Pretending

Kaye sighed as she looked at her phone. Timothy had read her messages but hadn't replied. She couldn't fathom why he was acting like this—did she do something wrong?

Placing her phone on the table, she absentmindedly scrolled through her tablet and stumbled upon a file named "Serolf Empire."

What's this?

Puzzled, she couldn't recall having this file.

Just as she was about to open it, a coworker called her. "Kaye, PD wants to see you in his office."

"Alright, I'm coming!" Kaye closed her tablet, stood up, and headed to their PD's office.

Meanwhile, Timothy, fresh out of the shower, picked up his phone and saw Kaye's messages. Sitting on the bed, he realized he'd been ignoring her for two days. Perhaps it was time to make amends. Deciding to call her, he found she wasn't picking up.

Is she busy?

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.

....

"What???" Haru shouted.

The staff turned to Haru, confused, as they were now at the shooting site with the makeup artist having just finished his work.

"How dare he leave without telling me!" Haru exclaimed, reading the message on his phone. "I told him he should bring me wherever he goes!"

Haru stomped his feet, continuing to complain about the message. It was from Benjamin, informing him that Mikhail had gone to J City.

Haru Tychingco, a famous model known for his temper, childish demeanor, and bossy attitude, couldn't fathom Mikhail's actions.

Deep within Haru resided Rasheen Targaryen, who disliked Haru's job. Due to his modeling career, Rasheen couldn't freely go outside alone or assist in the search for Kaye. He had met Mikhail at a private event, where he pleaded to join the mafia family, but Mikhail declined, citing the potential for scandals and troubles due to Haru's fame.

Haru scowled and sat down. "Tsk. I can't believe he didn't tell me about this!"

"Haru! It's time to shoot!" his manager called him.

He sighed and stood up.

Arghh!!! I hate this freaking job!!!

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.

....

Kaye had just finished her drawings when she opened her phone to find numerous missed calls from Timothy.

"Tin, I'll go out for a moment," she said to her friend.

"Huh? Okay. We'll be going home in just a few minutes," Tin replied.

Outside the building, she called for Timothy, finding him leaning on his car.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't hear your calls. I was busy with work," she explained.

"It's alright, in fact, I should be the one apologizing. I'm sorry for ignoring you," Timothy said.

Kaye smiled and shook her head. "It's alright. You're busy with your work too, so I understand if you need more time to focus on it."

He checked the time on his wristwatch. "You're about to finish work soon. I'll wait for you here, and let's have dinner."

"About that..." Kaye looked at the ground and held her right arm.

"Don't worry, we will have our dinner tonight in a simple and ordinary restaurant. I'm sorry if I've been pressuring you out. I should have asked you first. I won't do it again," he said.

She smiled. "Thank you, Timothy."

He hugged her tightly.

.

.

At the restaurant...

"How's the food?" Kaye asked.

"Not bad, this is my first time eating these kinds of dishes," Timothy replied.

Kaye smiled, adding a few more foods to his plate. "This one tastes delicious, try this."

Timothy nodded and ate it.

When they finished their meal, Timothy excused himself to the men's room. Inside the cubicle, he couldn't hold back a curse as he vomited. "Fuck!" he muttered, emerging from the cubicle to wash his mouth and hands.

Determined, he forced himself to eat the food, pretending to enjoy it despite its unpleasant taste. Staring at himself in the mirror, he realized that if he wanted to win her over, he needed to endure these challenges.

On his way back to their table, he saw someone familiar. Claudius?

Panicked. He quickly returned to their table. "Let's go," he said.

"Why? Is there something wrong?" Kaye asked, confused.

"I remembered there are reports that I need to review," he explained, spotting the man who resembled Claudius walking towards a nearby table.

"Let's go," he repeated.

Kaye nodded, and they left without her noticing the man who resembled Claudius.

.

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....

The following day...

"Kaye! Let's go to the bar tonight!" Tin said with a wide smile.

"You look happy. Any special occasion?" Kaye asked.

"Hehe, Alvin and I are getting married next week!" Tin exclaimed.

"Wow, congratulations," Kaye said, genuinely happy for her friend.

She saw the happiness on her friend's face.

"Let's have a drink with Miss Rubie, let's celebrate until dawn!" Tin suggested.

Kaye chuckled. "Alright, let's get wasted tonight."

Tin happily danced and returned to her table.

Kaye remembered Timothy. "I have to inform him about this. I hope he won't get mad if I drink tonight," she muttered.

...

"Alright, but I will pick you up when you go home. I don't want you to take a taxi alone in the late hours," Timothy said while talking with Kaye on his phone. "Yes, of course, I understand. It's your friend's special day. Tell her my congratulations. Yeah, bye. See you later."

*Call ended*

He stroked his hair and forced a smirk. "Drinking, huh?"

He couldn't say no; he didn't want her to feel that he's controlling her. He had to maintain a good relationship with her until he could finally make her his. Although he allowed her to drink, He decided to discreetly follow her, keeping a watchful eye from a distance.

Moreover, he couldn't shake off the memory of the man who resembled Claudius at the restaurant. Determined to unravel the mystery, he ordered someone to look for information about him.

.

.

....

At the Dragons' Managing Director's office...

"Someone dared to sneak inside the arcade?" Mikhail asked while smoking his cigarette.

He sat in the Managing Director's chair with his feet on the table, while the director and staff stood with their heads lowered.

"Yes, this is the report that was sent to me earlier. They've already confirmed who it was and are asking for your decision and orders," Kira reported.

"Tsk. They keep disturbing me." Mikhail put his cigarette in the ashtray. "Then let's meet that fucker who dared to disrupt my search for Kaye."

"I will order them to detain him for you," Kira said.

"By the way, where's the report about Kaye?" Mikhail asked.

"Here's the information we got, sir." Kira placed the folder on the table.

Mikhail was about to read it when one of his men opened the door.

"Sir! There's a problem!"