not happening...

30

Blood runs down his hands and he knows right then and there that if she dies, his life is over. Her breathing grows weaker and he pleads, “Hold on, Leila, I'm so sorry, Leila. I'll leave my family, but please, please, please stay with me.” Terrance and Markus rush into the office, followed shortly by the ambulance. Leila is taken away, but Nicholas cannot bear to be separated from her. He holds her hand and tears stream down his cheeks.

He has been sitting at Leila's bedside for two days now, waiting for her to wake up. Konrad and her brothers are all there, each of them has dropped everything to be there. Konrad has asked Nicholas several times to leave, but he and everyone else have been ignored. Peter comes in with a tray full of food and puts it on the table. He says, “Nicholas, you should eat something.” Nicholas shakes his head and mumbles, “I'm not hungry.” Peter hands it to him and scolds him, “Do you have to ruin yourself? She wouldn't have had to wait so long to get to the hospital. I mean, seriously, instead of getting treatment...” He breaks off when Nicholas gives him an icy stare: “Go.” Peter: “She treats you like dirt. There are plenty of women out there who would do anything for you.” Nicholas: “She has every right to treat me like this. It's our fault. Yes, you played your part too, or have you forgotten? If you can't change your behavior, our friendship is worthless.” Before Nicholas can continue, Peter and he are pushed out of the room by everyone else. Konrad looks at the two of them and says in a very calm voice, “We're in a hospital, not at a fair. You can't behave yourselves? Then get out.” He grabs the bridge of his nose and massages it to calm himself down, "Just pretend you don't know her. Because you both don't. You've only seen two or three sides of her. She hasn't done anything to either of you, yet she keeps getting hurt by you and your families. That's going to stop now.“ With that, he turns around and goes back inside. Before the door closes, they hear a faint musical voice say, ”Daddy...“ Nicholas sighs; she's awake. Then he points to Peter and says, ”Office—we need to talk."

In the office, he sits down and asks, "How do you see this now? Do you want to continue behaving like this? If so, then I'll have to find another lawyer or another friend. We both treated her like a piece of trash, and you and I know that very well. She didn't deserve that at all, because she never tried to drug me or blackmail me, and if it hadn't been for that one incident, I wouldn't have been so damn hasty.“ Peter: ”Nicholas, are you serious? We've been friends for so long and you're putting a woman above the Bro?“ Nicholas: ”Yes, we've been friends for a long time, which is why I don't understand why you can't be on my side on this.“ Peter: ”Probably because then I'd have to admit to myself that we really were assholes. On top of that, I treat my own wife like an asshole too. And I'd probably have to at least try to get to know her. You know I didn't marry her because I wanted to." Nicholas nods: “Yes, I understand that. Why didn't you try to get to know your wife?” Peter: “Hmm, hard to say... simply because I don't want to.” He sighs, “I love my freedom and I like flirting and being a bachelor.” Nicholas nods, “Then let me ask you, if your wife wanted a divorce, would you agree?”

Peter: “No, why should I?” Nicholas: “You don't want her, so why not agree?” Peter snorts: “My wife wouldn't want that. She loves me.” Nicholas frowns: “How long does love last if no one nurtures it?” Peter laughs: “Don't put ideas in my head.”

Leila

After several days, Leila was finally discharged and, following a relaxing weekend with her brothers and father, she is ready to return to work. She sits in the office and asks, “Stan, did you assign the team to the Anderson project?” Stan nods, "Yes, I did, and they are almost finished. We also have a lot of inquiries about our AI system, and the government has asked about the drones.“ Leila nods and asks, ”Is everyone behind it being screened?“ Stan nods, ”The results are here,“ he points to a stack of files. ”Oh, yes, I received an application for the jewelry department, and Maurice is asking if there's anything new."

Leila pulls out the application and scans the documents, then a smile spreads across her face and she hands the application to Stan, “Please invite the lady for an interview... hmm... the day after tomorrow.” Stan looks quizzical and asks, “Is there anything special about this lady?” Leila laughs and says, “Just wait and see.”

Two days later, Leila is sitting in the conference room. Ivania Crowl is sitting across from her, sipping her coffee. Leila looks at her and asks, “Mrs. Crowl, why are you here?” Ivania replies, “Mrs. Smith, I'm here because I would like to work for you.” Leila looks at her and asks again, “Why?” Ivania swallows, “I want to be honest with you. I actually admire you.” Leila crosses her arms over her chest, “Huh?” Ivania says, "All my life, I've always done what I was told. That's why I married Peter Crowl. He and his family are very influential.“ Leila snorts, ”Excuse me, but he and his family are sooooo last century.“ Ivania smiles slightly, ”Well, anyway. The fact is, I've only seen my husband five times since we got married. He never takes me to any events. All I can do is take care of his family.“ Leila leans forward and asks, ”Are they mistreating you?“