Present time

Satele blinked, squinting her eyes as she looked at the man who was being introduced to her.

It was a Saturday, and it was her first day at work in her new job at a convenience store. But she would never have guessed that the person in front of her, the one she was going to replace was the man who helped her during that time in the cafeteria.

Eric Phelps

"Well then, Eric, I'll leave Miss Risova in your capable hands. Make sure that she takes over all your jobs before you resign," a fat man said at the side before walking out of the office, leaving the two behind.

". . ."

". . ."

Eric smiled. "Miss Risova, right? It's nice to meet you again," he said, all polite.

"A-ah . . ." Satele was still a little stunned at the sudden appearance of the guy, and her brain couldn't react.

After a moment, she recovered her wits, and timidly smiled. "Didn't expect you're working here. It's comforting to know that I have someone I recognize here."

Eric just nodded.

". . ."

". . ."

And the atmosphere turned uncomfortable while the two awkward people who didn't know how to make small talk stood there in silence, waiting for the other to initiate the conversation.

Coughing lightly, Eric urged Satele outside, so he could start instructing her and get out from the awkward silence. "We can start first by familiarizing yourself with the interior. Please follow me."

Before Satele could react, Eric already turned around and walked out of the room. She blinked and followed him in a hurry.

Eric toured Satele around while initiating a conversation, "Is this your first time working in a convenient store?"

Satele nodded. She hesitated before asking anyway, "Why do you want to resign?"

Eric didn't answer. He briefly gazed at Satele before saying, "I found another job that pays highly, and it conflicts with my schedule here," he answered simply.

"Oh . . . what kind of job?" Satele continued to ask, not minding she was being personal. She couldn't help it. Hers was a curious soul.

Eric didn't mind and answered in a calm tone, short as possible, automatically ending the topic, "It's going to be an assistant to some rich people."

"Oh."

Satele's brows knitted. She wanted to ask for more, but Eric beat her first, rendering her unable to question further.

"Do you have any questions so far? If you feel lost, you can always ask me or the others for help. Anyway, I'll give you a printed layout of the store and list of products we have as well as inventories and reports."

Satele tucked a hair behind her ears before arranging her glasses on the bridge of her nose. "That will be helpful, sorry for the trouble, and thank you."

Eric merely nodded. "It's no trouble. It's my job, after all."

Walking towards the counter, Eric explained and thought Satele all the things which needed considering. Since it was still early on a Saturday morning, little customers were present at the moment. But as the day progress, the store gradually turned busy.

At first, Satele was drowning by the amount of information fed to her, and she continually asked for help regarding the machines and the products she didn't know. Luckily, Eric was always by her side to assist her, and she gradually got the hang of it in one day.

She would never have thought that she would get used to the flow of work so early, maybe because the work was repetitive and wasn't hard to begin with, so it was easy to get used to it. The only thing left now was to familiarize herself with the list of products.

And before she knew it, she found the sun was already starting to set and the people steadily lessened.

"Good work for your first day."

Satele turned around and found Eric walking towards her, and a smile blossomed on her face. "It's all thanks to you. Thank you for your guidance."

Eric huffed a laughed and handed a fruit juice to Satele, which made her stunned.

"Consider it as a welcoming gift," he said with a smile.

Satele beamed and reached for the juice as she said a low, "thank you."

Eric's eyes turned softer at the sight of Satele drinking the juice. He couldn't help but be friendly towards her, who almost have the same eye color as Evangeline's.

He shook his head when his thoughts started to drift again. Glancing at the wall clock, he muttered, "It's almost time for our shifts to end. We just have to wait for Jessy and James to come, and we can go home."

Satele didn't answer. She kept on staring at Eric, trying to catch his elusive eyes. Those silver irises which reminded her of the moon, drawing her in its depths.

The whole day, even though she was busy familiarizing herself with her new job, her eyes occasionally flew towards him from time to time. Not because she romantically likes him. There was something about him that she kept on checking him now and then.

True that he, at first glance, wasn't much. Yet to her surprise, the more she stared at him, the more he became . . . handsome in her eyes.

Though Eric appeared nerdy, his posture, however, was dignified. He was tall. He was about the same height as Asher, and she could barely reach his shoulders. He appeared lean and weak, and yet, he had broad shoulders, tapered waist, long slim legs, and whenever the door opened, and the wind blew towards him, those lean muscles formed beneath his shirt. And coupled with his straight posture, he excluded masculinity, which was a contrast against his nerdy face.

"What?"

Eric asked, noticing Satele was observing him, which made him uncomfortable.

Instead of lowering her gaze and be embarrassed that she was caught staring, Satele continued to look at Eric as she spoke bluntly.

"You know, the more I look at you, the more handsome you become. If you cut your fringe and wear contacts instead of those thick-framed glasses, I bet you can rival Daniel Richardson as the number one hottest in our academy."

". . ."

Pursing his lips in one line, Eric didn't know what to say. Thus, he continued to ignore Satele.

And Satele pressed on. "Have you ever thought of becoming a model? With your height alone, you'll pass with flying colors. Not to mention the color of your eyes, which is unique. And your features are sharp and quite eye-catching the longer I look at you. I bet the others will agree with me too."

When Satele realized something, her eyes rounded.

"No wonder Evangeline Heart took a liking to you."

At the mention of Evangeline's name, the calm in Eric's eyes disappeared while his emotions rippled.

Didn't notice the changes on Eric's face, Satele continued talking nonstop. Her journalist side was kicking in full throttle.

"What's your relationship with Evangeline Heart, by the way? Are you two going out? Are the rumors true about her? Is it true that she––"

"Miss Risova."

Eric snapped. His voice was turning harsher, a contrast against his usual calm tone. "It's working time. It's not the time to gossip about other people's lives."

Rendered speechless, Satele was caught off guard from Eric's tone of voice and from the way he was looking at her. Especially the harsh words he said. So different from the harmless, nerdy guy she got to know.

At this moment, those eyes which intrigue her to no end constricted that it became a dot. The calm and indifferent face he was always sporting was still there, though a lot colder and piercing.

She didn't know what to do when he was angry at her. She didn't expect that the nerdy man could also show a face like that. Like it was not Eric she was seeing, but an entirely different man.

And oddly enough, at this moment, Eric reminded her of Asher.

Satele lowered her head, face red. Embarrassment and shame took over as she muttered a low, "I'm sorry . . ."

". . ."

Surprised he lost his cool, Eric quickly cleared his throat. Maybe due to guilt when he saw Satele's sorry face that he answered one of her questions in a gentle tone.

"Evangeline and I aren't in that kind of relationship that you are thinking."

He smiled and gently patted her head. "It's almost time for our shifts to end. Why don't you go and ready your things while I wait for Jessy and James?"

Raising her tiny head, Satele saw Eric's face reverted to one of utter calmness, holding a gentle smile, and she nodded, a bit hesitant.

BAM!