BAIT🥹

THE MISTAKE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

Sophia tried her best the next day. She really did.

She arrived early, her bag carefully slung over her shoulder, her shoes clicking softly on the polished floors. She organized files, straightened papers, checked emails. She stayed focused, forcing her mind to lock on the work in front of her.

But Mrs. Kate’s eyes followed her everywhere—sharp, calculating, almost predatory. Sophia could feel the weight of that scrutiny pressing down, a silent accusation in every glance.

Everyone felt it. Some glanced at her with curiosity. Others whispered under their breath. But Sophia refused to let it distract her. She had come too far to falter now.

During lunch break, Mrs. Kate suddenly appeared at her desk, slamming a thick folder onto her workspace.

“Finish this before closing time,” she snapped. “I want it on my table.”

Sophia stared down at the stack—calculations, reports, corrections. The folder was dense, almost impossible for one person to finish in the hours remaining.

“But, ma’am… it’s already past 2pm,” Sophia whispered, biting her lip. “This will take—”

Mrs. Kate leaned closer, her perfume sharp and suffocating. “It’s your job. If you can’t handle it, maybe you shouldn’t be here.”

Sophia swallowed hard. Her chest tightened, anxiety coiling in her stomach. She remembered Hash’s words from yesterday:

“Don’t stay late again.”

But if she didn’t finish the work… Mrs. Kate would report her. And Sophia couldn’t risk that.

She set her jaw, rolled up her sleeves, and worked as fast as she could. Typing. Copying. Rechecking. Cross-referencing. Her fingers ached, and every minute felt like an eternity.

5:00pm.

5:30pm.

6:00pm.

Her chest tightened with panic. She still wasn’t done. Everyone else had left, their footsteps echoing faintly in the now-empty office. The fluorescent lights above hummed dully, reflecting off polished floors like icy eyes watching her struggle.

With trembling hands, she packed her bag and placed the unfinished files on Mrs. Kate’s table, leaving a small note:

“I’m sorry, ma’am. I will complete this first thing tomorrow morning.”

Her heart pounded as she rushed downstairs toward the exit. But she stopped abruptly.

Hash was standing outside the building, hands in his pockets, looking straight at her. He had been waiting.

Her stomach dropped. He noticed.

He walked toward her slowly, every step deliberate, every movement controlled.

“Sophia.”

His voice wasn’t angry. But it wasn’t calm either.

“You stayed late.”

She opened her mouth, struggling for words. “I—I tried my best, sir. Mrs. Kate gave me extra work and I—”

“Didn’t finish it,” Hash completed quietly.

Her eyes lowered in shame.

“I didn’t want to disobey you,” she whispered. “So… I left it for tomorrow morning.”

Hash exhaled heavily, jaw clenched, as if holding back words he didn’t want to speak.

Before she could apologize again, Mrs. Kate appeared behind them, her heels clicking sharply against the pavement.

“There you are,” she said with false innocence. “Sir, I need to report something important. Miss Sophia here left her assigned work incomplete.”

Sophia froze. Panic flooded her chest.

Hash slowly turned to Mrs. Kate, voice flat, controlled, dangerously calm.

“And you submitted that task at what time?”

“Just before closing, sir,” Mrs. Kate stammered.

“And you expected her to finish it today?” Hash asked, dark eyes narrowing.

“Well… yes,” Kate said stiffly, realizing too late that she had trapped herself.

Hash’s gaze sharpened, colder than winter steel. “So you deliberately set her up to fail.”

The color drained from Kate’s face. “N-no, sir, I only—”

“You only what?” Hash cut in. “Gave her four hours of work at closing time?”

Sophia’s breath caught. She watched him step slightly in front of her, almost protectively, like a shield between her and the world.

“From now on,” he said to Kate, voice steady but laced with authority, “all assignments given to her must be approved by me first.”

Kate swallowed hard, nodding quickly. “Understood, sir.” She turned and walked away, the click of her heels fading down the street.

Sophia’s heart was pounding so loudly she could barely hear herself breathe. Her chest rose and fell in uneven waves as relief and awe mingled together.

Hash turned back toward her, softer now, the storm in his eyes giving way to something steadier.

“You did the right thing leaving on time,” he said quietly.

Sophia blinked. “You… you’re not angry?”

“Not at you,” he replied.

His eyes locked onto hers, steady, intense, grounding. “You don’t deserve to be mistreated.”

Her breath caught. For a heartbeat, she felt something impossible to define—a pull, a connection, a tension that lingered between them.

They stood too close. Too quiet. Too aware.

The world outside, the distant hum of the street, the fading office lights—all of it seemed to blur around them.

Hash looked away first, clearing his throat. “Let me drop you off,” he said, voice low, measured. “It’s late.”

Sophia hesitated, her mind spinning with everything he’d just done, everything left unsaid. But something in his tone… wasn’t a request.

She nodded slowly, almost unconsciously.

As she walked beside him toward the sleek car waiting quietly at the curb, she felt it—the shift, subtle but undeniable. The air between them hummed with unspoken understanding.

Something neither of them was ready to name. But it was there.

Growing.

Changing everything.

And for the first time since she had stepped into that office, Sophia felt both fear and exhilaration mingling in her chest. She had survived Mrs. Kate, she had survived the chaos, and now… she was surviving something new. Something intoxicating.

Hash held the door for her, his gaze lingering just a fraction too long, and she stepped in. The engine purred softly, carrying them into the night.

And in that quiet ride, amidst the streetlights and shadows, Sophia realized that her life was changing again. Not just at work. But… in ways she couldn’t yet understand.

The day had tested her limits. The night had tested her heart.

And she had passed both.