It was Monday of the new week, and Skylar was ready for work again as she struggled with her thoughts through the weekend while preparing Ivan's schedule for the week, meticulously planning out every detail and work calendar to ensure his demanding routine ran smoothly. She arrived much earlier than she usually did because she didn't want Ivan to chide her again on a good day, and she was quite relieved that she arrived about ten minutes and settled at her table before he entered the office. He sauntered in so grandly, his presence effortlessly commanding, as he strode in confidently as ever, looking even much better than he did the last time she saw him, which was two days ago. And he surprisingly looked even taller than usual, which made her wonder if it was she who had gotten shorter. “Good morning, Mr. Hamilton,” she greeted, her tone firm and uncompromising familiarity. Ivan gave a curt nod without saying much, as his piercing eyes briefly met hers and fell to her feet, and
Skylar was sitting behind her desk unusually again that morning, staring blankly at the MacBook which was opened before her without proceeding with her work. Her left fingers tapped nervously on her lap, as she gripped the right ones in her teeth while struggling with the echoing memory of his she had lashed out at her boss just moments ago. Her frustration had boiled over because he was being unnecessarily stubborn when it was all for his good, and had yelled at him before she even realized it. It was something she had never done before. Something she never knew she was capable of doing. To him or anyone. Him especially. After she came back to her senses and began to apologize for hurling at him, Ivan turned and walked out without any further words, leaving her standing there, shocked and horrified at her own behavior. And at that moment, she regretted it. ‘How could she have let her emotions get the better of her at that moment when she had always been professional and compos
Skylar sat still at her desk as she began her work for the day which had piled up during her week-long absence, her eyes constantly glancing at her wristwatch incessantly, her pressure mounting to see that Ivan had not returned to his office or called either to inform her of anything. Suddenly, the door to her office swung open with a forceful thud and caused her to flinch, as she raised her eyes instantly, ready to face Ivan and hear whatever he had to tell her. However, disappointment clouded her eyes instantly, as soon as the sight of the substitute secretary, Taylor, sauntered into her office with a look of spiteful annoyance etched on her face. “You were here?” She was unable to hide the shock that furrowed her brows, as she stared at Skylar as if awaiting an explanation. “Yeah. Any problem?” Skylar's voice was smooth, her eyes questioning why she thought otherwise. “We all thought you had resigned from your job already, but someone said you came around this morning, so I ca
Feeling so gloomy and bothered by how everything had played out, from Ivan leaving without saying anything, not calling her, and canceling his meetings, Skylar decided to take a lunch break at a beautiful café that was opposite the company. As she entered, the soft chime of the bell above the door announced her arrival, as she sauntered to the counter and exchanged pleasantries with the café assistant whom she had not seen in a while. “Hi, Kali,” her lips curved into a smile effortlessly, even if she had been in a bad mood throughout half of the day already. Kali was a beautiful, energetic lady, with smooth butter skin, charming thick lashes that framed her big, gorgeous eyes, and she had a perfect smile that was so infectious, even if she usually had a frown on her face most of the time. Her beautiful, extremely short hair, which she usually maintained, was dyed wine, which made her look even better than the last time Skylar saw her. “Well, look who finally decided to show
In the serenity of his opulent private vacation house away from the company, Ivan sat behind the study desk in his bedroom, a blend of elegance and sophistication that faced the floor-to-ceiling windows that offered a beautiful view of the natural environment around the top hill where the vacation house was located. A glass of champagne rested in his hand as he worked, while drinking from it at intervals, as he reviewed the constant stream of endless emails that were the most important ones that needed his approval or attention, which had been reviewed by Skylar. Despite the efficiency with which he managed to keep working, his mind kept drifting to Skylar's words concerning his unhealthy eating the more he drank from the champagne glass. Her voice was calm and composed even if it was usually laced with frustration and concern whenever she talked to him countless times about it in the past. “You need to eat well, Mr. Hamilton. Too much champagne without food would ruin your health,
“You sound disappointed. Were you not expecting my call?” The voice from the other side of the phone insinuated, sounding amused that Ivan could be expectant of a call, a slight chuckle escaping his lips. “Not at all,” Ivan's voice sounded grumpy, as he tried to conceal his intense disappointment when he realized that it was not Skylar who had called him. “You do not look like you are in a good mood. What is wrong?” Leo inquired further, wondering why his friend, whose mood was not so hard to tell even from just his tone, seemed so pissed. “Nothing. How have you been?” Ivan tried to digress from the main subject of their conversation from Leo's point of emphasis, which concerned what he wasn't willing to talk about. But, Leo wouldn't let go of what he had bitten already. “Is it Skylar?” “No,” Ivan's response was curt, knowing that his only friend, Leo, might try to get him to talk about what was wrong with him. He was not willing to give him that leverage of trying to therapiz
“I am sorry, Sky. Your shoes went missing,” Amelia announced to Skylar as she sat on the edge of the bed in the room, fidgeting nervously with the hem of her dress, her pleading eyes searching Skylar's own. “What?” Skylar's voice failed her at that moment, as she tried to process what she had just heard her friend tell her. She was just coming to the grocery store after she visited her Mum at the hospital since she closed earlier at work, and surprisingly met Amelia at home, who had said she was not going to be home until the weekend.“I am truly sorry, Sky. I threw up at the party I went to, and I was laid to rest by some friends. When I woke up, it was gone. I think someone took them off my legs,” Amelia's eyes lingered with pity and sadness as she spoke softly, her sweaty fingers fiddling with one another. Dumbfounded, Skylar's mind raced, searching for the right words to say at that moment, as different kinds of emotions swirled within her - confusion, disappointment, and som
Standing under the cascading water of the shower, Skylar felt all the stress of the entire day wash away from her body, as the cold water washed through her hair and soaked it flat, as it trickled down her face and body. Just for a short moment, the water provided a sense of relief to her body, as if it was washing her pain away, but it wasn't long before a deep-seated sadness began to creep into her mind. Her heart began to ache for reasons she couldn't even pinpoint, and she suddenly felt so burdened, the urge to cry, knocking against the door of her eyelids. Silent tears mixed with the shower's flow down Skylar's body as she cried mutedly, her sobs muffled by the sound of the water hitting the cold floor of her bathroom, and her heart tangled in a mess of emotions that she couldn't quite grasp.It was as if the weight of everything - her worries, disappointments, fears, aching pain, regrets, shame, and every single emotion she had been swallowing for too long, found the right mo
“The surgery had just ended and was successful,” the surgeon, who had just come out of the theatre room still dressed in her blue scrub, and had a nose mask hanging below her chin, told Skylar with a reassuring smile that didn't brighten her face.Instantly, the world around her paused for a millisecond as the tension that had been hanging in her body crumbled instantly, and dissipated into the air. Her legs gave way below her body, and before she knew it, she had fallen on her knees, as she felt the hard, cold floor press against her palms that rested against the floor, the weight of the news sinking into her mind. Her right hand which was trembling covered her mouth, as a stifling gasp that felt like it had been locked in her chest for hours escaped her, alongside the tears that trickled down her cheeks. ‘She was alive. Her mother was alive,’ she heaved a sigh of relief, unable to handle the excitement. “Thank you, doctor. Thank you so much,” were the few words her voice could u
“I am sorry, we cannot be together,” those heavy words hung heavily between the two standing across from one another, and the receiver, Leo, blinked hard as he stared at Kali, who had broken the news to him.“What.. What is wrong, Kali?” His lips barely found the right words to utter because his brain was barely functioning coherently. That was the last news he expected her to bring to him, just when he was planning that they would go hiking together since she liked doing that. ‘Things had been going fine between them for the past few days. What went wrong?’ His eyes took a haunted look as if awaiting an explanation from her. “Nothing is,” she looked away from him while resting her back on the railings of the rooftop recreation spot they were standing, because she said she wanted to go there when he asked what she wanted to do. “Kali, meet my eyes,” Leo stared at her, his heart wanting to reach out to her in the most intentional way, as his right hand stretched and caught hers in
Skylar made her way into the five-star restaurant, her eyes glancing briefly through the few people that were seated in the room, until they landed on Grayson, who was seated by the window, his face brightening with a warm, sweet smile the moment he raised his head. She instantly flashed a warm smile at him from where she was standing, and he rose to his feet, as a gesture to welcome her which almost melted away her initial nervousness instantly. It made Skylar's eyes almost roll in shock because she never thought she could see him smile considering their first and second encounter. “Hi, Sky,” he greeted her with a sweet smile, and politely offered her a seat across from him, “You look absolutely gorgeous,” his eyes lingered as he took in her dress, and her smile.“Hi, Gray,” she responded with a nervous smile, “You don't look bad yourself,” she finally settled into her seat. “How have you been these days?” He initiated the conversation, his eyes peering at her. “Been great,” Skyl
The evening breeze brushed gently over the terrace of Ivan's home, and the beautiful scents of marigolds and lavender from the garden which was situated not far from where the two friends sat, permeated the cool evening breeze with a nice fragrance that was soothing. Sitting across from Ivan, was Leo, who was dressed in a finely pressed summer shirt and slacks, as he slouched comfortably against the chair he was sitting on, with a light grin sitting on his lips. Gently, he swirled the glass of whiskey that was nestled between his fingers, as he stared at Ivan, who had been gazing hard at him for the past few seconds, as if thinking of what to say first. And then, he finally spoke. “So, you are telling me it has taken you two days since you landed to get a drink with me all because of a lady?” Ivan cocked a brow at him. “You know I have not seen or spoken to her since that …….” “Says the man who shows up on my doorstep after disappearing for half a year, and felt like he had to
It was late at night already, but the skies were still as bright as evening, which gave a physical misrepresentation of what time truly was, and had tricked Amelia into believing that the night was still young. She had quickly dressed up for work and sat in front of the dresser for a quick makeup touch, as she used the curling iron to press her hair while trying to gloss a shining red lipstick across her lips at the same time. However, while in haste to leave for her shift that night, her eyes caught sight of Skylar's restlessness through the mirror, whose body was sprawled lazily on the bed, with one hand tucked under her head, the other holding her phone close as she stared at the screen with an unreadable expression. “You never told me what happened last night,” Amelia began, trying to sound casual as she fluffed her hair over one shoulder, “You came home so gloomy and sad,” she glanced at the mirror again, while observing her closely.Meanwhile, Skylar was so engrossed in wha
Ivan stepped into his office after the meeting had ended, and was so surprised to see Skylar sitting at her desk, as calm and composed as ever. It was as if she had not refused to pick up his call all day, or failed to inform him as usual that she would not be around in the morning. She had him so worried. Regardless, a sense of relief washed over him in the most exhilarating manner, before he walked across to the front of her table, a little worried that she seemed bothered by his palpable presence, “Where were you, Sky? Your phone has been off since yesterday,” he gazed at her so intently when he questioned, as if beckoning her to look up at him. Without meeting his eyes, Skylar continued to type fast on her computer as if she had a deadline to meet, and murmured a sincere apology, “I am so sorry for missing the meeting, Mr. Hamilton. It won’t happen again,” she spoke calmly and eloquently. Ivan was taken aback by her very professional tone, as if to shut him out and install
With a weary and bothered heart, Ivan made his way to the office the next day, bothered that Skylar's phone had been off since the previous night. He was a little later to work than usual because a minor collision occurred with his car that morning on his way to work from a rough driver, and it distorted his plans to come early by a few minutes because he had the car towed and another brought to him.Quickly, he stalked out of his elevator as soon as it chimed open on the last floor with large strides in the most elegant way, and instantly made his way to the front of his office, as he opened the door to the office instantly, hoping to see her. However, disappointment clouded his face as soon his eyes fell on the empty desk where Skylar was supposed to be sitting behind. The chair was pushed in, and her papers were still untouched from the previous day. ‘Where was she?’ He wondered, his eyes raising in concern as he hesitated for a few seconds before entering inside, and made his w
The morning sun which Skylar had always loved suddenly felt unkind as it cast its harsh light on her weary face as she trudged into the main doors of the huge company, because it seemed as if it amplified the ache in her heart and the anger she felt from deep within. She made her way into the CEO's VIP elevator with its access card because she gracefully wanted to avoid bumping into any of the company workers, not minding the talks they might make again as to reasons why she got to ride the elevator when Ivan was not even with her. She could barely look at herself in the elevator mirror that she was surrounded by when she got in, and each glance she took at her reflection revealed her tired, hollow eyes and puffy cheeks, which she had spent half an hour trying to conceal. Despite the makeup, traces of last night’s turmoil clung to her like an embarrassment that she couldn’t wash away. It was obvious that she had cried so much. Skylar just wished that she was so open and cared less
Skylar stepped into her apartment with deep weariness engraved deep into her bones, as the weight of what she had just witnessed sat heavily on her chest, crushed her with each breath she took, and blurred her eyes with suffocating tears. The image of Ivan and Gwen kissing replayed in her head like a broken record over and over again, and it was as if a knife had been thrust into her gut. It was almost too hard to bear in mere sight, and the thoughts it brought to her mind severed her heart mercilessly. It suddenly felt as if all the moments that existed between her and Ivan meant nothing. Like she didn't even exist, enough for him to respect what happened between them. Like she didn't matter. Nothing hurt her more than the fact that the sight confirmed her fears and made her feel smaller than ever. It was even more terrifying because she didn't have the right to get angry at him. After all, they were just flings anyway. They didn't even have a name for what they were doing, so she