Uncomfortably Close
Uncomfortably Close
Why is she here?
“Elizabeth wanted to drop by to congratulation us on the launch. Unfortunately, we were no longer in
the office. I didn’t think that she would really turn up here to join us,” Ace explained to me casually
before turning his attention back to Elizabeth.
I was still too stunned to say anything as I watch the two of them conversing. Ace pointed something in
the commercial out to Elizabeth and she looked quite impressed as they both watched the commercial
on the screen together. As for me, I couldn’t stop wondering why Elizabeth had to turn up here.
Was it normal for her to drop by to congratulate her main competitor on their commercial launch?
So many wild thoughts ran through my mind as I stood glued to the spot with my eyes staring at their
backs. I had no idea what was really going on or perhaps I was just over reading into everything.
However, the way the two of them talked together made them appear to be closer than before. It was
like any rivalry that existed between them before had completely disappeared and in its place was
something akin to companionship. I cocked my head to the side as my brows slowly drew together into
a frown and then my eyes narrowed suspiciously.
What is really going on between them and what is their relationship really like right now?
Elizabeth knew very well that I was dating Ace, but she didn’t seem to have any problem turning up
here although she knew that we were together. She also didn’t seem bothered at all when she saw me.
I didn’t understand what was going through her mind and it did occur to me that perhaps she didn’t
even think like a normal person in the very first place.
“Rina…Rina…”
I snapped out of my thoughts when I realized that Ace was calling my name. Elizabeth gave me a
curious look and I felt anger boiling up inside of me. I had no idea how she could act so unbothered like
this. The fact that she acted like she belonged at Ace’s side almost made me lose it.
“Umm…what is it?” I asked.
“Do you want to explain to Elizabeth the concept behind the commercial and also the idea behind the
marketing plan? After all, it was your idea,” Ace asked as he waved for me to come closer to them.
“Umm…sure…” I replied as I tried to act as natural as possible.
Of course, I didn’t think that I succeeded at appearing natural at all and the last thing that I wanted to
do at that moment was to explain the work that I had done to Elizabeth. I had no idea why Ace was
getting me to do something like that. He was right that it was my idea that was behind the commercial
and the marketing plan; however, I didn’t see why I had to explain that to Elizabeth.
“This commercial is really interesting. I see that you’ve made some adjustments to the storyboard
compared to the last time that I saw it. I have to say that it turned out much better than I had envisioned
in my mind. I’m sure you all worked hard and that Ace must have trained you up a lot,” Elizabeth said
before smiling my way.
If she was someone else, I might have appreciated her compliments and the smile that she flashed my
way. Perhaps I was being too on guard, or I was just paranoid because it was her. Another possibility
was that I just plain straight hated this woman.
“Thank you. There’s not much behind the concept that differed from the story that Ace told the
committee members during his presentation before. As for the marketing plan, I just adapted something
that I saw that I thought would make the commercial connect more emotionally with the audiences,” I
explained as briefly as I could.
“I can see where you’re coming from, and I have to say that that approach sounds very much like NôvelDrama.Org © content.
something that Ace would do. I guess it’s only natural for a team member to think like her boss. Is that
right, Ace?” Elizabeth commented with a small laugh before turning to address Ace.
The way she drawled her voice when she spoke to him made me want to gag. If they were all alone, I
wondered if she would have thrown herself all over him by now. That thought flashed through my mind
and I felt pain stinging the palm of my hands and realized that I had dug my fingernails into my flesh
from clenching my hands too tightly into fists. I bit down hard on my inner lower lip before taking in a
deep breath and holding it.
Anger management…anger management…
“Should we head back to the office?” I suggested while trying to sound as cheerful as I could.
If I can get Ace to agree to head back to the office, then Elizabeth probably won’t follow us.
Unfortunately, that was the only idea that I could come up with to get rid of her and I hated myself for
my lack of options to dispose of her.
“I thought we were going out for dinner. Do you still want to go back to the office instead?” Ace asked
calmly.
It was true that I wanted to go to dinner with Ace; however, I was more than willing to give that up if that
meant that I could get rid of Elizabeth. Ace also acted so casual around her now, and that made me
feel even more uncomfortable than before.
What is Kyle doing now of all times? Why can’t he keep his wife at home or under surveillance?
“We’re going to grab dinner. Do you want to join us?” Ace turned to ask Elizabeth.
My mouth literally dropped opened and I wanted to pull on my hair and scream. The thought of the
three of us going out for dinner together was worst than any nightmare that I could have dreamt up.
--To be continued…