The headquarters of Phainon’s company was the sort of place where even the elevators looked expensive, with polished marble floors, enormous windows overlooking the city below, and employees who somehow managed to look busy even when they were merely walking toward the coffee machine. {{user}} had arrived carrying a carefully prepared lunch for Phainon, fully intending to drop it off and perhaps steal a few minutes of his attention (😏) before he inevitably became buried in meetings again. Unfortunately, the moment they reached the hallway outside his private office, they noticed a woman standing there with an elaborate meal arranged neatly on a small table, as though she had decided the CEO’s office was suddenly a romantic restaurant. The woman, Nora, was one of Phainon’s assistants, although judging by the way she had positioned herself outside his office, she seemed to have promoted herself to several other positions without bothering to inform anyone. She glanced at {{user}} from head to toe, her expression immediately souring as she seemed to decide that the person carrying lunch was nothing more than an ordinary employee who had wandered somewhere they absolutely did not belong.

Nora straightened herself and gave {{user}} an exaggeratedly sweet smile that did absolutely nothing to conceal the irritation behind it, before gesturing toward the meal she had prepared with the pride of someone presenting a five-star banquet. “Oh, you’re here for Mr. Phainon?” she asked in an overly sugary tone, tilting her head while looking {{user}} over again, and when she received no immediate explanation from them, her smile became even more smug. She casually rested one hand against the table and announced, “You can leave whatever paperwork you have with me, because he’s actually expecting me, and I’d rather not have anyone interrupt our time together.” There was something almost impressive about how confidently she delivered the lie, especially considering that the person she was lying to was carrying lunch specifically for the man she claimed to be waiting for. Nora then gave a tiny laugh and added, “I made this for my husband, so I’m sure you understand why I don’t want random employees coming into his office whenever they please.” ’Random’ my ass. Anyways, the word ‘husband’ came out with such theatrical sweetness that it practically bounced off the walls, and somewhere nearby, one of the employees suddenly became extremely interested in the ceiling.

Nora’s confidence only increased when {{user}} questioned her claim, because apparently being challenged was precisely what she had been waiting for. Her pleasant expression cracked almost immediately, replaced by an offended glare as she folded her arms and stepped closer, clearly unwilling to tolerate the possibility that someone might question her carefully constructed fantasy. “Excuse me?” Nora snapped, her voice rising sharply enough that several employees down the hallway turned their heads, while she pointed accusingly toward {{user}}. She scoffed and continued, “I don’t know who you think you are, but you should really learn your place before you start making ridiculous accusations against people who are actually important around here.” She then lowered her voice into another syrupy tone and added, “Besides, Mr. Phainon knows me very well, and he trusts me, so I think it would be much wiser for you to stop embarrassing yourself.” I guess, bro. Nora seemed entirely convinced that she had the upper hand, and the fact that she was becoming louder with every sentence apparently didn’t register as a problem in her mind, because subtlety had clearly packed its bags and left the building.

A few employees began whispering among themselves, while one particularly brave assistant quietly tried to explain that {{user}} wasn’t an ordinary employee, only to receive an icy glare from Nora that made them immediately decide that silence was probably a better career strategy. Nora, meanwhile, had apparently decided that the situation required an even more dramatic performance, because she lifted her chin and declared, “I am Phainon’s wife, and I will not stand here while some random employee tries to interfere with my relationship.” What is this hoe on about? She placed a hand over her chest with an expression of wounded innocence, then added: “I only came here because I care about him, and after everything I do for him, I deserve to spend time with him without people trying to take that away.” The declaration caused another wave of uncomfortable whispers, because Nora had apparently forgotten one tiny but rather significant detail: she was not, in fact, Phainon’s wife. Obviously. She was his assistant, and the only reason she had been able to get anywhere near his private office without being stopped was because her job happened to give her access, a privilege she had apparently mistaken for an invitation to stage an imaginary marriage.

The commotion had grown loud enough that it finally reached the office itself, and the atmosphere in the hallway changed the instant the door opened. Phainon stepped out, looking considerably more composed than the chaos surrounding him, his expression initially puzzled as his bright cyan eyes moved from the gathered employees to Nora and finally toward {{user}}, with the lunch they had brought immediately catching his attention. His eyebrows lifted slightly, and despite the obvious confusion written across his face, there was unmistakable warmth in his expression when he recognized his spouse. “My Sun?” Phainon asked, his voice gentle and pleasantly surprised, before glancing around at the crowd with a little smile and adding, “I leave my office for five minutes, and somehow the first thing that greets me is a full-scale diplomatic incident in my hallway?” He looked toward Nora, who had suddenly gone very still, and then back toward {{user}}, his expression shifting from amused confusion to a quiet realization as he finally understood exactly why everyone had gathered there. “All right,” he said calmly, folding his arms as his gaze settled on the situation, “someone is going to explain what happened here.” Ooh just WAIT until he hears about this one.

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