Nicholas walked into Ethan's office to see his head still buried in the files he was going through.
"That's a lot of paperwork, you still haven't eaten, and it's almost night."
Ethan raised his head. His eyes looked red and tired.
"Nick, please. I have a lot to do." He said.
"You need to rest Ethan. If you keep going like this, you'll definitely break down." Nicholas said.
Ethan sighed.
"You really need a woman in your life. My wife wouldn't let me stay till this time without stuffing me with food. You need to get married, Ethan. You have the money, you can pick any random girl and...." Nicholas paused.
"I'm sorry, but you should get some food, please. You can't do everything at once."
Ethan gave in.
"Alright fine, as soon as I'm done, I'll go get some food." He said.
"Okay, what can I help you do? You know, to hasten up your work?" Nicholas asked.
"Well, you can just sit down and shut up for a while and I'll be done in no time," Ethan said with a smug smile.
Nicholas laughed and pulled out his phone to order food for Ethan.
"Do not make any orders, I'm going to get what I want myself."
"Okay then," Nicholas said and slipped his phone back into his pocket.
He just watched Ethan and his mind drifted away...
They had been friends since kindergarten, Ethan was a cheerful child loved by everyone. He was also good in almost everything he did, but when he got to high school, his grades started dropping and he wasn't as cheerful as he was initially. The teacher noticed it and after probing him, found out that his parents have been having a lot of fights. Ethan loved his parents so much and seeing them fight broke his heart and after a few months, they got divorced. Turns out his mother was a cheat, she cheated on his father multiple times with other men and even gave out his money. Worst of all, her other two children were not from Ethan's father. She didn't even know who their father was. Ethan felt betrayed by his mother and when his father kicked her out, he only stared with a cold expression.
When he was nineteen, he fell in love with an ice cream girl and despite warning and advice from Nicholas, he started seeing her. He was head over heels in love with her. He spent his allowances on her, buying her branded items, clothes, shoes, and everything she wanted, he even told her to leave her job as he would pay all her bills, but surprisingly, she refused.
They were together for a year, and on her birthday, he bought her a car.
He thought she loved him; he was already planning on proposing to her ignoring Nicholas's advice that he was being too impulsive.
He would have proposed to her if he hadn't caught her in bed with her boss.
That was the worst form of pain anyone would feel.
No wonder she refused to leave the job. She was already pregnant for the boss.
Ethan didn't say a word about it to anyone except Nicholas and quietly broke up with the girl.
Betrayals from his mother and the girl naturally made him who he was; a man who hates women.
"Quit staring at me, you moron." Ethan's voice brought Nicholas back to reality.
"The fact that I have no woman in my life doesn't mean I'm gay. Even if I was, I'll never have anything to do with you." Ethan added.
"If I was gay, you think I'd spare you a look, huh?" Nicholas asked.
"Well, you've been staring at me, so yeah. Plus, I know I'm good-looking and irresistible." Ethan said with a false smile.
Nicholas faked a yawn trying to stop himself from laughing and Ethan rolled his eyes.
"Okay, I'm going to get food. You stay right here." Ethan said as he adjusted his tie and admired himself in front of the mirror.
"Alright, I hope you meet the woman of your dreams there," Nicholas said.
Ethan scoffed.
"You wish." ....
************
On getting into the studio, Isla saw that the lighting above Mrs Ivan had fallen down and almost hurt her.
Her heart skipped a bit, lucky she didn't get hurt.
"Oh no. I'm so sorry Mrs Ivan, I..."
PAK!
Her apology was interrupted by a deafening slap from Madison.
"That's for being so stupid!" Madison yelled.
PAK! came another slap.
"That's for attempting to destroy my work!"
PAK!
"And that's for trying to hurt my client. An important one at that. Do you have any idea who she is? She can make your life a living hell with just a snap of her finger!"
"Madison, that's enough." Mrs Ivan said from behind.
She didn't witness the first slaps but witnessed the last one.
"Ma'am, she almost killed you," Madison said with a strained voice. She wondered why Mrs Ivan liked getting involved in their own issues.
"But here I am right? Let the girl go."
"She needs to be taught a lesson."
"I said, let her go." Mrs. Ivan instructed.
Madison turned to Isla and without warning, pulled her by her ear.
"This shouldn't happen again, or you'd have yourself to blame." She said and violently pushed Isla away.
She then walked to Mrs Ivan and slowly walked her to the changing room.
Isla remained on the floor trying to hold back tears. She could feel that her face was already swollen and her mouth was bleeding as she tasted the familiar metallic taste of blood in her mouth. Her ears were burning too! She was in severe pain, but who cares? It wasn't the first time and most definitely won't be the last.
She heard the footsteps of someone coming and hurriedly got up.
"Are you okay?" Mrs Ivan asked softly.
"I'm sorry ma'am. I just didn't realize I didn't set it up correctly. I did it in haste because I had other things to do." She quickly apologized.
"How long will you keep enduring being treated like this? Look at the state of your face, can't you work elsewhere?"
Isla didn't say a word. She didn't know if Mrs Ivan was actually genuine or if she was trying to get words out of her.
" I...I... I… I'm fine here ma'am. I love my job." She stuttered.
Mrs Ivan smiled and patted her head. She opened her small handbag and brought out a business card.
"Here, take it. You can call me anytime. I can help you get a better job if you don't mind."
Isla slowly took the card, but her eyes remained glued to Mrs Ivan. She was trying to notice any sign of dishonesty, but all she saw was a genuine smile. Nevertheless, she couldn't trust her.
"Thank you."
"Yeah, you're welcome. And I loved your suggestion too, it turned out to be perfect, I'll be leaving now, my ride is here. Don't forget to call." Mrs Ivan said and Isla gave her a false smile.
She stared at the card Mrs Ivan had given her, not knowing what to do about it. She didn't know if she should try to call, but what if her boss finds out? What if she loses on both sides?
With that thought, she squeezed the card and threw it into the trash can...