Pearl's Date

Alan sat at his desk, his eyes fixed on the computer screen as he stared at the dismal sales figures for his cargo delivery services. The electric flights made by Sea co. were now dominating the market, leaving Tronc's services in the dust. He leaned back in his chair, trying to think of a way to turn the tide.

Tronc's main source of income was cargo delivery, and now that sales were down by 15%, Alan's mind raced with worries of layoffs and budget cuts. He knew he had to act fast, or else the company would spiral into oblivion.

He thought about purchasing an electric plane engine, but his attempts were thwarted by Sea co. who denied him the purchase. They didn't want to sell to a company that spread rumors about their partner, leaving Alan more frustrated than ever.

As he sat there, he couldn't help but think about his missed opportunity with Portal. He could have put an end to the wholesale vendor when it was just starting out, but he had put it off. Now, as he saw Portal becoming a billion-dollar company, he realized that his inaction had come back to bite him.

Alan leaned back in his chair and let out a deep sigh. He knew he had to come up with a new strategy to keep Tronc afloat, or else he would be forced to make some very difficult decisions. He just hoped that he could find a way to turn things around before it was too late.

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Pearl met up with Forger at a local café, the atmosphere was dull, it lacked any excitement or spark that Pearl was hoping for. Forger started talking about his work, which was manufacturing car parts and went on to mention the different types of machines that he uses to get the job done. Pearl tried her best to feign interest but her mind was wandering, she checked the time on her phone and was shocked to see that only 15 minutes had passed.

Forger continued to talk about his work, but all Pearl could think about was how she could politely cut this date short. She tried to steer the conversation towards other topics, but Forger always brought it back to his work, Pearl tried to ask about his hobbies but there was nothing in common that they shared.

As they were sipping their coffee, Pearl's eyes caught sight of a man walking by with a cute dog, she exclaimed "Oh, look at that cute dog!", Forger simply replied "Yeah, that's a Cocker Spaniel", and the conversation died down again.

Pearl tried to put on a smile and pretend to be interested, but the date felt like an eternity to her. She couldn't wait to get out of there, and as soon as Forger paid the bill, Pearl breathed a sigh of relief. She thanked him for the date and made a quick escape. As she walked away, she thought to herself "Well, that was the most boring date I've ever been on".

After this she went to watch a Movie, As Pearl sat in the cinema watching the movie, she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief that her date was over. It had been just as Alex had predicted - boring and uneventful. She took out her phone and messaged Alex, thanking him for his advice and telling him how right he was about the guy.

As the movie played on, Pearl was lost in her thoughts when suddenly she bumped into someone.

Julia with none other than John. The two bullies had started dating since their last encounter, and it made Pearl cringe. But what really shocked her was when Julia revealed that she thought Pearl and Alex were dating, and as a result, she had ditched her crush on him and said yes to John.

Pearl just left the Cinema hall without clearing the misunderstanding she thought this was for the best but what she didn't know was deep down in her heart she wanted it to be true.

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Alex was finishing up his meeting with the LocalEat's team, going over plans for the company's expansion, when he received a text from Pearl. He smiled as he read her message about her date being a bit dull, glad to have been proven right. After the meeting, Alex decided to head home to the mansion instead of his dorm, eager to relax and unwind.

As he rode in the taxi, Alex's mind drifted to thoughts of his friends at the mansion. He wondered where Maxie, Sophia, and Ren were, hoping to catch up with them and hear about their latest adventures. But when he arrived at the mansion, his search for them turned up nothing. Growing concerned, he asked some of the workers if they had seen any of the high-ranking officials, but their responses left him feeling uneasy.

Panic set in when one of the workers mentioned that they had seen some of the others checking the cave. Alex's heart raced as he ran towards the cave.

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Maxie was going about her daily routine in the office, answering emails and attending to various tasks. Suddenly, a question posed by Jessica caught her attention: who was delivering all the products to the warehouse, given that the workers were operating in 24/7 shifts? Maxie realized that even as the CEO of the company, she had no idea where the products were coming from or how they were being delivered. It was then that she recalled Alex's strict warning to stay away from the cave, which he had sealed with layers of security locks and walls.

Unable to shake the curiosity, Maxie decided to take a closer look. She found Sophia taking a break and enlisted her help, and the two of them made their way towards the back of the mansion. As fate would have it, Ren noticed them on their journey and asked to tag along, eager to find out what secret their boss was hiding.

When they arrived at the cave's entrance, they were surprised to find that the lock was simply Alex's father's birthday. When Sophia was asked how she knew the combination, she replied nonchalantly, "It was obvious." Little did they know, this seemingly innocent decision to explore the cave would lead them down a path of discovery.