Monday came around too soon. The stares that I received at the office were the worst. They stared at me like I was in a bar fight or doing boxing.

When I passed my PA's table, her eyes widened like saucers. She hastily stood up and rounded the table to get to me.

I flashed her a smile and said, "Good morning too, Melissa."

"What happened to your face, Mr. Jones?"

She was about to caress my jaw, but I shied away and muttered, "Still sore."

"What happened to you?" she asked again, as if I didn't hear her.

"Nothing to worry about. Any meetings today?" I dismissed her question because I couldn't say that I got punched in the face by an asshole.

She flipped through her files elegantly, then turned to me.

"You have a meeting with Mr. Hughs at twelve o'clock," she said, a grin on her face.

I was confused beyond reason because why would the CEO request a meeting with me? I mean, I've worked here for a year and I've never, ever had a meeting with Mr. Hughs.

I heard her chuckle, then said, "You do remember that Mr. Hughs, has retired, right? This one is his son that was appointed as the new CEO and he wants to meet all the bosses of the departments. And he’s hot!" she squealed excitedly.

"Oh."

"Yeah. And I put your files on your table,"

"Thanks, Melissa," I said, then entered my office.

If I'd known that I'd get assaulted in the restaurant, I wouldn't have gone. Now I will probably look like a badass when I enter the boardroom with my bruised jaw. Just great!

The only time that I've gotten in a fight was when I was 16 years old and my father had died. I lost my sanity there and I was a mess. The guy in my class took my chair because his had broken down. I didn't listen to reason and just full on attacked him. I had lost my sanity and ability of judgement.

My father had leukemia, but it was treated. We thought it was gone, only to find out that a small portion of it was left. It was detected too late. I thought that he was going to survive due to being hospitalized for five months. Before he died, he was somebody that I didn't recognize. I knew that he was still my dad, but the way his body had given up and lying on that bed whilst breathing his last breath, it was traumatizing. The worst part was that he died in pain. He was in pain when he died, and there was nothing I could do about it.

That day, I told my mother that I didn't want to die like how my father died. I told her that when I died, I wanted to be in the best condition. I wanted to die being somebody that they recognized. I told her that if I had a chronic disease like diabetes mellitus and it was getting worse, or if I had a life-threatening illness like cancer and it was reaching its peak, I told her to kill me or I'd do it myself.

I'm a coward, I know. A big one at that. I'm afraid of pain. It could be emotional or physical. The fact is it is still pain and I'm afraid of it. I'm afraid of getting old. I hate the idea of being dependent on someone. I hate the idea of being a burden. The idea of being all old and having wrinkles all over my body scared and repulsed me. I did not want to reach old age, all helpless and a burden to my family.

Twelve o'clock came too soon because I swear, it was just seven o'clock a few minutes ago. A knock sounded on my door, then it opened to reveal Melissa. She was beautiful, perfect for any man and she was kind, smart and had a sense of humor. I didn't even know why I couldn't ask her out. Maybe it’s because she’s my assistant and office love was not condoned. I knew she had the hots for me, but I turned a blind eye with the excuse that office love complicated things. Deep down, I knew why I couldn't ask her out. I knew why I refused to look at her in a more romantic way. I felt guilty. That's all.

I felt like I was betraying the person who still holds my heart even to this day. The person… no. The two people who still hold my heart. I can't move on because my mind is refusing me to. I can't move on from my past because it has chained me to the ground with its horrible chains.

I had my one nightstands, but that's all there was. I haven't been in a relationship since five years ago. That's how messed up my life is.

"It's five to, Sir," she said, a small smile directed my way. It was innocent to be honest. But I did not miss the flush that surfaced the longer I looked into her eyes.

I stood up from my chair and grabbed my phone. "What's the meeting even about?"

"Mr. Hughs just wants to introduce himself to all the department bosses. Something to do with being a happy and healthy family," she replied.

I rolled my eyes at that as we headed out of my office.

"Are you eating out today or..."

I flashed her a smile, then replied, "No. Just bring a green salad and a soda for me, please."

"Okay."

I walked towards the elevator, passing the occupied cubicles, even greeting the people I passed by. I got in the elevator and punched number 29. It was the floor the meeting was going to be held.

Seeing that the loneliness was going to murder me, and I mean literally, I dialed Shelly's number and called her. When I was about to hang up because the call was going to voicemail in the next two rings, she surprised me by picking up in the last minute.

"Hey Jay. Are you okay?" she asked, her voice overflowing with worry.

I chuckled in response. "Really, Sis? Please don't make me a bad guy. You make me sound like I only call you when I'm in trouble and in desperate need of your help," I chastised.

"Can you really blame me?"

"No."

The elevator stopped and opened to reveal a long hallway that was never-ending. I groaned in agony at the thought of having to walk the long way.

"What's wrong? I hope you ar-"

"I'm fine. The hallway is so long, Shelly. And I have to walk," I whined, to her amusement.

Even though I was complaining, I ended up walking in hopes of reaching the last door on my right.

"What are you going to do?" she asked, a giggle escaping her.

"Got a meeting now-now. The new CEO has requested a meeting with us," I groaned yet again, making Shelly laugh out loud.

"Aww! Don't worry, it'll all be over soon. Okay? And to make you feel better, Lily just started taking ballet classes. She is so good, Jay. You should come see her practice sometimes. You will be so proud of her and she misses her uncle!" By the time she finished, she was out of breath, excitement dripping out of her in waves and reaching me through the phone call.

"I will come see her, but not now, Shelly. I have a lot going on right now an-"

"I know. I know, Jason. How will I forget that when you keep on reminding me every single second?" she asked, her tone no longer oozing with excitement, but disappointment.

"I don't need this right now, Shelly. I'm about to head into a meeting in a few seconds. We'll talk later. Bye,"

"Take care of yourself, lil' bro," she said before I hung up.

I sighed, the last bits of our conversation gnawing at me with its ugly teeth. She's making me feel guilty about an issue that is out of my control.

I swear that I was focused on where I was going.

When a person came crashing into me, that's when I lost it. The nerve he's got!

"Freaking God! Your fat ass was blocking my way and you're walking all over the fucking place. Even a snail is fucking faster than you are!" he yelled, glaring at me.

The nerve of this asshole! This time, I swear! He's the one who crashed into me from behind.

"And I remember telling you to have bodyguards next time I see you, right?" I sneered, the stinging on my bruised jaw reminding me of who gave it to me. The person was standing right in front of me. I got the satisfaction when I saw his bruised jaw mirroring mine.

And alas! recognition finally struck him.

"You dimwit!" He was fuming, anger bubbling through his veins. His eyes? They were dark green, the emerald slowly drowning in the dark green sea.

I realized that we were a few feet away from the boardroom, but for a moment, my arrogance drowned my judgment. I didn't care if people heard us, but I cared about the new CEO hearing of our dispute. I needed this job and I'd be damned if a lowlife jeopardized it for me.

"And for the record, this is not worth my time. I have somewhere to be," I said, checking my wrist-watch to see that it was 12:05.

Fuck!

I glared at the guy, who was staring at me funnily, no longer angry for that matter.

Then a smug look dominated his face when he crossed his arms over his chest.

"So you don't know who I am, actually," he stated in amusement.

"I don't have time to look up arrogant assholes. And excuse me for my language, but if you ever crash into me one more time and say it's my fault, you are dead," I warned, then rushed to the boardroom. Luckily, there was loud chatter and that meant the CEO wasn't there yet. I sat down on a vacant chair next to Paul Simon. He was a skinny guy that had a goatee. He was also one of the sweetest people I got the pleasure of knowing. Even though my life has not been meaningful in any kind of way, Paul reminded me that there was still kindness in this horrid world left.

He showered everyone with kindness, whether it be a stranger or anyone who's an asshole. If he was the one who that guy crashed into, he would probably apologize to him like he's the one who committed the biggest crime.

"Afternoon, Paul," I greeted him casually, letting a smile slip. There was no need for formalities because we were of the same status in this company, and apparently of the same age too.

"Hello, Jason. Haven't seen you in a while. Where have you been?"

"Just busy with work and all th-"

"Okay, you can stop what you are doing. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Chance Hughs and I'm the new CEO. I hope you and I will work together to bring this company to the next level," the new CEO’s voiced boomed across the walls, bouncing and filling me with dread.

My jaw, I swear it was touching the floor.

"And I hope it will be a pleasure working with you. There are a few rules that I want to introduce," he paused, maybe for effect. His eyes were searching, for what? I had no idea. Shock was still fresh in my mind. I could taste shame, busy enticing my taste buds like sugar.

Oh God! I'm going to lose my job.

The headache was coming, knocking upstairs to be let in. I didn't have the heart to listen to the CEO because I was fretting. His speech was a blur because I was panicking!

The CEO. He is the CEO. The damned CEO! That left a bitter taste in my mind. I just insulted the CEO of this company a few minutes ago. This is a disaster. A freaking catastrophe!

I stared at him, trying to imagine him as being the CEO. To be honest, he did look the part. During our unfortunate encounters, I never looked at him. He was easy on the eyes. Okay, he probably had women lining up after him and men envying him. Or maybe God had invested all the good-looking genes into him and left nothing for people like us. Now, not that I'm ugly or anything. I'm decent to be honest, but when compared to him, I was like an ant to an elephant. His fair skin was smooth. The face? Don’t get me started because I’m sure some women in here were drooling. Of course I was not one of them – the people who were drooling. I just appreciated his god-blessed looks. Nothing wrong with that.

I wonder why he complained about his Armani shirt when he probably had a million of them filling his closet.

I think I was way up in my head, lost in a state of panic that I didn't realize the CEO had finished his speech. Paul was the one who nudged me, then whispered, "You need to focus, Jason. Mr. Hughs has finished speaking and everyone is leaving."

I blinked in surprise, then collected my thoughts and nodded. I stood up with him and we headed out of the boardroom together.

"Are you okay?" he asked me the moment we got into the elevator alone.

What's up with everyone asking if I'm okay today?

I flashed him what I hoped was a convincing smile, but it was futile because he saw right through me.

"You know, I'm always up for a talk if you need someone to confide in. I know life can be tough, but you just have to stay positive," he said, staring at me in a suspicious way, like he knew my darkest, deepest secrets.

"I'm fine, Paul. Really really fine."

Who was I trying to convince that I was fine? Him or I? Well, if I was trying to convince him, then I did a pretty shitty job.

His stare was burning me. It was burning me alive, and I couldn't handle the heat. Luckily, the elevator came to a stop at floor 7. The doors slowly opened, as if mocking me because I wanted so badly for Paul to get out.

"So, umm... s-see you around," I said, the shake in my voice making me cringe.

He stepped out of the elevator and before the doors could close, he said, "I can tell when someone is depressed, Jason. We've all been there. You should get some help before it escalates."

Then the doors closed.