Crises in Love (Zora and Jaylan)

When we returned to Serene Garden Homes, the place was deserted.

I flopped onto the couch, watching as Hannah lugged in a heap of shopping bags.

She caught sight of my slumped figure and said, "I'll just take these to your room."

"Hold up." I waved her over. She dropped the bags at my feet, and I sorted through them, pointing at a pile, "These are for you, Hannah. Just take them to your room."

She blinked in surprise, "No way, these aren't my style."

I gave her a stern look, "What do you mean not your style? You're not in combat every day. It's time you look a bit more like a lady and dress up for yourself. You hear me? Silly girl." "But it's not proper." She scratched her head, looking troubled, "I can't just accept this."

"Proper? Who are you reporting to? Just take it. If Ronan assigned you to me, then you follow my lead. You're accountable to me. And this is a work requirement," I insisted. "Forget about always being so rigid. In my house, you follow my rules."

She shot back with a tease, "Geez, talk about being bossy, Allie."

"This isn't bossy, and it's necessary. You can't always be in cargo pants and a white tee. You're not supposed to be flashy, but you've got to show a hint of femininity, especially with a face as pretty as yours." I stretched out on the couch, "Oh man, I'm beat. Emotionally drained."

Hannah knew exactly what I meant. She plopped down beside me, and we sat there, staring at each other in commiseration.

"Why are guys such a headache?" she muttered, covering her face and slumping against the back of the couch, "I regret taking that route back. If I hadn't gone that way today, would I have been spared the aggravation?"

"That's just fooling yourself. If you hadn't taken that route, would the incident have never happened? Just because we didn't see it doesn't mean it didn't occur," I murmured.

"How are we going to break this to her?" Hannah asked, her eyes meeting mine, "I'm worried for you."

I pondered for a while, "She's sharp and doesn't beat around the bush, but it's not this I'm fretting over, and it's something else."

"What is it?" Hannah pressed.

I felt anxious, my head pounding.

Just then, Logan walked in and found us sprawled on the couch, "What's this? Shopped till you dropped?"

I sat up and asked, "Where's Catherine?"

"Catherine? She does her own thing, she's not glued to my side." Logan dropped onto the couch as well.

I absentmindedly replied.

Logan eyed me, "You seem off. What's up?"

I glanced at Logan, "Actually, I ran into a bit of trouble. It's quite a pickle."

"Spill it."

I signaled Hannah, who quickly pulled up a recent video on her phone.

She handed the phone to Logan.

He watched the video with a poker face, then suddenly sat up straighter and replayed it.

"When was this taken?" he asked.

"Twenty minutes ago," Hannah replied.

I looked at Logan seriously, "Surprised? Shocked?"

Logan, clutching the phone, fell silent for a moment before making a quiet phone call. After a brief conversation, he hung up and faced me, "Allie, you really should get out more. You've stumbled upon a big issue."

"What do you mean?" I pressed.

"You've uncovered a mystery we couldn't solve. We've suspected there might be a mole, but we could never pin down who it could be. And to think, it's him."

I gasped, "You mean he's involved? It's his doing?"

"It's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Logan waved the phone. "Bribery in all forms. And this is one of them."

"Sexual bribery?" I whispered the words.

"That's a test of character, and sadly, he failed," Logan said gravely, "We've been analyzing this for a while, and he's been careful to cover his tracks. If you hadn't discovered this today, it might have taken us much longer. Allie, you've done us a huge favor."

"But what should I do?" I said with a pained expression, "She's like a sister to me. She's helped me so much. I..."

I couldn't continue.

"For now, you can't tell her. If she finds out, the ramifications could be unimaginable and unpredictable." Logan cautioned, "Let's discuss it with Ronan later."

"But what's urgent isn't this issue, it's the other thing that we're all aware of. There's a chance Renata might have a sexually transmitted disease. If we don't speak up, the consequences could be dire."