His Wicked Heart (EDITING)

Chapter Three

variegated tulip
(n.) beautiful eyes

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PAST
ONE YEAR AGO

GENEVIEVE

A knock on my door distracted me from the work I was doing. As I looked up from the piles of work, a small Russian voice was heard from the other side. "Miss Genevieve, are you inside?"

Sighing, I decided to speak up. "Yes, please, come inside." The door opened, revealing Alisa Ivanova, my colleague, who flashed me a little smile as soon as she appeared before my view. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

I returned the smile and shook my head. "It's alright. Did you need something?"

"No. I came here to let you know that our team leader was calling for you." She was talking about Aaron Wilson, our new team leader, who became a fan favorite as soon as he started his job here. With his talent in various sectors, he became a team leader in only a few months. And his charm was just as swoon-worthy.

"Ah, I see," I gave her a nod. "I'll see him in a moment. Thank you for letting me know."

She left after giving me a pleasant smile once again, and then I stood up from my chair. As I glanced at the clock, I noticed it was 2 p.m. That means the lunch break is near and so I'll have to get out of the room.

I got myself moving outside my room. Honestly, the outside of my office room was quite unpleasant for me. It made me feel like I was out of my comfort zone.

As soon as the team leader's room came into view, I knocked on the door once. But there was no response. So, I knocked twice. "Come in!"

I heard his cheerful voice from inside and decided to open the door. "Oh, Gen!" A pair of baby blue eyes looked up at me from behind his glasses, a pleasant smile touching his lips as soon as he saw me. "Hi," Aaron said.

"Hi," I replied back, "Alisa had told me that you were looking for me." He nodded upon hearing my words. "Yes, I did. Please, have a seat." He gestured for me to take the seat in front of his table. I followed through and sat there before he started speaking.

"Well," He sighed. "Gen, as I know that you and miss Valentina are close friends, I was wondering if you knew why she hasn't been coming to work for three days, counting today. I'm sorry to call you for this, but Gen, I couldn't reach her through a call, and I'm concerned."

I know it had been highly unprofessional for Val not to come to the office for three days without any prior notice. But her reasoning hadn't been explainable at all.

And I was definitely thankful that Aaron was calmer than how I expected him to be. After all, he is the one who is to be held accountable for the absence of his team member.

"I'm very sorry, Aaron, on Valentina's behalf, if you had to face any disadvantages because of her," I sighed before deciding to continue, "Well, she is very... sick. She definitely hadn't found the strength to email an application for leave."

I didn't know if my words were convincing enough. But by the look on Aaron's face, I could assume he'd take my words for granted. For now, only, though.