Chapter 3

Anthony's attention immediately turned to Mia. He looked at her through the rearview mirror, a gentle smile appearing on his face. "Your playlist is actually pretty good, Mia."

That one remark instantly dried the tears gathering in my eyes.

That song that had just been playing on the radio was the one Anthony sang to me the night he asked me out. He played it every time he picked me up, and humming along to it had become second nature to him.

Yet, at this moment, Anthony was playing the songs Mia liked instead.

I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms. It turned out that even a habit formed over three years could disappear in an instant.

Anthony finally remembered to check in when the song ended. "What were you saying earlier, Helena?"

I no longer felt like telling him the truth, so I replied indifferently, "It's nothing. I just wanted to tell you that I got my medication earlier."

Anthony didn't bother to press further.

…

When I arrived at the office the following morning, I found my colleagues huddled around Mia, whispering among themselves and looking visibly excited.

"I went to Mr. Sharp's car earlier to grab something and saw that the plushie hanging in his car is the same one as the one hanging on your handbag! Is this your way of announcing your relationship?

"You shouldn't even try to deny it! I'm a seasoned blind box collector, so I know that matching couple plushies are insanely popular online right now, and getting your hands on them is next to impossible!"

Mia replied bashfully, "Oh, stop talking about making things official! He handed it right over to me since I mentioned I liked it."

"Is that so?"

They continued teasing Mia. "I knew Mr. Sharp had a soft spot for you! He specifically told HR to look out for you on your very first day of work, and ever since you joined, the company perks have gone up a whole notch—we're all benefiting thanks to you!"

I stood at the edge of the crowd, my hands trembling slightly.

Mia needed a place to sign off on her internship when Mom and Dad found out Anthony was running his own company, so they arranged for her to work with him and asked him to look after her.

I had once reminded Anthony that he was treating Mia too well, and people at the office were already gossiping that something was going on between them.

Anthony simply laughed it off and teased me. "I promised your parents I'd take good care of Mia for your sake. Are you actually jealous of your own sister, Helena?"

Only now did I finally see through it. Anthony kept his distance from me not to avoid rumors, but because I wasn't the one he truly cared about.

I turned on my heel and walked away from the crowd.

Just then, Anthony's assistant, Jesse Short, came rushing in. "I have breaking news! Mr. Sharp is getting hitched! I just overheard him mention that the engagement ring is engraved with 'S & F'!"

In that instant, everyone in the office went wild.

"Isn't 'S & F' literally just the initials for Sharp and Farrell?"

"Congrats, Mia! You're about to become Mrs. Sharp soon!"

Everyone crowded around Mia, showering her with compliments.

Mia kept up her bashful act. "There are plenty of people whose last name starts with 'F'—it's not necessarily me."

Those around her pointed at the plushie hanging off her handbag. "Who else could it possibly be? You're the only person close to Mr. Sharp, Mia!"

Thus, by the time the manager called everyone in for a meeting, everyone instinctively saved the seat right next to Anthony for Mia.

Anthony addressed the room once everyone was in attendance. "I let you all leave early yesterday under one condition—that every one of you turn in your proposals today."

He looked over the room, and the atmosphere instantly grew tense. "I never expected someone to resort to plagiarism despite having plenty of time! I have two identical proposals here!"

He tossed the proposals onto the table while Jesse projected them onto the screen.

My eyes widened as soon as I saw what was on the screen. It was the proposal I had worked on for an entire week, while the other had Mia's name on it.

Mia spoke up, looking aggrieved, and pulled out another document. "I didn't plagiarize anyone's work. I have my rough draft here, Mr. Sharp."

Jesse opened the document, which revealed my handwritten notes.