His Muffin

Chapter 27: Tristan is back!

Trisha POV

Tristan has been away for four days, and no one knows his whereabouts. He doesn't show up in the office nor his home. After leaving me with the six-day promise, he kept his words and disappeared from my sight. I didn't receive any text or call from him, and it made me felt as if something was missing from my life.

"Counting days. Another two days, and you will be back." I grabbed the pen and marked the date. Looking at the calendar, I regretted that I agreed with the six days deal. Six days seem to be short, but I don't know why I felt the opposite while waiting for him to return.

I laid down on the couch, looking at the ceiling while reminiscing about the time when we were together. Even though he always acts cold but it still makes me feel better to have him around. I can't deny my feelings towards him, and there were several times I was battling to stop my desire to text or dial his number. Just like that, I drifted off to sleep while thinking about him.

Tristan POV

After two weeks

I chose to stay in my summer house for the past two weeks, located outside the city. I promised Trisha I would be back after six days for her answer, but everything changed after I learned something from Ryan. Even though I'm not ready to face her, I can't keep hiding from her, so I decided to come back to work today.

While I was driving, I received a call from Manuel. "Hey bro, I heard you're in today. Where have you been for the past two weeks? Nobody can reach you."

"Just went out for some fresh air. I almost arrived office. Talk to you later." I ended the call afterwards, not ready to be interrogated by him.

I finally arrived at the lobby. I got up from the car, noticing the guard approaching me to help me park the car. With my suitcase and heavy steps, I headed to the lift, ready to start my job for today. Although my mind was all about her, I forced myself not to get distracted.

"Morning boss, welcome back." My secretary greeted me when she saw me entering the door.

"Morning, can you bring me a cup of coffee?"

"Alright, boss."

I looked around the office, trying to locate her. My head and my heart ain't in sync. One side of me desperately wants to see her, while the other side wants to avoid her. The past made us having an odd fate.

"And also, don't let anyone come to my room."

"Anyone? Not even-"

"Yes, not even the person who appears in your mind," I stressed out before she could mention the name as I could guess the name that almost slipped from her mouth.

"Noted, boss."

I walked away to my room, considering that she understood my words clearly, and I expected no one would disturb me today. Not sure when I will be ready to face her, or it will be more accurate to say that I don't know how to meet her.

The soft knocks on the door interrupted my thought. I allowed the person outside the door to come in without looking in the direction, which I assumed was my secretary.

"Place the coffee on my desk and remember my word earlier. No one is allowed to enter my room." I looked at the view outside my room with my back facing her.

"Not even me?" I was alarmed as a pair of hands suddenly hugged me from behind. Lowering my head, I captured the sight of the hands on my waist and inhaled her scent that penetrated my nostrils; her pleasant scent was my favourite smell.

"Why are you here? I already told Stacy not to let anyone in today." I asked without looking at her.

"Where have you been? I kept waiting for you. It supposed to be six days only but-"

"Forget that six days. It was a joke. Can't you see that?" I loosened her hands with a heavy heart.

"Tristan-"

"I'm your boss, and I don't think calling me by name is appropriate. And one more thing, you can go back to the HR department since I don't need you to work here." I didn't dare to look at her face even for a second as I was scared my heart would convince me to do another thing.

"Why so sudden?"

"Since when an employee has the right to question a boss's decision in this company?"

"Why are you acting like this?"

Ignoring her question, I shifted to the chair. I needed to maintain my cold expression as she was observing my movement while standing behind me.

"You are trying to push me away." She stated.

"Isn't that obvious enough? So, I expect you know what to do next."

"What? Move to the old department, or should I submit the resignation letter to you?"

"Either way, sound good to me." My heart hurt at the thought, but I still chose to answer her cruelly, and I was aware of how much my words hurt her too.

She went to my side while her hand grabbed the chair I was sitting on. With a swift movement, she spun the chair and made us face each other. I can't escape but stare at her.

"I don't know why are you acting like this, but I'm sure this is not what you want neither. There must be a reason why you suddenly push me away. If you need time and space, I understand that. But keep in your mind Tristan, I'm not a puppet that you can control as you wish. It's not you who decide if I should go or stay, it's me."

My fists balled as I spotted her teary eyes. If only I could pull her in my embrace and apologize for upsetting her, I would do that. But at this moment, I needed to stop myself from getting closer to her, which was the opposite of what I desire.

"You're wrong. This is exactly what I want. I don't have time to think about other things except for work. I would appreciate it if you left my room now, and I got many things to attend to." With that being said, I turned my chair to my desk, grabbing a file and pretended to be occupied by work. I hope she will get that as a hint to walk away.

"No problem, we will talk about this again after working hours. Our issue is not solved yet." She is determined to figure out the reason for my sudden change, but I would rather hurt her this way instead of letting her find out the truth, which will hurt her even more.

As she strode to the door, I kept my eyes on her, watching her slowly reaching the door. She suddenly stopped her steps and spun to look at me before saying, "Another thing, sorry to disappoint you, I'm not moving back to the HR department nor resign."

My sight remained at her face while my brain kept chanting her statement repeatedly. It was comforting knowing that she chose to stay.

"I'm sorry," I murmured to myself, deep down hoping that she might hear it.   

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