John barged into Jake's office, causing the latter to glare at him. He stopped checking his emails and turned his swivel chair towards the former, who now stood beside him.

"John, we came here together. What do you want now?" Jake asked annoyingly as the other stood there, trying to display his innocent doe eyes to the elder as if he were pleading for something, or maybe someone. Jake sighed, shaking his head dejectedly before enquiring, "What do you want now?"

"I need a favour," John responded, causing Jake to raise his brow as if he were questioning the younger to continue. "I need Stacy."

Jake's pupils dilated. "Excuse me?" He yelled at John, glancing at him in a judgemental way. He ranked his eyes over John's body from head to toe and then settled his gaze on his eyes, staring right into his soul.

He had known his friend all these years, and he knew that John was a flirty guy. But how could he say something like this about his assistant? Stacy had been working with Jake for a few years and was a decent girl. He didn't like it a bit when John said something like this.

"Please don't get me wrong. What I meant was, can you allow her to work with me for a few days? I have some work, and you know my assistant resigned as she got married." John let out a sheepish smile as he scratched his nap out of nervousness. He understood how wrong that sounded, and now he felt guilty. He would never think like that about Stacy.

Jake heaved a sigh of relief. "We told you to hire one."

"Dude, I don't have time for such nonsense things. Will you allow her?" John questioned him again, feeling agitated now. Hiring an assistant was a hectic job. First, he was supposed to take an interview, select a suitable candidate, train them, and then keep up with their imperfections till they were trained.

Now you might ask why he would hire an imperfect assistant. Well, no one can judge a person within a day or two. What if he learns about those negative qualities after a month or two? In that case, he would have to go through the whole hassle all over again.

So hiring someone? No thanks! It's better to borrow Jake's assistant.

"Yes, why not. I don't have too much workload right now. If I require assistance, I can contact Ana." Jake shrugged his shoulders, not really thinking much about his statement.

"You like her a lot, don't you?" John inquired; his brows wiggled curiously as he chuckled when he noticed the other's widened eyes, who soon pulled a poker face.

"I thought you didn't have time for nonsense things," Jake said, raising his brow. He smirked victoriously, causing John to roll his eyes. "Whatever. Send Stacy right after I leave. I have a lot of work to do."

"As if we are here to party." Jake chuckled when John displayed a middle finger as he walked towards the door. "Whatever."

"John! Today should be the last day for Stacy to have lunch with us in the dining." Jake's stern words made the younger halt. He quickly turned his heels, glancing at the caramel-haired male, not understanding what he was trying to say.

"What does that mean?" He shifted his attention back to the voice; confusion was visible on his face.

"Don't you remember how we told Ana that you will be busy with your work? That excuse wouldn't make any sense if Stacy joins us for lunch every day while you don't."

"But I won't be at the office. I need to feed our baby Austin." John responded quickly in a duh tone, rolling his eyes. He thought his friend was stupid.

"I don't give a damn, John. Make her work or something. She shouldn't know that you'll be with Austin for lunch; remember that. Stacy is close to Ana. She will spill out everything once she meets her."

"Okay bro, I'll take care. Bye now." With that, John went out of Jake's office without waiting for any reply from his friend.

John thought while squealing like a girl, "I'll get to work with you, Stacy, even if it's only for a few days. Someone will mistake me for a high school guy who has been whipped because of his first love. Get your actions right before she works with you. She shouldn't hate you after working with you, John."

Meanwhile,

Jake was busy with his thoughts. "What a great chance I got coincidentally. Stacy wouldn't be around us from now on. So wouldn't be John. I'd be able to spend some quality time with Ana on my own for the first time. I'm hoping she'll fall in love with me after spending some time with me. I know she just has a crush on John. But I'll soon make you fall for me. Just wait, Ana."

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Ana sat in her cabin and waited for Stacy to come and accompany her for lunch. She had a sweet smile on her face as she remembered how John was going to eat the food she had prepared. She was excited as well as nervous. Even though she was unsure of her feelings for the male, she hoped he liked her food nonetheless, as cooking made her happy and she was ready to feed anyone, not just her crush.

Suddenly, a knock on the door pulled her out of her reverie. "I'm coming, Stac-" When she looked at the door and saw Jake instead of Stacy, she paused. She bit her lower lip to not let out a chuckle. Her cheeks turned crimson when Jake just peered into her cabin like a curious little boy.

"It's me, Ana. I'm hungry; let's go. Don't forget the food. I'm excited to eat the food prepared by you." He smiled widely, his eyes forming crescents. Ana was lost in his smile for a few seconds until she cleared her throat and stopped staring at the male. How wrong it seemed, because a few minutes ago she was thinking about her crush on John, while right now she was lost in Jake's smile. What an irony!

"Oh, here it is. Let us proceed to the dining room. I'm hungry as well." She spoke, pointing at the lunch boxes placed on her desk. She picked up the bag and walked out of her cabin.

Jake was outpacing Ana in terms of walking speed, which made Ana chase him around like a lost puppy. She was literally running behind him at this point because it was getting tough for her to match his pace.

"Jake?" Ana called him in a low murmur, who wasn't paying attention to her, although he wasn't far away.

"Jake?" She called him again as she huffed. Jake didn't stop, but a smile formed on his lips when he heard her footsteps approaching him quickly. At this point, he was just teasing her, and he was enjoying it.

Ana placed the bag on the floor right beside her and ran after Jake. She tightened her grip on his wrist, causing him to turn towards her with a serious face. "Ana, what's the matter? Why are you panting?" He pretended to be concerned. "Are you running a marathon?"

"J-Jake. W-what about John's f-food?" Ana asked, breathing heavily as she pointed at the bag that was lying on the ground a few steps back.

Jake mentally slapped himself. He was so preoccupied with teasing Ana that he completely forgot about his best friend. "Please hand it over to me and wait here. I'll be back in five minutes."

Ana dashed to the bag, swiftly retrieved John's tiffin, and handed it over to Jake.

Jake hurried over to John's office and barged in before placing the lunch box on his desk. John stood on his chair and looked at the panting male with confusion. "Go now. Please take care of him and don't spill the beans."

John nodded, showing a thumbs up as he now stood up and took the lunch box in his hand. "I know, bro. Bye now!"

They both hurried out of John's office at the same time but with opposite emotions. John had all sorts of mixed emotions, while Jake was overjoyed to have lunch with Ana all alone.

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Austin was confused by what he heard. What was his best friend doing in Ana's cabin? Why were they eating lunch together? And when did they get so close? Since the time he fixed the listening device in Ana's room, he had been keeping a close eye on who was entering her cabin. But never once did he see Jake and Ana meeting that often other than for work. Why should I give a damn? Let them be. He thought as he shrugged. He resumed his work, closing the laptop that was connected to the listening device.

After a few good minutes, a knock grabbed his attention. "Come in." He exclaimed in his deep, husky voice.

"Your food is here." John grinned as he held the box in his hands.

"I don't feel like having anything. Just get me my espresso." Austin uttered it in a bored tone as he continued paying attention to his work and not his friend, who had a judgemental look on his face.

"Bro, you promised to try. We all promised for you to try. We want you to get better. Stop throwing tantrums all the time." His enraged words made the CEO feel defeated. He let out a sigh. "Fine. Get that stupid box here. Let me see what I'll be having."

Austin opened the lunch box; the aroma made his mouth water. He grabbed a knife and a fork and finished cutting a large piece of steak. He was about to eat it when John grabbed his wrist. "What now?" With an irritated tone, he inquired.

"Bro, smaller bite." He suggested, which made the elder roll his eyes when John displayed his cute, almost begging gaze. His lips twitched upwards into an endearing smile when Austin uttered "fine" gently.

Ummmm!! This is delicious. I'll finish all of it at once. Austin thought, devouring the food.

Austin was almost done with the steak with a content face. However, before finishing it, he couldn't help but dash to the bathroom. John panicked upon seeing him running with his hand on his mouth, and so he ran after the elder.

"Calm down, bro. It's okay. I'm here." John patted his back to reassure him of his presence as worry took him over.

Jake assured John that this would work. If it was supposed to work, why was his friend in pain again? Shouldn't it work? John couldn't help but feel angry as well as worried.

"G-go. S-stay out!" Austin's eyes welled up with tears as he vomited.

"I'm here. Don't panic. Vomit it out; you'll feel better."

A few minutes later, Austin washed his face and left the bathroom, followed by a heartbroken John.

Austin slid down the bathroom door and sat on the floor with his knees to his chest. He felt compelled to cry, which he did. The younger one sat in front of him and held him in his arms while the other cried.

John couldn't bear seeing his pal cry. His vision became blurry as well. To stop his tears from flowing, he hastily looked up. He was trying his best not to let out tears. His friend needed him, so he had to be strong, no matter how much Austin's condition broke his heart.

"I-I told y-you, I couldn't." Austin began weeping like a small baby, sniffling and hiccuping continuously as his shoulders shook. He coughed as he wiped his tears, only for more tears to make their way down his bread-like cheeks. It seemed as if someone had broken his favourite toy, and he could only weep because he was too small to fight.

"Did the food taste bad?" John inquired, trying to divert the topic. He didn't want Austin to feel worse about his condition than it was.

"Rather, it was delicious. But for some reason, I felt like puking."

"It's all right. Your mind will need time to adjust to these changes, according to the doctor. You have had that grass all your life."

Austin pulled out of John's embrace and looked up with his bloodshot eyes. His eyes were shining because of the fresh tears. "Language, John. Stop talking with that clown."

"She is, nevertheless, correct. Having salads all the time makes us feel like we're eating grass."

John laughed silently, earning a slap from the elder. "Ouch, that hurts." The raven-haired male pouted, rubbing his arm.

They sat silently beside each other for a few minutes. Austin had stopped crying now, but his eyelids felt heavy because of dry tears. They were both lost in their thoughts until John questioned, "Was it really that good?" He glanced at the brunette, who glanced back.

"It really was good bro, trust me."

John now realised why Jake decided to do this. He thought, "I can't believe that cute stupid girl can cook. I assumed she could just fall and break things." While thinking about Ana, John laughed. Austin stared at the younger, his nose scrunching in disgust at the sickening smile on his face.

"On earth, John Williams." He shook the said male's shoulder, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"Oh yeah!" With a stupid smile, he chuckled nervously, and the elder continued to judge him with hooded eyes.

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I hope y'all are enjoying the story.

I promise this will get more interesting now. Don't forget to share this story with your friends. And thanks for patiently waiting for the updates.

Love you all!!

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