"What do you mean you sold everything in our store?" Dad, out of the blue, appeared behind Dylan. He was drunk and was even carrying a bottle of alcohol in his hand. Never in my life, I have seen Dad getting drunk. I heard John Dave came home from school earlier but he was alone. But now he came home drunk. And it made me worried, believing he would lash out at Dylan. "Look, Mr. Fisher." Dylan insisted, ignoring Dad's zig-zag pace and twirling head. "I sold everything in your store..." To our surprise, Dad furiously smashed the bottle of alcohol to the ground with no signs of hesitation even if the fact that any of us might get hurt by it. The shattered sound when the bottle broke into pieces reverberated in my ears. Nervousness shivered down my spine as I remembered the last time Dylan visited the house. Dad, because he couldn't hold onto his anger, pointed the tip of his rifle straight into Dylan's head at that time. I don't want what happened in the past to
Chapter 1: No Strings Attached Elaine's POV My morning shift schedule despite being swamped at the shareholder's meeting earlier was still close to perfection as I trip back to my apartment. The second I woke up this morning, worked in the office for a total of ten grumping hours, and had an ear-deafening group video call with my friends over the phone for two hours, I still could not let go of my excitement. I mean, who could not be? Everything went well according to my 24th birthday celebration plan apart from one thing - to finally confess my seven years of hidden feelings to Dylan Spencer, my CEO boss, at the same time, my best friend. Receiving two text messages from him was completely such a blessing in disguise. The first message stated his midnight birthday greetings with red roses and fireworks popping out of the screen while the second one told me that he had a big and life-changing surprise, giving me hope. Dylan and I have been best friends sin
Chapter 2: Her Sole Weakness The next day, I found myself waking up in a freezing hotel room all by myself. The man with me disappeared without any trace of his existence apart from the empty bottles of red wine on the table. Last night's commotion was a blast for me. A part of me wants to remember what exactly happened last night but my head keeps on spinning. On the bright side, his plan of cheating somehow worked when I manage to stop thinking about the world outside. Stop thinking about my best friend and roommate having their first monthsary the other night. However, as soon as I open my eyes, reality immediately struck me with a bolt of lightning. The excruciating feeling of being betrayed flashed through my eyes. Even Dylan was fooled by Mauren's charm. So I jump out of bed and wander the room for a few seconds before sliding to the bathroom. "Good morning, Elaine!" Dylan greeted me with an ear-to-ear smile on his face as soon as I stepped foot into his
Chapter 3: My Best Friend's Kiss That is the problem, Dylan. You always see me as your best friend and I am doing the other way around. I cannot just order myself to disregard my feelings for you. It's not as easy as counting one to three, with just a snap of my fingers, or sleeping in one night. Every time you are with me, I am terrified that I might find myself sinking in a wide blue ocean without anything or anyone that can save me. "Please, let go of me, Mr. Spencer," I replied, worried not because of my feelings for him but because a lot of his employees are now looking at us. The last thing I would do is give them the wrong idea. On top of that, I don't want to let myself believe in false hope. He is in a relationship with Mauren. "People are now staring at us." I continued before I stepped away from him, "I don't want to hear anything from them that might stain your name." Getting into the car first before the boss was inappropriate of me but I just
"Thank you for the compliment, Doc, but whatever Mr. Spencer told you about me, it's all nothing but a lie." I cracked a half smile on my face to lessen the awkwardness of the situation. "Anyway, please, advise if he was allowed to get discharged tonight. He still has an important appointment to attend to." "Who said it's a lie? I love you because you are my best friend, Elaine." Dylan insisted, "What's wrong with that?" "Am I just a joke to you, huh, Dylan?" All the doctors and nurses with us were taken aback by my response, but I simply ignored them before I added, "Don't proclaim such heavy words if you cannot carry its weight." Dylan immediately shut his mouth and he avoided getting eye to eye contact with me. I believed he sensed the sensitiveness of my words. Then we all glance at the doorway as soon as we notice Mr. Dex and Don Romualdo step foot into the room. They even lock the door to make sure no paparazzi can take a single photo of Dylan. "Doc?" I b
"But why?" I uttered without looking at him, the sound of my voice could be barely above a whisper. "Why are you still helping me, Mr. Frost?" "Because staying in that hell of a place for another minute suffocates me, the same feeling that you experience after hearing and seeing everyone in the family likes her instead of you, Ms. Elaine." Ghino slid closer and reached out to my cheeks, his eyes were mourning with mine. I may have no ability to read someone's mind, but Ghino's eyes were telling me a lot of things - his terrible story was filled with revenge, regrets, and heartaches. "For that same reason, my offer to you that night still stands," he continued, "Use me every time you need someone to share your burdens, sadness, and even heartaches. Call me even in the middle of the night. I will run to you in the blink of an eye. We don't know. Perhaps we are destined for each other. Call me if you need me. Got it?" Ghino did not wait for my response when he evacuat
The strength of my knees depleted upon seeing Maureen holding the bottom part of Dylan's black tuxedo, trying to stop him from getting closer to me. Ghino, I believe, has noticed the sudden change in my mood as I slowly fixed my gaze on the glass of champagne on the table across from us. He then smiled at me and held my hand to help me ease off my bothered mind. "I already told you the reason, little brother," he scoffed, "Elaine and I are on a date. Why? Is there such a rule that says two single aren't allowed to date?" Dylan's grip on Ghino's collar even tightened to the point that he started to have a hard time breathing. The rage through his sharp almond-shaped dark eyes was blazing in flame as though he was killing Ghino with those stares. The head of the security guards approached us and stopped the commotion before it got out of hand. Ghino did nothing wrong but I know Dylan would not stop until he gets his revenge. Dylan was left with no choice but to l
Even if we were not looking at each other's eyes, my heart felt Ghino's desperation. I may have no idea about his past and the reason he chose to be with me instead of his family, but I know he badly wanted to get out of that hell of a place. So I stealth a glance at his face for about ten seconds. He was fucking serious about his pleading. "What do you suggest?" I asked despite being skeptical. "I just don't want to be alone tonight, Elaine," he replied, his cold voice gave me goosebumps. "I'll tell you everything." "That would be a long story to tell, I believed," I giggled shortly to lift the mood. "How about your condo? Would a bottle of beer and a slice of pizza will do?" Ghino and I miraculously met not long ago but, undeniably, I started to feel comfortable being with him. I don't know if it was because I find him attractive and more mature. He and Dylan are indeed brothers of the same lineage. Because I proposed this time, Ghino finally cracked the corn