"The boss wants these revised again," her junior said timidly, setting the file on her desk and looking a bit awkward.
"Again?" Isabelle stared at the red markings bleeding across the margins. They were so clean that it made her wonder if he had even read the content.
"Yes, ma'am."
"What did he say about it this time?"
"He said the proposal lacked… depth."
Isabelle laughed bitterly.
"Depth? I built that project from scratch! There's more depth in it than in his entire—" She stopped herself before she made a mistake with her words, rubbing her temple as it ached in frustration.
Her colleagues kept a cautious distance now. Everyone knew not to disturb the assistant manager when she was in one of her 'Elias moods'.
She'd always been calm, organized, the model employee that everyone could rely on. But lately, her perfectionism was starting to look like an obsession, because every time she fixed one of his 'notes', he'd find a new reason to reject it, and she never gave up on a project.
She made sure to fix every bit he kept nitpicking on till it was perfect to his taste. And even that was no easy task.
"He hates me," Isabelle muttered under her breath, her fingers interlocked in front of her face and her eyes dark from stress. "He absolutely, positively hates me."
*And I hate him just as much.*
Why did he even come here? Why now of all times?
Everything she'd worked for crumbled the moment he decided to appear.
And now he was making sure to make her life hell.
It wasn't just unfair. It was personal. What did she do to him?
She didn't remember ever meeting him before now. So why did he hate her so much?
Why was he always finding ways to torment her?
These questions circled around her thoughts but she could not find an answer.
By the end of the day, her desk looked like a battlefield of scattered papers, and pens with missing caps, and one very frustrated woman staring blankly at the screen of her computer.
She looked pitiful. Exhausted and angry.
"Maybe I should just…" She trailed off, blinking at her own words.
Seduce him?
The thought came like a spark. A ridiculous, dangerous, and strangely tempting spark.
She was a beautiful woman with an amazing figure so it would be hard for any sane man to resist if she decided to be tempting.
If she could just get him to lower his guard, maybe she'd finally learn why he was targeting her. Maybe she'd even find something to use against him and threaten him to step down for her.
Her lips curved into a bitter smile as the idea seemed more impractical than the project she was working on.
"Yeah right, Isabelle. Real mature."
But the thought lingered.
That night, as the office slowly emptied, she remained at her desk, finishing the revised version of the project Elias would likely toss aside again tomorrow.
The clock ticked past ten, marking yet another overtime shift.
'I need more coffee.' She thought, squeezing the paper cup in her hand till to crumbled.
She had dark eye bags and hair that had nested a few birds.
'What time is it now?' she wondered and looked up. This was when she realized one office light was still on aside hers.
It was Elias, her boss who was making her work overtime.
She was surprised.
Was he still there?
Why was he still in the office when he was the boss? It didn't make sense for a golden spoon idiot to do overtime when he could just toss the work to someone else.
But... She began to think back.
Maybe this wasn't the first time he was doing overtime.
The last few days, she had been so stressed because of his rejection of her project that she didn't even notice her surroundings.
So, what if he had spent the night this late in the office as she did?
Thinking about it, she scoffed. There's no way he'd do that, right?
If he did then she'd make a mistake to think he was actually making her work overtime, because he didn't want to be alone in the office.
She paused.
That thought... What if it were true?
Without thinking too hard about it, she fixed her face a bit to stop her from looking like a zombie, stood up, straightened her blouse and her hair, and marched toward the glass-walled corner office that belonged to the manager.
If she didn't ask him why he was tormenting her tonight, she might never be able to get a chance again.
And if it turned out to be a childish reason, like him not wanting to be alone, ah... God help her that she doesn't hit her boss across the face.
She got to the glass-walled corner and hesitated for only a moment outside his office door.
Through the transparent glass, she could see him seated calmly, and of course, unbothered as always.
One hand rested casually on the desk, a pen spinning between his fingers while his other hand flipped through reports.
Her reports.
Something in her chest tightened as she saw this. Wait, had her eyesight always been this good?
It doesn't matter. She was here for answers.
She knocked once and before he could even respond, she pushed the door open. It was just out of courtesy after all.
Elias didn't look surprised. He didn't even look up immediately, as if he knew the only person who would barge into his office at this time of day.
"It's late, Miss Han. Shouldn't you be heading home?" He asked with a smooth yet infuriating voice thanks to the indifference it held.
"Thanks to someone, I'm still working." She answered, forcing a smile but he didn't look up. "I'll leave when I get an answer," she said firmly, shutting the door behind her.
That made him glance up. One brow lifted in curiosity.
"An answer?"
"Yes," she snapped, striding up to his desk. "Why? Why do you keep rejecting my work? What exactly is it that you hate about me? Is it because I'm a woman who works hard? Do you have something against hardworking women? Is that why you hate me?"
Elias leaned back slightly, expression unreadable.
"Hate is a strong word." He said.
"Then what should I call it?" she demanded. "You don't even read my reports before dismissing them and you make me redo work that's already perfect! I've done everything you've asked and it's never enough."
She slammed her palms down on his desk, the sound echoed sharply through the quiet room, and once again announced that they were alone.
"Just tell me what it is you want from me?" She demanded.