Olivia

"I know someone is in here! Open up!!"

Outside the elegant, absurdly tall gates was the loud howling of a rather abrasive fellow.

"I'm giving you only 30 seconds or else—whatever can happen, will happen!"

The troubled workers eventually relented, and the rowdy fellow was let in.

She had low-shaved red hair, a lip ring, and a startlingly feminine dress that contrasted with, yet complemented, her aggressive gestures.

"What do you mean you can't let me inside?! I remember having a whole room, and in less than a month, he's cleared it out?! That bastard!"

"Miss Olivia—"

"It's Mrs. Stallone to you!" she glared at the weary butler, who stood his ground despite her ferocity.

"Miss, please, Sir is not here…"

"Exactly!" Olivia laughed menacingly. "It's better to surprise him with a beautiful lover's reunion~."

Her blue eyes shimmered with a unique insanity. "Does he think it's that simple?! It's impossible to reduce me to this extent and then sweep me off—impossible!"

Before the butler could respond, a hard slap hit his back. "Still puckering about?? What part of 'lead me to my room' do you need translated?"

The butler suddenly felt like handing in a quick notice, this was just too much! Even more infuriating was how every other worker blatantly ignored them and left him to his fate.

His eyes met the lady's domineering ones, and he felt his weariness double. However, no matter how fearful this woman was, she was yet to reach even 1% of his boss's intensity.

Logically, despite going through what he'd describe as one of the most horrific experiences, he barely pulled through, convincing the stubborn lady to wait for his boss on the backyard terrace.

He had the others serve her snacks and drinks while Olivia got lost operating her phone.

Thanking the heavens for grace, he spun away as quickly as he could to avoid any tragic recalls.

Snap!

Olivia flinched before letting out a sharp curse. Seeing Sylvester comfortably handle his most recent case online while everyone openly thirsted for him was more infuriating than she thought it'd be.

The most annoying thing wasn't the lust-filled fans but Sylvester's nonchalance. While she was spiraling, this bastard remained as cool as a cucumber! Ridiculous!

'He'll pay for this, I swear I will—'

With a hard slam, her phone flew across the clean floor. Her rage-filled face was withered with tears, and she bit her lip in an attempt to quiet down.

Sylvester Stallone… That monster.

***

The case was successfully handled. Sylvester's main job was to inform the public of these issues in a way that prevented any possible radical explanations that'd derail their motive—especially since issues around pastries were very sensitive and easily twisted if mishandled.

As for the aftermath, it'd mostly be handled offline, so his job was that of a type of reporter who kept the people informed and prevented any misinterpretations.

After bidding his team farewell, he made a quick drive to a store to buy a bunch of chocolates before heading home.

As for why he did such a thing, when he could have had them delivered and wasn't exactly a huge fan of chocolate, his PR team was to blame.

His drive back home was peaceful until news from his assistant shattered it. Olivia had managed to threaten her way inside and was waiting for his return.

At first, the assistant's idea to avoid going back was appealing, but then he thought about it and realized that if he didn't handle this Olivia issue once and for all, she'd be a constant thorn in his flesh. Especially now that Vale was there, they'd eventually meet, and the aftermath would not be pretty.

So he braced his weariness and arrived home.

It was as if she could smell him from a mile away, because as soon as his car drove in, Olivia strolled in with the ferocity and madness of a female dragon whose egg had been stolen.

"Sylvester!"

The warmth in his eyes curdled into a wintry expression.

"Olivia."

A broken screen was shoved in his face. "What is the meaning of this???"

Within it was something he presumed was the breakup message he had sent her.

Sylvester sighed. "I thought you'd gotten over this by now, Olivia."

"Oh!" she cackled. "You believed you could just do stupid shit and time would erase it eventually?? Well, think again! Some of us aren't that fucking easy!"

"Then what is it you want?" Sylvester asked with a look of exhaustion.

"I broke up formally, in a private space, hoping we'd talk this out like grown adults before finally going away. But instead, you went crazy, and I had to restrain you with security."

Olivia clenched her teeth but didn't reply.

"After that, you still went around laying claims of us dating, and to avoid disgracing you, I sent a message confirming our breakup. But instead of walking away amicably, you attacked me at Javel's party!"

Sylvester's calm voice spiked with a hint of exasperation. "What else is it you want from me?? Just what else??"

"...with me…" Olivia spoke quietly, too quietly for Sylvester to hear.

"What?"

"YOU CANNOT BREAK UP WITH ME!"

Sylvester frowned. "It doesn't work like that, Olivia."

She laughed. "You're so fucking funny! So now you're painting yourself as the victim and me as the irrational one?? That's the narrative we're going with, huh?"

"Olivi—"

"Don't you dare!" she glared at him heavily. Despite their difference in height causing her to look up, the oppression could still be felt from her words. "Spout that BS with me!"

"I'm the crazy one?? You're the bastard who crafted a beautiful romance for me to fall for, and now you're blaming me?!"

"I've always made it known this was a casual arrangement, Olivia."

"Fuck that! Fuck it! That's the stupid lie you use to cover up your twisted agenda! Do I look like a fool to you?! All your words, behavior—everything you did was to paint the perfect lie for me to fall into. Just to what…" Olivia's hands quivered as she lifted them to her face.

"Suddenly act indifferent. Refuse all my invitations. Act so mean to me, and then after giving me hope with that invite… cruelly break up… Why else would you take that long? Tell me, Sylvester, why did you play hot and cold with me for months before finally breaking up?!"

Sylvester sighed. "It's exactly because of this. Tell me, Olivia, is this reaction of yours rational?"

"YOU HAVEN'T ANSWERED MY QUESTION, SYLVESTER. TELL ME—WHY DID YOU DO THIS? AM I A FOOL TO YOU?!!"

She grabbed at his neckline in desperation.

"You said you loved me! You said I was special! You made me feel guilty for doubting the nature of our relationship and always refused to specify, and now you turn around calling me crazy for acting like this?! Sylvester, is this fun? Tell me, you crooked bastard!!"

Despite the sudden assault, Sylvester motioned to security to stay still before facing Olivia with an annoyed look.

"Stop this, Olivia. Even before the relationship I always made it clear this was a casual arrangement. I made it clear to avoid any misconceptions from my behavior, since I'm naturally romantic in nature despite being clear on never desiring anything serious."

He grabbed her hand and effortlessly freed himself from her deathly grasp.

"It was in the contract you signed along with the NDA. It was in the interviews I gave whenever someone questioned why I was unbothered by your debaucherous attitude despite being in a relationship. It was in the mouths of all my exes; it was everywhere."

His eyes fell upon the dazed woman who seemed stumped for words. And when her blue ones met his, all that remained was apathetic indifference—an expression of emptiness one would give to something that'd never register in their mind.

Something broke in Olivia, and suddenly she understood. The signs had always been there. The warnings, the siren blares... everything had been laid bare for her to see, and yet it had somehow eluded her.

It was all a game in the end, one where she was the unknowing participant and had been played like the proud fool she was.