***
"Welcome to my humble abode."
His feet stepped on the unstable marble steps and vines drooped down from the pillars. Flowers and moss grew through the cracks of a seemingly broken Greek temple.
Dicio stood there, his hair tied up in a bun while golden garments draped over his figure.
"Flashy much?" I snickered.
"This is the dream world. I can be as flashy as I want to. You…however, will stay in your pyjamas."
"Why?!"
"Because this is not a lucid dream."
He flew towards me, put his arms around me, and and floated in the air.
"These are my favourite realms, because I can do whatever I want with them. Hm?"
"Whatever you want, huh?"
He smirked.
"Whatever. I. Want."
He stroked my chin and leaned in for a kiss.
*
I woke up suddenly and I clenched my fist.
He fucking did that on purpose.
What was I doing?! It was dream, not reality.
I sighed and put on my coat.
*
As I organized the evidence files and boxes, a hand tapped on my shoulder. My head turned and I spotted a familiar face. My hand pulled my pistol to his forehead.
"Hey, whoa…I'm not completely immortal-"
"What are you doing here?…" I muttered through my teeth.
"Work as usual, why?"
"You don't work here! You don't even exist!"
"Who said that?"
"Fucking everyone! Now get out before I shoot you."
"Ha…I don't think you want to be the one warning me."
"What-"
The door slammed open.
"Why are you pulling out a gun on the new recruit?!"
My boss pulled my gun out of my grip and threw it away.
"You're fired."
I gasped and blinked.
What the hell? I swore that just happened, but why am I in the same spot pointing at his face again?!
"I wanted to mess with you a little more."
He pushed my gun down and smiled. This mother-
"Do you want it to happen again?"
My eyes widened. Could he see inside my mind? Was I drugged?
An ugly smile was plastered on his face, showing his full set of teeth.
"Let's go back to work, shall we?…"
***
I sipped the tea in front of me and cleared my throat. The smell of coffee brew filled my nose in the cafe, overpowering the plain taste of the tea.
"So, what did you bring me here for?"
The old lady laughed.
"Loosen up! We're not here to work."
"…You're one of the co-ceos, I assume you have something to say to me."
"Hm…you really know how to be rude."
Her fingers tapped on the desk.
"I want to transfer you to my team. Think of it as a promotion. You get to be higher up and have a higher salary."
"And work more."
"Of course!"
"What is the position exactly?"
"You'll be the leading project manager."
My eyes widened. Goddamn, that was a good deal! I could finally be the one leading and approving projects and not settle for crappy ideas of a bunch.
"So? Will you accept it?"
"Yes. Can I see the contract?"
She handed the contract and I read through it. Hm…that was way more hours than expected. I wouldn't be able to spend a lot of time with Antoine. But…this wasn't something I could turn down.
I signed the paper and smiled at my new boss.
"Thank you for this opportunity."
"No problem. And remember, you aren't there to go any position higher,got it?!"
Her pheromones prickled at my skin. Wow…alphas were really competitive, huh?
"Got it, mam."
*
I walked down the street and stretched my arms. My stomach growled. I pulled out the leftover sandwich in my duffel bag and gobbled it whole without stopping to taste a single bite.
I peeked into a restaurant.
"Pork dumpling on sale now!"
I gulped. Man…I would kill to have one right now.
I glanced into the fancy restaurant and my eyes widened.
Antoine pushed his golden hair behind his ears. The guy in front of him was chuckling. What the hell? I swear I could see his muscles poking out from his shirt. He was definitely tall and smiled with that chiseled jawline.
He was more handsome than me, and he was with Antoine.
And…wait a minute. He looked exactly like the stereotypical alpha that you read about!
I gritted my teeth and entered the restaurant.
"Hello, sir, would you like to make a-"
"Sorry."
I ran away from the waiter. His hand approached Antoine and I grabbed it.
"What do you think you're doing?…" I chuckled.
He pinched his nose and asked, "is this your boyfriend?"
I gulped. I've never said it to anyone ever out loud, but now…I should. I could. I had to.
"He is…so don't fucking touch him."
My blood boiled as I pulled out Antoine out of his seat and stomped out of the restaurant.
"Kavya-"
"Who the fuck was he?" I mumbled.
"He's my colleague."
"That guy? Why are you guys all the way out here?!"
"Because well…work was tiring today…and he offered dinner…"
"And you took it?!"
"I WAS HUNGRY, ALRIGHT?!"
"Ah…fuck…that's your excuse?!"
"Wait…you're jealous right now, aren't you?"
He chuckled.
"What…that's not the point, you-"
"Fuck…"
He turned away. My heart raced. Did I say something wrong?
His pheromones were sickly sweet. My eyes widened and I looked down. No…he was not mad…he was…
He grabbed my hand.
"We're going to the nearest hotel."
"Wha-wha-what?! I didn't settle on this!"
"You will be."
He smiled and gripped my hand.
"Your ears are red."
"Ah…wait…"
"No…it's your fault for turning me on."