9 - Office

A/N: The chapter ahead is raw, which means it has not yet been proofread or edited.

***

Midas stood before Kalonice, blocking her way to her classroom. His arms were crossed against his chest with a grimace plastered on his face.

He pointed her, "Just so you know, we may be partners, but I am your boss. You're gonna be my assistant."

"I didn't read anything about that in my contract."

"Well---!" Midas hissed, "It's because Dad didn't ask about my terms beforehand."

Kalonice rolled her eyes and passed him by.

"How dare you, woman! I'm still talking to you!"

With his legs longer, a few steps only and he's in front of her again.

"No contract, no agreement." Kalonice, making him frustrated.

"Fine! You want a contract? I'll give you a contract!"

He turned her around and opened her backpack.

"Excuse me? What are you doing!?"

He pulled a clean notebook inside her bag and a pen and wrote something on an empty page.

'I, Kalonice Montecristo, agree on being Midas Yzaguirre's servant and partner at work for the whole duration of my internship under YAECC.'

"Are you for real?"

Kalonice crumpled the paper in front of him.

"Hey!"

Midas took the paper from her and straightened it again. He's already signed it!

"I won't take orders from you, SIR Midas. Unless he tells me so."

"You're signing it whether you like it or not."

"NO."

She left and ran away. She's annoyed because he ruined her organized things. And when she checked it, she realized that her notebook and pen is still with him!

Midas always gets what he wanted, so he messaged his Mom to ask her to order his Dad to send him a 'Yes' to his demand.

And he got it.

The classes are on-going already when he showed up in her designated classroom, with a smirk on his face.

"Ms. Kalonice Montecristo, Sir Midas is asking for you," the professor said.

All heads turned to Kalonice who's covering her face using her paper.

She swear to god! Accepting Larry Zeno Yzaguirre's offer might be the worst decision she's ever made in her life!

"What?"

Midas put his phone on her face, still smirking.

"Read. He said 'YES', woman. You're now my slave."

Kalonice gave him a look of boredom.

Is there a way to escape him while staying in YAECC?

None.

She rolled her eyes and smacked his hand away from her phone. She opened her palm.

"Contract."

It's not like she have another choice. She can't back out anymore. She's already processing the internship with them and Larry Zeno Yzaguirre already promised an office for the both of them to work in.

Midas gave her the same crumpled paper.

"SERIOUSLY?"

"Seriously."

Kalonice stopped herself from crumpling the poor paper again and signed it using her pen.

Midas was very smug.

"Alright, slave. Give me your phone next. Faster."

She rolled her eyes and did what he demanded. She heavily dropped her phone against his hand, he frowned.

"Slaves are gentle to their master. Be gentle or I'm gonna fire you."

"Whatever."

Midas couldn't believe that she's talking back. She got guts to!

He typed and saved his number in her phone with a registered name: Master. He also saved his father's under the registered name 'Master's Father'.

"Here."

When he's done, he left her.

"My notebook!"

She followed him.

He looked back, "Oh, yeah. Here. The quality is so poor. It's eww."

When she got it back, she used it as a weapon to hit him.

"How dare you---!? You're a slave!"

She only glared at him and went back to her classroom, where everyone was waiting for her return. They clapped their hands.

"You hit him! Kalonice, you're amazing!"

That's the notorious Midas Yzaguirre and she hit him with a notebook! Nobody does that to him! Pissing him off means going to hell, and she's not yet damned!

Well, almost, had his angelic father not saved her. She's back into the light and Midas Yzaguirre is throwing tantrums in hell.

***

"Ms. Montecristo! Welcome to the company!" Larry popped na party poppers upon her arrival to his office.

Kalonice was startled, but she beamed a delighted smile at him.

"Thank you, Sir."

"Come in, come in," he said and led her the way inside. Then stops his son behind, "Come out."

Midas grabbed his hand and twisted it. He went inside and sat on his father's chair.

"Have a seat, Hija. Don't mind him. He's adopted."

Kalonice nodded and occupied the space of a couch. Larry sat on a single couch and excitedly laid out the contracts and documents on the table.

"This is the copy of our contract, Ms. Montecristo," he handed the red envelope to her.

"Thank you, Sir."

"LREPAF and AGATC are YAECC's partner companies, right?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Therefore, there are times that we exchange and borrow employees from for certain purpose. Like us and AGATC to LREPAF, we 'borrow' architects from them to draw and design what our clients desire. And about your salaries..."

The discussion went on. Kalonice listened to his orientation attentively and will actively ask questions for clarifications. When all is good, Larry led her and Midas himself to their office, which the room on the right side after leaving his office.

"Dad, I don't like this chair. I want yours," Midas complained when his seat doesn't feel comfortable enough for him.

"Don't be choosy. It's only for me. Are you the boss?"

Kalonice ignored them but she's listening to their silly banter. She's walking around her table, sliding her fingers to feel its smooth surface. The room is spacious and cozy. The materials and equipments are complete and there's an entire glass cabinet filled with different kinds of supplies. Both have their own high-end computers, too.

Kalonice giggled. She's so excited and can't describe the happiness she's feeling. Poverty is the only thing that limits her from going all out. With everything already provided and will be provided if she will ask, oh Lord, she will EAT.

The father and son stopped from bickering, pushing and pulling the chair, when they heard Kalonice's cute giggles and tiny chuckles. She's so happy.

Larry, distracted, smiled.

Midas took that chance to push his father's chair inside and kicked the one for him away his table.

"Brat!"

"Love you too."

Larry let it pass since he said that to him.

That incident changed his son. Everything about him has changed, and hearing him tell him 'I love you' brings back memories.

The old Larzen is lost somewhere inside that darkness, kept and imprisoned in a cage. His son replaced himself with a fiercer, merciless, and ruthless persona to protect himself from getting hurt again. That's how Midas Yzaguirre was born.

But before Midas Yzaguirre, there was Larzen, his son.