“What did I miss?” Troy said as he peeked inside
The three of them looked at him. Sophia is still annoyed but is feeling better due to the prank.
“And what are you doing here again? Why are you always around Sophia? Are you stuck with each other or something?” Troy asked Liam
“Have you forgotten that I am your artist, so I have every right to be here? It just happened that Sophia is here too. Why are you jealous that we are close?” Liam answered, trying to annoy Troy
“Seems like you have a lot of free time these days. I think I should add more activities for you.”
Just as Liam was about to answer, his manager peeked in.
“Liam, we should go. We still need to go to the shop to get your makeup,” the manager said
“Go. I’ll call you. I promise that we will hang out for a day when you have a rest day.” Sophia pushed him when he seemed reluctant to go.
“I’ll call you later,” Liam said as he kissed me on the cheeks
Sophia smiled as she watched Liam go. Then her smile vanished as soon as he faced Troy.
“Oops. What did I do this time?” Troy asked when he noticed the change in her face
“First, you did not tell me that an appointment is needed for me to meet you. Who do you think you are? It’s not like you are the president or something,” she said in an annoyed voice
“Ahm! He isn’t the president. He is the CEO.” Ryker said coughing
“What? Aren’t you the CEO?” Sophia asked Ryker.
Ryker shook his head before pointing at a plaque on one of the shelves. Sophia wasn’t really interested in anything inside that office when they came inside. She only noticed that it has a black aesthetic.
“I told you not to call me CEO,” Troy told Ryker
“And why would you hide that on the shelf? Isn’t it supposed to be on your table?” Sophia asked Ryker
“You better go to your office before the two of us get in trouble,” Ryker told Troy, ignoring her question
“Come on. I still have a lot of work to do, so let’s finish talking about the setup.” Troy said before dragging Sophia
Sophia looked around as they entered Troy's office. Unlike Ryker’s office, which has a black aesthetic, Troy has a white aesthetic. The all-white office felt like a calm, bright cloud, not like a strict workroom. Sunlight came in softly through thin curtains. The white walls felt cosy with a soft rug. Comfortable white chairs made you want to sit down. Green plants in simple pots added life, looking nice against the white. A few books on a shelf made the bright room feel lived-in and warm, like a gentle hug.
“Do you need anything?” Troy asked as Sophia was still busy looking around his office
“No. Let’s talk about the reason you asked me to come here.” Sophia said
Troy sat down on his swivel chair, and Sophia sat in front. Troy sent a message on his phone then they heard a knock after a few minutes. Someone came inside holding a basket and a fruit tray. She must be Troy’s secretary. She left them on the table before going out.
“I don’t know which chocolate you like, so I have chosen different kinds. You have been having too much lollipop lately.” Troy explained before pushing the basket of chocolate to me
Sophia glanced at the chocolates before grabbing a grape that was in the tray and popping it in her mouth.
“Are you trying to bribe me?” she asked
“Maybe. And I want to make you feel better. I think I ruined your day, so I am trying to make it up to you. And you should have called me instead of throwing a tantrum outside,” he said
“I did not throw a tantrum. I was just annoyed, okay,” she blurted out
“Okay, okay. If you say so,” he said before shoving a strawberry in her mouth.
Sophia took some time to chew and swallow the strawberry because it was bigger than the kind she used to have before. She keeps on glaring at Troy as she chews, and Troy is just smiling widely while watching her eat.
“Be thankful that you know the things that I like,” Sophia said after she swallowed
“Are you in a good mood now?” Troy asked
Sophia popped a grape again in her mouth while nodding. Troy pushed a contract in front of her as he noticed her face brightening up. She signed it immediately and pushed it back when Troy was distracted.
“Are you crazy? Never ever do that next time. Always read what’s in the contract before signing.” Troy scolded her
“I scanned the document, and it seems reasonable enough. You were just too distracted to notice.” Sophia shrugged her shoulders
She kept on eating grapes as Troy stared at her with disbelief. Then she grabbed the tray and the basket of chocolate and moved to the sofa.
“Continue with your work. Don’t mind me here,” she said nonchalantly
“Are you going to eat all of that in one sitting? Did you not eat breakfast?” Troy asked
“I did. I had some waffles,” she answered before standing up
Troy shook his head as his eyes followed Sophia carrying the bunch of grapes in one hand while looking all over his office. She is moving like an inspector and looking at all the nooks and crannies.
“Can you keep still? I am getting dizzy from you moving here and there.” Troy complained
“I told you to ignore me. Why do you have to watch me with hawk eyes?” she answered.
“How can I ignore you when you are not only looking around but also keep on peeking at what I am doing? You can just look around. Stop stopping in front of me or behind me. Also, stop feeding me grapes. Are you trying to annoy me?”
“I’m just helping you get your daily dose of fruits and anger,” she said, offering a strawberry
Troy sighed before opening his mouth and eating the strawberry. He knows that Sophia is just trying to get revenge for all the training he did at the gym.
“You should get a girlfriend to feed you like this. Maybe the reason why you are always so moody is because you are single.” Sophia attacked him
Troy got caught off guard and almost choked on the strawberry that he was chewing. Sophia smiled successfully
“I can’t keep working with you around. Just leave for at least 30 minutes. I need to finish reviewing these contracts, and then I’ll take you out.” Troy said, giving me a warning look.
“Fine,” she answered
Sophia went back to the sofa and plopped down. She is now munching on the few strawberries that were left. Her phone rang, and Troy noticed how her aura changed.
“Hello, Sophia speaking.” She answered in a professional tone that Troy had never heard.
He cannot hear what the other person is saying on the line. 
“I’ll call you back later. I am not in the office right now,” she said before ending the call
“Oh, right. How about the one that I asked you to investigate?” Sophia said, turning to Troy after a few minutes of silence
“Can we talk about that later? I seriously need to finish these. Can you go and bother Ryker first? Just give me 30 minutes, okay?” Troy said, already frustrated
Sophia seemed unsure, then nodded like a lightbulb had suddenly gone on in her mind. She almost forgot about the target shooting favour that she was asking Ryker. He always left her messages on Seen, so she might as well talk to him in person.
“Oh, right. I also need to talk to him. I forgot that I have to tell him something in private,” she smiled before bolting out the door.
Troy wanted to ask about what she needed to tell Ryker in private, but he decided to do it later. He still has a lot of contracts to finish checking. He focused on the contracts before Sophia returned to bother him.
“Ummm, hi. I need to talk to you about something. Can I bother you for a few minutes?” Sophia peeked after she knocked on Ryker’s office door.
“Come in,” Ryker said in a cold voice that still gave shudders to Sophia. 
He lifted his gaze from a document that he was reading when he felt her sitting down on the chair in front of him
“Uhhh…” Sophia said, breathing in
“What is it?” Ryker asked
“Troy asked me to bother you since he needs to focus on something. Just for 30 minutes if you don’t mind.” She said as fast as she could.
“Come on. I don’t bite. What do you really want to talk about? Troy might have said that, but I don’t think you will come into my office just to bother me,” he said in a serious tone while raising his eyebrow
Sophia stood up, and before she could think about her action, she moved behind him, looked around, then leaned in to whisper.
“About the target shooting. You had not responded to my messages,” she whispered
Ryker turned his chair around to face her, and Sophia froze in place. What was she thinking about whispering to him? Ryker stood up and pulled Sophia to sit in his chair before leaning in.
“Is this top secret? Why do we need to whisper?” Ryker asked
Sophia, taken aback, tried to stand up, only to bump into Ryker’s chest.
“Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean to touch you,” she said, sitting back on the chair