You, Me, and Her

Verse 31: Sun Goes Down

"I don't want to interview celebrities anymore! We made a deal that if I've proven myself, you would let me write whatever I want!"

Siana Yale, editor of Trend Wise magazine, and Halwyn's sister was sitting like a queen on the throne while staring seriously at her 'subjects' while her brother tried to negotiate things with her. The young Hal had always been a passionate and dedicated employee, and he loved working with the company so much that he couldn't imagine a future without his friends, and his sister was well aware of this. Very aware of it.

Eurig, Steffan, Maxen, and Cadi who were inside her office as well didn't know what else to say about the feuding siblings. Hal could be very persistent with his freedom to express himself even though it was an uphill battle against his devil of a sister.

Although blood-related, Hal was no exception to the way she treats everyone in the company---she treats them all with superficial warmth that has never fooled anybody, most especially Hal.

Nonchallant of her brother's outburst, Sia kicked her shoes off under the table and curled up in her office chair in a more comfy position. Max gazed at her pedicured nails and Eurig, though often loathed Sia's evil boss character, couldn't help but admire the way she carries herself.

"Ranks off, family talk," she said and Hal did take a seat on the chair in front of her desk beside Cadi. "When are you going to learn that Trend Wise magazine isn't built for that kind of journalism?"

Hal took a deep breath. "I wasn't asking for you to change the whole persona of your child, I merely wanted to add more insight in my writing, something relatable other than knowing what's the latest fashion or colors to go with this dress, blah, blah, blah." He turned quickly to Steffan, "No offense."

Steffan scoffed, "None taken."

"Like what?"

Fixing himself, he turned to his sister on a serious note. "I am writing this piece about finding your inner self. We always fake an interest in something in order to make other people like us. What's with this advice that you should be someone else other than yourself? I don't get it. Why couldn't we learn how to love ourselves and let people develop a genuine interest in..."

"No."

When she said this, Max choked on his candy and he quickly apologized profusely.

Hal ignored this and continued, "Wait, when I was Gwen---"

"No," Sia shuts him down. "Don't get me started about Gwen. Gwen was a fail-safe."

Hal frowned. "What do you mean she was a fail-safe?"

"A fail-safe is a fail-safe. She was a backup plan that came into operation in case something went wrong with Aidan."

He stared long and hard on her face. "Gwen is a person. In fact, she's a very interesting person."

Sia's smile faded. "Gwen is a character you made up, my dear brother. As interesting as she must be, she doesn't exist. Never was and never will be. Do you have anything else to say?"

Halwyn reached a point where he was drawing a blank, his friends exchanged uncomfortable glances at his predicament.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Is this still ranks off?"

"Just answer me straight. Do you want me to go?"

Sia turned her formidable focus solely on her brother. "Do you want to go?"

Hal was frozen under his sister's harsh gaze. She went on, "I know that this is your safe place. However, if you plan to soar into the sky, you have to learn how to fly. Trend Wise magazine isn't going anywhere, Hal. A complete revamp is a risk. Changing the style of writing means changing the target audience and it's a risk too early and we're not fully equipped. So, it's up to you. Write what I want, or you can think about where you want to go in the future."