* * *

#SPRAY! #SPRAY! #SPRAY!

With few blasts of insecticide, Alice lays siege to the home of a tiny yet intrepid cockroach inside Joe's office. It ran in from her office and took refuge in a crevice at the bottom of the wall, toward the far end of the office. So she chased after it and has been trying to murder it ever since.

It's about closing hours and Joe seems to be clearing his desk. He keeps observing Alice at intervals, as she fights her fruitless battle with the nimble roach. He almost starts to laugh his gut out when Alice jumps up in horror, as the roach hops down from the wall to finally race out of office.
Her reaction is so hilarious that Joe eventually bursts into profuse laughter. He places one hand against his chest, as he begins to cough in between fits of wrenching amusement. He just can't seem to stop laughing at her. But eventually, he regains his breath, "..Great job!"

Letting out a playfully annoyed frown, Alice purses her lips and declares, "I almost had it, you know!"

"..Yeah, almost." Joe sniffs, with his face almost red now.

"I don't even know how it got in here!", she laments in annoyance.

"Probably from the bin close to the elevator", Joe responds, sniffing again and licking his lips. He is still looking intently at her as he adores her behaviour. He loves watching her laugh, watching her blush, watching her being slightly pissed and being coy. He could stare at her all day, if it were possible; here, just like this. She makes him feel so at peace and at home. "Where did you get the bug spray?", he asks tenderly, with keen interest.

"Martha. She always carries one in her purse.", Alice replies.

"What the.. ?", He squints in surprise. And Alice's laughter cuts in, "Trust me.. You don't even wanna know." She sighs slightly. Then after smiling at him again, she turns to leave. 

Joe notices Alice's warm smile as she turns to leave, while shaking his head at Martha's fascinating behaviour. He blushes a bit, although he tries to suppress it by looking downwards. Thereafter, he calls out to her before stretching to remove his jacket from the hanger, "Alice!.."
She hears. Then she stops in front of the door and turns back, with her hands still on the door knob, at which point Joe starts to walk toward her and stops finally about a meter away. He begins in a humble tone, "I'd like to apologize for my inappropriate behavior the other day. On Saturday night.. I.. had had a lot to drink, and.. I wasn't thinking very clearly. My impulses.."
Right now, Alice doesn't know why, but as he speaks, she begins to realize that she is in love with this man. He has his issues. And she thinks he is fucking proud, but she loves him all the same. While he speaks, she observes his humble and almost fidgety demeanor. And the more he tries to explain the way he felt that night, the more it becomes evident how cute he really is on the inside. She loves it. Cutting in at some point, she says almost wittily with an innocent shrug, "Joe.. Joe!..What inappropriate behaviour?"

Joe becomes quite shocked at her response. Then he widens his eyes candidly, as though about to explain what happened, "Well..." He becomes speechless half-way and then tilts his head in sheer wonder at what kind of stunt Alice is trying to pull. 

"I don't remember anything, Joe." Alice states quite earnestly, as though the truth somehow vanished from her brain. "Do you?"

Joe squints again, perplexed by her not-so-subtle shrewdness. In a way, he likes the fact that she apparently enjoyed what happened between them enough to be playing games. But it's still quite creepy the way she does it. 'Where exactly is she going with this?', he wonders. 

"Ummm.. I guess not.", he replies in a similar manner.
Afterward, Alice nods slowly and does not say another word. She simply walks out of the office, as though nothing happened.  Joe is tempted to call her back, but instead, he decides that this may truly be for the best.

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Joe lives in a fancy apartment in the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
With his briefcase in hand, he slowly waltzes into his apartment building. After passing security, he starts to walk down the busy hall toward the elevator. This building is truly majestic. It is a glass house with several silver chandeliers arranged across the hallway. It also has three elevators leading upstairs and right now, they're all ringing as several people keep coming in and out. It is almost fully dark outside and many people just returned from work while some others are going out to have dinner in one of the many fancy restaurants across Manhattan. The bright lights are on and the almost silver floors are literally gleaming. This is usually the busiest moment at the Castle-Blue, and it's also the time when many of the tenants actually get to see some of their neighbours.

After entering the elevator, Joe pushes the reflecting gold elevator button. And as the door closes, a slender hand interrupts it. Katherine, the woman who lives in the apartment next to Joe's walks in. She has got a yellow tank top and a pair of pink sweat pants on. She is most likely returning from her daily yoga sessions. Katherine should be in her late forties or early fifties, but she still looks like a twenty year old, or at least, that's what she tells everyone. Truth be told, she looks quite young for her age. Her healthy dieting and constant exercise have really been kind to her. Although, these days, her nose is looking a bit sharper than normal. She has also had a few augmentations here and there, but never agrees to it when people ask. Everyone knows the truth though. She moved to Manhattan last year after getting divorced from a British American bigshot in the tech business—her third husband, and in the process, making an unbelievable fortune. Now, she is on a living spree, and she has been shooting shots at Joe for quite some time now, although he has been avoiding her. He thinks she is an incurable coquette, who always wants to prove that despite her age, she has still got game. She mostly flirts with younger men who are either married, or single and uninterested. Sometimes, Joe plays along. But most of the time, he finds it quite tiring.

"Joe! Is that you???.. Hello!", she exclaims while smiling at him in a flirtatious manner.

"Hello Katherine, good evening.", he replies, giving her a wide but cordial smile. Joe believes he will eventually ward her off by being strictly professional and cordial. But unknown to him, his constant resistance to her advances makes her want him even more. She enjoys seducing buttoned-up men like him. And even better, the ones who act decent but still have that dangerous fire in their eyes. 

"..Aren't you looking as sharp as ever, today. How are you?", Katherine asks. 

Then Joe laughs politely and says in reply, "I'm good. I see you've just returned from your yoga session.."

Katherine smiles and waves her hand like a diva.

"Who needs yoga, these days?.. I just went out for an evening run. You're not the only one who gets to look so strong and in shape.. I'm also trying to stay healthy.", she responds playfully while tapping his biceps. Joe smiles at her words while looking up and shaking his head slightly. 

"Back from work early, I see..", she adds.

"8 o'clock is early?", Joe inquires in response. 

"Oh, for you it is." She smiles. "You're more of a twelve.. twelve-thirty kind of guy."

"Ohh.. so you're watching me now."

Then Katherine giggles profusely, "My god.. Joe, no!.. I live next door. I have ears."

With a partially playful demeanor, Joe nods in response. 

She smiles and sighs longingly. While twisting the end of her blond ponytail, Katherine tilts her head slightly to the side and exclaims, "Attorney Joseph King!..."

#Ding!!! 
The elevator opens. Then like a true gentleman, Joe ushers her out first after which he follows and continues walking to his door. "Have a nice evening, Katherine!", he says.

"You too, Joe..", she sighs in disappointment as he walks away. After placing her hand on her door knob,  she arches her back and echoes at Joe seductively again, "Don't forget you still owe me a visit, Joe!"

Then he laughs mildly and echoes back, about to open his own door, "I haven't!" Then he enters.
Afterwards, Katherine pushes her door open and whispers achingly as she walks in, "..Damn!.. He should've been my fucking divorce lawyer. #sigh.."

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