c5 - No Peanuts.

Zane was battling a storm of emotions within.

Did he still need paperwork to prove that the woman seated as far away from him as she possibly could was Jay?

Her voice… She was Jay.

Did she really think he wouldn’t recognize her? Or did she forget that once, when he was blind, all that made him familiar to her was her voice? That her voice was the only thing that separated her from literally everything else, and thus it was etched in his very soul.

Her voice, even when mixed with other voices in the background, would stand out. That’s how familiar she sounded to him.

“Did you need something from me?” he asked.

And he didn’t miss how she flinched at such a simple question. It only confirmed to him further that Jade was Jay.

She was the girl who had taken care of him for a whole year. The girl who kept teasing him that he would have to pay her back for all her expenses.

She was the girl who promised she would be there when he opened his eyes again — only to break that promise and disappear without a trace.

“Y-yes, Mr. Frost,” she stammered, her voice small and nervous. “I-I need your signature, Sir.”

She extended the folder she had been clutching tightly, her fingers trembling.

Zane had planned to corner her like this.

When he saw the surveillance footage from her workstation, his intention had been to talk to Jade about her daughter — not to confirm if she was Jay.

But when she spoke inside the elevator, he had forgotten about everything else.

The sound of her voice had thrown him completely off balance. It was her — there was no mistaking it.

Jay had known who he really was.

He couldn’t understand why she hadn’t reached out to him the moment she arrived at his company.

But whatever her reasons might be, the way she flinched when he spoke, the way she avoided looking at him—she didn’t want to be found. She had made her choice, and he had to respect it, no matter how much it hurt.

Maybe fate hadn’t brought them back together to start over. Maybe it was only giving him the chance to repay her kindness and finally let her go.

Besides, he wasn’t the same man who had once clung so desperately to the memory of her voice. What he felt for Jay had been real, but it belonged to a different time, a different version of himself.

Zane knew he would always be grateful to Jay for saving him when he was lost. But he didn’t need her to move forward anymore.

Whatever was left unfinished between them, he would settle it with the respect she deserved—and then he would let her go, just as she had let him go long ago.

—

‘He sure is taking his time,’ Jade thought anxiously.

It was just a single-page document that required his signature, yet he had been reading it for several minutes — as if he never intended to finish or even sign it.

“Mr. Frost, is there a problem with the document?” she finally asked, her voice soft but steady. Her nervousness had subsided ever so slightly.

Besides, Zane didn’t seem like he would lash out at her anytime soon. It wasn’t even her document. If there was something wrong, she could just collect it and return it to Ms. Stewart. Simple, right?

Maybe, she thought, she could even ask him to pull over so she could go back to the office.

Zane merely gave a short “hmn” sound before his pen finally started scribbling on the paper.

Jade’s eyes widened in shock as she watched him not just sign — but cross out words and make corrections.

Moments later, the once neat document looked more like a scratch paper, riddled with notes and edits.

Finally, he closed the folder and handed it back to her.

“Tell Ms. Stewart to see me in my office,” he said, his tone curt.

‘He was scary,’ she thought.

Jade awkwardly accepted the folder. “Then, may I return to the office now, Mr. Frost?” she asked hopefully.

But he didn’t answer.

She waited a moment longer before resigning herself to silence.

Sighing quietly, she shifted farther back into her seat and gazed out of the window.

Worry washed over her. She didn’t even have her phone with her — how would she inform Mireia to look out for Zia? 

Such a bad day to bring Zia to work today.

Then again, wasn’t she seated right beside Zane now?

But it wasn’t like she could just tell him who she truly was. Besides, she had made a decision long ago — to never let their past hold him back. Not that she even had the right.

Zane Frost had a bright future ahead of him.

Tomorrow, he would be engaged to his childhood sweetheart, Catherine White. Jade knew all about them, of course — she had researched his life, which wasn’t exactly private, especially when it came to Catherine.

They were the perfect match. Before Zane had even spent a year with her, Catherine had already been a constant in his life.

Jade didn’t want to compete with that. She never had. The battle was already lost, even before it had begun.

So, really, everything was fine. Zane didn’t need to know who she was anymore.

Most importantly, there had never been anything between them other than friendship.

Sure, Jade had fallen for him — deeply, hopelessly. But that was all. A one-sided love. Nothing more.

—

Jade was dragged to the CEO’s meeting. Ryan and her stayed beside Zane. But while Ryan occasionally took part, Jade was tasked to take care of their food for lunch.

She had no idea what to order. But when presented with the menu, she chose everything that she remembered he liked back then. 

“Thanks, no peanuts, please.” She told the waitress. Of course, she took note of his allergy to peanuts too. She couldn’t risk him eating even a little of that.

Jade was unaware how that simple gesture of her made Zane feel.