Tragically Yours

| 14 |

It turns out watching Ethan work for an hour makes my legs ache. As a result, I'm currently walking around the office with no plans on stopping whatsoever. I could sneak out of the office and to Mel, but if Ethan didn't see me around the office, he'd immediately act and chase me down before I could even reach Mel. What if I try to message her using my phone? Ethan wouldn't notice, since he's not as nosy as I am. Yeah, I'll just quickly send a message to Mel and tell her all about what Ethan had told me.

I dig a hand into my pocket to grab my phone, but I didn't anticipate Ethan to be in front of me. Where the fuck did he come from? There's a slight smirk on his smug face while he crosses his arms over his chest. There's no way he already knows what my intentions were on using my phone, right? I've already learned that he doesn't have any supernatural abilities because he's not an alien. So, there's no way he can read minds. I begin to step back away from him cautiously with one of my brows rising. "Why are you acting smug, all of a sudden? Are you here to make fun of me because I keep walking around the office like a complete idiot?" Because I want that to be your reason, and not because you've read my mind about messaging Mel.

"No, although it does sound nice making fun of you from time to time." He placed his hand on my shoulder—the shoulder that's attached to the hand inside my pocket. "I just want to commemorate your patience on being in the office today. No one in the world would have taken their vacation in the office, like you have."

There are two things that are weird. First was his notable sarcastic tone in his voice. For someone who'd been with Ethan throughout those torturous years, can tell that once he looks smug while sounding sarcastic, knows he's up to something. The second thing that's unusual is his hand on my shoulder, it's getting heavier to the point that he's doing it on purpose. "Something had happened... What did you do?" I narrowed my eyes, trying to assess what's on his mind so that I could have any idea what happened. But because this is Ethan Miles, anything can happen. I try to glance around the office in hopes to see something peculiar that screams, "Ethan is behind this." I also attempt to have a quick scan on his desk to see if that something is happening on his desk.

"You sound worried rather than feeling proud of me." He frowns as if my completely rational behavior for attempting to check if he'd done something wrong offended me.

When his hand on my shoulder retreats to his side, I lift the hand that's still in my pocket and cross it with my other arm over my chest. "I'm sorry, I thought that was the most obvious thing to do when a smug Ethan with a sarcastic tone approaches an unsuspecting victim."

It's his time to narrow his eyes at me, "You made me sound like an escaped convict."

"To be fair, I was thinking more like a wild animal, but if you want to think that, then I won't judge." When the smug look on his face dissipated into a frowning one, this was the perfect time to let the laughter build in my throat. "Fine, I'll entertain you. What did you do that created that smug face on you?"

The smug look on his face had returned, and I immediately regretted entertaining his pride. "I think it's best that you'll follow me and see it for yourself."

Words I never thought I'd hear from him. Usually, he'll just slap me some scary information he had done with no extra context whatsoever. Well, this is Ethan, what else did I suspect? A groan escapes my throat once the laughter inside of me dies down. "This better be good." It's already good since he didn't suspect my attempt on messaging Mel with my phone. I think I'm in the clear for that.

He started walking back to his desk as I followed him like a shadow. "Oh, you'll be in ecstasy when I finally show you." I don't see his face, but I can tell from his amused tone, he's smiling like an idiot. The same kind of smile when middle school boys were asked by their crush to the prom dance. The image of a middle school era of Ethan flashed in my mind, and I can't help but to internally laugh at the image. "Why are you laughing?" He'd turn his head to partially face me while he keeps walking forward.