…….45 minutes later.The hall was in full buzz and people were dancing and having fun, waiting for the CEO to step up to the stage and give her final speech before the real party gets started. Most of the people in the hall were drinking and toasting each other, while some others were dancing to the pop music playing in the background, and some were still talking about what just happened, unable to stop laughing at how Robert had been dragged out of the hall. Gideon was seated in the front row of the hall, wine glass in hand; he had had to remove his jacket, as it was partially stained and wet.The hall was in full swing before the host quickly called everyone to order."Please, ladies and gentlemen, please be ready. The CEO will be here to address you all in a minute!"The giggles, whispers, and murmurs went into a hush after the announcement, and all eyes went straight to the stage as they anticipated Madam Dorothy. Some of the ladies whipped out their phones, ready to take video re
Gasps ripped through the crowd as they froze in absolute shock once they heard the news that he was the new CEO. Robert watched their reactions before he continued. "I am Robert, and I will be representing Madam Dorothy until the heir to M&P Financials is ready to take over."The crowd went up in giggles and audible gossips. Most of them didn't know of Madam Dorothy's son or what he even looked like, while most of the high-ups knew she had a son but they didn't also know him; they haven't seen him before."Oh my, I thought her son would be her heir? I actually thought it was her son.""No one knows what her son looks like. What if this is him and they're playing mind games with us?""I don't think so. I really don't think this is her son. If it is, then I think she would have made an announcement earlier."Stanley couldn't believe what he was hearing. Robert was now the newest CEO of M&P Financials? How was that even possible? He still saw him on the school group headline where he was
Turning around, Robert was surprised to see Gideon in front of his car."Hey, Mr. Simon," Gideon casually greeted with a soft smile.Simon reciprocated the smile with a handshake. "Hey, Gideon, how have you been? It's been quite a while since I saw you."The two of them greeted each other awkwardly, and Simon quickly excused the two men. Hearing Robert tell him to cut their profit by 50 percent, he just knew something was up, so he quickly connected the dots and left the place for them to have a one-on-one talk with each other.Gideon finally cleared his throat and said, "Look, Robert, ehm, I think I'm sorry about all that happened inside. I didn't know you were the new CEO, and you know, Stanley came along to say you're just a broke campus nerd, so I misunderstood."Robert growled, "So even if I was a broke campus nerd, you get to treat people the way you did? Does it make any difference to whom I am for me to get treated right?"Gideon's face flushed with embarrassment. He kept mute
.After the first ring, Ben picked up the call."Hello?" he said in a hesitant voice. "Hey, Rob?"Robert inhaled sharply. "Who the hell posted all these lies?""I don't know, man. I was offline for my family lunch when Jacob called me and informed me of what was going on. He said it was Olivia who started the rumors."Robert's fists began to clench slowly and his face started to turn red as he muttered coldly, "That bitch!""The news is all over the place, not just the school group. Different blogs are beginning to carry it with much more appealing captions and headlines," Ben complained bitterly.Robert's heart began to pound in his chest. All he could think of was Lily - she was the most vulnerable one amongst the two of them. If the news was really hitting the outside world, the scrutiny was going to be harsh. For over ten minutes, Ben explained to Robert how everything started to trend. Apparently, Olivia was only getting back at her for exposing her fake life with Owen.After he
Robert quickly sat up from his large bed and spoke, "Hey Lily?" He was met with silence this time, but he spoke up again, only for the call to get disconnected at once. He stood up from the bed, clearly confused and anxious at the same time. What really happened? Was it a Wi-Fi connection issue, or did Lily intentionally disconnect the call because she didn't want to speak with him?Robert gave it another try; he dialed her number again, but this time, it kept ringing and wasn't answered. A cold chill ran down his spine as the realization dawned on him that Lily didn't really want to speak with him. He had removed the pictures and videos from the blog sites, and due to copyright issues, almost all the blogs had deleted them from their pages, but the damage had been done already, and some gullible ones had already saved the pictures and videos on their phones.Robert's eyes widened in disbelief, his mind racing with thoughts. "What's going on? Why isn't she answering?" He tried calling
The students' chatter grew louder, their eyes fixed on Lily like hawks. Robert knew he had to do something, but what? Apologize? Explain? Try to make it right? Or blind all the eyes that were looking at her?But what could he say? The damage was done, the videos had been seen, and the rumors had spread like wildfire, so this reaction was expected.Meanwhile, Lily heaved a deep sigh and looked at the crowd of students who were all on the balcony of their halls just to have a sneak peek of her. She assured herself, looking at the side mirror, "Lily, you can do this!"She breathed in and out again, trying to steady her trembling hands. In reality, she already knew about all that had happened, even if she wasn't a social media person. It all started yesterday around 3 pm when she had finished beautifying her room with the new portraits and was anticipating when Robert would come over to see it. When her phone rang, and she looked at the ID, it was her sister. In the most casual manner eve
Robert and his friends stood up from their chairs when they saw Lily walking out of her car. She looked so ravishing and breathtaking, even in the adversity. She was so calm and even managed to exchange greetings and smiles with some students. From her expressions, Robert could tell she was deeply hurt, but she was just masking it all up."Oh my god, I heard the vice chancellor just asked Miss Lily to report to his office. Rumor has it that she would be fired!" one of the students rushed in and announced.Gasps ripped through the crowd, and the whole student body was in awe. They couldn't hide their opinions anymore."I always knew he was trouble! He's got a reputation for being a player, and now he's gone and gotten our favorite lecturer in trouble, always hovering around with bad luck!""He's always been a bit too smooth for my liking. I bet he sweet-talked his way into Miss Lily's heart!""I heard he's been bragging about his conquests to his friends! What a total narcissist! Now s
The students fell silent as they watched her break down inside her car. The once excited atmosphere slowly dissolved into the opposite as gossip began to rise again. Jacob and Ben, who were still in the hall, witnessed the whole scene until Lily finally drove out of the school premises.Meanwhile, Robert was on his way to the vice chancellor's office when he saw Lily walking out and wiping her tears away, so he quietly hid behind the next building and waited for her to leave before he came back out. For a few minutes, he watched her sob and then drive out of the school.With a new resolve, he walked over to the vice chancellor's office, but the two security guards stopped him. "I'm sorry, but you can't go in unless you have an appointment with him," said one of the security guards.Robert's eyes narrowed, his mind racing with options. He knew he had to get into that office, and he wasn't about to let two security guards stand in his way. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad