Inside an aircraft flying miles above sea level,
Hugh Grimsa was busy going through a few documents on his tablet when a shooting pain arose in his head.
Setting the tablet aside, he shut his eyes to give them some rest as he had not slept for over 24 hours already.
A sudden and unexpected opportunity had arisen and he had worked overnight to complete the official documents for a new business venture.
This business venture was the reason he was now on this aircraft, heading to a different city to finalize the deal with his soon-to-be business partner.
Though there was another reason for his visit to this city, his attention at this moment was solely on the deal he was about to sign with another huge business conglomorate.
Once this was signed, Grimsa Industries, the company his grandfather had started, could successfully branch out into a different sector of the business world and gain more momentum for growth.
He was confident that this deal was as good as signed since there was no other company that could compete with him for this opportunity.
Though there had been one in the past, it was no longer in the race due to certain unforeseen circumstances.
'Someone's loss has certainly become my gain!' He smirked at the thought of having gained this business opportunity that someone had missed out on.
As his thoughts swirled on this topic, his mind went to the figure dressed in black whom he had unexpectedly met at the airport today.
'Well, her brother is missing so it isn't completely unexpected that she has returned...' A voice echoed in his head, different from his own.
This was the same voice that had argued with him and had angered him back when they were still at the airport.
Ever since Hugh had boarded his flight and began working on his documents, the voice had vanished as though it never existed.
However, the moment he thought of her, this voice returned right away, making him roll his eyes.
'Aren't you talking about her a little too often, Slade?' Hugh raised his brow at the voice inside his head whose name was Slade.
Slade had been by his side, within him, from a young age.
They were two halves of the same person yet had distinct personalities and demeanors.
While Hugh put on a fierce expression, pushing forward in his life aggressively, Slade was more laid-back and had a peaceful demeanor.
Slade usually kept to himself and did not bother Hugh too often unless something was not according to his wishes, which surely was a rare occurrence considering how little he cared about the things or people around him.
Though that seemed to have changed today, especially after encountering that odd little lady back at the airport.
As her image formed in his mind, Hugh once again felt a headache rising as he knew that Slade had not stopped thinking about her ever since they had made eye contact at the airport.
They had different personalities and different thoughts, but they shared the same mind.
This meant that unless Slade tried to conceal his thoughts, Hugh could hear exactly what Slade was thinking about, even if he did not voice them out loud.
Not wanting to hear those thoughts, Hugh had forced Slade to back off and had succeeded in shutting him up for good by using his usual tactic.
Slade had always been disinterested in work so whenever Hugh wished to keep him out of his mind, he would begin working on his files.
This would stop Slade from interfering and give Hugh some much-needed peace of mind.
However, the moment he put his work away a few seconds ago, Slade was back, and the topic he wished to ignore was once again being discussed.
'She is literally the enemy, man!' Hugh reminded Slade of his true identity and asked him to rethink his sudden interest in the daughter of the Valken family.
'She is YOUR enemy... Not mine!' Slade retorted almost instantly, not ready to back off so easily.
Slade knew that there was a deep animosity between the Grimsa and the Valken family and, while he understood why this was so, it did not mean he would readily accept and abide by it, nor that he cared about any of it.
'I've never thought of her as the enemy.' He reminded Hugh that even in the past, Slade had not once displayed any ill intentions toward Anita Valken, the precious daughter of the Valken family head.
'That's 'cause you don't care about anyone but yourself...' Hugh scoffed back at the voice in his head.
Slade not only possessed a laid-back personality, he was also narcissistic to the point that he did not care about anyone but himself.
Sometimes, Hugh wondered if Slade at least cared about him or was just tolerating him since they were two halves of the same soul.
However, he had never brought up this doubt of his and had no intention of doing so at this very moment.
Hence, he shook his head and stared out of the window, watching the aircraft's wing move through the clouds.
'And let's not forget she doesn't even know of your existence, so... stop thinking about her.' Hugh's words were meant to give Slade the final blow, which would put an end to this illogical conversation they were having right now.
He could sense the unrest and annoyance his words had caused Slade, who finally stopped talking.
Knowing that he had won this round as well, Hugh smirked before returning to his work files, focusing on what was more important to him.
As he read through the document, a soft whisper echoed in his head before silence once again returned.
'And whose fault is that?' Slade's accusatory tone was evident as he pushed the entire blame on Hugh for never letting him reveal his presence before the daughter of the Valken family.
However, Hugh simply ignored his words and continued to go through his document, putting an end to this discussion once and for all.