Huh… you wish," he chuckled coldly."From now on, we're engaged. And in the next two months, I'm going to marry this woman."
His voice echoed through the office.
Anna froze.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at him in disbelief.
"Hey!" she finally spoke, voice shaking. "No!"
She took a step back, eyes wide.
"What are you doing?" she whispered, almost breaking.
Everyone in the room turned to her.
The silence pressed down on her chest.
Mrs. Yang was the first to react.
"What…?" she said in shock. "What about Mildred, Tom?" Her voice carried worry and disbelief.
But Tom didn't even look at her.
Chairman Yang let out a dry, humorless chuckle.
"Are you out of your mind?" he said sharply. "I know exactly what you're doing, Tom. Get out of my office."
He gestured toward the door.
"Go rest. You're drunk. We'll talk about this tomorrow."
Tom didn't move.
His jaw tightened.
"Yes, I'm drunk," he said lowly, "but I know exactly what I'm doing."
He pointed slightly toward Anna.
"This is my proposal."
A bitter laugh escaped him.
"This is what you all wanted, right? Me marrying your favorite granddaughter… your best friend's granddaughter."
His eyes darkened.
"So I get what I want too. It's a win-win."
A pause.
Then his voice sharpened again.
"You're pathetic," he muttered under his breath.
"David!"
Chairman Yang's voice cut through the room.
David immediately stepped forward.
"Please escort Anna home," the Chairman ordered firmly.
Anna turned slightly—but Tom moved faster.
He grabbed her arm tightly.
"Don't you dare, David," he warned, eyes cold. "I already told you what happens if you interfere."
Then he looked back at Anna.
"You stay here."
Anna exhaled sharply, shaken, her body tense but silent.
"Tom, that's enough!" Marvin stepped in quickly, walking toward him. "We'll talk about this tomorrow."
But Tom raised his hand, stopping him.
"No, Pa. Stop."
His voice cracked with frustration.
"Why not now?"
He looked around the room, breathing hard.
"I can't marry Mildred. She was the only woman I wanted to spend my life with…" his voice hardened, "and now you're telling me to move on like it's easy?"
He turned sharply to Chairman Yang.
"You wanted this, right? You wanted me to marry her?"
His hand pointed toward Anna.
"Then I accept it. I accept my fate."
A harsh, bitter laugh escaped him again.
"So don't act surprised now."
His expression turned serious.
"I'm going to marry her. As soon as possible."
He turned slightly toward Anna.
"Anna," he said firmly, "let's do it."
A beat.
"Will you marry me?"
All eyes shifted to her.
Anna slowly looked up at him.
Then she shook her head.
No.
Silent. Clear. Final.
Chairman Yang let out a dry, disbelieving laugh.
"You're drunk," he said firmly, voice controlled but sharp. "We'll talk when you're lucid. My goodness, Thomas Yang…"
Then his expression hardened.
"Stop this. You are not a child anymore!"
His voice cracked through the room like a whip.
Silence followed.
Chairman Yang narrowed his eyes, disappointment and anger mixing in his stare.
Tom stood still for a moment.
Then he laughed.
Low. Hollow. Almost mocking.
"I guess…" he murmured, lifting his head slowly, "I need to do something for you to believe I'm sincere."
His gaze shifted—slowly, deliberately—until it landed on Anna.
"I need to seal it."
Anna felt it immediately.
Something cold dropped into her stomach.
"What… are you going to do?" she whispered, taking a step back.
But Tom was already moving.
One step.
Then another.
Anna backed away instinctively, her breathing turning uneven.
Until—
Her back hit the edge of the table.
She froze.
No escape.
"Tom…" her voice trembled. "Stop…"
But Tom didn't stop.
He closed the distance between them, eyes locked on hers.
In Anna's mind, everything blurred—fear, confusion, disbelief.
This can't be happening… not here… not like this…
Tom raised his hand.
And in one sudden motion—
he grabbed her waist and pulled her into him.
"Tom—!"
Anna gasped, hands pressing hard against his chest.
"Let go!"
But his grip didn't loosen.
Not even a little.
The room disappeared.
The world narrowed down to the space between them.
Tom leaned closer.
Anna's breath caught.
"No… don't…"
Too late.
He lowered his head—
—and kissed her.
"No…! No!"
Anna's voice cracked as she struggled, turning her head away from him with all her strength. Her lips were tightly pressed shut, refusing him completely.
But Tom didn't let go.
One hand held her firmly at the waist, while the other supported the back of her head, keeping her in place.
The room fell into stunned silence.
Everyone was watching.
Anna's eyes widened in shock as it happened—she couldn't move away from him.
Tom kissed her.
For a moment, everything blurred.
Anna stared at him even as he kissed her, her body frozen in disbelief.
And then she noticed it.
His eyes were wide open.
His brows slightly furrowed.
Not soft. Not emotional.
Calculated.
Controlled.
Like he was aware of everything happening—but choosing to continue anyway.
And in that instant, Anna understood.
He wasn't being sincere.
Tom was pretending.
"No! No—!" Anna's voice cracked as she tried to turn her face away, her lips pressed shut in panic.
But Tom didn't let go.
His hand stayed firm at the back of her head, the other locked around her waist, holding her in place like there was no space left to escape him. The room seemed to freeze—voices dying mid-breath, the air turning heavy, suffocating.
Anna struggled harder, her hands pushing against his chest, but it was useless. Her strength barely moved him. Her heart pounded so loudly it felt like it was echoing in her ears.
Around them, everything blurred—gasps, shifting footsteps, the sharp silence of shock.
And then… it happened.
Tom kissed her.
Anna's eyes snapped wide open. She stopped moving—not because she wanted to, but because her body went rigid in disbelief. Her gaze locked on his face even as his lips stayed on hers.
And that was when she noticed it.
His eyes were open.
Not soft. Not closed. Not lost in emotion.
Open—sharp, calculating.
His brows slightly furrowed, like he was watching the reaction of the entire room rather than feeling the moment. And in that instant, Anna understood—this wasn't love. It wasn't even confusion.
It was control.
A performance.
A declaration meant for everyone watching… except her.
Her chest tightened as she stopped resisting completely, her breath caught between fear and humiliation, lips still pressed shut as if refusing to let the moment become real.
Then, just as suddenly—
Tom pulled away.
The silence that followed was deafening.
He straightened slowly, smirking like nothing had just shattered the room.
"I think I need to seal it with a kiss," he said lightly, as if he were discussing something casual.
Everyone stood frozen.
No one spoke. Not even the air dared to move.
Tom looked at her.
Anna's eyes were glassy, tears pooling at the edges but refusing to fall. Her expression wasn't just shock anymore—it was something deeper, like the moment had carved itself into her chest.
For a second, something flickered across Tom's face.
Something almost like regret.
But it vanished too quickly.
"David, please send Anna home," Chairman Yang said sharply, breaking the silence that still suffocated the room.
"I will take her, Lolo," Daniel answered immediately, already stepping forward.
He moved toward Anna, but his eyes cut to Tom—cold, disapproving, burning with restrained anger.
Tom didn't react.
He didn't even look at him.
"Shit," Tom thought, jaw tightening. Not because of what he did—but because Daniel saw too much. Because Daniel always looked at Anna like that.
He exhaled slowly, forcing everything back into place. The guilt. The hesitation. The faint crack in his composure.
No.
Not now.
He lifted his chin and turned back to the room like nothing had happened.
Like nothing could touch him.
"Actually," Tom said, voice steady, almost too calm, "we were engaged a few weeks ago. I think we should make it official. Properly. As soon as possible."
The words landed like a strike.
Silence again—but heavier this time. Different. Sharper.
Anna lifted her head slightly, disbelief flashing across her face.
Chairman Yang froze.
Mrs. Yang's hand flew to her chest in shock.
"No one can believe what he's saying," someone whispered under their breath.
But Tom stood there unmoving—unshaken, unblinking.
As if he had already decided everything for all of them.
And in that moment, he looked less like a man making a proposal…
and more like someone declaring war.
Daniel shook his head and let out a quiet breath.
"Your asshole," he muttered under his breath, clearly aimed at Tom.
Then he looked at Anna, his voice softening immediately. "Let's go."
Anna didn't answer, but she followed him anyway.
Together, they walked out of the office, leaving behind the suffocating silence and the weight of everything that had just happened. Tom's gaze followed them all the way to the door—silent, fixed, unreadable—until they disappeared from view.
Only then did he look away.
Upset.
Still.
Daniel drove in silence for a while, the city lights passing in blurred streaks against the windshield. The air inside the car felt heavy, like neither of them knew how to break it.
After a few minutes, he turned the wheel into a McDonald's drive-thru.
"Can we get something to eat?" he asked suddenly, glancing at her.
Anna looked at him, slightly distracted.
"I'm hungry," Daniel added quickly, then tried to sound casual again. "Do you want anything? Sundae?"
Anna shook her head.
"It's on me," he said with a small, hopeful smile.
But she shook her head again.
Daniel sighed softly, then leaned forward and ordered anyway through the speaker. After paying and collecting the food, he parked the car in a quiet corner of the lot.
He handed her a bag gently.
"Just take it," he said. "You don't have to talk. Just… eat a little, okay?"
Daniel made the order through the speaker, then drove forward and pulled over near the carhop window. After a few minutes, he received their food and drove to a quieter parking area.
He parked the car properly, then turned slightly toward Anna and handed her a bag.
"Sharing is caring," he said with a light smile, trying to sound normal.
Anna looked at him but didn't respond. Her lips, which had been slightly softened a moment ago, pressed back into a straight line.
Daniel noticed immediately.
"Hey…" he said gently, his voice lowering. "Please don't be sad."
He gave her a small, reassuring smile, like he was trying to patch something invisible. "He's a jerk, okay? I don't think anything he said is going to actually happen."
He leaned back in his seat a little, then added quickly, "And didn't you hear Lolo earlier? He doesn't even like the idea. He was the one pushing the arrangement before, but now? His reaction says everything—he doesn't agree with it either."
Daniel shrugged lightly, trying to make it sound simple.
"So yeah… don't overthink it."
But Anna didn't relax.
She just stared down at the food in her hands, silent.
Her shoulders stayed tense.
And whatever Daniel said… it didn't seem to reach her at all.
"Here—forget it," Daniel said, trying to sound casual as he handed her a sundae and a bag of shake-shake.
Anna hesitated for a moment, then finally took the food.
Without saying much, she started eating quietly.
At first, the silence between them felt heavy. But little by little, it softened—broken only by the sound of fries being unwrapped and the occasional sip from the drink. Daniel watched her for a moment, then exhaled like he finally relaxed.
"See?" he said lightly. "Food fixes everything… almost."
Anna didn't respond, but the tension in her shoulders eased just a little.
A few minutes later, Daniel pulled out his phone.
"Wait, wait," he said suddenly. "We need proof that you actually ate. Smile a bit."
Before Anna could refuse, he leaned in and took a selfie—quick and slightly awkward. Anna blinked, then ended up giving a small, reluctant smile anyway.
"Got it," Daniel said proudly, scrolling through the photo. "Not bad. You look less like you want to kill the world now."
Anna let out a faint breath that almost sounded like a laugh.
For a moment, it was… normal.
Simple.
After finishing their food, Daniel started the engine again and drove out of the parking area.
The city lights passed quietly outside the window as the car moved through familiar roads. Anna stayed silent, resting her head slightly back, her expression calmer than before.
Soon, they reached her place.
Daniel parked in front of the house and turned off the engine.
"We're here," he said gently.
Anna looked outside, then back at him. She paused for a second, as if unsure what to say.
"Thanks," she finally murmured.
Daniel smiled softly. "Anytime."
She stepped out of the car, closing the door carefully behind her.
Daniel waited until she reached the gate before driving off, the night settling back into silence once again.