/Building Manager POV\
*Before Akashic Arrived Home*
I sat alone in my office watching videos on my phone when I got an alert that the new owner of our company had come to visit.
A secret the tenants didn't know was that they almost lost their homes. Our parent company was planning to demolish this complex to build a new shopping center.
All of a sudden, someone bought our entire company just to keep this place from being destroyed.
Truly, I had no idea who they were, since they had never even visited—until today.
My nerves set in immediately. Did they come for me? Did they finally find out about—no, they couldn't have. I was overreacting.
I stood up and rushed out the door. In front of the building I was met with luxury vehicles and guards. The latter of which had a bird emblem on their clothes.
Quickly running to them, I saw a woman standing in the middle, holding a bag in her hand. She seemed young, maybe in her early twenties?
Besides her beautiful face, which her cold expression did not diminish. She didn't seem like the mysterious boss type. But I've been around long enough to not make unnecessary remarks.
A little skeptical, I offered a handshake as I introduced myself.
"My name is Ron, I'm the building manager here. Nice to meet you, miss…?"
She didn't move or speak, just looked at me. Her purple eyes seemed to bore into my soul. After she heard my name, her gaze seemed to intensify.
I started sweating. It felt like a mountain was on top of me, making it hard to breathe.
I looked to her guards for help, thinking I'd said something wrong, but they just looked away.
"Alexia. Where's 17A?"
Suddenly, the pressure disappeared. She introduced herself and asked a question..
The change was so abrupt that I stood there in shock, trying to catch my breath.
Not wanting to keep her waiting, I forced myself to calm down, discreetly wiping the sweat from my forehead.
Turning around, I was ready to lead her to the room she asked for—then it clicked.
'17A... the room of that brat? What connection does he have with her!?'
Now that I was thinking clearly, I recognize her. The bird emblem with this kind of spending power must be the Sparrows, and the daughter was the only woman alive in that family.
Not to mention her interest in 17A. The tenant who lived there was someone I'd had run-ins with before—Akashic Torre.
I didn't like him. He was the one person in this building who didn't follow my orders. He had no status to speak of yet he constantly disrespected me.
I couldn't do anything to him besides making things difficult. He had never broken any rules, and he paid his rent on time. Unfortunately I wasn't in good enough graces with the previous owners to have him kicked out.
Now the young lady of the Sparrow family was here. Wishfully, I hoped he had pissed her off somehow and she was here to punish him, but I knew that wasn't the case.
I led her to his room and knocked on the door.
After several minutes passed with no response, I spoke.
"Should I open it with my master key?" I reached into my pocket and showed her the key.
"No." She curtly replied and pulled out her phone. I assumed she was texting him, which was confirmed when I heard his voice through her phone.
"I'm out shopping right now, why? Are you okay?" I saw her show a small smile at his words. It was beautiful—yet it scared me even more.
She put her phone down and looked at me, the smile disappearing instantly. It seemed she was going to wait for him to return, so I offered her a seat in my office.
She declined, standing around until one of her guards approached and spoke.
"Miss, your father called. He says he and Mr. Vero have reached an agreement. They want you and Young Master Daniel at the house to choose a date."
That was all he said, but I saw her face go pale and her expression change when he mentioned Daniel.
I recognized the names again but decided it was above my pay grade. I was already on her bad side.
"Miss, your father wants us back now. You can't make him wait for much longer." Her guards seemed to care for her, while I just tried to make myself as invisible as possible.
It didn't seem to work as she looked right at me.
Luckily, it was only so she could hand me the bag.
"Give this to Akashic when he gets back." After handing it over, she started to walk away.
I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was over, when suddenly I felt the pressure return and heard her voice.
"Manager. Akashic may not care how you treat him, but I do. Please learn your worth before you run your mouth again."
She stared directly at me, the most words she'd said since we met. With every word, the intensity grew, though she never raised her voice.
She was calm, and that made it scarier. I didn't move even after she was long gone.
Her eyes terrified me. The emotions swirling in them when she spoke about Akashic were completely different from when she looked at me.
For him, there was protectiveness and love—more than I'd ever seen in anyone's eyes. Hell, I don't even think my own parents looked at me like that.
I stood there shaking and sweating for who knows how long until I heard the voice I had been dying to hear.
"Why are you here?"