The two girls snuck bato the apartment plex in hopes Lydia would be too occupied disturbing the other tenants to see them

  It was hard enough to make a living in Axen, and Lydia's efforts to make Aya's life a living hell only succeeded under such stri ditions. For a long time, the girl didn't have ao go and even worse could barely afford the rent.

  Now Moon Valley Online had given her a ce.

  Lydia's choice to ruin Aya's ces at meeting her family and choosing to bckmail the girl's only liviive made Aya's stomach twist in disgust. Why would she choose to do such a thing when she was already so well off?

  Aya and Mars stepped into the apartment as quietly as they could to pce the groceries in the fridge.

  "Okay I'm ready to go-" Just then she heard the sound of footsteps ing dowaircase just outside the door, she and Mars exged looks, rushing to take off their shoes so their feet would nd softly on the creaking.

  Aya scurried over to the door and pressed her ear to the wooden surface. Mars crept up beside her intending to say something but Aya pced a hand to her lips, shushing Mars who nodded in uanding. She made a zipping motion over her mouth.

  Lydia's fist pounded on the door half heartedly already guessing Aya would be at work like most people who had regur employment. As far as the haggish woman knew, Aya still worked at Nue Corp only having time to i with her in the evenings.

  The pair of friends heard Lydia as she walked away after the first few knocks leaving Mars and Aya to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

  "How often does she do that now that you've noticed?" Mars asked. Aya thought about it for a sed and reasoned she would previously see Lydia one or two times a week, but now she would hear the woman e to her door a certain time every day.

  It was like she had been doing it daily without Aya's knowledge.

  "I think she does this every day but Mars I had no idea she was this...crazy, you were right she is keeping tabs on me, and for the loime I didn't have a damn clue," Aya said.

  "Well she's not going to have any idea where yoing today," Mars grinned.

  ----------

  They caught the Seelim bus just as it was about to pull away from the bus stop, the driver stopped the vehicle, surprised anyone was eveing on the bus from this particur stop.

  Aya uood the aintenan Lydia's part made it seem like the pce was uninhabited. She had previously only taken the m bus as well, she could only imagine what would be going through the driver's mind.

  He must have thought, "What do you mean people live here?"

  He offered a hasty greeting and whilst Mars and Aya took their seats he started the trip.

  "The Bakery's name is Rolfe's," Mars said, she tapped on her phone a bit and turo face Aya with a smile.

  "I 't wait for you to try these pastries Aya, they're to die for," Mars said with a devilish grin.

  They disembark at the bust stht where the city square brightly pstered ss filled with adverts all over the buildings within the area.

  They step into a bakery on the square that Aya reized as one of the services branded by her pany. She stopped to stare at the Nue Corp logo stamped just beside the bakery's name.

  "Something wrong?" Mars asked, Aya noticed her friend's worried expression and shook her head.

  "No nothing’s wrong, I just hought I'd see my old pany's logo so soon," Aya said stepping forward to join Mars by the entrao the small and homey styled building.

  An adorable bell rung as Mars pushed open the door, the smell of heat and freshly baked goods wafted through the space. Aya breathed in deeply already pulled in by the smell of cakes and sweets.

  "Wow,"

  The aroma from the pastries was heavenly and reminded her of the same sts while walking through the streets of the Artisan District.

  "You look like someone who would like a donut, I'll get us some," Mars said. Aya nodded and tio gnce around the building. The bakery was a lot bigger than the venieore she'd been in earlier

  A grin grew on Aya's face as she breathed in the f smell of food deeply, she walked around cheg jars of treats covered by bell jars.

  A man with jet bck hair on the phoood across the room. Aya reized the suit but couldn't tell who he was from the back. He could have been one of Nue Corp’s executives or admin people out for a lunch break.

  She was about to move ohe figure turned around. Aya let out a gasp at the sight of her former employer.

  "Ats?" Aya said in surprise, she didn't think she would ever see him again especially since he didn't call. Ats looked up from his pho the sound of his name, meeting Aya's cheerful eyes.

  A smile pulled out at his lips before recalling he hadn't bothered to call her after she had given him both her number and Moon Valley Online Pyer ID. He was mortified.

  "Aya," He said in equal amounts of surprise and embarrassment

  Aya walked forward, approag the president of her former pany with fondness. Upon standing beside him, she drew her hand bad smacked his arm.

  "You didn't call me!" she said in a small whisper. Ats ughed, pletely caught off guard by the way she smacked him. His father would have never let something like this fly even pyfully.

  "I inteo I just fot," Ats said lowly. Aya pouted, smag his arm again.

  "Hey, I used to be your boss you know,"

  "Key word being used to!" Aya said.

  From the ter Mars sto at the man Aya approached, she watched them i, frowning.

  'What the hell is he doing here?' She wondered.

  Mars had enough of watg the two and walked toward them steadily with caution, she kept her eyes on Ats watg him like a hawk. She sauntered forward, slinking an arm around Aya's shoulder.

  Ats noticed the dark haired girl from out of the er of his eye and pressed his lips into a line, above Aya's head Mars smirked and put a fio her lips telling him to be quiet about her identity.

  Ats gred.

  "Huh? Do you too know each other?" Aya asked tilting her head curiously. Mars shrugged.

  Ats shook his head albeit unvingly.

  "Who's she? A friend of yours," He asked staring pointedly at Mars. Aya nodded beaming.

  "Well yes, we're having a day out," Aya said already starting to have her own suspis that they were not tellihe truth. The air was too thick with distrust for them to just be strangers.

  "I'm going to che our donuts, you two stay and...chat," Mars said narrowing her eyes into slits as she walked past them and back up to the ter.

  Ats guided Aya towards one of the seats in the bakery and pulled up a chair for her.

  "Thank you,"

  Ats took a seat of his own.

  "How have you been Aya, I heard you caused quite a stir at the pany the day you decided to quit," he said with a chuckle. "I wish I could have beeo see it, Viviana's had quite the attitude ge since you left,"

  "Really?" Aya asked lifting her brow. An attitude ge from Viviana was holy the thing she had expected least.

  Ats leaned bato his chair with a sigh. Looking at the only friendly face at the pany made his heart sour. Aya had been the only person who'd spoken to him normally. She had none of the sycophantic simperings he'd e to tolerate from Viviana or the other executives trying to get to his father through him.

  He watched her stare out the window at the busy street in awe, her brown eyes lit up with every new branded ad fadget or PacBook that fshed across the giant ss of the city square.

  Ats propped his on his hand staying silent.

  "Ah sorry I was lost in the view," Aya said with a giggle. He matched her smile and wondered if she would be ied in a position as his assistant.

  "How are you Aya?"

  "I've been fi hasn't been that long since I quit. Quite a lot of my time has been freed up now that I don't have to ute so much or push a trolley up into the elevator," Aya fessed.

  Ats ged but Aya didn't seem bitter about her past job, the fact that she was talking to him let him know she still thought of him cordially at least.

  "Do you still py Moon Valley? The game you were telling me about?" Ats asked. Aya nodded eagerly, he noticed a light in her eyes as if he'd touched on a topic she was deeply ied in.

  "I love it!"

  "I've heard so much about it, it's ged people's lives seemingly ht, I never knew virtual items and food would be such a hot odity in the digital market," Ats said with a ugh.

  "Do you py? I don't think you answered the st time I asked," Aya asked hopefully.

  "Only a little, I don't really have a lot of time to. I'm so busy with my father's pany," Ats expined.

  "What do you think about it so far?"

  "I think it's a very iing iment opportunity," Ats said. Now if only his father would open his eyes ahat Nue Corp could be more than just another financial tepany.

  "I've made quite a rge sum pying too, it's been so helpful trying to cover rent this month. It's holy one of the best things that’s ever happeo me!" Aya said.

  "Rent?" Ats' face softened, before she left he had offered her a raise, while looking at the at records he looked through hers and noticed she had been colleg a paltry sum for such hard work.

  Not even up to what he used to receive as pocket ge when he was younger. His weekly transas were more than what she would make in three months.

  "Yes, I've gotta pay rent and bills Ats, I have to look after myself,"

  As he was about to say something Mars returned with a bag filled with amazing smelling pastries.

  "Wow Mars these smell incredible," Aya said, she opened her paper bag to find a golden gzed donut dripping with warm syrup. The mild st of honey wafted through the air.

  "Just wait until you taste them," she replied. The dark haired girl noticed Ats staring at her, she handed him a bag too. He accepted it, gng ih great suspi.

  He gasped.

  "You remembered," He said, l his voice so only Mars could hear, she refused to meet his gaze and instead pulled up a chair to sit beside Aya who already had a mouthful of donuts, staining her cheeks with syrup as she nibbled.

  "If you choke I'll leave you," Mars warned. Aya whined, presumably trying to say she would indeed not choke. Mars gave her another warning, tapping her he way she had e to do often.

  Ats watched them uo say anything as he bit into his own donut. Mars was ign him, after disappearing for months and making headlines in Gaming news circles she suddenly showed up again.

  With Aya of all people.