Chapter 1; In The Tiger's Mouth

"I hate my job..." 

Alex mumbled while stretching his hands out. He glanced at his office laptop's time.

He frowned. Here he was working late again.

Seriously, he had to work his a*s off and barely make a living out of it.

'I hope my boss will be pleased with my proposal.' Alex faintly smiles while thinking positively about the future. He will soon achieve a very good result for the company! 

Suddenly, Alex's co-workers, not too far away from his desk area, shouted out loudly and surprisingly. They didn't hold back their voices. 

"Go for it! You're the man, Sir Bruce!"

"You have our full support, Sir Bruce!"

"They would be a perfect couple!"

Alex's co-workers were worked up. They were expressing their opinion and full support. At the same time, they show their admiration while casually watching their phones with bated breath!

On the side, Alex was raising his brows. What were they doing? For goodness sake, if they want to cause a commotion, they should at least do it outside, not inside the workplace!

"Huh?" Alex stood up and asked his coworkers what they were doing.

A rather tall co-worker chuckled before showing Alex his phone screen. 

At first, Alex was a bit skeptical, as he thought to himself. 'Oh, isn't this the famous platform called "DukDuk"?'

It was showing a luxury mansion. 

"What's going on here?"

His female coworker had a dreamy look on her face as she pouted. "Alex, do you know the prettiest lady in the company?"

"Prettiest?" Alex said, subconsciously, in puzzlement, not having a clue about what she was implying.

"It's Shenna! The son of the CEO, Sir Bruce, is about to propose to the most beautiful girl in the company, Shenna! Aren't they the perfect pair made in heaven?"

Instantly, Alex was dumbfounded. Gradually, his facial countenance turned as pale as a sheet of paper. The truth sank in. He was panicking, and that panic gradually changed into fury within him. A single glance was all it took for his heart to feel like it was stabbed!

Shenna was his secret girlfriend. Shenna and he attended the same college, and when he joined this company—one of the largest in the world—Shenna asked him to be in a relationship with him yet...

Not just that, Alex's mind started to wonder at the time when he had helped her get into the company under the heavy rain, passing his umbrella and wrapping her with his jacket to make sure she wasn't cold. 

"Shenna, I love you; I don't want to hide my feelings for you. Please, I want a serious relationship with you."

"I can't, Alex. I'm sorry."

"It's alright, I understand..."

Shenna had solemnly warned him to never tell anyone about their relationship because they were still in college.

Regardless, it didn’t stop him from loving her. She must have reasons... After all, they love each other. Since then, he had been saving money to marry her soon, so there shouldn't be anymore reason for their relationship to remain hidden... No, he was about to propose, after this project....

Alex was overwhelmed, not with joy but with sorrow. He subconsciously took out a box that contained a 24-carat gold ring that he had painstakingly saved. He had been waiting for the perfect opportunity...

To think that something like this could happen! 

Alex didn't know what to do. At this point, he felt numb.

Meanwhile, Alex's co-workers had visible excitement on their faces while watching the phone screen. They gasped as they realized what that place was!

Isn't that....

"Wow, it’s the Lovers' Dream Hotel! It cost $60000 for one night, and $20000 for a single meal! Surely they are about to enjoy themselves. I'm so envious!"

It was an ideal place to stay for a honeymoon!

Alex's co-workers proceeded to speak with glee while their eyes sparkled. "Hey, Alex, I've got no doubt in my mind that Shenna would definitely say yes!"

It wasn't too far-fetched to say that everyone in the company knew that the son of the CEO and Shenna had something between them!

On the other hand, Alex was worried, sick, confused, and angry! On top of that, the name of the building was "Lovers' Dream Hotel." It was like a mockery—a slap on his face.

In his heart, he didn't want to believe that Shenna would betray him. Didn't they promise each other?

Nevertheless, Alex's rational mind was fearful, yet he couldn't help but think of the possibility that it was true! 

Alex bit his lips until they bled. He hurriedly took out his phone and turned on "DukDuk" and watched the live stream as well. What came to view first was the extravagance of meals and luxury decoration. 

At this juncture, the first thing that Alex saw was Shenna on the screen's live video, followed by Bruce. With a blush on Shenna's cheeks, she proactively kissed the son of the CEO, Bruce, and it seemed that Bruce was thoroughly enjoying it! He was grinning from ear to ear.

D*mn it!

Instantly, Alex felt like his world was crumbling. He was devastated and crashed. His face turned paler and paler, as though he had seen a ghost. 

But that wasn't all. He could feel the burning rage inside his heart. Shenna had shown that intimate side of her to another man?!...

Without thinking properly, Alex, who was beyond help, had to rush out of the workplace, ignoring the weird looks his co-workers were casting at him.

"Oi, what's gotten into our employee of the year?" The lady with a short tail and brown eyes exclaimed. She was curious and wondered why he looked so pale. Perhaps it was an emergency?

"Why are you asking me? And who should I ask?" A man with a mean-looking face shrugged his shoulders. How in the world would he know about Alex?

At that moment, the manager finally notices Alex heading toward the exit.

"Stop! You b*stard, you haven't finished your work, get back this instance!" The chubby manager, whose name was Roger Plump, screamed at the top of his lungs while banging his fist on the table. How dare he ignore his command?

Alex's co-workers had their thumbs up in admiration. They were in awe of him for ignoring that lazy fatso manager. 

No one had the guts to go up against that snobbish manager. It felt good to see his flushed, chubby face. That should teach him a lesson about looking down on the company's employees!

The plump manager badly wanted to fire Alex, but he couldn't as the CEO of the company had always looked favorably on him since he got the position in the company, and by the end of this week he would be promoted! Roger Plump could only grit his teeth in anguish!

"What are you guys laughing at? Go back to work!" Roger Plump roared.

Alex didn't appear to hear any of their remarks or the furious shouts as he was already on the lower ground, heading toward the building's exit. 

Outside, Alex could be seen gazing up. The sky was covered by a thick blanket of night. It would appear that it was about to rain. 

Just then, a taxi stopped in front of him to take him to that place. He had to find Shenna...

In Alex's mind, he wanted to shout and ask the heavens why she would betray him!

Is this real? Are you really going to do this to me, Shenna? My love?