caught up with them. I was especially glad over how close Michael and my father had gotten over the short period of time that we were there. They spent most of their time together and the only time that Michael and I could properly enjoy each other's company was when it was time for bed. I found it quite amusing since my father wasn't very interested in befriending the people around me. He was a little judgmental towards others and used intimidation as a respect route since he was a short man. Despite that, he had a warm heart and I loved him to bits. My mother tal