In the Shadow of the CEO のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 41 - チャプター 50

 "You must be kidding."Jia spread her arms a little in a disarming, helpless gesture. "It'll be brief," she said. "I'm just supposed to make sure you're settled in comfortably.""You're babysitting me.""No," she insisted. "Mr. Grayson just wants me to -"Dolly's hand chopped at the air between them, narrowly missing Jia's nose with a swipe. "My God, just call him Atlas. If I hear one more person call him Mr. Grayson again, I'm going to lose it -""Atlas, sorry," she amended immediately. They were alone in the elevator as they dropped down toward the parking garage in the basement level; no one else was around to hear her call her boss so familiarly. If it meant soothing Dolly's aggressive outbursts, then the small sacrifice was more than worth it."So Atlas wants you to make sure I'm not playing with matches or taking candy from strangers -"More like taking candy from babies when it came to Dolly's personality, Jia thought pri

 The movie was an A-list blockbuster with at least a dozen distinct explosions, several burning buildings, and plenty of high-octane car chases, one of which involved a tank. In other words, it was exactly the kind of movie the twins would have chosen anyway had Dolly not asserted herself before they ever got the chance."That was sub-par," the woman was complaining as they trailed out of the cinema room. "Every line in that movie made me cringe.""But not as much as when Bale snapped that guy's elbow the wrong way," Jisu quipped. "That was rough."At least he was getting along decently with Dolly, Jia noticed. Jini was as quiet as usual, but judging by how she was glancing around and taking in the sights instead of dragging a sullen glare over the floor, she was in a better mood than usual too. Maybe this wasn't an awful mistake after all, Jia thought, especially since the other woman hadn't asked a single question about the twins yet."So are you a

 "...Dolly, what did you...""Shhh, it's okay," the woman said as she rubbed soothing circles on Jia's back. "You're fine.""I...no...something's wrong...""No, you're just a lightweight. Come here, we'll go outside where it's nice and cool."Jia rubbed at her eyes but had to abort the movement halfway; she nearly stumbled and only just managed to catch herself with a hasty grasp on the corner of the bar counter."What do you mean," she slurred. "I'm...All I had was soda."Dolly rubbed her nose and sniffed. "Yeah, you're right," she said after a few seconds, and then proceeded to lift Jia up by the arm and hobble her over to the entrance past milling customers."Dolly...""Okay, fine, I may or may not have mixed something in there while you were in the bathroom.""You...!"The redhead had dragged her out the doors by now, and a crisp evening breeze swooped down to buffet them with a stinging vengeance. "Relax

 What was she supposed to say?Atlas had already declined her every apology, and at this point, she feared that offering another one would only make him angrier. He was stone-silent as they stood side by side in the elevator that took them to the top of the building, and just as silent when they entered his penthouse. Not a word, not a sound.Jia shivered and wondered if perhaps he was planning a way to dispose of her body after this. She glanced over her shoulder and cast a final, longing look at the closing elevator doors before turning to look forward again.This was her fault. She and Atlas had never gotten along, and she was still of the firm belief that he was a terrible person for what he had done to her. But their questionable relationship and history didn't matter right now:  Jini had destroyed his expensive suit jacket, and the consequences were Jia's responsibility to handle. It was as simple as that."Have a seat."Jia gave th

Sunday had been awful. Jisu and Jini had gone to spend the day with their classmates to work on some group project, and it was now half past eight at night. Mr. and Mrs. Lee handled their own Sunday overnights at their store, which was a relief, but on the other hand, that had given Jia plenty of time to pace up and down the apartment. Until the neighbor on the floor under them banged on their ceiling and told her to take her Xanax.She had given in and texted Jisu, asking if they wanted anything for dinner. She had gotten a call back fifteen minutes later with a quick assurance that they were well taken care of at their friend's house, and that the project was taking a lot longer than they had thought it would....which meant that they would be staying over.Jisu had told her not to worry, and then hung up.Sick to her stomach with guilt, anxiety, and fatigue, she had promptly gone to bed and ignored the fifteen text messages from an international number on her