Chapter 2: Terms and Conditions
1239 Words
If someone told Hannah she’d be eating ramen with Jasper Ren in his private office after hours, she’d have laughed.
But it happened.
And it didn’t stop there.
The next week, he passed by her desk and asked, “Lunch?” like it was a casual thing. Like CEOs invited junior marketers out all the time.
The week after, he asked her to sit in on a strategy meeting for the rebranding project—something far above her pay grade. She panicked, fumbled a little, but held her own.
And he noticed.
Jasper Ren always noticed.
The rumors at SkyNova spread like wildfire.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Zoe hissed one day in the break room. “You and Jasper Ren? That’s like… dating a statue that breathes.”
“We’re not dating!” Hannah protested. “He just… invites me to things sometimes.”
“Right. And statues just take random interns to five-star ramen.”
Hannah flushed. “He’s not a statue.”
“Oh, he’s worse. He’s a glacier in an Armani suit. Don’t get attached.”
“I’m not.”
She was.
And that was the problem.
Hannah knew it was wrong to like her boss. Jasper wasn’t just any boss—he was the boss. CEO of one of the biggest conglomerates in East Asia. He lived in a different universe.
But whenever she was around him, her brain turned into scrambled eggs. She tried to focus on tasks, deadlines, goals. But her heart refused to listen to logic.
One evening, she stayed late again, finishing a presentation deck.
At 10:04 PM, a message popped up on her screen.
Jasper Ren: Still here?
She blinked.
Hannah Lin: Yeah, just wrapping up.
Jasper Ren: Come to the rooftop.
Hannah Lin: …Rooftop?
Jasper Ren: It’s unlocked. Don’t worry, you won’t fall.
Confused but curious, she grabbed her coat and headed up.
The rooftop of SkyNova Tower was strangely quiet. The city lights glittered below, cold wind tousling her hair. And there he was—leaning against the railing, holding two mugs of something steaming.
“Hot chocolate?” he offered.
She blinked. “You drink hot chocolate?”
He smirked. “Only when I need a break from espresso and capitalism.”
She laughed.
They stood in silence for a moment, watching the skyline. The air smelled of rain and something electric—like something about to change.
“Why me?” she asked finally.
He didn’t look at her.
“You’re not afraid to be wrong,” he said simply. “Most people hide their mistakes. You fix yours.”
She looked down at her boots. “You make me nervous.”
He finally turned to her.
“You’re not the only one.”
From that night, something between them shifted.
They didn’t say it. There were no confessions, no late-night declarations under stars. But the air changed. Warmer. Charged.
He started waiting for her after meetings. She stopped flinching every time he appeared beside her desk. Once, during a quarterly review, she cracked a joke that made him laugh—and the whole room went silent like they’d witnessed a miracle.
But not everyone approved.
Especially not Elaine Wu, Head of HR.
One morning, she pulled Hannah into a private meeting.
“We’ve noticed your… proximity to Mr. Ren,” she said coldly.
Hannah stiffened. “We haven’t done anything inappropriate.”
Elaine’s smile was tight. “Perception is everything, Miss Lin. This is a corporate environment. You should know that relationships with executives are… discouraged.”
That day, Hannah didn’t see Jasper.
The next day, she avoided the cafeteria entirely.
By the third day, he showed up by her desk.
“You’re avoiding me,” he said plainly.
She looked down. “Elaine talked to me.”
“I know. She told me too.”
She bit her lip. “I don’t want people to think I’m only here because of you.”
“You’re not. You’re here because you earned it.”
“But people don’t see that.”
“Then let them talk.”
“You really don’t care?”
He hesitated. For the first time, she saw something unsure flicker in his eyes.
“I care,” he said slowly. “But I care more about not pretending.”
Two weeks later, Jasper called a company-wide meeting.
Everyone expected a merger. Or a new product launch.
No one expected what he actually said.
“SkyNova values transparency,” he began. “Which is why I want to clarify something: I’m currently in a personal relationship with an employee, Miss Hannah Lin. She has neither requested nor received preferential treatment.”
Gasps.
Hannah’s heart stopped.
“Any employee who feels uncomfortable may speak to HR. But understand this: I will not tolerate harassment, bullying, or gossip. This company will judge by performance, not politics.”
The room was silent.
Afterward, Jasper found her in the break room.
“That was… a lot,” she said faintly.
He tilted his head. “Would you prefer I kept it secret?”
She stared at him. “I don’t know what I prefer.”
He stepped closer. “I’ll protect you. From all of it.”
Her breath caught. “Even from you?”
Something flickered in his eyes.
“I’ll try.”
For a while, things were good.
They fell into a rhythm. She still worked hard, still earned her promotions—but now, he walked her home sometimes. They’d eat takeout at her apartment, where he admitted he didn’t know how to use a rice cooker. He started calling her Baobei when no one was around.
He even smiled—often.
But nothing perfect lasts.
Not in real life.
It started with a tabloid.
“CEO’s Girlfriend Gets Fast-Tracked to VP?”
Then came the hate mail. The online harassment. Anonymous messages saying she was a gold-digger, a social climber.
Worse still, whispers in the company.
“I heard she skipped the promotion list.”
“She’s his pet project.”
“She’s not even that smart.”
Hannah pretended not to hear.
But Jasper saw everything.
One day, he called her into his office. Closed the door.
“I’m going to restructure the hierarchy,” he said. “I’ll promote someone else to head the brand team. Move you to another division.”
“Why?” she asked.
“To protect you.”
“From what?”
He didn’t answer.
She stood up. “Jasper, you told me not to hide. You said you wouldn’t either.”
“I didn’t expect them to turn this ugly.”
“So now I run?”
“No. Now I shield you.”
She looked at him.
“I didn’t fall for a shield,” she said quietly. “I fell for you.”
That night, she walked out of his office and didn’t look back.
He didn’t stop her.
But fate, as always, had its own cruel timing.
Three weeks later, she received news.
Jasper had been in an accident. Car crash. Hospitalized.
She ran.
Found him unconscious, bruised, pale.
She stayed by his bedside for hours.
When he woke, he looked at her and said, “You came.”
Tears spilled down her cheeks.
“You i***t,” she whispered. “You promised to protect me. Who protects you?”
He reached for her hand.
“You do.”
- Writer
