She never imagined that the guy she once had wet dreams about, wishing he would fuck her so hard she'd see stars, would become her boss. And at what cost?
How exactly did it happen?
Let's take a few steps back, to when she had never thought she would see the one who made her heart twirl again.
"Babe," a sweet voice called out. "So, what do you say?"
She was quite plump, with pink lips and rosy cheeks, dressed in casual dress with an apron tied around her neck.
She was coming out of the kitchen with a tray of cupcakes she had just taken out of the oven.
Looking at her friend, she added, "I mean, one can't be so sure…"
Arial, the one she had addressed as babe, was dressed in formal attire now stained with coffee. She sighed, reached for a cupcake, and bit into it, savoring the taste as her sour face slowly brightened.
She looked up at Sophie and said, "You could just open a bakery soon. You sure get better at this every day, don't you?"
"Thanks for the compliment," Sophie replied curtly, not dwelling too much on it. She was far more concerned about her friend's misfortune than her own rather fortunate life.
"Do not try to cover up our conversation by talking about my own matters."
"Yes," Arial nodded as she continued eating the cupcake. Then she added, "But seriously, can't you see?"
"Do I look like someone worthy of being offered a job?"
Sophie's face turned grim. She placed the tray on the table and sat beside her friend.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Of course I see you, but how would that stop you from getting the job?"
Arial rolled her eyes, stood up, and lightly knocked Sophie on the forehead. It caught her off guard, but before she could complain, Arial pointed at her shirt.
"Don't tell me you can't see the dirty stains on my shirt," she said. "No one would hire someone who shows up looking like this… I'm certain I was the last person on their minds. I was even stuttering. It was a total disaster."
"Oh…" Sophie mumbled, the realization finally settling in. "Perhaps we should just enjoy the sweetness of the cupcakes tonight."
"So I thought," Arial replied.
Just as she was about to reach for another cupcake, her phone suddenly beeped.
A notification popped up, and she picked up the phone.
Her mouth, which had been waiting for the cupcake, suddenly opened wide in shock at what she was reading.
Her hand flew to her lips as she tried to cover them, but it was futile—she was completely shocked.
She stuttered as she tried to reveal the message to her friend.
"They… the… I…"
But alas, she couldn't form the words. Sophie had to yank the phone from her hand, and her reaction wasn't much different.
A scream burst from her lungs, loud enough to snap Arial back to her senses.
"What the fuck!" Sophie shouted. "I can't believe you got accepted!"
Arial, still dazed, muttered, "But, are they drunk? Why would they accept me? I was the worst person there today… Many others performed excellently…"
She stood frozen, a thousand thoughts running through her mind as she tried to understand what could have possibly gone wrong.
But in the end, she was simply happy.
This was her chance for a new start.
_____
The next morning, she woke up even before the .
Her shirt had been neatly washed and ironed, and her skirt looked impeccable. As she dressed, she mumbled to herself, reminding herself not to spill any damn coffee on her clothes again.
Arial stood before the tall skyscraper of the company and sighed heavily.
She had heard stories about how ruthless the boss could be.
But ruthlessness? She was sure she could endure that much.
After all, what else could one expect from one rumored to be a mafia lord?
So she stepped into the company with her head held high, determined to start anew.
Inside, she made her way to the floor where the boss's assistant worked. The receptionist had directed her there earlier.
Waiting there was a finely suited, chocolate-skinned man with brown curly hair and striking blue eyes. She knew Sophie would probably find him very attractive, but she pushed the thought aside before it could linger any longer.
Arial smiled politely at the man, and he returned the gesture.
"Hi. I believe you are Arial, and I'm Patrick," he said, extending his hand.
Arial glanced briefly at his well-manicured nails before shaking his hand.
"Nice to meet you," he added.
"Same here," she replied.
Patrick chuckled lightly.
"Honestly, it's nice to see that you aren't actually a dirty pig like some of the workers were gossiping about yesterday."
"Eh…" The words settled strangely in Arial's mind.
A dirty pig?
But she didn't have the luxury of dwelling on it.
A stack of papers was suddenly placed in front of her.
"Look at this," Patrick said. "It's the contractual document. Go through it and sign."
Arial took the papers. Just as she was about to open them and read, Patrick added casually,
"Yesterday's interview already covered most of it. The boss thought it would be fair to offer a good sum for your services. So he proposed 5,000 euros per month."
The document almost slipped from Arial's hands.
She quickly composed herself.
'5,000 euros?'
She swallowed hard at the huge sum he had just mentioned. Without thinking too much about it, she opened the document, flipped to the signature page, and quickly signed her name.
When she finished, Patrick raised an eyebrow.
"You weren't even going to check whether the terms were favorable to you?"
"Ah…" she scratched her head awkwardly. "I mean… what exactly could be unfavorable about twenty thousand a month?"
"Fair enough," he said.
Patrick collected the documents, placed them in his drawer, and stood up.
"Well then," he said, "let's go see the boss."
___
Patrick led her into an elevator that went all the way to the top floor of the skyscraper.
As she had heard, the boss's office was more like a penthouse. It contained almost everything one would find in a house, combined with a luxurious workspace.
They stood in front of the door that separated her from the boss.
Arial was busy imagining how her life would finally begin to improve with her new paycheck.
She didn't even notice the door opening until Patrick gently pushed her forward.
"I'm sorry," she said quickly, feeling embarrassed.
Then Patrick spoke to someone inside the room.
"Mr. Garcia, here is your new secretary, at your beck and call, just as you requested."
Arial looked toward the direction Patrick was addressing.
At first, she was confused. She didn't see anyone.
Then she lowered her gaze slightly. And that was when she saw him, seated in a wheelchair.
She fought the urge to scream.
But the fact that her boss was crippled wasn't what shocked her the most.
Rather, what truly baffled her was that the man sitting there, her boss, was none other than her former college crush.
Miguel Garcia.
And worse… he was smirking in a way that made the hair on her arms stand on end.
"I don't think I can do this," she blurted out after a long moment of staring.
Patrick turned to look at her.
But before he could say anything, Arial had already turned and run out of the room.
And he immediately followed after her.