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Two days ago, Staylie had taken a medical examination alongside the VIP guest. The results confirmed there were no signs of any misconduct. In other words, nothing happened between her and that man.
Honestly, Staylie felt deeply embarrassed—for misunderstanding the entire situation that night in the VIP guest's room.
“I wonder what his real name is...” Staylie thought curiously.
Today, she was assigned to attend to her father’s guests from abroad—specifically, from China. Her father had asked her to host them and give them a tour around the hotel. After all, these Chinese guests were his investors. They were planning to be part of Atma Start Hotel’s next big project.
"Okay, test.. test.." Staylie tested one of the microphones placed on the TV cabinet, then picked it up.
"What song do you want to sing?" she asked cheerfully, approaching the Chinese investors. Her radiant energy was ever-present, no matter the situation.
"Umm..." The four Chinese guests took a moment to think.
"Aha!" One of them snapped his fingers. "Ni Ai Wo Wo Ai Ni – Mixue song!"
You know the one, right? The viral jingle from the ice cream brand that Indonesians adore. Hehehe... :"D
"Got it!" Staylie replied, giving them a thumbs-up.
"Alright, let’s go!" She selected the song's instrumental version on YouTube, which was connected to the smart TV.
A short loading screen...
And then...
The instrumental began to play.
"Follow my body movements, okay?" she said, acting like a fitness instructor, ready to accompany the song with full-on choreography.
"Okay!" they replied in unison.
As soon as the intro ended—Staylie began to sing, her body moving in sync with the on-screen visuals.
Ni ai wo wo ai ni...
Mi xue bing cheng tianmi mi...
Ni ai wo wo ai ni...
Mi xue bing cheng tianmi mi...
Ni ai wo ya wo ai ni...
Ni ai wo wo ai ni...
Mi xue bing cheng tianmi mi...
Staylie moved her body left and right, made heart shapes with her fingers, did a cute little bounce dance, then moved forward and backward with her feet. Her final move was forming a connected heart shape with the investors—such team effort!
But that wasn’t the end of their karaoke fun, folks. They sang a few more songs together... including:
Apateu apateu
Apateu apateu
Apateu apateu
Uh, uh huh uh huh...
Staylie sang with the spirit of independence day! Her body movements were just as wild as her off-key voice. Haha. Especially since the song they sang was a remix of APT by Rose ft. Bruno Mars. You can imagine how chaotic the room was!
"Next song~" Staylie shouted like a pop star mid-concert.
The next batch of songs even included Indonesian dangdut—sung in Mandarin!
Nearly three hours straight, they sang together... until it was time for the Chinese investors to head to dinner at the hotel restaurant. After that, they were escorted back using the hotel’s van. They weren’t staying at Atma Start Hotel, but rather at the Pradipta family's private villa.
"Thank you for visiting. Let's karaoke together again sometime." Staylie expressed her gratitude and delight with the event. She pressed her palms together briefly. "See you again..." she added while waving as the Chinese guests stepped into the van.
"Fēicháng gǎnxiè" (Thank you very much), Staylie said in Mandarin—something she quickly translated via Google earlier. She kept waving until the van disappeared down the road.
On the other side of the area—Karel was observing Staylie from a distance. The hotel SPV was currently escorting her guests to their vehicle.
Karel watched how bright and cheerful Staylie looked, even as she bowed with her hands clasped in the traditional Chinese way of showing thanks—one palm over a fist, held respectfully.
It reminded him of what had happened two days ago—when Staylie apologized for accusing him of things that turned out to be completely false. She even said she wanted to revise their work agreement—and of course, Karel agreed.
Staylie changed their agreement. Previously, Karel was to pay five times his salary as a penalty—now, she reduced it to just twice. Much easier on Karel’s wallet. She also replaced the weekly “free vacation” clause with: Karel must accompany her every weekend, wherever she wanted to go. In short—she could drag him anywhere. Karel responded by saying he couldn't promise availability every weekend, but he would try his best.
Karel also proposed a new deal: to become her personal “venting buddy,” both online and offline. She only needed to let him know when she wanted to talk. Staylie agreed to that too.
Bonk!
Karel, so focused on watching Staylie, wasn’t looking where he was going—and bam!—he walked right into the main glass door of Atma Start Hotel.
"Sir?" A security guard nearby rushed over. "Are you alright?" he asked, eyeing Karel's face.
Karel glanced at the guard and shook his head lightly. "I’m fine, really," he replied with an awkward grin.
Embarrassed to his core, Karel quickly made his way into the hotel lobby, rubbing his forehead as he walked.
From a distance—Staylie had heard someone slam into the glass door. She looked over but saw only the person’s back disappearing. So she simply watched him go.
---
"Hey, do you know the difference between you and a cat?"
"No idea. What’s the difference?"
"Well, cats are cute, spoiled, and adorable. But you... you’re more than that. You’re someone I can’t stop thinking about, baby."
"Aw, really? So sweet..."
Huuueeekk...
Staylie almost threw up on the spot. She had been watching a cheesy romance soap opera she thought would be good—but it turned out so cringe. Ugh, what a disappointment.
Ding.
The front desk bell rang. Someone had just pressed it.
Staylie’s gaze shifted straight ahead. She gave a small smile. She stood up from the front desk, where she’d been sitting watching the show.
She was supposed to be home by 6 PM. But the VIP guest had asked her to stay at the reception desk for a while longer—so, she waited. It had been around ten minutes now.
"You didn’t kick the night shift staff out, right, Miss Staylie?" Karel joked as he approached.
"Of course not," Staylie smiled. "How could I be that cruel, sir?" she responded playfully.
Tonight’s receptionist was supposed to be Ella—but she had to rush to the bathroom just as Staylie arrived. So Staylie decided to take over the desk for a bit.
"So, what is it, sir? Why did you ask me to wait here?" Staylie asked, getting to the point.
"Oh, this," the VIP guest suddenly handed her a transparent plastic bag with a rectangular box inside, around 23 x 15 x 6.5 cm—looked like a food container.
"What’s this, sir?" Staylie took it carefully and examined it.
"It’s a chocolate cake my mother baked. She told me to bring extra to share with a friend. But since I don’t really have friends here in Jakarta... I thought I’d give it to you." Karel said, surprisingly soft-spoken.
"Please accept it, okay?" He emphasized the “okay,” clearly not wanting her to refuse.
Staylie nodded once. "Yes, sir, I’ll take the cake." She smiled warmly as she accepted it.
"Thank you so much."
"You’re welcome," Karel responded instantly.
"Oh right, one more thing. Tomorrow, you don’t need to clean my hotel room. I’ll be gone for the next two days—I’ll be staying at my parents’ place."
This VIP guest who still went by the fake name “Ujang Mandadang”—well, that’s what Staylie guessed was fake—remained a mystery. She had no clue who he really was.
And yet... Staylie had already ransacked his room from top to bottom.
Long story...
"Alright, sir."
Karel suddenly tapped his forehead, as if he forgot to say something. He moved his lips again.
"We’re good now, right, Miss Staylie?"
Understanding his meaning, Staylie flashed her pearly whites at him.
"E-hem. We’re good, sir."
With that, Karel excused himself and headed upstairs—to his hotel room.