The Delivery Girl

18. Cupcake

Julie

"What happened the other day isn't out of the ordinary. I can usually get Maddie out of my hair pretty easily," he explains tiredly. "But I wasn't expecting her to harass you, and I'm sincerely sorry for putting you in that situation."

"See, you do need me here," I hear Jacob call from outside the door. He peeks inside, giving Mr. Sterling a smug smile.

"It's rude to eavesdrop," Mr. Sterling says monotonously. "Close the door, now."

Jacob mutters something under his breath before shutting the door.

"Um, that's ok," I say quietly. I gulp, bracing myself before asking what's been bothering me since the incident. "Can I ask if what she said was true?" I'm almost afraid to hear the answer.

"It's... partially true, I suppose." He leans back in his chair and drags his hand through his thick hair. "We met at a mutual friend's party a few years ago. She told me she was single."

I furrow my brows. "You believed her? They were a high profile couple, weren't they?"

He laughs dryly. "I've been in the industry long enough to know how few celebrity couples are actually as happy as they want the public to think they are."

"Fair enough," I say quietly, reminded of how inexperienced and naive I probably seem.

"She showed me texts on her phone from her husband, they showed that they were divorced," he says. "Turns out the texts were fake, she had used a burner phone to create fake conversations with herself."

For some reason, I feel myself release a breath of relief, even though this shouldn't matter to me. I shouldn't care this much about Mr. Sterling potentially being a playboy.

So why do I?

I just want to work for someone I think is a good person. That's it.

"You can guess where things went from there," he mumbles. "When I found out she wasn't separated, I immediately reached out to her husband and let him know what had happened."

"Right, and that was when the story came out," I say.

I recall seeing the tabloids at the grocery store being covered with her face. I had always wondered if her ex simply had the better PR team to get him out of the situation, scot free. I guess I have my answer.

He nods. "Then a year or so after her divorce, she began showing up at the office, demanding I make the situation right." He shakes his head in disbelief. "She knows I have connections with the editor-in-chiefs of dozens of magazines, newspapers, and news websites."

I easily put two and two together. "She wants to publish a story about herself – one so she can shift and control the narrative?" I ask. "She wants to recover her career."

"I'm impressed, Miss Leong," he says with a chuckle. "It took me a couple visits before I understood what she wanted from me."

I try not to look too excited at his compliment. Despite the behavior I've shown so far, I still want him to think I'm as cool and collected as he is.

"So you get her to leave using money?"

"Yes. Somehow, her spending habits have remained the same, despite no longer making the kind of money she was making previously," he says and shakes his head. "I'm certain she just comes back when she's run out of money again."

"So how much was the cheque you wrote?" I ask hesitantly. I'm almost certain it's going to be ridiculous.

"Ten thousand," he says casually.

I try not to look too shocked. It's evident we come from completely different worlds. He just dropped what would be an entire semester's tuition without a second thought.

"Wow." I whistle. "I...guess money really does solve all problems." I immediately regret my choice to make that stupid joke.

To my surprise, the corners of Mr. Sterling's lips curl upwards into the slightest, amused smile.

"Thank you for listening, Miss Leong. And thank you again for the cookies, they're a very kind gesture."

I hope he doesn't notice me blushing before getting up and heading back to my desk.

–

I return from my lunch break, and Mr. Sterling isn't at his desk. He mentioned he'd be in meetings outside of the office for the rest of the day. The constant meetings seem exhausting – I can tell he really doesn't like them, but I know he's too professional to complain.

Sometimes, I wish he would. Suppressing your emotions can take a toil on your well-being, and it's obvious there's a ton on his mind.

I raise my eyebrows when I approach my desk. Sitting by my laptop is a small pink, cardboard box, the size of a large candle. I recognize the logo printed on top – a local, gourmet bakery. It's way too fancy for me. One of their muffins costs as much as an entire dozen pack at the grocery store.

So what is this doing here?

I gingerly lift the lid. Inside is the prettiest red velvet cupcake I've ever seen and coincidentally my favourite flavour of cake.

I feel my heart turn to mush as I spot the small note taped to the inside of the lid.

Thank you. -CS

–

I bring out a tub of clean chopsticks from the kitchen to set the tables.

"Zhu Li?" Dad says quietly as I walk by him at the kitchen window's counter.

I stop. "Yeah?"

"You have been acting... differently recently," he says, looking at me carefully. "Is something wrong?"

I feel my body tense. Deny, deny, deny. "No, everything's fine."

"Yeah, I've noticed too," Mei chimes in as she comes over. She unloads her tray of dirty dishes onto a cart by the kitchen. "You've seemed happier since the semester started."

I furrow my brows. "Have I?"

Mei giggles and nods. "You don't come out of your room in the morning looking like you're already dreading the day," she says. "You don't come home looking miserable, either."

"Oh... I hadn't noticed," I respond honestly.

Time has sped by, I've somehow already been working at Sterling Studios for over two months. The cliché line has been true – time flies when you're having fun. I've met nice people, learned a ton about photography, and grown as a person. Callen has sent me on an emotional rollercoaster, but there have been very few people in my life who've made me feel as many, well, feelings as him. It hasn't occurred to me until now how happy I feel around him.

Someone asks dad to come take a look at something in the kitchen. He doesn't say anything to Mei or myself before leaving.

Mei leans closer to me and lowers her voice. "Are you seeing someone?" she asks with a smirk.

"N-no!" I whisper.

She pats me on the shoulder, seeming unconvinced. "Ok but whatever, or whoever, is causing it, I'm glad. It's really nice seeing you happy, sis." Mei looks at me with an earnest smile and gives me a side hug.

Mei reminds me so much of mom when she smiles. She has the same genuine happiness in her eyes, the lightness in the way she laughs. It hurts my heart sometimes, looking at her. I know dad feels the same, having distanced himself from Mei after mom died.

"Thanks, Mei," I say softly. "It's been a long time since I've felt like myself."

-----

A/N:

I aspire to have the same kind of boldness and confidence as Maddie 😂