3 - Wrong Decision

Elena Beaumont’s POV

My life has completely scrambled down right after that night.

“Elena!” My senior yelled at me. “Fix this before lunch. And check your email, I have sent the file you need to edit. Make them done by this night.”

I slumped at my chair. ‘Fuck, when is this gonna end?’ I sighed, glanced at my clock. 11 AM and I haven’t had my breakfast yet.

This is all because of my seniors, they suddenly pulled all their works on me. Right after that night.

I had perfect sleep yesterday, only to get scolded by the Team Manager for the mistake that didn’t even fault me.

‘It feels like that man has done the deed to torture me, in return for me kissing him like a psycho’ I mumbled, regretting my decision.

Why do I need to kiss him? Even for that asshole, Gabriel, I shouldn’t kiss anyone!

My head hurts. I looked at my table, which was already covered with piles of documents. I guess I’ll pull an all-nighter again.

“Elena! Elena—fuck! Fuck! You need to see this!”

“So noisy…”

I was typing on my keyboard. My body jumped at the loud voice coming from the next table. Daniella, she suddenly rushed over to me. She forced me to look at her phone.

“W-What—” I looked at the phone. My jaw dropped.

Daniella? As pale as me.

I had to snatched her phone to make sure I’m not hallucinating.

Two pictures. One news. Big headline on the screen behind the reporter who was in a live stream of Hot News:

[BREAKING NEWS!]

[JAKE HAROLD’S NEW AFFAIR]

[“We’re in his apartment now! All his exes have gathered together to get his clarification! His new affair seemed to be special! Jake himself told the reporters to blur her face!]

[Is this his final destination after breaking up with all his girlfriends!?]

The phone suddenly slipped from my hand.

“W-WHAT…” My mouth gaped. “WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS!?”

Daniela yelled, “H-Hey! Don’t break my phone!”

“FUCK!” I ruffled my hair. “WHY DIDN’T I THINK ABOUT THAT DAMN REPORTER!?”

“ARGHH!!”

Right. I was too cooped up with work that forgot about the reporter who took my picture that night!

The news spread too fast. They took my photo, right when I kissed Jake Harold at the company’s party, at the perfect angle to make a public opinion; ‘Jake Harold New Affair’.

Golden TV Station. The biggest TV channel in the country. Which means, I fucked my life.

My grandfather is really gonna kill me once he sees that news. I am already having a hard time finding a way to make him believe me if I told him Gabriel cheated on me.

He’s been obsessed with our marriage since his health worsened. Fuck! He is really gonna kick me out of the family!

“Elena! Where’re you going!?” Daniella panicked as she watched me grab my stuff and head out of the office room.

“I’m gonna see him,” I said, rushing, trying to find my car’s key.

Daniella seemed confused. “Him? You mean, Jake Harold? How? You don’t know his apartment,” she said.

“Gabriel knows,” I replied, rushed.

“I need to make him take down the news. If it’s him, he can do it.”

“How can you be so sure? I mean, you kissed him first—” Daniella closed her mouth the moment she saw my expression change. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” I said. “I just need to beg him.”

“Elena!” Right before I opened the door, Daniella grabbed my hand.

“You okay, though?” she asked, “I mean, you and Gabriel, and I know how’s your grandpa…”

I patted her hand, “Yeah, I’m fine. I just need to make sure my grandfather believes me.”

I headed out to the parking lot and drove as fast as possible.

My maps showed the location of Isabella-Emerald Corp.—if I want to see Gabriel, I’m sure he’s at his family’s company now.

The company building I used to see on TV suddenly looked completely different.

The moment my car arrived, a security guard stopped me. I had to argue with them until a flash from countless cameras struck my eyes.

For a moment, I couldn’t hear anything except the beating sound from my chest.

“Oh, God…”

My body froze behind the car’s glass.

The reporters were everywhere. They filled the entire entrance, parking lot, some of them even climbed the park’s edges to get a better view.

“Move! Move! You can’t go inside! The company is forced to close today!” The security guard screamed in a rush. I was so panicked that I parked my car in the wrong direction.

I quickly grabbed my bag and rushed out of the car. Then, one of the reporters spotted me right away.

“Ms. Beaumont?” A young reporter, holding a mic, suddenly turned her head to me.

The moment she recognized my face; the reporters’ crowds surrounded me.

“It’s her!”

“Excuse me! May we have a moment!?”

“Ms. Beaumont! We heard that you have an intimate relationship with President Harold, is it true!?”

“Are you his new partner!?”

“What about his other girlfriends!?”

“Please say something!”

In the blink of an eye, the reporters’ crowds that surrounded the company building now turned their cameras to me.

“Did you spend the night with President Harold!?” He thrust the microphone at me.

My eyes widened, unable to move my body. “What—no! That’s not true—”

“Then what about the kiss at the party!?”

They really didn’t give me room to explain.

I narrowed my eyes. The flashes from the camera didn’t stop pouring over me.

“Stop taking my pictures!” I raised my hand to cover myself.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

“Are you fucking deaf!?” I growled in anger. My voice was buried in those noises that no one heard me.

Every time I turned away, there’s always a reporter that blocked me with their cameras. They dared to yank my hand. I didn’t care. I grabbed the edge of my skirt and ran away.

I tried to reach my car when suddenly, a tall figure I didn’t expect to be standing in front of me suddenly appeared and made me bump into him.

“Miss Beaumont!”

“Ouch!”

My ankle twisted. A pair of strong arms instinctively caught me before I could hit the ground. My body landed against something firm, solid—a man’s body. We lost our balance and hit the ground, then—

My eyes widened as our lips brushed each other.

‘Oh, no.’

‘Please...’

‘No. no. no. no.’

Jake Harold.

And—

kiss.

In front of the reporters.

Click!

Click! Click! Click!

“THEY KISSED!”

“DON'T STOP!”

“GET HER FACE!”

“KEEP RECORDING!”

Click! Click! Click!