Meanwhile, Adrianna, who had returned to New York City, was driven crazy by Samuel Geraldo's behavior. Despite being in Beverly Hills, she could relax her anxious mind. Adrianna felt a sense of relief from the demands always present in her job. She intentionally took some time off not only because she missed her best friend but also because she needed a vacation.
And who was to blame for all this?
Who else but her incredibly annoying school principal? If only Adrianna could resign from the school where she worked, she would have done it already. She had to consider the cost of living in New York City, which was costly. Not to mention her closeness with the students Adrianna taught, which made her reluctant to resign. And one other crucial consideration; she had yet to find a new job.
"Do you want to resign?" Samuel asked one day. Adrianna, who had just finished completing the questionnaire for the overall expenses of the gathering event, was taken aback. "Don't make that innocent and guiltless face before me, Adrianna. Do you want to resign?"
In her heart, Adrianna wondered how Samuel knew she was considering resigning from this school. Although she loved her job and enjoyed the innocent and adorable world of children and their sometimes demanding but truly endearing behavior, she was asked to do this whenever she returned to the teachers' room and was called into Samuel's office. That Adrianna would instead offer her head to be chopped off.
Adrianna was tired.
"No," Adrianna replied curtly. "Besides, where did you hear the gossip that I want to resign?" Adrianna asked fearlessly. In front of her, Samuel just shrugged his shoulders. The man seemed focused on the report Adrianna had just given. "Sounds like gossip from a gossip column," Adrianna muttered softly.
"I hear what you said, Ly."
It was better for Adrianna not to pay attention to Samuel's words this time.
"I have completed all the reports according to your wishes. I have fixed the revisions you asked for earlier. I even used a magnifying glass to check for extra zeros," Adrianna emphasized her words. "So there is nothing else to correct. But if you have leisure time and much free time to recheck this work, feel free to do so. I want to go home."
Samuel blinked slowly but quickly stopped Adrianna from sitting in the chair she usually occupied. The girl's face was extremely unfriendly. Her face turned red as she tried to control her frustration, and her eyes regarded Samuel as a deadly virus, not to mention her antipathetic attitude. Sometimes Sam wanted to ask what was wrong because he felt he hadn't done anything wrong to Adrianna.
Since their first meeting, and since Sam asked Adrianna to complete various tasks, Sam clicked with how Adrianna finished what he asked for. Although sometimes Sam had to scrutinize further due to Adrianna's occasional typos in some parts. They were small, but they could have fatal consequences, right? It wasn't that Samuel didn't want to ask other staff members for help, but he was often dissatisfied with the results and what he requested.
It deviated too much and only made him more confused. It was different from what Adrianna did.
Sam was a good fit.
But Adrianna could truly make Sam shudder. He feared something might be thrown at his head out of nowhere.
However, Sam was carrying out his mother's work. Yarsa Amora, the principal, should be doing it. Unfortunately, his mother dealt with much more important matters, leaving Sam with these little devils. To Sam, children were like devils ready to pounce on him with their innocent and gentle facade. They all disguised themselves to bombard and bother him, making Samuel even more reluctant to leave his office.
He didn't even participate in the gathering event not long ago. What was the point? Being in a group of little children could trigger acute seizures for him.
Unfortunately, he loved his mother too much. He couldn't refuse his mother's request to take over the administrative tasks temporarily. And what his mother meant by "temporary"... he had been doing it for a year. Sometimes Samuel wanted to say that his mother trapped him. But the threat of having Samuel Sinaga Yarsa's name crossed out from the family card, the luxurious facilities his mother provided, and several privileges that Sam enjoyed could be taken away just like that, making him abandon his intention to refuse his mother's command.
As a result, he had to find someone he could use as a cushion when he was incredibly frustrated dealing with his mother's behavior.
"Sit down," Samuel said firmly. "Don't go home or work overtime. I disapprove."
"Sir!" Adrianna exclaimed, her eyes bulging with disbelief. "You can't do that!"
"I can. After all, I'm the school principal."
Adrianna couldn't believe what she had just heard. Was Samuel threatening her with overtime pay? No way! If it weren't for the substantial overtime pay at TK Pelita Kasih, she wouldn't have done all of Samuel's orders. It's not that she couldn't do it, but she couldn't stand being around Samuel for too long.
His style could have been better. He was excessively nitpicky. He scrutinized things like a miser in financial calculations, able to pinpoint the slightest error or deficiency. Not to mention his arbitrary commands without regard for timing. He was indeed an infuriating boss.
But what puzzled her was that only Adrianna was treated that way. None of her colleagues had complaints about Samuel. They all agreed that Samuel was polite, friendly, firm, and disciplined, even though he was filling in for his mother at the school. Sam could manage the curriculum at the preschool effectively.
Oh my, Lord! Adrianna felt like diving into a swimming pool!
"What else?" Adrianna asked, a little irritated. She couldn't avoid Samuel's threat to cut her overtime pay. A hundred thousand rupiahs was a significant amount every day. She had worked overtime for fifteen days. What if Samuel rejected her proposal for reimbursement? Would her one and a half million rupiahs be wasted?
Was there anything worse than that?
"Be patient, Adrianna. I need to check your work first."
Adrianna grumbled with a pouty face. Frustrated, she reached for her phone in her bag. Playing on social media was better than keeping an eye on her surroundings, especially Samuel, who was now busy checking her report. She didn't want him to get a big head as if she constantly watched Samuel.
Adrianna shuddered at her thoughts.
Her movement of looking at her phone stopped for a moment. On one account, it made her smile brightly. There was a photo of her best friend, Chloe, and Darren, looking happy and affectionate. Adrianna always hoped and prayed that Chloe could see the sincerity of Darren's love. She shouldn't always think about Leonel, even though Adrianna knew Leonel's name was no longer in Chloe's heart.
Chloe shared many things during her stay there, especially her excitement with Darren. However, there was still a lingering sadness surrounding Chloe. It was undoubtedly because of what Leonel had done to her. The trauma still existed. It wasn't that Chloe didn't want to open herself up, but there was a deep fear for Chloe to take that step.
Would Darren remain faithful until the end?
Or would he be like Leonel, tearing her heart into pieces?
Chloe is still worried about that.
"Why are you smiling like that?"
Adrianna raised her head and cleared her throat briefly to brush away what had just crossed her mind. "It's nothing."
"I noticed you were looking down but smiling, Ly."
"So what?" Adrianna replied impatiently. "Have you checked it or not? I have an appointment."
Samuel frowned. "An appointment? With whom?"
"What's it to you?" Adrianna quickly put her phone away. "I made sure all the reports were correct. Say it if you have a far more logical reason than to check my report when you want to keep me company here. Don't make me more annoyed with your behavior."
Her uninterrupted words made Sam burst into laughter. His laughter was so intense that his stomach hurt. What did she say? Keep her company here? Oh my, Adrianna! "You have quite a high level of confidence, Adrianna. I appreciate that."
Adrianna rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Excuse me." Then she confidently walked away without hesitation. If Sam threatened her with disapproving of her overtime pay, she would report it to the finance department along with CCTV footage from this room. Sam intended to play games with her even though she had worked hard to complete her tasks.
"I'll walk you out."
Adrianna's steps, which had just reached the door, stopped. "What? Do you want to walk me out? Is something wrong?"
"No." Sam quickly tidied his desk. Making sure nothing was scattered, he locked his desk drawer. "But you rode a motorcycle, right?"
"Yeah, so what? Besides, I don't want to be accompanied by you."
"But you have to want it." Sam grabbed his bag. Making sure nothing was left on his desk, he locked his drawer. "Let's go."
"I refuse," Adrianna said firmly. She had already opened Sam's office door wide. "I can still go home by myself."
"I'll just hitch a ride with you then."
"Huh?"
"What's wrong?" Sam looked at Adrianna with an innocent face. "My car broke down."
Adrianna was stunned. Her mouth hung wide open. "How did you know it broke down? Were you out of the office earlier? Weren't you here all day?"
"You know my schedule very well," Sam chuckled. "Come on, let's go. Otherwise, it'll be late, and there will be traffic."
"I don't want to," Adrianna refused with a much firmer tone than before. "I won't fall for your tricks, no matter the reason. I won't do it."
Sam blinked twice. The girl in the soft pink blouse had already left him behind. She walked with wide and hurried steps as if leaving Sam here was an intolerable necessity.
"So, I've been rejected, huh?"