Chapter three

It was Friday night. 11:47 pm.

The entire office was dark. The shiny floors were quiet. The big glass windows reviewed Paris at night - the Eiffel Tower was glowing far away, the city lights were blinking like stars at night.

Only one office had a light on. 

Luna's small office.

She was sitting at her desk, alone. The signed contract from Béranger was on her desk. She had done it. She had finished the impossible task in 96 hours. Jack Black said she could stay. He said she would get the money for her mother's operation.

But she was not celebrating.

Her phone was on the desk. She kept looking at it. The hospital called at 9 pm. Her mother was not well. The doctor said they needed to do the operation on Saturday morning. It was urgent. The money needed to be paid tonight, or they would have to wait for another time.

Luna held the contract in her hands. The contract was worth a lot of money for the company. But her mother needed the money as soon as possible.

She felt tears coming. She tried not to cry. She did not want to be the poor girl who cries every given opportunity.

At that moment, the door opened quietly.

It was Josham. He was still in his black suit, but his tie was loose. He looked exhausted too.

"Luna, you are still here?" he said. "Everyone has gone home."

Luna hurriedly wiped her eyes. "I was just finishing. I will leave soon.”

Josham looked at her. He knew. He had been with Jack Black for many years. He knew how Jack Black worked.

"Mr. Black is still here too," Josham said quietly. "He is in his office. He has been looking at your contract for three hours. He has not gone home.”

Luna was surprised. "Why?"

Josham sighed. "Because he does not understand what really happened.He does not understand how you did it. No one has ever done it. He is just confused."

Luna stood up. She wanted to go to Jack Black's office. She just wanted to ask about the money. She wanted to ask when she could get paid for her mother's hospital bills. But she was scared.

Josham put his hand on the desk. "Luna, can I tell you something? About Mr. Black?"

Luna nodded.

"Jack Black is not always cold," Josham said. "Five years ago, he was totally different. He was warm. He laughed. He had a mother too. His mother was sick, like yours. She needed an operation. When he was young, he was working in a small organization. He asked his boss for money. He asked for help. His boss said no. He said, 'Business is business. Your mother is not my problem.'"

Luna's eyes became wide. Her heart hurt.

"His mother died that night," Josham said. Saying in a very low voice. "Jack Black came to work the next morning, and he was not the same man. He became cold. He became hard. He promised himself he would never feel weak again. He promised he would never love anyone again. Because love really hurt him."

Luna felt her body cold. She finally understood Jack Black. He was not a beast. He was a boy who lost his mother and never healed from it.

"He gave you the impossible task because he just wanted you to fail," Josham continued. "He wanted to prove that people cannot do impossible things. He wanted to prove that love does not save people. But you proved him wrong. You did it, you showed him. And now, he does not know what to do anymore.”

Just then, Luna's phone rang. It was the hospital.

She picked it up with shaking hands.

"Hello?" she said.

It was the doctor. "Miss Alex, your mother is asking for you. She is scared. The operation is at 7 am tomorrow. We need the payment immediately.”

Luna's voice broke. "Please, I am ready to pay. I have the money. I have it. Just don't start the operation without me."

She dropped the phone. She stood up and grabbed her bag. She was going to run to the hospital.

But before she could leave, the door to Jack Black's office opened.

Jack Black stood there. He wasn't wearing his suit jacket. His shirt sleeves were rolled up. His hair was a little bit messy. He looked human for the first time. He looked devastated.

"Luna Alex." he said. His voice was not cold anymore. It was just so calm, almost broken.

Luna stopped. "Sir, I need to go. My mother..."

"I know," he said. "Josham told me."

He walked to her desk. He looked at the contract. He looked at Luna's red eyes. He looked at the picture of her mother on her desk - a small, old photo of a smiling woman that looks like Luna's eyes. 

For a long time, he was totally silent.

Then he said, "I was like you. I was 25. My mother was in a hospital in London. I begged my boss for money. He said no. He laughed. I went to the hospital and she was already gone."

Luna's tears finally fell. She did not try to hide them.

"Mr. Black, I am so sorry."

Jack Black shook his head. "No. I am sorry. I gave you that impossible task because I was angry at myself. I wanted to see if someone could do what I could not do. I wanted to see if someone could save their mother."

He took a piece of paper from his pocket. It was a cheque. It was for the operation. The full amount. He had already signed it.

"I already called the hospital," he said. "I paid for the operation. It is done. Your mother will have her operation tomorrow at 7 am. I will pay for everything. Not because you got the contract. Because you are a daughter who loves her mother, and does not want to lose her.”

Luna could not believe it. She covered her mouth with her hands. She was shaking.

"Why are you doing this for me?" she whispered.

Jack Black looked out of the window at Paris. The lights were so beautiful. "Because I did not want you to stand in a hospital corridor and hear what I heard. I did not want you to lose your mother like I lost mine."

It was midnight in Paris. The office was so quiet. No one was watching. No one was whispering. It was just Luna and Jack Black, two people who had both lost too much.

Luna took a step closer. "Thank you."

Jack Black chuckled. It was the first time Luna had seen him smile. It was not a cold smile. It was a real, soft, beautiful smile.

"Don't thank me," he said. "You did the work. You got Béranger. You saved my company. I just saved a mother."

He looked at her small desk, at her old shoes, at her simple black dress.

"You know, Luna, you are not what I expected. You are not weak. You are strong. You are stronger than me, I must say.”

Luna laughed a little, even with tears. "I am not strong. I have Maya and Aisha. They helped me. They are also my family."

Jack Black nodded. "I had no one. That is why I became this. I hope you never become like me."

Maya and Aisha called Luna at that moment. They were on the phone together.

"Luna! We are outside! We are waiting for you in a taxi hurry!.” Maya shouted.

Aisha said, "We will go to the hospital with you. We are not leaving you all alone."

Luna looked at Jack Black. She felt something soft in her heart. It was not love or feelings yet. It was not that. It was just understanding.

"Mr. Black, do you want to come with us? To the hospital? My mother would like to meet the man who saved her."

Jack Black looked surprised. No one had ever asked him that. No one had ever invited him to be part of a family.

"I... I do not know if I can," he said.

"Please," Luna said. "Just come. You don't have to say anything. Just sit with us."

For a long moment, he did not move. Then he took his jacket. They left the office together.

Josham smiled and held the door for them. He knew something had already changed. He had waited five years for this moment.

The four of them went down in the lift. Luna, Maya, Aisha, and Jack Black. The lift was small. Jack Black was standing very close to Luna. She could feel his warmth. He was not cold anymore.

Outside, Paris was midnight and cold. The taxi was waiting. The city was already asleep.

Luna looked up at the sky. The stars were bright. She whispered, "Mama, we are coming. I did it."

Jack Black heard her. He looked at her. At that moment, he was not the big boss. He was just a man who finally understood that it was okay to care.

He put his hand on her shoulder, very gently.

"Let's go," he said. "Your mother is waiting for you.,” 

And Luna, for the first time in many days, felt hope. Real hope.

She was not alone anymore. She had Maya, Aisha, Josham, and even Jack Black.

Midnight in Paris had become soft. And for the first time, Luna believed her mother would live happy To agent.