“Can we give you a ride home?” Gabriel offered Evina.
The other directors already left. It was only Gabriel, Evina, her assistant and Paul that were in the area. It was also late in the afternoon and the other employees of Mr. Lu were already leaving.
“My place is just around here, Ma’am. I would be going now,” Evina’s assistant bowed down to her and with a wink, left her with the two.
Evina told her assistant about what happened to her five years ago. She was one of those who motivated her to reconcile with Gabriel. It’s because, as she put it, time has already passed. Everyone had learned their lesson.
Now it seemed that Gabriel was opening to him again. After their recent affair, she was really determined to win him back. If they could not be together again, at least they could be friends. He was really a great companion to her back then.
That was her opinion, that’s why she nodded her head. Paul&r
“It’s good to see you again, Maria,” Paul opened up with a wide smile on his face. There was a hint of anxiety in his voice, though. Perhaps he didn’t know how he would approach her after five long years.They already finished dinner and everyone was having desserts. Evina coaxed him to ask Maria if they could talk in private. He thought Maria wouldn’t agree. But she did.They were in the backyard and sitting on the bench. The sky was clear, and the stars could be vividly seen from where they were.“You too, Paul,” Maria smiled at him, making Paul’s heart gallop at a fast rate. Even when the years have passed, he still has feelings for her.She left the country without even saying anything to him. He thought that it was because he was too hasty with expressing his feelings with her that is why she moved away.He didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable again, so he decided to just let her go.
“It’s Miss Chen!” One of her former colleagues screamed as soon as she saw her. She quickly stood up from her desk and ran towards her. She gave her a tight embrace and jumped up and down. The other staffs' eyes grew wide in bewilderment. They must not have expected that she would drop by after five long years. It was the day of the director’s meeting, and they invited Evina to join them to discuss her proposal. Evina went earlier than the time, so she could catch up with her colleagues. The participants of the meeting hadn't arrived yet, so she went down to her department and greeted them all. She was surprised that there were a lot of changes since she left. Before they were understaffed. But now it seemed that they were more open to hiring more people. The place was more crowded. But the staff seem happier than back in her days. Their faces don’t look stressed like what she was used to seeing. Her cheekbones lifted as sh
“You didn’t just declare that I’m your girlfriend, right?” Evina whispered to Gabriel. Her dainty hand cupped her coral-lipped mouth in her hopes that none could hear them.They were walking along the corridor to the boardroom meeting. Since it was still early in the morning, there were a lot of employees roaming around, trying to finish their tasks early.Some of them were surprised to see her. They greeted her with a warm smile and bowed down to her. She gladly returned the favor.However, the others weren’t. They would acknowledge her presence. But after they passed by, they would sneer at her and chat behind her back.The other directors were already at the boardroom, waiting for them. Evina didn’t realize that she took a while in their department, catching up with them.They were already near the door when Evina asked him his motive. She knew that they had to talk about business in just one minute.Bu
“G-Gabriel?” Evina uttered in disbelief. It didn’t matter to her anymore if she called him by his first name in the board of directors meeting.Gabriel was still standing tall, opposing the Chairman, his father, in front of everybody. His nostrils were flaring. But he managed to keep his calm and still acted in a civilized manner.The other directors’ jaws dropped in bewilderment at the CEO’s horrendous action. They have known Gabriel as one who was collected and unperturbed, even when things were going haywire.It was fortunate of them that there was a pitcher of cold water and glasses. Some directors quickly grab one in an effort to moisten their throats and make things less awkward.The Chairman, Gabriel, Evina and the directors were all in the same room, supposedly to discuss a merge between their companies.But it seemed that it would not be feasible. The Chairman declared his outright defiance against the CEO of
All the directors’ attention turned towards the Chairman, who seemed to be awestruck at that moment.A conflict of emotions was evident in his stern face. He looked surprised at Evina’s lowliness.He also seemed angry, perhaps because the memory of the past was like a ghost that reappeared again just now.His eyes seemed to be welling with tears as if he was reminded of his deep friendship with William Go and how he has broken faith with him for money.Just then, the sun’s rays penetrate through the windows. It announced both the time for refreshments and the time for a new start for both the offended group.An hour has already passed, and they still haven’t started the purpose of the boardroom meeting. They were supposed to be discussing the pros and cons of Evina’s proposal at that time.“Perhaps it would benefit both companies if both their leaders would have a good relationship as well. No matter h
“I won! Now you have to grant me a wish,” Evina boisterously reacted with her fist in the air.Her feet jumped up from the sofa and flashed a warm smile at her father. William scratched his head as he shrugged his shoulders.They were playing chess after dinner while Maria and Simon washed the dishes. Evina decided to take this opportunity to ask him to meet up with Chairman Yang.Though, she has no idea if he would agree with it or not.“All right. What is it that you want?” William sighed, giving in to the whims of her daughter.He then put back the chess pieces to their case. A grin made its way to his face.Evina drew in a deep breath. She knew this would not be easy.After The Elysian Inc cast him out, he runs away and never lets anyone see his face again. How would she make him show up again?She picked up a huge throw pillow and embraced it as she contemplated how to open up.“I went
Evina bit her fingernails as she stared into nothingness. Her heart was palpitating faster than light. Her father and the Chairman would be meeting later in the afternoon. And she felt jittery about the outcome. “Calm down. If Plan A didn’t work out, we have Plan B anyway,” Gabriel soothed her anxiety. He held her hand and brought it to his lips. It is the weekend and Gabriel didn’t come to work. He and Evina decided to go to a jewelry store. Their plan is to go to the Chairman’s Villa after their meeting and give him a gift. If the result is great, they could celebrate. And if not, they could pacify him. Evina walked inside the store with Gabriel. All the attendants came to their side for assistance. “Good afternoon, Mr. Yang and Ms. Chen,” They addressed them. “Good afternoon,” They both greeted them back. But afterward, Gabriel whispered in Evina’s ear, “Very soon they will not call us like that. It will be Mr. and M
Chairman Yang paced back and forth at the floor. His hand flew to rub his neck as he checked on his watch. He was already an hour late. “Did he opt to back out at the last minute?” He sneered. He has been waiting for him inside the car. But since it was taking him a long time, he decided to get out of the car and wait for him outside. “I did not,” A voice behind him replied. Chairman Yang turned to his back and saw William approaching him. He chose to meet up at the first office of The Elysian Inc. Building. It was part of a shabby commercial complex then. But now it deteriorated to extinction as there were no tenants left in the place. Instead, it was an old abandoned building filled with exposed pipes and loops of loose wiring hanging through holes in the ceiling and torn-up flooring. He wanted him to be reminded of their good memories that he destroyed. With a sarcastic smile on his face, he smirked as William walked towards him. He
“All right, don’t pick us. It’s your loss, not ours!" Evina gritted her teeth as she marched out of the Tech Studios parking lot.She has worked on this project for months. But the CEO of Tech Studios chose another company as their business partner. As far as she knows, the owner of that firm uses bribes to gain an edge above other tech firms.The sun outside was so scorching hot that one could fry an egg just by cracking it in the ground. But Evina didn't mind as she tramped on it."I hope all you greedy executives go bankrupt. Or better yet, you should rot in jail for the rest of your life!" she screamed at the top of her lungs before opening the door of her car with full force.*Screech!*
Gabriel’s eyes blinked rapidly as he gazed at his bride. His heart almost stopped beating.She looked exquisitely lovely in her dazzling white mermaid cut wedding gown, designed with pearls and choice gemstones. Her flaming red hair was neatly tucked under her veil.“You’re one lucky man, sir,” Paul whispered in his ear, making him nod in agreement. His eyes twinkled with an inner glow.He put his arms behind his back as he awaited his queen to come walking towards him in front of the aisle.As he did so, he drew in a deep breath. He could not imagine himself being wedded, and being much in love with his bride, like this.All his life he has dedicated himself to the company and for him, having a girlfriend, much so a wife, is an additional responsibility.That’s before he met Evina, the woman who made his heart live again.Now she was slowly walking towards where she was. Every step made his heart jump wi
After three months...Evina clutched her waist as she felt fluttery butterflies circling inside it. She bit her lips to prevent them from trembling.She didn’t know that this event would be this nerve-wracking. She thought that since they’ve been together through hoops, this wouldn’t be a stressful event anymore.“Relax, you’re ruining your makeup,” Maria scolded her as she checked her reflection in the mirror.‘Simon, remove your coat. That cake might spill on it. We don’t have a spare your size,” Maria turned to Simon, who was busy eating ice cream at that moment.Evina peeked at the window, her autumn eyes beholding the round tables with beautiful floral centerpieces. Some of the guests were already there.Gabriel must be in another room with his best man, Paul. Was he feeling the same way she was feeling right now?She felt her nervous sweat clinging to her white gown. She want
After three months... Evina clutched her waist as she felt fluttery butterflies circling inside it. She bit her lips to prevent them from trembling. She didn’t know that this event would be this nerve-wracking. She thought that since they’ve been together through hoops, this wouldn’t be a stressful event anymore. “Relax, you’re ruining your makeup,” Maria scolded her as she checked her reflection in the mirror. ‘Simon, remove your coat. That cake might spill on it. We don’t have a spare your size,” Maria turned to Simon, who was busy eating ice cream at that moment. Evina peeked at the window, her autumn eyes beholding the round tables with beautiful floral centerpieces. Some of the guests were already there. Gabriel must be in another room with his best man, Paul. Was he feeling the same way she was feeling right now? She felt her nervous sweat clinging to her white gown. She wanted to take it off, but her friends had a hard t
William felt like he had slept for a long time. His body was sore and he felt a sharp pain in his stomach.His face grimaced as he tried to recall what happened.He remembered going to Chairman Yang even with a gunshot wound. He didn’t want to fail him again.Fortunately, he reached there on time. But he couldn’t recall what happened after that. Everything was already blurred up.While he was contemplating the situation, he heard voices talking around him.“You should’ve bought grapes. You know, Dad doesn’t like peaches.”“There are no grapes in the store. Besides, I remember him eating this before.”“He just ate it because you forced him to. Don’t you remember?”He opened his eyes, so he could see them clearly. It’s Maria and Evina, quarreling over a basket of fruits.He lifted his hand. But as he did so, he noticed that there was an IV set attached
Evina didn’t know how she made it back to the Chairman. Her lids were already swollen from crying.She was about to go to the Chapel of the hospital and pray all night for God’s extension of life for her father. But she wanted to say goodbye to the Chairman first, out of respect.“It seems that you’re finally reconciled with the Chairman, Dad. After twenty long years. And you still have a lot of time to spend your years together,” she mumbled to herself.“You can drink up all night, share your family stories under the night sky. Then we, your children, would scold you both and make you come to bed like you used to do to us when we were young,” Evina rattled on while laughing at her imagination like a crazy woman as she dragged her feet back to where she left the Chairman.To her surprise, she didn’t just see the Chairman with his guards. There were three other people with him.“Evina,” Mar
Feeling a little great, Evina returned to the ICU to check on her father’s state. Her face had a little radiance to it, unlike her appearance when she first came to the hospital. She had just donated blood to her devastated father. She has also encountered a man whom she didn’t know would help them. However, she couldn’t help but worry about her father. His state was still uncertain. She could only cry out to God for a miracle. “He still hasn’t met his grandchildren from me yet,” she heaved out a long sigh as she bit her lips. Her tired and aching feet dragged until she reached the ICU. To her surprise, she saw the Chairman still, sitting in one of the chairs. It was as if he was waiting for the door to open up, so he would be updated on her father’s status. Evina stopped for a moment and drew in a deep breath as she watched the Chairman. He looked like he was a good friend who was deeply concerned about his friend’s condition.
Evina’s pulse quickened as her eyes beheld him. It seemed that her blood rushed to every part of her muscles, making her blood pressure rise up at that moment.She recalled the incident that happened just a few hours ago. His brother attacked Gabriel and her in the parking lot. And he was also the reason why his father was on death’s bed right now.Evina couldn’t control herself. She rushed forward and almost slapped his face. If it weren’t for the nurses who stopped her, she must have hit him hard.“You and your shameless family. Why are you even here?” She couldn’t help but blurt out. He seemed to be working out something with the nurses when they entered the room.Evina was about to donate her blood to her father when she saw Julio, the least of all the people that she expected to see.“Hello again, Miss Chen. Don’t you want to know who saved your father’s life?” His l
Evina’s heart pumped in a frenzy as she traversed the traffic to the hospital where her father was admitted. She still hasn’t moved on from the chaotic scene at the parking lot. To be honest, she didn’t want to leave Gabriel behind. Even with his position, he could still go to jail. The son of Chairman Ming was badly beaten by him. She has already put him in prison. Fortunately for her, the women that he abused spoke up. And there were also other people who helped them, including Gabriel’s connection. But she also has an idea that with his influence, he could easily get out and go on a rampage, if he didn’t serve his penance. She just wasn’t aware that he would attempt to murder her, her father, and Gabriel. Still, there was a much-pressing issue, greater than all these. And that’s the life and death situation of her father. She could have easily gone there if it wasn’t for Julian’s antics. Fortunately, the taxi came to