Chapter 6 The Lingering Feeling 1

One of Haris's justifications was that he was making sure his only ex-girlfriend got a secure job. A job that could guarantee her monthly needs. A job that probably would not be easy to find outside. A job he was more than happy to offer her without any rigorous selection process.

Um... Haris is nice, right?

"Yes, of course. Haris is always nice. Hahaha."

Haris' laughter stopped when he heard a knock at the door. He cleared his throat quickly and saw the door open. Vanny came in carrying a tray.

"Here's your coffee, sir."

Vanny placed the coffee on Haris's desk. He nodded and thanked her.

"Um... by the way, how are you?" Haris asked, looking at Vanny. "Are you thinking of quitting?"

Holding the tray with both hands, Vanny tried to hide her frown. She took a deep breath, which prompted Haris to continue.

"If you've prepared the penalty money... you can resign as soon as possible."

This time Vanny could not hide her frown when Haris mentioned the penalty money. Seeing that, Haris had to fight hard not to burst out laughing.

"Sir..."

Eventually Vanny's voice was heard as well, with a tone of desperation that made Haris wonder.

"Yes?"

"The fine can't be changed, can it? A billion, really?"

Because no matter how Vanny thought about it, she could not wrap her head around it. How could there be such a huge fine? She was not a superstar with a fantastic job to justify such a contract. She was just an ordinary girl, and her job was just that of a second secretary.

"How could the fine be changed? It's clearly written in black and white."

Vanny bit her lower lip for a moment. "W-what if we redo the contract? Change the penalty and re-sign it."

"Are you kidding?"

Vanny shrank immediately. It did not make any sense, but what could she do? It was the only idea that came to her mind.

"Let it go, Van," Haris said then. "Instead of worrying about the contract and the fine, you should concentrate on your work. It'll be fine."

How could it be fine? It was getting even more chaotic.

"Besides, why do you want to quit this job?" Haris continued.

Vanny blinked. This question made her spontaneously look at Haris again. He was staring at her.

"Do you have another job offer? Or is the salary here not enough?"

Haris doubted the latter. After all, Vanny had originally applied for an administrative position. Logically, the salary she was getting now was much higher than that position would offer.

Damn. Don't tell me what Mrs. Belle said was right.

"Um... you want to resign..."

It was hard to say, but Haris plucked up the courage to ask.

"... not because of me, right?"

But the reflexively widened eyes gave Haris a quick answer. He grimaced.

"Well! So, you want to resign because of me, Van?"

Vanny swallowed hard. She shook her head quickly, but she knew it was useless. Her expression had already given away her feelings.

"N-not like that, sir."

"If not like that, then explain what you mean."

Vanny could not explain anything.

"Goodness."

Haris let out a heavy sigh and leaned back in his chair, leaning against the backrest. He kept his eyes on Vanny, who had her face down and her lips pursed.

"Why?" Haris asked again. "Have I made you uncomfortable in any way, to the point where you want to quit this job?"

Silently, Vanny didn't answer.

"Vanny?"

Reluctantly, Vanny raised her face. "Yes?"

"Can you answer my question?"

Vanny swallowed hard again. Reluctantly, she nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Alright."

Haris took a deep breath. He pushed himself away from the chair and sat up straight. Rubbing his hands together, he said,

"First, please sit down."

Vanny followed the order and sat down in front of Haris, still holding the tray. She felt a little relieved, because standing for so long had begun to take its toll on her.

"So..."

Haris' voice made Vanny lift her head. She did not want to, but it was a reflex that made her eyes meet Haris'. Vanny held her breath.

"Why? You have to give me a clear answer. And then maybe I can consider it."

Vanny doubted that Haris would really consider it. Because she remembered very well that Haris had said openly some time ago that the contract could not be rewritten. Right?

"I apologize in advance, sir."

Vanny's shoulders rose dramatically as she took a deep breath. She tried her best to remain calm, but when she tried to answer the question, Vanny found her body shaking from top to bottom.

"But if I must be honest," Vanny continued in a hushed voice, "I feel uncomfortable working with you, sir."

Haris quickly loosened his tie. Suddenly he felt as if something was choking him. Almost making it difficult for him to breathe.

Goodness! Did she really just say that? Well, it seemed that Mrs. Belle's suspicions were correct.

"I do need a job," Vanny added. "But not a job like this. Still, I never thought about working with... my ex..."

Haris blinked. "What's wrong with working with an ex? Exes aren't like some dangerous virus, are they?"

For Vanny, they were even worse than a dangerous virus. That's why she quit a high paying job.

"Th-That's not it, sir," Vanny lied. "I just feel uncomfortable."

Haris had a hard time believing Vanny's words. Even though Vanny claimed that exes were not dangerous viruses, it was clear from her demeanor that Haris drew the opposite conclusion.

"Fine, then. If you think that exes aren't dangerous viruses, then it's okay for you to be close to me, right?"

"Huh?"

"Besides..."

Haris looked at Vanny with a furrowed brow and raised a hand to point at her.

"...there's no precedent for this in the working world. Someone quitting their job because they feel uncomfortable working with an ex? That's an extremely unprofessional and embarrassing reason."

There was some truth in what Haris said. It was indeed an unprofessional and embarrassing reason. But did Haris realize that what he was doing was also unprofessional? Well, he did not seem to.

"But..."

"Stop!"

Haris motioned for Vanny to stop talking, and she immediately fell silent.

"I'm not going to stop you from quitting. If you want to quit, go ahead. But the end result remains the same. You have to pay the fine. No matter what, you signed the contract. And in case you've forgotten, let me remind you. You signed this contract without any pressure from anyone. You did it with full consciousness."

Every word Haris said made Vanny shrink further. It was as if the figure of one billion dolar was growing and crushing her until she lay helpless on the floor. Vanny was truly helpless.

"So?"

Vanny blinked once. "What do you mean, sir?"

"Are you still going to resign?"

"Yes."

Vanny's answer shocked Haris, but before he could express his disbelief, Vanny spoke again.

"But I don't have that much money right now."

Haris' expression changed instantly. He quickly cleared his throat to make sure he did not burst out laughing.

"Okay. In that case, just collect the money first. Once it's accumulated, then you can resign. How about that?"

Did he think collecting a billion dolars was like collecting used bottles?

Vanny tried to smile as she nodded. Her face looked visibly tense, which was in stark contrast to Haris.

"You may leave now. Continue your work until you've collected the billion."

Oh dear. Here we go again.

Vanny felt completely exhausted. Even when she had to get up from her seat, she felt disoriented.

"I apologize, sir."

*