Chapter 2

"Alex! Stop shouting! Xenia is notorious for being difficult in our company. She has good connections with the higher-ups and her family holds influence here. You won't get anywhere by arguing with her!"

He glanced at my car and spoke earnestly. "Hear me out. Just give her a ride tonight. Just consider yourself unlucky. Just say your car broke down and you sent it for repair tomorrow. Take the subway for a few days and avoid her. If you can't beat her, just steer clear of her."

Why should I need anyone's permission to drive my own car? Why should I have to pretend to be poor or even pretend my car broke down just to avoid her?

This absurdity made my anger surge straight to my head.

"Thanks, but no thanks." I shook his hand away, my tone unprecedentedly firm.

I walked back to the car door and looked at the person sitting calmly inside, saying clearly, "Xenia, I'm telling you one last time. Get out of the car. Otherwise, I'll call the police right away.

"I'll sue you for illegally taking someone else's property and disrupting public order. There are cameras here and the evidence is conclusive."

Not expecting me to be serious, her expression changed instantly. "How do you call yourself a man? Have you no sense of compassion? Do you even understand what workplace camaraderie and mutual support mean? Look at me now..."

She deliberately stuck out her still-flat belly, her voice suddenly rising, sharp and piercing. "I'm pregnant and it's inconvenient for me. Is it too much to ask you to give me a ride? Isn't this what a man like you should do and take responsibility for?

"But what do you do? You’re making excuses and telling lies!"

She grew more and more agitated as she spoke, her fingers almost poking my face as her spit flew from her mouth.

"A grown man like you can't tell the difference between the accelerator and the brake? And you even want to call the police? Aren't you ashamed of yourself?

"You wanna make things difficult for a pregnant woman over such a small favor? Where's your sense of responsibility? Where's your magnanimity? How do you call yourself a man?

"Men these days are so selfish! They have no sense of responsibility or manners!"

"How were you raised? What use is a man like you to the company? What use is a man like you to society? It’s your honor to have me ride in your car! I'm giving you a chance to learn how to be a cultured and compassionate man!

"Don't think I don't know just because you didn't say it. You actually have a crush on me, but you're unwilling to put in the effort, seeing that I'm pregnant and already taken. I'm giving you the chance to be my personal driver now. Don't be ungrateful; I'm giving you a chance!"

Hearing her shameless remarks, I was so angry I laughed instead. I rested my hands on the car roof, looking down at her.

"Where do you get the confidence to say I like you? And you're lecturing me about character? You illegally occupied someone else's private property without so much as asking, then had the nerve to threaten me with a fine. What right do you have to mention 'camaraderie'?

"You want a ride in my car? Let me tell you that there’s no way that’s happening. Not today, not tomorrow and not ever. Now, get the hell out immediately!"

A crowd of onlookers stopped to watch, pointing and whispering.

Xenia's face flushed red and then paled. "Fine! Alex, you've got guts!"

She abruptly unbuckled her seatbelt and pushed open the car door. "Just you wait and see!"

The next day, I found the company quite bustling as soon as I arrived.

"He's so young, yet he's driving an Audi worth over 400,000 dollars. Tsk, he's quite 'capable'."

"I was just trying to be helpful. Seeing how young he is, I was worried he might go down the wrong path, so I gave him a friendly reminder. Who knew he'd get so worked up, exploding at the slightest provocation? What kind of manners is that?" Xenia said.

A colleague who knew her well immediately chimed in, their voice loud. "Xenia, why are you taking this kind of guy so seriously? Men who want to take shortcuts have plenty of ways to do it. Don't they feel ashamed?"

Another colleague leaned closer. "Exactly! He’s driving a car like that at such a young age; who knows what kind of shady business he's involved in? We should all steer clear of him. Who knows what kind of dirty secrets he might have? Let's not get involved in anything disreputable."