In my words

Abscission

Abscission: the natural detachment of parts of a plant, typically dead leaves and ripe fruit.

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the first floor which was booked for the reason of spying was being used as a leisure tea drinking spot. His hazel eyes shined golden of the soft sunlight from the morning crack, as the tip of his index figure circled the rim of his british-style tea cup. He maintained his gaze at her face as she faked a smile to the waitress who complimented her earlier actions of insulting the old man. Faking a shy smile as if to be flustered, she waved her hands in embarrassment and watched the waitress leave.

His silver locks would brush over his forehead with each movement. The glim of softness in her irises changed, as if to be replaced with the focus of a hawk eyeing it's prey.

Ah. I am the prey here.

Maintaining eye contact with confidence, her deep haze of eyes looked into his. A smile of satisfaction graced her crimson tinted lips. As if she was the king of this world, the auro made him feel the sensation of being trapped. It was just a smile and Paul already felt threatened, her eyes only looked into his to maintain an impression and yet, Paul felt as if he was being trapped in an endless labyrinth of darkness. Her eyes may be the colour of the pitch night but felt more threatening than a moonless night.

A room with no doors to escape from and yet, he liked the thrill. He may be just ecstatic from finally coming across a woman who did not give a damn about the gender norm that the society has set out for them, a woman who only sought her greed and did not use her gender as a pass for her actions. The question was-

Is that all she has? Could she offer more to his cause?

Upon hearing her name numerous times already, Paul was aware of her status by now. She was famous for climbing up the social ladder despite her status and gender. Now that the morning caffeine was finally running his engines, he could recall seeing her a few times in the business balls hosted by the Imperial family. Alas, as the failure of Bricks' family, all he did was enjoy the night with the delishes provided by the royal family, meeting few old friends and returning home with no progress in his social standings like the failure he was.

Even as a commoner, she was someone who had more importance in the eye of the Imperial family- profit-wise anyway. From what Paul could tell, she has more foes than friends. The only pillar of support she has is her business skills and her achievements.

Whoever said that behind every success woman is a supportive man?

Paul did not pity her. If anything, he envied her. His 28 years of living, he has never been enthusiastic for something nor has he ever accomplished something of her calibre. Paul had jumped in to aid for only one reason, he wanted to make contact and see if she had what it takes to inspire him. He jumped in thinking that it would be him who would take charge of the situation, it was proving to be otherwise. He had heard stories about her, how she would prey on potential business partners and not let go without taking away what had interest her.

Just what could she possibly want from me?

"Just what could she possibly want from me?"

For a split second, there was a flicker of surprise in his hazel eyes, only to be replaced with a smile of curiosity.

"Not only controlling public opinion but you also seem to be a mind reader. Are you perhaps a sorcerer, Ms Pen?"