Chase got to work ealy the next day and he barely managed to walk past his giggling and mocking colleagues as he went to his station."Are you okay? I heard what happened," Evelyn rushed to him as soon as he opened the door, eyeing his body to check for any injuries. She had just finished her rounds the previous night when she heard that there was something going on in the lobby and it involved a cleaner in her unit. On getting there, the drama had ended and the crowd was dispersing."What happened?" She had asked Natty, a chatty girl that worked in laundry department."Oh, just some random dude that got what he deserved," the girl had said and laughed away with her friends.She knew that Theo was the only male in here unit and after more enquiry, the scrawny description that the people gave matched him. Somehow, she felt guilty because if she had allowed him wait for her, he wouldn't have bumped into the man."I'm fine," Theo said, not meeting her eyes. He really didn't want to talk

They got into the store and were already getting weird glances from the entrance. They went deeper and walked through a varieties of precious stones that were encased in glass and displayed on the wall. One simple jadeite caught Evelyn's attention. It was a simple pendant with a blue Jade stone in form of a teardrop and it had tiny snowflakes around it. She was awed by the masterpiece and her hand unconsciously reached out to touch it. Chase noticed her liking for the piece and he admired it as well. It was simple and beautiful, just like her."Hey, don't touch that," one of the female attendants boomed, which startled Evelyn and she yanked off her hand immediately."Sorry," she said softly but the woman kept shooting daggers at them."Were you trying to steal that?" She asked and her lips curved up in a sneer, she took in their appearance and from attending to the store, she knew what rich looked like and she knew what it didn't and a rich man definitely didn't wear ratty shoes, h

"Don't you like the food?" Chase pointed at her almost untouched food. The thought of her mother always left a bitter taste in her mouth.Seeing his worry, she plastered the biggest smile that she could muster. "I like watching you eat," she said jokingly although it wasn't far from the truth. The fact that he had a girlfriend kept nagging at the back of her mind but she ignored it. It wasn't like they were married or anything right?"Hey, that's cheesy," he scolded but couldn't stop the grin that escaped and spread across his lips."You know, since we're friends, I should invite you to my house for dinner sometime. I can't cook as good as this but trust me, I'm decent," she offered with a smile and Chase rapidly nodded his head.He couldn't say no to home-cooked food, especially when she asked so nicely and besides, he felt safe with her. A sense of security that he didn't even get from being with his supposed girlfriend. "Eat your food," he said sternly this time.Evelyn knew she ha

After the morning rounds, they went back to the office and Alice went about for office gossip."I'm beat,"Chase said as he landed in the chair with a thud. One of the rooms he cleaned, a woman made him tear the whole place upside down, twice, in search for her ring which at the end, was sitting pretty inside her purse. He pulled out the two hundred dollar bills which she had tipped him afterward and sniffed it. "Nice reward," he said and pocketed the money back."Tell me about it," Evelyn grumbled, also sounding tired from her rounds."You know what would make us better? He asked and his eyes twinkled in amusement."Coffee!" They both said in unison."Don't worry, I got it," he said and stood up when she made a move to get the coffee started.That had become their daily routine. Morning rounds, coffee afterwards, more rounds, lunch at the cafeteria, more rounds, then final round and close. Usually, Evelyn was the one that made the coffee but that day, he wanted to do something for her

Just like a déja-vu, Laura was bent over her reading table, receiving back shots from a man whose face he hadn't seen yet. Just like last time, blood drained from his face and he stood rooted on his feet."Laura," just like last time, he could only manage a croaked whisper. They hadn't even heard him come in amidst their intense love-making till the wind carried her name to their ears.Laura turned around, shocked at first but the look of shock soon turned to irritation when she saw who it was.The man also turned around and it was none other than Patrick. Chase felt like a complete fool. He should have known all along. The reason why she had been acting up for the last couple of weeks and it all started after that day on the road."What?" Laura snapped at him, pulling him out of his reverie."I….I came to give you your gift," he found himself saying, looking everywhere but at them. When he caught himself, he immediately scolded himself. They should be the ones ashamed. Why was he th