It was mid-morning when Damien noticed Elias's desk unusually empty. He frowned, scanning the office. "Where is Elias?" he asked, his voice low.
Marissa looked up from her paperwork. "He... uh, he took a sick leave, sir. Said he wasn't feeling well and wouldn't be coming in for a few days."
Damien's jaw tightened. Sick leave? Without telling him? The thought made his chest tighten. Is he avoiding me...
He rifled through his files and pulled out Elias's contact information. Phone in hand, he typed a quick message:
"Elias, are you okay?
He hit send and waited. Nothing. His fingers tapped the desk impatiently. Another message: "Answer me, is everything okay."
Still nothing.
For the next few days, Damien tried calling, texting, leaving voicemails. Each ignored message was like a spike to his chest. His thoughts kept drifting back to the kiss, the confrontation, the fire in Elias's eyes, and now the absence felt unbearable.
Every time his phone buzzed, he hoped it would be Elias—but it never was. Damien became distracted during meetings, impatient with clients, snapping at assistants. His mind replayed the office confrontation over and over, and the frustration of Elias ignoring him burned hotter by the hour.
Meanwhile, Elias stayed at home, resting, trying to process everything. He ignored every call, every message, every notification from Damien, telling himself he needed space to think, to understand his own feelings.
But even from afar, Damien's presence weighed on him. His words, his intensity, the heat of that kiss-all of it impossible to shake.
He thought about him, he didn't know what to do ,or how to feel about the whole thing. He tried to get angry, but that didn't work either because deep down in his heart he liked the kiss.
"How can I be thinking about my boss who's engage", he thought to himself. "This whole thing feels wrong." I just can't he said with frustration.
And for Damien, each day without Elias was a torment he couldn't escape. His obsession, frustration, and desire collided, growing with every ignored message, every silent phone.
He lost it when he heard Adrian speaking to Elias over the phone. From their conversation he was checking up on Elias and they both talked for a few minutes with Adrian promising to visit him after work.
Damien was blinded with anger, that Elias could actually speak to Adrian and not to him. He left the office and drove to Elias's house.
Upon arrival Damien knocked, and after what seemed like minutes Elias opened the door and was surprised to see Damien.
Damien asked, "Why haven't you been replying to my texts and calls?" "What are you doing here?" Elias asked
"You have not answered my question."
"Why have you been ignoring me and has refused to come to work?" He asked with an angry tone
Elias replied "Sorry, but I've been busy." I took a sick leave.
Then Damien's jaw clenched and he tried to calm himself before speaking
"I wanted to apologize if I made you feel uncomfortable and crossed the line with you by kissing you without your consent."
Elias responded, "There's no need to apologize, whatever happened was just a moment of weakness for both of us so it meant nothing to me."
That word pierced deep into Damien's soul.
Then he asked, "Why are you avoiding me and stopped coming to the office if that's the case?"
Elias replied, "'Cause I'm sick, not because I'm avoiding you." And besides you always call when I'm busy."
Damien's eyes darkened, the frustration and something deeper swirling beneath the surface. "Busy, huh? Funny how you found time to pick Adrian's call, but not to answer me."
Elias's jaw tightened, his fingers curling into fists at his sides. "That's none of your business."
"Is that how you see this? As something I have no right to question?" Damien took a step closer, his voice low but fierce. "Because I don't like being ignored, Elias. Especially not by you."
Elias's breath hitched, his walls trembling but holding firm. "Look, Damien, I don't know what you want from me, but this... whatever this is, it has to stop. You have a fiancée. And I'm just trying to survive your hellish office without losing my mind."
Damien's face twisted, a mix of anger and pain. "I'm losing control of myself."
There was a long, heavy silence before Elias turned away, his voice cold. "Then maybe you should get it together."
Damien's hand shot out, grabbing Elias's wrist gently but firmly. Their eyes met - a storm of unsaid words and emotions crackling in the charged air.
"Are you pushing me away?" Damien asked almost pleading.
Elias shook his head, yanking his hand free. "I'm not the one pushing."
"I'm actually doing the right thing, you should focus more on your fiancée and not on someone else."
And before Damien could reply, Elias stepped back into his apartment and closed the door, leaving Damien standing there, heart pounding and soul aching.