"Sharon, this is an opportunity for you. With this contract, you will be able to–"
"I said no, Gladys, and that means no! I'm not interested!"
*Beep*
"Huhhh~~~"
Sharon cut off the call and threw her phone aside before letting out a loud exhale. Her heart that had almost jumped out of its cage started to calm down, but that was still not enough to recover from the fright that had seized her when the phone had broken the silence just now, so she took a cushion which she pressed against her face, then let out a shrill cry:
"Aaahhhhhh!"
She screamed, venting her burdensome emotions and shouting her fear away. She expelled the frustration that had been stewing inside her chest from all the events that had transpired over the past period, as well as her indignation. Fortunately, everything was muffled, and she didn't shake the walls of the apartment. And whether it was because of the action in itself or because of the spike in her blood flow it caused, a wave of warmth seemed to spread throughout her body, bringing her some sort of comfort that made her mind unwind, and leaving with a lighter chest.
*Knock-knock-knock*
The sound that broke the silence this time didn't startle Sharon as much as before. Maybe it was the difference between the knocking and the ringing of the phone, or maybe it was the scream that allowed her to shed some burden, or maybe, she just adapted, and got used to the sword hanging above her head.
She put the cushion down, and calmly turned to the source of the noise. After a second, she stood up and went to open the door. Outside, in the corridor, was a young woman holding not only a handbag, but also a clipboard against her chest, and another bag of purchase in her other hand. Sharon's eyes went back up to the cute face and the excited eyes sweetly smiling at her as the hand holding the bag of purchase was raised up:
"Miss Kenner, I come with your breakfast."
Sharon's eyes lingered on the locks of wavy hair left outside of the ponytail to frame the small fair face, their dark chestnut inexplicably reminding her of the brown of Alex's hair.
"Miss Kenner? Did I come at the wrong time?"
The call snapped her mind back to reality. She looked at the questioning eyes across, and turned around to go back inside:
"No, Eunice, you came at the right time. I'm already hungry."
Eunice blinked, then smiled brightly:
"Then I didn't fail my job as your personal assistant. Should I come earlier next time?"
"No. No need. Come on in."
Eunice stepped inside, her face still lit up with the energetic glow, and closed the door behind her. She glanced at the shoes haphazardly thrown to the side, then at the maroon-brown jacket her boss was still wearing, and finally at her bare feet. She quickly tidied up the mess and hurried after the blonde:
"Miss Kenner, are you just coming back from outside?"
"Yes. I went out to run some errands."
Sharon walked to the kitchen as she spoke, apparently having been truthful when she said that she was hungry.
"Hehehe. If I didn't know you, I would have thought that you spent the night out like the rich playboy, Alex Lenner. He made the news again, going to a nightclub last night with his arms around two absolutely gorgeous top models. But you should not walk around barefoot, Miss Kenner. You might catch a cold."
Sharon frowned, and glanced at her assistant in the midst of taking out the food from the kraft bag:
"What news?"
"Here."
Eunice wiped her hand, searched for the news again, then gave her phone to Sharon. The blonde looked at the search result:
*Alex Lenner, ever the playboy, with money the only constant, never with the same women at his arms, splurging again to book the trendy nightclub, the Lux, for a party with the two top models Caitlin Rays and Vinnie Caltero as the most notable guests.*
On the front page of the tabloid that appeared, below the title, was the picture of Alex Lenner, his arms around the two models named above, a blonde and a brunette, both hugged by tight dresses that screamed of no innocence at all. He had his trademark smirk on his lips as he kissed the blonde top model on the cheek while looking right into the camera, almost as if provoking the world to be jealous of him.
A trace of complexity flashed through Sharon's eyes as she remembered what she did to him last night. The picture made her recall his body that she had seen before running away. The heat of barely an hour ago came crawling back into her chest. He was indeed handsome, and hot beneath his clothes, but…
Sharon bit her lip, before her eyes slid down Alex Lenner's arm around the blonde model's shoulder, to the patch of exposed skin his hand was almost brushing against. Looking at the deep cleavage of Caitlin Rays, a few words from earlier in that luxurious apartment floated back to her mind:
"You might lose by a small margin. A very small margin."
Alex's voice felt too clear in her memory, along with his seemingly comforting gaze, and his placating smile. The irritation that had faded in the background of the situation came back even stronger than before, making Sharon clench her teeth and slam the phone down onto the counter of the kitchen with an angry huff:
*Pak*
"Humph! As expected, no Lenner is ever anything good!"
She angrily stood up and turned to walk away while dryly throwing to the back:
"I'm going for a shower first. I will be back soon."
"Oh…"
Eunice remained frozen behind the kitchen counter, only able to let out her bitter bewilderment as she looked at the poor device she used both for work and for entertainment. She didn't know what went wrong. But before she could wallow in sadness, she suddenly recalled something, and she hurriedly raised her head to look at the back going away:
"Miss Kenner, about the endorsement contract with–"
"I said, no!"
"Oh."
The snappy interruption gave Eunice a pause, then she shrugged her shoulders. She forgot her phone and resumed taking out the breakfast she had brought to keep it warm. Meanwhile, in the bathroom Sharon, naked, stopped before the mirror to observe herself, hold her chest, then snort through gritted teeth:
"He is just blind! It is not inferior in any way! Humph!"
With that last punctuation laced with unsurprising resentful bite, the blonde spun around with irritation, her golden hair flying behind her, and stepped into the shower. Maybe she might be able to wash away the night and all the frustrations it had given her. Maybe.