I swallowed hard and stood up, quickly grabbing a newspaper and burying my face in it. I made a small hole and placed my phone's camera there to see if he was still looking at me, and damn, he was! He sat there, legs crossed, radiating authority. He looked at me piercingly, even though I had the newspaper in front of my face. The waitress approached him with a notebook, even though the café was self-service. Did he own the café? Or what was the deal with that?

I took a picture of him and put away my phone, folding the newspaper into my bag. I ate my croissant quickly, a bit too fast, and ended up choking, needing to drink some coffee. When I finished, I wiped my mouth with a napkin and stood up, heading towards the exit where he was sitting. 

I stopped briefly beside him and said with a smile, "Thank you." 

He looked at me penetratingly and then pointed at his nose. I hadn't noticed that my nose was bleeding again, so I quickly wiped it away. 

He then said, "You should see a doctor."

 I replied, "Yes, you're right." 

I headed towards the door, but he suddenly asked with interest, "What's your name?"

 I turned around and saw that he had turned on his seat too, with his hand on the armrest. His gaze showed interest. I looked surprised but sank briefly into my thoughts. Eventually, I had to come up with a name. 

I took a quick breath and said with a smile, "My name is Sofia, and you?"

 He grinned at me, "Dante."

 I then said, "See you sometime." 

He nodded at me. I hurried outside; the air hit me in the face, and I gasped for air. How unlucky could I be that he showed up again, damn it! I had to take a different way back into the building now! I hurried across the intersection, but kept going straight until I was out of the café's sight. I used my service key to enter through the emergency exit and locked the door behind me. My heart was pounding from nervousness. I didn't have a problem pretending to be someone else, but without preparation, it was hard! That was damn close, but on the other hand, it was good; now he'd seen me once, and the event wouldn't leave his mind so quickly.

I climbed the emergency stairs, exhausted, reaching the top after ascending five floors. I opened the door to enter the hallway. James happened to be there, standing by the copier with files. 

He turned around, laughing, "What's up with you?"

 I brushed my hair away from my face and grabbed my side, feeling a stitch. Irritated, I said, "I'll tell you later." 

He looked at me, surprised, and then said, confused, "Okay, then."

 I went in and walked back to the boss.

I knocked on the door impatiently, and he said, "Come in." 

I entered, and he looked at me with wide eyes, asking, "What happened?"

 I sat down without him even giving me permission and buried my face in my hands.

 Out of breath, I said, "I was on break... and went to the café... and there he was... I mean, there was FUCKING DANTE RUSS."

 His mouth fell open, and he asked, bewildered, "What?!"

 I looked at him, "Yes, Dante Russ!"

 He looked shocked, touching his mouth, "And did he notice anything?"

 I shook my head, "Luckily, no. I somehow managed to get out of the situation."

 He leaned back in his chair, breathing a sigh of relief, "Okay, good."

 I continued, "But I gave him a fake name. That means the mission starts from today." 

He scratched his chin and turned to me with the chair.

He then said, "Actually, we planned to get into it next week, but if that's the case, we have no other choice."

 I sighed and leaned back in my chair, saying to the boss, "I need different personal details and a different residence for now, a different bank account, and the name I gave him was 'Sofia.' It's possible we've encountered each other at the café before, but I never noticed, so I need a job near that area."

 He nodded in agreement and said, "You're right about all of that. I'll arrange the material things for you tomorrow. Also, there's a bank at the end of the intersection here. If you want, I'm friends with the manager and can arrange a job for you there."

 I nodded and said, "Yes, that would be perfect." 

He wrote down the details in his notebook on the desk and looked back at me, saying, "I'll put the things in your mailbox at home tomorrow."

 I smiled at him and then stood up from the chair, heading to the door. Just before opening it, he said something else, and I turned around. 

"You have permission to tell your mother and James," he said. 

I replied, "Thank you," nodded, and left the room, closing the door behind me.

 In the hallway, James was still at the copier, and he looked at me from a distance, asking, "And?" 

I walked over to him, leaning against the wall with my arms crossed over my chest. 

"I have an undercover mission to spy on the boss of La Casa, also known as Dante Russ," I said. 

He looked at me with wide eyes, raising his eyebrows. 

"Excuse me?" he exclaimed. 

I nodded, grinning. 

He furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance and said, "How is it that you always get these missions, and I'm stuck with office work?" 

I looked at him, puzzled. "Aren't you happy for me?" 

He sighed in annoyance and looked back at the copier.

 I leaned away from the wall and said, shocked, "Seriously? You're my boyfriend; you should be a support for me, not always so selfish." 

He then angrily retorted, "When was I selfish?" 

I scoffed, placing my hand on my hip and slowly getting angry. 

"This isn't the first time, James! Last time, for example, when I earned an honorarium, you accidentally spilled coffee all over my head and pretended it was an accident, even though everyone knew it was intentional! Another time, when I wasn't mentally well, you went out partying with your friends at the club and didn't even bother to call me! And the worst part," I said, poking his chest lightly, "the worst part was that you've always used me for my body."

 His mouth fell open, and he said indignantly, "That's not true." 

I took a step back, shaking my head in despair. "You're doing it again, denying your mistakes. James, I really think we should end this."

 He took a deep breath because there's nothing worse for a narcissist with a big ego than when their partner ends it first. I walked past him, but he grabbed my upper arm, forcing me to turn to him. 

He gritted his teeth, "Who do you think you are?"

 I grinned and kicked him in the shin, causing him to buckle and look up at me angrily from the ground. 

I looked down at him coldly and condescendingly, "Someone you could never be," and then turned around and walked to my office door, opening it and going in, closing it behind me. 

I sat exhausted in my office chair and stared at the ceiling. I didn't feel bad at all for breaking up with him. Imagine if he were my husband. Ewww, not a bit better than my father. I sighed and looked at the clock; it was already 6 p.m. In 2 hours, I'll be off work.

I received numerous messages on my phone, and I glanced at it to see James' name: "Hey, come back immediately," "Let's talk about this," "You're such a little bitch, you just used me," "Okay, sorry, let's talk."

 I scoffed and opened my phone, promptly blocking him. Does he even have his mental health in check? I refocused on my computer and continued with my work. After all, self-respect is more important than emotions. I can't allow myself to become emotionally dependent and make the same mistake as my mother, potentially preventing me from finding true love.

Now that I think about it, I've never really asked my mother about how she met my father. I took a pencil and began chewing on it. What I needed now was a cigarette. I stood up, retrieved one from my pack, and lit it.

 Opening the window, I took a drag, exhaling slowly as I watched the beautiful sunset.My red lipstick on the cigarette as I took it out of my mouth.

What does the future hold for me ?

Will I even be ever able to find true love ?

I slapped my cheek with my other free hand and thought  " Rose think positive!."