❦ . ❦ . ❦

Laurence quickened his pace, and the footfalls followed suit. He halted, and the rustles behind him stopped again.

He allowed himself a moment to take a deep breath, now a hundred percent sure he was not imagining things and someone had been tailing him. For a minute, he didn't move from his spot.

He squinted at the darkened layout of the alley. His fingers tightened around the grocery bags. After another exhale, he swiveled and directed his glower at the flickering bulbs of the nearest lamppost.

Laurence took a tentative step, and another, while his gaze scoured the area to search for the lurker. A tiny movement close to the curve of the backstreet drew his attention and raised the alarm. His pulse increased, not out of fear but anticipation. Staying on guard, he approached the shadow.

Another shift occurred as Laurence hastened his pace. And when he was only a meter away from a trash barrel, the obscure outline of a human behind it jerked before they sprinted and disappeared into the corner.

The person's sudden action set Laurence off to chase after them. He rounded the bend and found them fleeing toward the backstreet intersections.

As the culprit kept running, Laurence noted how their height reached past the concrete walls of the residential compounds. He compared it to Florence's smaller form, which was a brick shorter than the blocks, and concluded that this suspicious person might be nearly as tall as he was in his original body.

The realization peeved Laurence as he comprehended those long limbs had granted the person the advantage in this chase. Not to mention, this current dainty frame he had wasn't built for such physical activities. He felt like he wasn't making any stride, no matter how hard he pushed these slim legs to run faster.

I oughta consider that punk's offer to hit the gym.

The person got to the ill-lit side of the alleyway. Their all-black long-sleeve hoodie and pants blended in with the darkness, making it more difficult to discern their silhouette.

Laurence skidded to a stop, a quiet curse breaking out of his mouth, as he arrived at the point where more paths had crossed. He turned left and right, and straight ahead, uncertain which direction the bastard had gone. With another cautious step forward, he contemplated if it was a good idea to hazard a guess, but in the end, he accepted it was futile. Even if he could predict it right, it wouldn't improve his chance of catching up to the person.

He lingered under a street lamp for a bit and took deep breaths. Just as he decided to go back, a touch on his shoulder startled him. He whipped around in surprise and swung the plastic grocery bags.

A yelp of 'ow' followed a gasp. The new intruder raised their arms in front of their face to shield themselves from another unintentional charge.

Laurence froze, recognizing the voice. He gaped and scanned the individual from head to toe, noting their build, which was all about the same as Florence's.

"Jino?" he asked, dubious, and dropped his hands to his sides.

The young man lowered his arms and revealed the weak smile that completed his sheepish expression. "Good evening, Mr. Florence. Your reflexes are quite fast."

"Sorry, you surprised me," Laurence said, eyes still wide. He glanced around, checked for any sign of another soul in the area, before he faced Jino back. "Did I hit you hard?"

"Nothing serious, sir. No worries. But I hope you don't mind me asking what's the matter? You look troubled."

"I..." Laurence shook his head. "No, nothing really. What are you doing out here in the night?"

"I was out to buy some cleaning stuff." Jino held up a plastic bag with the logo of a certain household supplies store. The young man's smile grew more polite. "I live around here. And actually, that's what I was curious about. Please don't be offended, Mr. Florence, but I should be the one asking what brought you here? I thought I got the wrong person earlier, but it was really you."

"I just came back from the supermarket too."

Jino gave Laurence a curious stare. "Then this is a pleasant coincidence. Are you from around here, too, sir? Although, it's a little odd I never heard about it. I know a lot of people from this area."

"Not really. Just here for some visi—some kind of business meeting," Laurence said, rubbing his free hand against his nape. "So you going back home now? Which way are you gonna go?"

With a lift of his chin, Jino gestured in the direction where Laurence had just come from.

"Oh, good, we can walk together. I don't think it's a good idea for you to be wandering here alone at this hour. What if some psycho pounced on you? You're kinda pint-sized to protect yourself."

The younger man chuckled good-naturedly. "Should you be the one saying that, Mr. Florence?"

Along with each other, Laurence and Jino made their way to the main backstreet.

"Don't worry, sir. I've been passing by this neighborhood every night for months, but I have yet to encounter any trouble with people." Jino paused, his expression unveiling concern as he glanced at his companion. Even his voice sounded worried. "Could it be that you stumbled upon someone harassing you out there? Was that why you were anxious earlier?"

"Nah, don't mind it. It was no big deal. I just thought someone was following me. You know, I heard some rustles behind, but when I checked, 'turned out it was just a black cat chasing after a huge rat. I ain't... I'm not very good at dealing with rats, you see, especially those giant ones, so I was kinda horrified seeing that beast."

Whether Jino believed the story or not, all the younger man did was nod. "Right, you mentioned you're here for a meeting, sir. Come to think of it, I thought I also saw Ms. Odessa around here an hour ago. Is it possible you're with her? Are the ND employees having an assembly around in this area?"

"No, I'm..." Laurence knitted his brows and turned to his side. "Odessa? She was here?"

Jino fluttered his perplexed eyes. "Ah, so you're not together? I thought it was her I saw while I was on my way to the store, though I couldn't be fully certain. She seemed to be in a rush, and I didn't get the chance to approach her."

Laurence recalled how Odessa excused herself from the afternoon duty because of a personal appointment, and he became curious if the woman's business took place in this district. "Wait, does she live here too?"

"Not that I'm aware of, sir. I'm acquainted with a lot of my neighbors here, but the only people at work that I know also from here are Mr. Ruiz and Ms. Violet."

"Ms. Violet?" Laurence asked, the new information intriguing him more.

"Kind of amazing, won't you say?" Jino said, laughter bubbling in his words. "I was also surprised when I learned both my bosses live in the same area."

The pair had been caught up in chatting, and no one noticed they'd reached the brighter location in the alleyway where stood the streetlights every single meter of interval.

Laurence lost the chance to respond to the younger man when a familiar deep voice called to his attention.

"I was wondering what had been taking you so long, and I found you just dawdling here."

The two men looked up at the new speaker and were greeted by a stony-faced Isaac. Laurence noted that the young boss had changed his clothes to a simple cardigan over a plain shirt, sweatpants, and a pair of cotton slippers.

The homey outfit reminded Laurence that Isaac had always been a normal human being after all, far from the cardboard billionaire male lead in a romance movie that Jade had recommended—sort of obliged—him to watch one weekend.

He let out a faint chuckle, thinking the CEO's current appearance was actually cute. But his amusement was short-lived, and it transformed into concern once he distinguished the exhaustion in the younger man's features.

Laurence rushed to Isaac. "What are you doing here, you willful..." He caught himself, remembering Jino was there. In a hushed tone, he said, "Didn't I tell you to take a rest if you have nothing better else to do? It's getting cold. Seriously, for someone so smart, you can't follow a simple instruction."

Isaac rolled his eyes. "Don't treat me like a child."

Both the gesture and the statement irritated Laurence and touched off the urge to pinch the punk's cheeks. Very, very, hard.

While Laurence was trying hard to act like an ordinary executive assistant, Isaac didn't seem to care that they had a witness. The young boss shrugged off his cardigan and surprised his former senior by draping it over the smaller man's shoulders and arms.

"You said you're feeling cold," Isaac said when Laurence cast him a questioning gaze.

Laurence scowled. "What... I said it was getting cold, and I meant I was worried it was gonna worsen your health."

"My condition's not that serious." The young boss pulled the cardigan's placket in front of Laurence, wrapping him snugly. "And keep it. This temperature is nothing. It's still warm compared to where I used to live."

The faint fragrance of oceanic cologne from the garment stirred a tickling sensation inside Laurence's stomach, but he opted to disregard it. He would argue, if not for the young boss's satisfied smirk giving him a pause. Indeed, the February night breeze was chilly, so the heat on his neck made no sense at all.

Fortunately, such atmosphere didn't stay for too long as Isaac dumped the pleased expression, letting the default nonchalance fall back into place, before he directed his narrowed eyes at someone behind his male assistant.

Self-consciousness swept over Laurence once his awareness of the third person with them returned.

"Good evening, Mr. Ruiz." Despite the courtesy in his words, Jino's voice and smile hinted at his uneasiness.

Isaac did not reciprocate the greeting, just continued assessing the young man with a hard stare.

Jino shifted on his feet. He shot Laurence a desperate look, and it took the latter a couple of seconds to understand the silent appeal to be rescued.

For a moment, because of Isaac's casual behavior toward him, it slipped Laurence's mind that the punk was one of the most influential names in the city and someone who could daunt his employees with his mere scrutiny. And as a person working under Isaac Ruiz, Jino must have been familiar with, but would never be immune to that intimidating experience.

"I was just coming back when I stumbled upon Jino. He lived in this district too, did you know?" Laurence said to distract the young CEO.

Yet, Isaac wouldn't play the game. He regarded Laurence, his lips pressed into a thin line, and did his trademark eye-roll once again.

What the... The assistant studied his young boss with bemused disbelief. Isaac's resemblance to a sulking child sparked a mental curse out of Laurence. The fuck's your problem now?

"Anyway, I'll have to go first, Mr. Florence, Mr. Ruiz," Jino said, puncturing the awkward air. He gave a stiff bow while his lopsided grin remained. "It's nice running into you both."

"Hey, yeah, be careful on your way."

The Renascence Café attendant strode off, and as soon as he was out of sight, Laurence told Isaac they should go back too.

"Stop glaring at the poor fellow. You just scared him off."

"I wasn't glaring," the young boss said in a grumble.

Somehow, Isaac's present attitude brought Laurence the memories of their high school days, when this punk would also mutter his displeasure.

"Are you seriously that clueless with the fact that you can make your employees piss their pants just by giving them an intense stare?"

Instead of answering the question, Isaac opened a different subject. "I thought you had gotten lost since you were taking too long to come back. I went out to check where you had been, and here you were having your sweet time talking with another man. The two of you also seemed to be close. Do you prefer people who are dainty and cute, senior?"

"Huh?" Laurence blinked, unable to grasp where the idea had come from. And why Isaac was even asking such a thing. "Why'd you need to know? What's it for?"

"No, just... You mentioned I used to be cute in high school, and..." Isaac averted his gaze. Under his breath, he said, "Never mind. I'm sorry I'm no longer that cute junior you knew, and I'm far from being dainty," before he walked off.

Still confused, Laurence gaped at his boss's broad back. He found Isaac a tad immature for bringing up something he'd refuse to elaborate in the end.

It sure was annoying. And yet, he could not deny it was also refreshing to witness this childish side of the ever-so-impassive conglomerate leader from time to time.

"This punk..." Laurence combed his hair with his fingers. He kept watching Isaac's retreating form and whispered into the space, "You're kinda cute, ain't you?"

❦ . ❦ . ❦

A black hatchback in front of the gate welcomed them once they arrived at Isaac's place. While Laurence racked his brain for the memory of where he'd seen the car before, Mr. Frias and Warren stepped out of it.

Discreet though it was, the flick of the senior employee's eyes in his direction didn't escape Laurence.

"I apologize for dropping by without notice, son." Mr. Frias focused on the young CEO and didn't bother to acknowledge Laurence. "There has been something about the concerns of the higher-ups that I have to discuss with you, and I'm afraid it can't wait until another day."

Despite the solemn words, Laurence remarked there was something gentle about the older man's demeanor while he talked to Isaac. He interacted with the young boss with subtle adoration, and like a caring father would to his son.

Laurence puzzled about Mr. Frias's personality once again. Had he always been this warm with other younger people? Or only Isaac, aside from Warren, got special treatment because he was the boss of the company he was working at?

Or maybe Florence was right all along. This old man just specifically disliked the poor guy.

His interest shifted to the other person accompanying Mr. Frias.

Warren sniped at him with his typical glare, but Laurence ignored the hostility as he observed something unusual about his coworker's appearance.

During the many times the two men were together, Warren had stood almost at the same height as Mr. Frias, whom Laurence had estimated was only a fraction shorter than he was in his original body. But right now, the top of Warren's head could barely reach the senior employee's ear.

Laurence lowered his gaze to Warren's feet, a snort fleeing from him, as he discovered the guy had shrunk because he currently wasn't wearing elevated shoes, and the flat sandals had revealed his actual height.

His thoughts got interrupted by Isaac's invitation to talk inside his house. The young CEO went in first, and Laurence encouraged the duo of unexpected guests to enter before him.

Even with the apparent disapproval of the pair with how Laurence had been acting as though he was a resident of the place, Mr. Frias and Warren did as they'd been told.