Chapter 3

Driving my Volkswagen, I merged onto the city's elevated highway, where the rush-hour traffic and the curtain of rain blurred together.

The wipers swung back and forth across the windshield in a steady, mechanical rhythm, and the neon lights outside smeared into fuzzy patches of color behind the rain. Something soft and instrumental was playing on the car stereo, but the storm inside me hadn't let up.

On one hand, I felt a twinge of after-the-fact dread over how I'd lost it. She was my direct boss, after all. I'd hung up on her without leaving her a shred of dignity, and she had to be furious. When I went back to the office tomorrow, I probably wasn't going to escape a full-blown storm.

On the other hand, a spiteful kind of satisfaction welled up in me. Why was she always the one giving orders? Why did I have to be on call twenty-four hours a day? I had a life of my own too.

While my thoughts ran in circles, I reached the airport's underground parking garage. I parked and checked the time. There were still ten-some minutes before the flight Lily had mentioned was due to land. I lit a cigarette and leaned against the car door, smoking while I kept refreshing the flight status on my phone.

By the time I finished the cigarette, the status read "Landed."

I put out the butt, smoothed down my wind-tousled hair, and headed for the exit of the arrivals hall.

People streamed in and out of the exit. I craned my neck, scanning the crowd as hard as I could. Without a photo, I had no idea who I was even looking for. All I could do was hope she'd recognize me, or that Lily had described me well enough.

Right then, a familiar figure stepped into my line of sight without any warning.

She wore a beige trench coat, her long hair slightly damp and falling loosely over her shoulders. There was a trace of travel fatigue on her face, but it couldn't hide her striking looks or that cool, distant air of hers.

It was Vivian.

She'd spotted me too. Obvious surprise flashed in her beautiful eyes, and then her usual calm returned. Only her brows drew together slightly, as if she were wondering why on earth she'd run into me here.

My heart lurched. My first instinct was to hide, but it was already too late. Pulling a silver suitcase behind her, she walked straight toward me.

"Ethan?" She stopped in front of me, sounding a little unsure.

"...Ms. Sullivan." I forced myself to say hello, feeling more than a little awkward. My mind raced, trying to figure out how to explain why I was here.

"What are you doing here? I just called you..." There was an edge of accusation in her words.

"I... I'm picking someone up." I mumbled the explanation, my eyes drifting toward the exit again without my meaning them to.

Vivian followed my gaze for a moment, then turned back to me and gave a knowing nod. She seemed to have decided I'd skipped out on work to pick up a girlfriend. Her expression eased a little, but her tone stayed cool. "Since we've run into each other, my car's still at the office. Once you've picked up your person, you can give me a ride."

This wasn't a request anymore. It was a notice.

What else could I say? I could only nod. "...Fine."

And so the scene became extremely surreal. There I stood at the airport exit, with the female boss I'd just hung up on standing right beside me. She was waiting for my car, and I was waiting for Lily's sister.

Neither of us said a word. The silence was so awkward I could have curled my toes hard enough to dig out a whole three-bedroom house.