Author's Note:
** STORY MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS **

First and foremost, I can't believe there are still people reading this. I'm so sorry the update took so long. I lost the entire story due to a crash and frankly, that dampens all motivation to rewrite it. I have been sick for the past week and just thought, oh well why not try. It's not what I first wrote it, and I've only come up with a chapter so far (nor is it long) but I hope it at least last you guys a while longer.

I can't express how much love I feel from your reviews and thank you for waiting. I am trying to draft the next chapter, and I didn't want it to be sloppy, because GRAHAM HAS A HEART, GUYS.

I do not own any of the characters apart from my OC, Mikaela Kaitlyn Marshall. Information provided (about Google, etc.) may not be accurate, please do not regard them more than just a detail in the story. :)
Thank you!

Stuart's POV

1 Text Message Received.
[Open] [Close]

Something exciting just happened!
I found your girlfriend on this Face thing, and I added her!
[Reply] [Close] [Delete]

*Delete*

Message deleted.

… … … Wait.

WHAT?!

The drowsiness that had just mere seconds ago resided in me, flowing along with the blood that ran in my body, vanished as my brain began to work its gears.

"My mother had just added Mikaela on Facebook."

… See, it sounds crazy – if not crazier – when I've put it into words, spilling the syllables out of my mouth and off my tongue. Although technically, she still wasn't my girlfriend.

"MIKAELA!" My voice travelled across the lawn, my hair undoubtedly poking at all places as I busied my hands with tucking in my shirt – my legs carrying me towards the brunette who had been fully clad in her business attire, left hand balancing her Chrombook and a cup of coffee while her right cradled a bouquet of roses.

… Hold it. "H-hey." My eyes were focused on the roses as I managed to stutter out a greeting (really, it's pretty amazing considering I was stuck between the possibility of a rival, or the fact that I had just forgotten a really important date). "Nice…" Talk, Twombly, compliment her hair, her attire, her face, anythi– "roses" anything but THAT! I could almost feel the mental slap to myself before my eyes darted up to Mikaela's – she was either really amused or disgruntled – it was hard to tell when you've slept in till the afternoon, really. "I mean, hair. Nice hair."

"Nice roses?" She echoed, she eyebrows quirking up as she shift her weight from one leg to another. "You're just the charmer, aren't you, Stuart?" As she broke into a grin, an accidental sigh escaped my lips before my hands instinctively reached out to carry her Chromebook for her.

"Well, you can't blame me. I mean, I know how much you liked me and all, but roses? You really didn't have to go through that trouble getting for me." The smirk that tugged at the corner of my lip was quickly replaced with a pout as the said flowers made contact with the back of my head. I'm telling you – a bouquet of what looked like a hundred of roses doesn't feel good. Did they even remove the thorns?

My eyes narrowed at the girl beside me – the girl who had focused her sight on the path ahead of us with a victorious smile, her head held high, the breeze ruffling her fringe as her long hair was tied back into a ponytail – the girl who was maddening and forgettable. Without a thought, or the fact that there were actual people walking around us, my head dipped down, lips brushing hers before pulling ever so slightly away. I could still feel her breath on my lips as I looked into her surprised gaze. "That should wipe that smug smile off your face." The words that left me was in a soft whisper, and it took me all I could to not lean in for another.

Not that I could, as the voice of Graham rung out behind us. "I don't believe Chetty would be too glad about that."

Was punching a fellow intern against the rule too?

Mikaela's POV

Everything was just a messed up, salad of weirdness for the past 2 weeks. The past week after Stuart and I had went on a date. Our only date, actually. I had been busy reviewing projects worthy in investing for Google, dealing with the intern program, and time was just not on my side.

Though that hadn't stop the weirdness from happening – even if it did stop me from mentioning them to Stuart. The things on my plate had piled up to an extent whereby I had started avoiding having to address foreseeable problems with whatever I was or eventually would have said – which was weird, because well… it wasn't like we were together.

The ghost of his lips that lingered on me took along my witty comments along with it, a slight smile was just appearing when the voice rung out.

The voice I had so desperately avoided for the past week. The days since the incident.

"I…" Brown orbs of mine avoided Graham's, and while my mouth moved slightly in attempts to find the words to fill them, I couldn't. "I got to go." The words left in a murmur as I pushed my coffee cup into Stuart's hand, exchanging them for my Chromebook, before briskly walking (or really, a jog) past the pair and towards my room.

I do not have time to deal with this right now.

Graham's POV

She was avoiding me.

In complete honestly, it hadn't been like I wasn't expecting it – and it wasn't like I shouldn't already be prepared for it in that case – but it still stung. A deep intake of breath and a slight chew at the inside of my mouth later, my attention resumed to Stuart's glare.

"Your team leader was running like a headless chicken finding his team." I mustered the arrogance of my tone before turning my back towards him; take a few steps away before tilting back my head again. "I would keep an eye out on the giver of the roses if I were you." With that, my feet continued its way to Mikaela's room, taking a detour to avoid Twombly's suspicions before my knuckles made contact with the wooden door.

"Mikaela?" My voice was surprisingly and uncharacteristically soft, as my knuckles continued light knocks on the door. "Please just… Just open up." The seconds of hesitation seemed like forever – especially when I know that if the voice that sounded had been Twombly's she wouldn't have contemplated in the first place.

"Mikaela." It was all I could say when her eyes finally met mine, before my memory decided to jog back to the night after her date with Twombly.

[[Flashback in Graham's POV]]

Thumbs danced around each other as my brows furrowed in confusion. It wasn't supposed to be like that; I wasn't supposed to feel this way. It was supposed to be a plan to get on her good side – whatever it would take; lust, love, crush – everything required to secure me a job at Google. But as Mikaela's face that morning, pale and vulnerable, flashing past my mind, I couldn't help feeling a feeling of… hurt? Anger? I'm not even sure. But it hadn't felt good – I wanted to be there for her, to just… Make her feel alright again.

My sudden realization was enough for me to leap up from my bed, feet now pacing around my room. I can't, it's not possible. She was infuriating, never backing down from any threats. She hadn't even bothered masking her downright disgust with our bet on the date and me winning it – albeit through means. Sure, they were hardly the conventional justified way to win a match, but it got the result – that was all it mattered to me.

Although, apparently the mere thought of her was enough for my feet to start acting on its own, heading towards the room of Mikaela before spotting Twombly and her peck. My body darted to hide in the shadows as the boy plastered with a stupid smile headed off. My hand curled into a fist before light knocks were heard on the door.

"Stuart, I told yo– oh." I hadn't know what was worse – the fact that she had been giggling as she opened the door, or the look of disappointment that momentarily flashed in her eyes before she masked it. Probably both.

And without the ability to stop myself, I heard a soft voice – holding a tinge of hurt and helplessness – I heard my voice speak out to her. "Am I too late?" The simple words held double meaning – something Mikaela obviously understood with the widening of her eyes.

[[End Flashback]]

What was I going to do, seeing her again? I don't remember. All I remember was that I had walked away after the seconds of silence engulfing both of us that night, and rolling in the bed through the night. The sense of anguish at both myself and Twombly, and… Mikaela.

"You still owe me a date." I tried to pull it off as my usual self, even attempting my usual smirk, though even I could feel that it must had looked pathetic and desperate. "A bet is a bet, Mikaela." And there was my voice again, filled with uncertainty and wrapped with a coat of anticipation.

"… Okay." Her word – two simple syllables – was enough to leave me breathless. My eyes widening like hers had, before slowly nodding my head, waiting for any continuation of her words before confirming that there were none.

She agreed.