Chapter 4. Holt the Missing

Fahira's smile widened as she remembered Ariel's improving condition after his heart surgery two days ago. Although he still needed hospital care for a few more days, he already looked energetic and healthy.

"Are you feeling better, Fahira? Mr. David said you were sick?" asked Mira with concern, standing in front of Fahira's cubicle.

Mira was one of Fahira's colleagues at the office who always treated her kindly. Fahira was friendly to everyone, so during her time at Putra Corporation, she never had enemies. Even her fellow secretaries to the directors could maintain good relationships with her. However, due to the company's policy that prohibited all employees from engaging in special relationships, especially since Fahira was always with Mr. Darian, the top executive in the company, no one dared to disturb her as they would risk being fired.

"Thanks God, I'm better, Mir. Thanks you," Fahira replied sincerely as she took off her blazer and placed it on her chair.

"Here, this is for you! You must need lots of nutrition and vitamins since you haven't been in Big Boss's office for two days, and almost everyone here got scolded!" Mira said, handing a gift of food to Fahira.

"Thank you so much, Mir. But why did you bother doing this?" Fahira replied, looking at Mira with meaning in her eyes. The small attention touched her heart deeply, and Fahira once again felt grateful for being surrounded by good people.

"It's okay, beautiful Fahira!" Mira said before heading back to her cubicle. However, just then, Darian and David arrived, and Fahira quickly signaled to Mira to prepare herself before getting laser-like glares from their boss.

With arrogance, Darian walked past Fahira and Mira, and all the employees stood and respectfully bowed their heads to him. Behind Darian, David smiled and returned greetings from the two women who were ignored by their boss.

After making sure that Darian had entered his office, Mira quickly scurried back to her own cubicle. Fahira suppressed a laugh at Mira's antics, but she also felt scared at times due to Darian's cold demeanor. However, as long as Fahira did her job well, she didn't need to fear any human being. In her eyes, all creatures of God were equal; only their faith distinguished them.

Unbeknownst to David, a faint smile appeared on Darian's lips after meeting Fahira. David left Darian's office after finishing their business and left all his tasks for the next two days to Fahira to review.

"Please check it again, Fahira. I've done everything, and the soft files are on my computer," David casually explained before returning to his desk, which was often empty. As Darian's personal assistant and bodyguard, David couldn't be considered an ordinary employee. His working hours were 24/7, and he had to be ready whenever Darian needed him. However, David often helped Fahira with her work whenever she was overwhelmed or unable to come to the office.

As usual, Darian welcomed the warm sun, which seemed to shine brighter this morning. His heart warmed too, feeling an unfamiliar sensation called longing. He sat on his oversized chair and opened the slim laptop screen in front of him. While waiting for the laptop to load, he double-checked the documents he studied yesterday.

The corners of his lips lifted as the aroma of coffee tickled his senses. He inhaled deeply, savoring every waft of warmth emitted from the freshly brewed coffee prepared by his secretary, who hadn't visited his office for two days. Darian perfectly opened the coffee cup lid, which had been slightly closed before. As per his request, every morning the genuine aroma of coffee should fill his room. So, every time she arrived in the morning, Fahira would head straight to the pantry, preparing hot coffee for Darian before occupying her own desk.

After sipping a few mouthfuls of coffee, Darian resumed his work. One hour passed, and Darian became engrossed in the documents he had neglected since yesterday. He felt unusually enthusiastic today. He was surprised by the sudden surge of energy that seemed to push him to accomplish all his tasks quickly.

Shortly after, a knocking sound interrupted Darian's busyness. Without diverting his attention from the laptop screen in front of him, Darian allowed the person to enter. Fahira walked in, carrying several folders containing reports about the company for the past month, as per Darian's request. At the end of each month, Darian would carefully review all the reports from the finance director and the personnel director before entering the next month.

Suddenly, the distinctive scent of Fahira's vanilla lace fragrance greeted Darian's sense of smell, causing him to inhale deeply and exhale slowly as he looked at Fahira placing the folders on his desk. Their close proximity made Darian lose his concentration.

"Fahira," Darian called out, leaning back in his chair as he looked at Fahira.

"Yes, sir. Is there something you need, Mr. Darian?" Fahira replied, daring to meet Darian's gaze.

Silence.

Their two pairs of eyes unintentionally locked for a few seconds. Fahira's heart raced, receiving Darian's inscrutable gaze. She quickly lowered her head to break the contact and took a step back from Darian's desk. Darian cleared his throat as the atmosphere suddenly felt strange and tense.

"Tomorrow, don't wear this perfume again! I don't like its scent!" Darian blurted out, deviating from the topic he wanted to ask Fahira about—about the documents he had handed to David while Fahira was absent. Fahira stood there in shock, her mouth slightly open, hearing Darian's absurd remark. Without realizing it, she raised her arms one by one to smell her body scent, making sure she didn't have body odor. Of course, Fahira felt embarrassed and worried about her reputation as the secretary of the CEO of a big company; she had to always present herself attractively, and any mishap would ruin that image.

"Wonderful! And I've been using this perfume for a long time, why is the Boss complaining just now?" Fahira murmured to herself, looking puzzled.

"It's not the scent, Fahira!" Darian snapped, finding Fahira's reaction amusing.

"Okay, Sir! Mmmm... I'll buy a new perfume," Fahira replied innocently, quickly lowering her raised hand.

"You better leave my office before I get a headache," Darian said, surprising Fahira since he rarely commented on his employees' appearances. Fahira quickly regained her senses when she saw Darian's sharp gaze, and she immediately obeyed his command to leave the room.

"Oh, and please make me a cup of coffee," Darian added when Fahira was about to close the door. Fahira turned back with her eyebrows furrowed, wondering why Darian was asking her for coffee. She knew Darian usually only drank one cup of coffee a day. Darian was known for maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including regular exercise and martial arts training like kickboxing and muay thai, which David scheduled for him at least once a week.

"It's already finished," Darian continued when he saw Fahira still holding the empty cup on his desk.

"Okay, fine, Sir," Fahira replied, slightly stuttering, before quickly leaving Darian's office with the empty cup.

Darian watched Fahira leave and mumbled, "You're actually quite amusing, Fahira!"

Instead of returning to his work, Darian found himself smiling to himself. He grabbed a small remote control from the drawer and pressed a button. The silver curtains in his office, which had always remained closed, slowly slid open, allowing some sunlight to enter and brighten up the room.

As he looked outside the window at the bustling city below, Darian's thoughts kept returning to Fahira. He couldn't help but feel that something about her was different today. He tried to focus on the file he wanted to ask Fahira about, but his mind kept wandering to her gaze and her scent. It was unusual for Darian to be bothered by such things; he usually kept his emotions in check and maintained a professional demeanor.

Fahira was his closest secretary, and she assisted him with many tasks throughout the day. Darian knew she was kind and friendly, but today, there was something about her that intrigued him. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he felt a sense of curiosity to know more about Fahira.

After a while, Darian tried to refocus on his work, pulling out a file from the drawer. However, Fahira's image kept popping up in his mind, and he couldn't help but smile at the memory of her innocent and confused expression earlier.

"Hmm, why am I thinking about Fahira now?" Darian mumbled to himself, trying to shake off the strange feelings and concentrate on the stack of documents in front of him.

But no matter how hard he tried to focus, Fahira's presence lingered in his thoughts. Meanwhile, outside the office, Fahira was busy with her work, trying not to dwell on the encounter with Darian.

The day passed relatively quickly, and when it was time to leave, Fahira felt relieved. She tidied her desk and grabbed her jacket. Before leaving the office, she informed some of her colleagues about an important meeting they needed to prepare for the next day.

But as Fahira was about to reach the exit, suddenly Darian appeared in front of her.

The gap revealed Fahira's empty cubicle as the owner of the seat must be gone to the pantry to return her used coffee cup and, of course, to make another cup of coffee as per his request. From his position, Darian could freely gaze at Fahira's beautiful face whenever he wanted. Before long, Fahira returned with a tray containing a cup of coffee, Darian's order, and carefully placed it on the desk.

Fahira quickly left before her heart started to beat abnormally every time she received Darian's unfamiliar gaze. Since that night, Fahira became quieter, while Darian's behavior seemed to have reversed. He now secretly observed Fahira.

As Fahira stepped out of Darian's office, David arrived. With a puzzled look, he stopped Fahira and asked, "Is it for the Boss?" Fahira nodded and continued on her way.

And now, what Darian did was to observe Fahira's movements as she appeared focused on the computer screen in front of her. Through that small gap, Darian could clearly see various expressions on Fahira's face, ranging from seriousness, pouting, irritation, and occasional smiles. The floral pattern on Fahira's blouse seemed to infect Darian's heart. The corners of Darian's lips lifted as he saw Fahira biting the end of her pen and blowing the bangs covering her forehead. The movement of Fahira's bangs going up and down made Darian chuckle. She had always maintained a simple appearance, with her straight hair usually tied in a ponytail, and her bangs hanging down.

"Hey Darian, remember, she's just an ordinary woman, not at your level, and she's willingly giving herself up just for money! She's just a money-grubbing woman only after your wealth!" Darian's conscience warned him, instantly erasing the smile from his lips.

His hand clenched tightly, and he roughly grabbed the remote, shutting the curtains in his office tightly once again.