She smiled happily as she stared at the counter of their shop. She didn’t care how tired she felt.

“Besh, Ma’am calls you,” her friend said, she was here too.

She quickly left what she was doing and went to their manager. Her manager was holding a cup on the tray.

“Brie, you bring it to table number 8 first,” he said.

She reached the tray, she read what was written on the cup.

‘VIP Mr. Claveria ‘

She suddenly turned pale when she read what was written on the cup. This is the VIP customer. So, she looked at the person sitting at table number 8. She saw the man in formal attire.

She slowly approached it because she was nervous. When she reached the table, she slowly put down the cup.

“Good day sir this is—”

But she was shocked to see the man’s face. He was looking at her seriously. It seemed to be waiting for her to speak. But not a word seemed to come out of her mouth.

He is! He was the man who bumped into him yesterday. He went back to reality and settled down.

“Y-Your order, sir,” she continued before she slowly left.

But she had not gone far when it spoke.

“Next time, stop daydreaming.”

She turned to see the man, but he was barely drinking. She returned to the counter while looking at the man. It was just staring outside while stunned. It seemed to be thinking deeply.

She just focused her attention on the costumer. Just a few hours later, she looked at table number 8 again, but the man was gone. She seemed to feel worse.

She also didn’t know why she felt this way. She didn’t even know its name.

Only its last name she remembered.

‘Claveria’

Last name sounds rich.

She tried to get the man out of his mind. She finished her work; she was on his way home. Fortunately, her friend gave her money for her fare so she wouldn’t walk anymore. It was already night, and it was dangerous on the road.

When the jeep left, she fell asleep a little. She was very tired today. Fortunately, she doesn’t have many assignments to do so she can rest for a long time. She ignored the noise of the surroundings, in extreme exhaustion.

But soon, she woke up. She did not know where she was. It was dark around her, but she was even more surprised to see the man next to her while it was smiling. It was not an ordinary smile, because it was scary.

Before she realizes that there is a pointed gun her neck.

“Miss!”

Unexpectedly, she quickly lost her eyesight. The jeep opened to her without anyone. She turned around and saw that they were already here at the terminal. She got off quickly before walking home. Strange dream. What does it mean? That was some questions formed in her brain. She couldn’t even figure out why she had such a dream.

She did not notice that she had returned to their house. It was quiet and the light was off. Only the kitchen was turned on. She had a key so she could still enter even if they were asleep. She didn’t bother to eat anymore and got dressed before going to bed. She had just closed her eyes for a few minutes, when suddenly she heard a crash from below.

“CARDO! GET OUT OF THERE!” said man who is shouting outside their gate.

She also felt her father get up and come down before she followed. They peeked out of the door before her father came out and opened the gate. She was scared to see the men in black. They were carrying guns, so she was even more scared.

“B-Boss!”

Her father seemed scared too. She didn’t know them, so she didn’t know what to do.

“Boss told you what you owe, Cardo. Won’t you really pay?!” The muscular man pulled his father, harshly.

“I-I’ll pay boss, but not yet because I don’t have a job yet,” her father replied.

But her father was given a strong punch to the stomach by the man, causing her to run to his father.

“Enough!” she restrains them.

“I’ll give you three days. And if you still can’t pay off the half million you owe, you already know what will happen to your family,” it said before they left.

“H-Half a million?”

She suddenly lost her senses. His father owed half a million. And she didn’t even know where to get it in just three days? Even their house is not enough to pay for that. She also did not know where her father spent such a large amount. Because they did not see it or even feel it. She didn’t even bother to ask her father about the matter because she knew it would only blame her.

She couldn’t sleep all night because she can’t. They had three days to pay those men. But she knew in herself that they would never be able to collect it, even for a whole year.

“Hey, besh! You’ve been out of yourself earlier! Don’t tell me you’re thinking about that Mysterious guy again?”

She came back to reality when her friend spoke. She was here at school and she didn’t realize it because of her problem. She couldn’t stop herself from talking to her friend. She reacted quickly.

“Besh, I’m sorry, that’s all I have left with my salary,” her friend said before giving her five thousand pesos. She smiled and thanked her friend.

She doesn’t know where to get the 493,000 pesos. But she will try and do everything to reduce their debt. She even went around where she could borrow some money, she did not fail because she collected fifteen thousand. The debt was still too big, and she had less than half of it. She also didn’t know how to they can eat because she had put all his money here. While walking home, she couldn’t help but cry.

She remembered her mother who passed away. Maybe, if it hadn’t died, they would be happy now. Their lives are not so hard. She was tired, she couldn’t even take care of what she had to pass at school. Her problem was so big that she almost shed blood. She went home quietly; she didn’t eat either because they also didn’t have a food. He took a deep breath before opening his wallet. He saved 17,000, not even half-way to their debt.

She woke up early, she also went to school early. Like yesterday, she could not focus because of her problem. They are in danger now. She did not know what else she could do. Because as time went on, their lives became more in danger. Tomorrow is the deadline, and it must be paid. But where will she get the money to pay? She was in such dire straits.

She thought of her siblings. She felt sorry for them, there was only one way to stop their threat from continuing. Maybe she would just beg them. But she was surprised when she came down from jeep when someone blocked her wat. She did not know them because their faces were covered with a black mask.

They tried to pull her, but she managed to run. She heard them chasing her so when she saw someone she quickly asked for help.

“Ma’am! PLEASE HELP!” She was terrified but it was too late when she saw the men approaching where they were.

“Come with us,” the man said while holding a gun.

“I do not want!” she shouted while glaring at them.

But she was stunned when the man pulled the woman and aimed the gun at it. The woman was pleading for her, but the men did not listen.

“Come with us so no one gets hurt!” the man shouted as it pointed the gun at the woman.

She felt sorry for the woman so out of her will she joined them. They hadn’t gone far yet, she thought of a way to get away again. She ran fast. But she could not get away and they chased her. The two men held her in her the arm.

“Don’t be naughty! So, you don’t get hurt!” the man shouted, and she felt the pain in his stomach as the man punched him. Gradually his side darkened before he lost consciousness.

Bursts of laughter wake her up. She opened her eyes again. She roamed her eyes around the room. This is not their house. Because it is beautiful and big. The bed she is lying on is also soft.

She got up but she was surprised when the door suddenly opened. She was exposed to the shape of a man’s body. She could not see it properly because the room was dark. Only the light outside that was giving the room a light so she could only see the shape of its body. It was wearing a formal attire. It approached her so she was stunned. She did not know what to do. She smelled its scent as it approached er.

The man sat down, and that’s when he could see who this man was. She was surprised to see its eyes. It came even closer before whispering in her ear.

“You can’t escape here.”

That voice proved that her suspicion was true. She could see its eyes looking at her seriously.