Aria Anastasia
I slid the red button on my phone, rejecting my mother's phone call once again. I didn't want to talk to her or my best friend, Freja—it was better in that way. After returning to my apartment last night, I didn't speak to anyone. I had put my phone on silent and told Yana to email me if there was anything related to work.
I didn't even sleep properly last night until I made up my mind to stay fully professional now. Whatever I saw last night was just a murder-mystery movie which I watched live. Nothing else. With that thought, I came to the office early today to complete the extra work, which I couldn't complete yesterday.
I untied my ponytail and let my hair down because of the headache I was getting due to lack of sleep. I ran a hand through my smooth hair and glanced at my wristwatch. It was time for all the employees to come to the office since the office hours would start in thirty-five minutes.
I had a meeting in an hour, so I decided to check the contract which Arizon Fashion would sign with us. I had to face Zaiden in the meeting, but it was okay. He was just my boss, nothing else. "Just my boss," I mumbled, not realizing I had said it aloud.
"Thinking about me won't make your day nicer, believe me," a sudden voice spoke up, making my heart jump in fear.
I looked at the door, only to find Zaiden closing the door as he got inside.
He is a normal person, Aria, I assured myself. Then I said with a smile as I got up from my seat, "Good morning, Boss."
Everyone in the office called him Boss, but I was habituated in calling him by his name which he never objected to. Even he was okay with me calling him by his name. However, calling him by his name wasn't professional so I had to be fully professional now.
"Boss?" Zaiden arched an eyebrow in amusement, his hands in his pocket of the royal blue suit he wore. A few strands of his black hair came on his forehead, which made him look more handsome than usual.
Be professional, Aria!
"Yes. Did you need something?" I asked, and when I noticed his eyes were on my hair, my eyes grew as wide as saucers.
Zaiden had strictly instructed all the female employees to always keep their hair tied and dress-up properly, while he had similar rules made for the male employees.
I took the rubber band which was on my desk and quickly started to tie my hair in a high ponytail, mumbling, "I am so sorry. I was just having a headache so I—"
Zaiden approached me and took the rubber band from my hand, saying, "You still have thirty minutes so till then, you can keep your hair open." When his eyes met mine, I averted my gaze and nodded curtly. "Aria, I had informed you last night that my driver would drop you. Why did you drive alone when I know you weren't in that position to drive properly?"
I cleared my throat and replied politely, "I should've informed your driver that I wouldn't need him to drop me. My sincere apologies for being so insincere. He must've waited for me."
"You drove recklessly last night," he spat out, making a shiver run down my spine at his tone.
Was he angry because I made his driver wait for a long time? Or was he angry because I broke traffic rules? It was better to apologize before he got angrier at me. "I am sorry. Are you going to kill me for this?" My hands flew over my mouth at what I just spoke up.
Zaiden was glaring at me.
Damn it. Why did I blurt out the killing part? He wouldn't let me know before killing me since no murderer would inform the victim that he would murder him.
Seeing my scared expression, he heaved a sigh and said, "You don't have to say sorry for this. Just drive carefully the next time."
"Oka—" I stopped midway when a question got into my mind. "Is there going to be a next time for me to work overtime?"
His lips curved into a small smile which he covered up by clearing his throat. He took a deep breath and answered, "That depends actually. If I hear you portraying me as a good boss in front of my employees behind my back, you have to work overtime once again."
"So I can do that as long as you don't hear it," I muttered under my breath.
I was the one who would lie bluntly to people I was not close enough with, but I could never lie with my close people. So I would tell the employees how good Zaiden was every time he scolded an employee.
"Aria," Zaiden's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "Did you recheck the contract?"
Since he was standing close to me, I took a step back and said, "No. I was about to until you came here."
"Okay, check it thoroughly." He pulled a chair for himself and sat on it, making me look at him blankly. When he looked at me, he informed me, "I will stay here till you recheck the contract and reprint it if there is any mistake. You might need my help to understand some terms."
I rolled my eyes. "I have been doing these for the past two years," I grunted and took a seat on my chair. I opened the file containing the contract and started to read it. All these times while reading the contract, I could feel Zaiden's eyes on me. It was slightly uncomfortable, but I managed to stay quiet.
"If you have any questions, which I know you have plenty in your mind, just ask," Zaiden let out after an awkward silence.
I closed the file and looked at him, raising my eyebrows. "I have no questions regarding the contract," I answered innocently.
"Aria," he called out, giving a chilly vibe to me, "You know what I mean."
I sucked in a deep breath and said to him, "Look, I sure do have plenty of questions but I don't want to ask. The more I know about it, the more I will be in danger. If you are into that kind of stuff, you must have plenty of enemies and they might target me if they learn I know about your personal life. Also, there is no assurance that you won't kill me. So if I know more about what I saw last night, there will be higher chances of you killing me."
I added further when his eyes locked with mine, "That's why I have decided to stay professional. We are just working in the same company and you are my boss."
Zaiden twitched his lips, crossing his arms against his chest. "There is one thing I want to let you know. If you keep it a secret, I will answer every question you have in your mind."
"But I will die if I reveal it by mistake," I pointed out, my voice almost inaudible at the thought of dying, that too by Zaiden's hands.
"You are smart and I know you will take every move after thinking a lot," he said and got up from the seat. "See you in the meeting." With that, he walked out of the cabin, leaving me alone.
Zaiden was willing to answer the questions I had in my mind. But that might put me in danger. If I got into danger, so would my mom and Freja. I couldn't let that happen. Those two were my only family.
It was wise to pretend like nothing happened. But if Zaiden continued to talk about that incident, how would I pretend to know nothing?
Shoving all the questions away, I decided to get ready for the meeting. I looked for my rubber band but it was nowhere in my cabin. Today, I had brought only one rubber band and it went missing. Great!
I took a pencil from the penholder on my desk and tied my hair into a bun with it. Taking the necessary files, I got out of the cabin.
"Good morning, Ma'am," Yana chirped and stood up.
"Good morning, Yana," I greeted her. "I am going to attend the meeting with Arizon Fashion now. So make sure my schedule is free during that time frame otherwise Zai—Boss will scold me."
Yana nodded her head. "Okay, Ma'am. Best of luck for the meeting."
"Thank you," I said and made my way to the private elevator.
The elevator got to my floor and as soon as the door opened, I saw Zaiden standing inside the elevator. As much as I wished to use the common elevator or the staircase to maintain a distance from him, I knew it was the busy hours for our office. I would be late for the meeting if I didn't take the private elevator.
"Do you know how to get in or do you want me to teach you how to step in an elevator?" Zaiden deadpanned. "Take a ste—" he stopped when I walked into the elevator and then he let out a chuckle. "Glad you know it."
I stayed quiet and pressed the button to close the door of the elevator. We stood at two ends of the elevator, waiting to reach the seventh floor. I couldn't help but look at Zaiden from head to toe, wondering whether he had a gun with him now or not. I tried to look at his pocket properly.
Suddenly, Zaiden unbuttoned his coat, which made me look in another direction due to the discomfort engulfing me.
"What are you doing?" I asked, getting nervous.
"Are you looking for this?" he questioned, and I turned to look at him.
He pointed his index finger on the holster on his belt with a gun in it.
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Chapter-4: Resignation LetterAria AnastasiaA gasp escaped my lips, seeing a real gun in front of my eyes. It reminded me of the dead body I saw last night. "No!" I dropped the files from my hands and covered my face with my hands in fear.I could feel a hand being placed on my shoulder just when the elevator made a 'ding' sound."Aria, are yo—" before Zaiden could complete his sentence, I pushed his hand away from my shoulder. Picking up the documents from the ground, I dashed out of the elevator, leaving him behind.Instead of going inside the conference room, I went to the washroom first. I kept the files at one side and turned towards the sink. I splashed some water on my face, trying to forget the dead body which was bleeding in front of my eyes, and
Chapter-5: Vision DarkAria AnastasiaYesterday was Sunday, so the office was closed and I couldn't submit my resignation letter. I could've submitted it the day I wrote, but I was scared of Zaiden's reaction. However, today, I would give the resignation letter to Zaiden, come what may.With full determination, I entered the office. As soon as I saw the private elevator was about to close, I ran towards it. Soon I could get into the elevator.After pressing the button on my floor, I was panting hard because of the morning run I had to catch the elevator. I didn't notice anyone being in the elevator until a voice spoke, "You shouldn't run like that with those heels."I rolled my eyes and looked at Zaiden, who was standing at the other corner of the elevator, his hands i
Chapter-6: Captivated QueriesAria AnastasiaWhen my eyelids opened slowly, I found myself in an already illuminated and modern room. Everything was polished and glossy, only I was the one tied on a chair.What happened after I was walking out of Zaiden's office? I handed the resignation letter and got out of the room, right? Then how did I land up here? I tried to think about what had happened, but the more I thought, the more confused I got.Suddenly, I realized that someone placed a handkerchief over my mouth and made me unconscious through the chloroform.Did Zaiden do it? No, he wouldn't.Was it his enemy then? Why would his enemy kidnap me?"Glad to see you are awake, Ms.
Chapter-7: A Million Dollar PromiseAria AnastasiaI averted my gaze to avoid the intense moment."I meant why am I still handcuffed? Why aren't you letting me go?" I changed the topic because his reply was really giving me Deja vû. It was better to not talk about his reply anymore.Zaiden let out a chuckle in amusement. "Even, I meant that if I free you without explaining everything to you, the first thing you will do is run away, and Lance will kill you for that. So I cannot afford to lose you otherwise, I have to tolerate a new MD."I rolled my eyes. "You are selfish.""Yeah, right," he deadpanned. Then he walked somewhere and came with a key to unlock the handcuff. "Just stay still," he ordered.
Chapter-8: A Face-TimeAria AnastasiaYesterday was indeed a rough day for me, but a new day was a new beginning. With that motivation, I was sitting on the chair in my cabin.I couldn't meet Lance after he left the room, and I felt bad for not having a proper meet-up. So I collected his number from Zaiden, deciding to text him when I had some free time.Being indulged in work, I was distracted up until my phone chimed. I took a look at it, only to find a text from Kael.Kael: Hello, my daughter. I am glad that you know it all. Now I don't have to feel guilty for hiding an important part a family should know.A smile formed on my lips as my fingers moved rapidly to reply to his text.Aria: Hey, Kael! I hope you
Chapter-9: Another SecretAria AnastasiaI was quietly eating with Zaiden after our food arrived.Apparently, he had booked for us at a restaurant before even asking me whether I had lunch or not. No wonder why he dragged me here to eat—in this fancy restaurant."Honestly speaking," I started to talk and broke the silence, "I don't like eating at fancy restaurants during the day."Zaiden was cutting his steak with a knife as he asked, "Why?""I don't know," I answered. "I prefer eating at these places during dinner only. For lunch, I prefer to eat in the cafeteria if I don't have a busy schedule. But if I have a busy schedule, I make Yana bring food from the office cafeteria for me."
Chapter-10: A New InternAria AnastasiaI felt my heart melt seeing those documents. I was having a sleepless night after I returned home from work. I left a text to Zaiden saying, 'I was home' but I didn't get a reply yet. Maybe he was really busy with the important work.Zaiden wasn't the cruel person I saw when he murdered someone. Rather, he was soft-hearted, just like Kael. How could I just see him as a murderer?Even after he saw me seeing the murder, he didn't yell at me for going into his cabin, nor did he lock me in a room until I agreed on keeping the secret. In fact, he just told me to ask him the questions I had in my mind and that he would clear it out. He never even tried to hurt me for once and explained everything to me calmly.He was
Chapter-11: A Little JealousyZaiden StormI was standing near the private elevator, waiting for Aria to come to the office. I would step into the elevator once I would spot her. After all, it was fun watching her run before the elevator door closed.She was smart, yet so foolish.A smile formed on my lips, remembering her. She was indeed unique.I glanced at the wristwatch, to see it was time for her to step into the office. When I looked at the direction of the reception, I saw Aria bumping into a guy, with whom she was talking now.I waited for her to end the conversation and come to me, but she was busy indulging in talks with him. I clenched my fist when she was laughing at his words. It