Chapter 5: Unveiling the Enigma Behind the CEO's Words.
Mia's cafeteria visit began like any other. She grabbed a plate, headed to the food section, and searched for Piper and their colleagues. As she scanned the room, she heard her name being called.
"Mia, over here!"
She turned to see Piper and the team waving enthusiastically.
With a warm smile, Mia joined them, exchanging greetings.
"Hi Piper, Hi guys!"
She said to Piper and the rest when she got to the table while taking a seat and digging into her meal. As they chatted and laughed, Mia's thoughts drifted back to her discussion with the CEO. She hesitated, wondering if she should share her concerns with Piper.
Piper noticed Mia's unease and asked what was wrong.
"Well.....the thing is that"
Mia began to explain but stop and shakes her head.
"No,no,no,no, i want to ask you about...." She stops again wondering if she should ask the question.
She got lost in her thoughts and kept wondering if she should talk or not. But before she could decide, Piper's frustration boiled over. She slammed a knife onto the table, startling everyone. The sudden noise jolted Mia back to reality.
As she gazed at the knife, Mia's eyes widened in shock. Her colleagues looked equally stunned, their faces reflecting a mix of fear and surprise. Piper's expression softened slightly as she realized the impact of her actions.
"Don't look at me like that," Piper said, still visibly annoyed. "What Mia is doing is very annoying."
Mia defended herself saying loudly,
"Ne, it's not like that. I was just wondering if I should say it or not. Why did you have to scare me like that?"
Piper's response was laced with disdain. "If you communicated properly, I wouldn't have gotten so angry. You all know how calm i am but your words pushed me over the edge."
She paused, her tone shifting.
"The real question is, why do you keep talking in a roundabout way? What are you afraid of?"
Mia attempted to explain,
"Well, you see, the thing is…"
"There you go again, if you want to talk, then talk. If you don't want to talk, then don't. But please, stop what you're doing now. It's very annoying, so annoying, in fact, it's SUPER ANNOYING. So, say what you want to say in one word or forever remain quiet, okay?" Piper said, her frustration evident.
"Fine, the thing is," Mia began, but Piper cut her off again. "I told you, in one word," Piper said, growing more annoyed. Mia's face showed her anger. "Geez, will you let me talk before you interrupt me again?"
Colleague A intervened, "Yes, Piper, calm down. Let her finish what she has to say." Colleague B added, "Yeah, let her talk. You never know what she has to say might be hard to say." The others chimed in, "Yeah," in agreement.
Piper relented, "Fine, fine, fine. I understand." Mia thanked her colleagues and Piper, emphasizing her gratitude. "So, it's like this. Something weird happened to me at the CEO's office today, and it's got me thinking about what he meant. But no matter how I think about it, I just can't understand what he means by the words he said to me," she said, looking worried.
Piper's expression turned serious. "Oh, it seems serious. Why don't you tell us more about what he said?" Mia leaned in, her voice low and mysterious. "He said I should just focus on my work and not do anything that will cost me my job. I don't know if I'm overthinking it or if he meant something by it, but it's been bothering me."
Her colleagues exchanged knowing glances, their faces sporting mysterious smiles.
"Ohhhhh, that's what you're talking about," they said in unison.
Mia looked at them, confused, and asked, "Should I believe there's something I should know but I'm unaware of?"
They remained silent, their eyes locked on hers. Mia grew irritated by their silence.
"Why are you all looking at me like that? Is my question that hard to answer?" She raised her voice,
"Say something, will you? Why are you all just quiet?"
The sudden shout startled them, and they burst into laughter.
"Geez, calm down. When did you turn into second Piper?" Colleague C said, teasing her.
Mia got offended and decided not to say anything.
Piper said with a smirk, "Somebody's angry."
When Mia heard that she just rolled her eyes and kept quite.
The colleagues began arguing among themselves about who should tell Mia about it.
"Okay, you tell her," Piper said to Colleague A.
"No, you tell her," Colleague A replied.
Mia interrupted them, frustrated.
"Why are you passing it around? One of you should just say it, will you?" Mia Complained
"Okay, I'll spill the beans," Colleague A said, taking a deep breath.
Mia exhaled in relief, her eyes wide with anticipation.
"As we all know, there was a previous secretary before you," Colleague A began, and the group nodded in unison.
"To cut to the chase, the secretary attempted to assassinate the CEO by poisoning his food with a slow-acting toxin." Mia's eyes widened in shock, and the group smiled at her reaction. "Oh my God!" she gasped.
Colleague A continued, "It's like God had a plan for our CEO. Despite ingesting the poison, he didn't suffer severe consequences when he discovered the plot."
Mia's face lit up with intrigue.
"Wow, this is so bussin! I can barely contain my excitement."
As Colleague A revealed more, Mia's fascination grew.
"The CEO pretended to be oblivious, suspecting everyone, including his closest allies." Mia nodded approvingly.
"Smart move. Everyone's a suspect until the truth comes out."
"This is we're the story took a darker turn,one day, the CEO caught his secretary and adopted son red-handed, spiking his food with poison. He was really heartbroken." Colleague A shook her head.
"Is the former secretary loco, why will we do such a thing? But his adopted son is even more delulu. I just don't get it,he has everything; what drove him to this?" Mia wonder.
Mia's expression turned contemplative, her anger growing.
"The human heart is a complex web of greed and insatiable desires. This just proves one thing: no one's trustworthy."
The group's silence spoke volumes, their faces reflecting the weight of the revelation.