This morning, Darwin headed to work feeling at ease. Fortunately, during breakfast, he didn’t run into Veronica or have to be around her since she had left earlier.
As a result, upon arriving at the office, Darwin immediately began tackling the tasks that were waiting for him. For the first two hours, everything went smoothly without any hiccups. Then, in the following hours, the calm he had been trying to maintain was suddenly disrupted.
From outside, he heard a knock on the office door. Before long, his eyes caught sight of a woman he recognized entering. Accompanied by the sound of sobbing that instantly sent him into panic mode.
“Vivian, what’s wrong?”
The woman named Vivian quickened her steps to approach Darwin. Once she was right in front of her lover, without any hesitation, she lunged into his arms.
“Darwin, please help me,” she whimpered while sobbing. Her eyes were swollen and puffy, likely from crying for quite some time.
Darwin, in his panic, tried to calm her down slowly. Loosening his embrace, he asked again.
“Help with what? What happened to you? And why did you come here without letting me know beforehand?”
Vivian continued to sob. Holding her chest, which seemed tight, she struggled to answer and explain the sequence of events causing her distress.
“I just got fired,” she whispered while wiping away tears.
“Fired?”
Vivian nodded immediately.
“I’ve even been blacklisted by all the company’s partners. So, it’ll be difficult to find work elsewhere.”
Darwin’s eyebrows furrowed. He looked puzzled by the trouble that had befallen his lover.
“How did this suddenly happen? Did you cause any problems?”
“I didn’t do anything,” Veronica countered weakly. “And what’s worse, I’ve been kicked out of the apartment I was living in.”
“What?!”
Darwin exclaimed in disbelief. How could his girlfriend be evicted when he had already paid the apartment rent for the next two years? Late payments or arrears couldn’t possibly be the reason.
Furthermore, upon reflection, why were these issues arising all at once or in succession? It felt peculiar to him, as if something was off.
“What’s really going on here?”
“I don’t know,” Vivian replied softly. “I was suddenly evicted. I was only given today to pack up. What should I do, Win? Where am I supposed to live now? And my job is gone too.”
Darwin briefly closed his eyes. Massaging his temples gently, he pondered the best course of action. Before long, the idea of contacting the apartment owner crossed his mind. Since he had paid in full, he felt it was necessary to clarify and get an explanation for why Vivian was evicted.
“Sit on the sofa for now. Let me try calling the apartment owner. Maybe there’s just a misunderstanding.”
Vivian nodded and complied. As she sat on the sofa, Darwin quickly grabbed his phone and dialed the apartment owner’s number to inquire about the situation.
“Hello, good afternoon, Mr. Bagas,” Darwin greeted politely as the call on the other end was picked up.
“Good afternoon to you too, Mr. Darwin. How can I assist you?”
“Well, I wanted to clarify about unit 505 in the Lemondae tower that I rented from you. The payment has been made in full. But why was the tenant asked to leave?”
“Ah, Mr. Darwin, you’re asking about that? Let me explain. I initially rented out unit 505. But yesterday, someone made a high offer to buy it. Since I’m naturally looking to profit from this, I accepted the offer.”
Hearing the explanation from the person on the other side, Darwin felt a surge of anger. He was frustrated because, in his opinion, the apartment owner had acted unjustly.
“But, Mr. Bagas, I’ve paid for the rent for the next two years. How can a decision like this be made unilaterally?”
“I apologize, Mr. Darwin. But don’t worry, I’ll refund the full rental amount to you.”
“It’s not about the money. It’s just so abrupt.”
“His name is fortune, Sir,” retorted Bagas. “Besides, this is my apartment. So, I can rent or even sell it as I please. Plus, it’s rare to find someone willing to buy at a high price above the market.”
“If I may ask, who bought the apartment, Sir?”
Darwin became curious himself. Actually, who was the wealthy person who bought the apartment Vivian occupied for a price above the market value? Even the regular price was already incredibly high. That’s why Darwin could only rent out the apartment unit instead of buying it for Vivian.
“The buyer’s name is Ms. Veronica Wijaya. You know, Sir, the only daughter of Mr. Damian Ashborne, the famous one. I couldn’t believe it myself when she suddenly showed up and wanted to buy my apartment.”
Darwin’s throat tightened right then. He was both astonished and shocked by the information he had just heard.
Without waiting long or thinking much, Darwin immediately stepped out to head to Veronica’s room. He needed to quickly clarify what his wife was up to. Vivian herself seemed to follow along, trailing behind Darwin wherever he went.
“Veronica, we need to talk!”
Without any permission at all, Darwin entered his wife’s room abruptly. Yet, at that moment, Veronica and Sean were working on an important task that had to be completed today.
“Mr. Sean,” Darwin continued, deliberately addressing Sean who was sitting in front of his wife. “Can I have a moment? I need to talk seriously with my wife.”
Sean gave a slight smile and nodded. He rose and immediately left the room, without the slightest desire to get involved in the issue between Veronica and her husband.
“You dare to bring your affair into my room!” Veronica openly taunted, giving Vivian a disapproving glare. In fact, at the same moment, she seemed to reach for the phone on the table and made a call.
“Andrea, please call the head of security and ask them to come to my room immediately.”
Right after Veronica placed the phone handle back, she looked up. Staring sharply, she clearly displayed an aura of hostility.
“Quickly! What do you want to say to me in my room?”
Darwin returned the gaze, then expressed the grievances he had been trying to hold back.
“What do you mean by buying the apartment Vivian occupies? I know you did it on purpose,” the man retorted.
Veronica chuckled softly. Raising one eyebrow high, she responded casually as if without any guilt.
“No hidden meaning. Just wanted to waste some money. Besides, let alone an apartment, even if I wanted, I could buy your affair’s dignity right now. But, unfortunately, she has no dignity. Because if she did, she would never dare to disturb someone else’s husband.”
Darwin clenched his jaw. His hands were tightly balled into fists, struggling to contain his anger. Veronica’s remarks that clearly belittled Vivian had successfully provoked his emotions.
“Watch your mouth, Veronica!”
“Why? Don’t you like it?”
“And I’m sure you’re the one who got Vivian fired from her job.”
Without denying even a bit, Veronica nodded. Confirming what Darwin accused her of.
“Of course. I did it all. Let alone getting rid of your affair from the company. Ending her life in this world, if you want that, I can do it.”
Vivian, who was standing behind Darwin, stepped forward immediately. Her body trembled visibly, shocked by the threat Veronica had just delivered.
Darwin, of course, reacted instantly. However, before he could speak, the door to Veronica’s room was knocked and two security personnel entered to face her.
“Is there something I can assist you with, Ma’am?” one of them asked.
Veronica nodded. She raised her finger and pointed towards Vivian.
“Escort that woman out of this building. Please remember her face well. In the future, I don’t want to see her wandering around the office for any reason or purpose.”
“Understood, Ma’am.”
After the command echoed, the two security personnel politely requested Vivian to leave Veronica’s room.
Darwin, torn, initially wanted to intervene. But, not wanting to create a scene, he asked Vivian to comply and leave following the security personnel.
“Veronica, you’ve gone too far!” Darwin continued after Vivian had left his wife’s room.
“That’s nothing compared to what you’ve been doing to me all this time, Win. I warned you before. But you’re the one who keeps stirring up trouble with me. I told you, this is nothing. If you want, I can do much worse to your beloved girlfriend.”
“Stop, Ve!” Darwin shook his head. His face looked serious as he stared at Veronica. “I’m begging you. Stop this madness. Please don’t bother Vivian again.”
Veronica scoffed in laughter. It seemed all too audacious for her husband to plead on behalf of another woman in front of her like this. His recent actions only infuriated her further.
“Why? Afraid something will happen to your sweetheart? Yet, I’m just starting this game.”
“Ve, please. I’m begging you to stop,” Darwin pleaded once again. For the first time in a long time of cold war between them, he was requesting and even begging Veronica to cease her insanity.
Meanwhile, Veronica continued to laugh relentlessly. Somehow, she felt happy and satisfied seeing the desperation on her husband’s face.
“Do you want me to stop?”
Darwin nodded right then.
“Please put an end to all of this.”
“Sure,” Veronica replied. “I’ll stop. But there’s a condition.”
Darwin sighed deeply. Suddenly, a sense of unease washed over him. He was certain that something significant was going to be demanded of him after this. But what could he do? He was cornered now. Rather than risking Vivian getting hurt or being in danger, it was better for him to give in.
“Alright. What condition are you proposing?”
Veronica’s lips curled in a triumphant smile. She was delighted because one of her plans had begun to yield results. Now, it was time to execute the next phase of her plan.