THE DEAL BETWEEN US

CALCULATED

The car door slammed harder than necessary.

“Drive.”

Mark didn't look at his Chauffeur . He didn't need to . The tension in his voice was enough to send chills down anyone's spine and silence anyone foolish enough to question it.

The car pulled into traffic smoothly and calmly over the asphalt as if nothing had happened. But inside, Mark's mind was anything but calm. His jaw was locked , his cheeks flushed red, his chest tightened and his fingers tapped repeatedly against his thighs.

Dirty and stinky.

He let out a short humourless laugh.

Unbelievable. Not in his twenty-nine years on earth had anyone ever spoken to him in such manner.

The Chauffeur cleared his throat nervously . "Sir your mom said to bring you to the family house after your meet...

"Drive home ". Mark's voice cut his statement short, icy and sharp.

"But Sir—..." He continued relentlessly.

"Are you f*****g daft ?" Mark snapped his voice low but deadly. "Drive home or never drive again

Silence fell immediately, the Chauffeur simply obeyed.

Good.

He leaned back, staring out the tinted window as the city blurred past him. He had always thought Makati was a beautiful City until today or perhaps it was just his bruised ego that was messing with his thoughts.

He had never been insulted before— Challenged, undermined, tested but never dismissed and most certainly not like this. Not publicly not with surgical precision.

The nerve Cassandra had .

She didn't even raise her voice .

she didn't need to.

And that was what burned.

By the time he got home , his patience was gone .

He strode through the front hall, each step carried a precise and deliberate stomp.

Staffs scurried past, heads low , sensing his mood .

He ignored their polite greetings and questions about dinner went unanswered. Mark walked straight past them , loosening his tie as if it were choking him, his footsteps sharp against the floor.

Once inside his room, he closed the door behind him and exhaled sharply .The room was quiet, almost too quiet. Mark paced once, twice, before finally slumping into his leather chair. Hands on his face, he allowed the anger to surge fully, letting it pulse through him like electricity.

He stood up and poured himself a drink. Whiskey. Neat.

He didn't savour it . He drank it like he was trying to drown something .

One glass.

Then another.

Mark ran his hand through his hair , exhaled slowly, then set the glass down.

He wasn't hungry.

He was furious.

He stepped into the shower and turned the water cold. The shock hit instantly, but he welcomed it. The cold was clean . Sharp. Honest.

And it did seem to work actually , he felt alot calmer.

" I wish she'd just go to hell " . He scoffed.

When he stepped out , water dripping from his hair, his phone buzzed on the lampstand

Mom.

He stared at the screen .

He already knew why she was calling.

"Jasmine". He sighed.

"Jasmine Manalo. Fashion designer, influencer, Brand owner. Polished, too loud , smiling too much , all over me" . A woman who made him skin crawl with irritation.

His mother loved her.

Mark despised her.

He flipped his phone, face-down and walked away.

If marriage was inevitable , he'd rather marry a ninety year old nun. He muttered.

Across the City, Cassandra dropped her bag by the door , plopped into her office seat and let out a breath she had been holding all day.

Micheal looked up from the couch . "That bad?".

I laughed once , dry. " Worse".

"You won't believe who the representative was " I blurted out.

Spill girl . Michael said curiously.

"Mark Cooper " I said between sighs.

"Stop playing girl , what do you mean Mark Cooper?,

Do you mean The Mark Cooper "the bully or another " . He replied surprised while tapping my hand repeatedly.

"How many Mark Coopers do I have beef with? . I answered.

"You've got to be joking , what was he doing here, I thought it was suppose to be some Noorman Cooper dude , or what was his name again?" He said still surprised.

"I thought so too". I told Michael everything that happened in the boardroom and how he dared to smirk.

"Are you f*****g kidding me right now, he dared to smirk at you?"

"He lived smirking at me".

Michael shook his head. "I swear one day..."

"Relax", I cut in rolling my eyes . "I handled it , I clocked his s**t "

"Now that's my Cass, of course you did ". He said despite himself.

Michael flopped back onto the couch. "Anyways, let's not ruin the mood. We got us some Boracay vibes two weeks from now, away from all the brain-maggots. Kung saan ika’y nahuhulog sa pag-ibig, at ako’y nakikipag-flirt nang may galang at sayaaaaa..."

(Where you fall in love, and I flirt responsibly.)

"Yuckkk," I faked a gag reflex and we both laughed. "Well, I need that," I added.

"Well", a voice chimed sweetly from the doorway, "we need that".

We both froze .

Priscilla.

Michael turned his head around slowly "No".

"Yes," she replied brightly. "I heard Boracay. You weren't planning to go on a vacation without me, Cassandra, were you? And even if you did, I forgive you… for the sake of Boracay."

"It's going to be so much fun—me, you, Michael, Gabrielle, and my God, the men! Have you seen men, Cassy? Men are handsome, aren't I right, gay-gay?" she added mockingly.

"Are you in any way insulting me?" Michael shot at her. "That's it, Cass. Count me out of this vacation thing. The Grinch is here," he said angrily.

"Take a joke, Michael. Did I lie though? You're gay, aren't you? Why don't you want to say it publicly? Are you so ashamed?" she shot back.

"Shut up."

"No, you shut up."

"Enough!" I yelled as the argument escalated. "Nobody is backing out of any vacation plan, and nobody should s****l-shame anyone here. This is a workplace, for crying out loud!"

"I'm out of here," Michael said, storming out.

"Well, I guess—"

"Please leave, Priscilla. I need to rest," I interrupted her.

"Sure," she replied. "I'll just go pack my stuff. We're going to have so much fun," she added as she left.

"Of course we are," I sighed, leaning back into my chair.

Michael stormed out of the office, phone already in hand. He dialed Gabrielle before he even reached the elevator.

“Gabrielle,” he said low, urgent, almost growling.

“Michael? Is everything okay?” she asked cautiously, sensing the edge in his voice.

“Not okay. The Grinch is coming.”

Gabrielle stiffened. “Priscilla?”

“Yes. She overheard everything about Boracay. She’s insisting on tagging along. I swear, if she ruins this for Cassie…” His voice trailed off into a growl.

“She’ll try,” Gabrielle said flatly. “But we can’t let her. You know it’s all about Cassie. This vacation isn’t for anyone else. Not for Priscilla, not for anyone.

“I’m thinking,” Michael continued, pacing, “we let her think she’s coming, but we control everything. Rooms, activities, the whole vibe. She tries one thing, one little thing, and she’s off the plan.”

Gabrielle chuckled darkly. “Perfect. She won’t know what hit her.”

"It so bad , that Cass can't see that She's up to no good , she obviously envies her , I mean stalker friend syndrome?, hellooo". Michael said.

"Cassandra just hates seeing her provoked even when she hurts her " and I hate it. Gabrielle added.

" I almost didn't want to go anymore " . Michael said.

"Don't

you dare " Gabrielle replied and they both laughed .