"What if that's what this is all about? You were there? What is so bad about a brother paying a sister's murderer in a hard coin?"
"I don't know," Jared muttered, sarcasm dripping from his words as he threw Tyler's word back at him, "Maybe the fact that he didn't actually kill her but it was an accident which could happen to anyone thingy!"
"Jared!" Tyler called out warningly.
Jared's eyes hardened even as he sat right back.
"Its been years Ty, let this go already?"
"My sister would have been here, maybe she would have ditched her rockstar dream and found something more believable or solid," he smiled sadly, "She was always into traveling so she could easily have run a traveling vlog and made me so worried with her unideal career choice." He gave Tyler a hard stare, "And you expect me to just let it go?"
"Diane would have wanted you to."
"Diane would have just wanted Xavier to be happy," he paused and then looked away, "But I'm not Diane."
His phone rang and he picked the call, "You can now publish the article," he demanded over the phone, hung up, and then turned to meet Jared's hard stare, "I'm going to ruin Xavier and then I just might let go. Until then just enjoy the bumpy ride and get the girl too while at it."
"Do you think Maya would ever forgive you when she understood what you have done, how you had abused the trust she has in you?"
Tyler chuckled, "I never forgave Xavier but he survived and did very well, didn't he? I think I'll survive too," then he closed his eyes, leaning on his seat.
"You know how much it had hurt all these years to hold a grudge. If Maya is that dear to you, if she reminds you of your sister that much why would you want to transfer that anguish to her?"
Tyler grinned, stood up and grabbed his laptop, and then placing his hand on Jared's shoulder, he shrugged, "Maybe because I've watched this same scene play out with Xavier and another innocent too good to be a true person. The bastard always gets the good ones, always. But this time I'm in the position to save Maya, I won't let it slide. I'll do something, but just promise me you would be by her side even when she hates the sound of my name?"
Jared produced an amused Chuckle, "If you think she'll hate you that much, what makes you believe she would open her hands wide to the best friend of a man who destroyed her relationship with a man she was going to make her husband."
Tyler scoffed, "Because though she might resist at first, someone like Diane can't hold on to hate forever especially when she knows you were more or less a victim__"
"I ain't a victim. I know about your dirty game from the onset," Jared snapped, "Yet I played dumb to it. Acted like I didn't know what was going on."
He smirked, "Keep on acing that act because even though you act differently you can't stop me. Just get the girl," chuckling, he walked out of the door while Jared narrowed his eyes at him.
"Just get the girl," he muttered to himself, scoffing, "He makes it sound so easy like a walk in the park. How easily do you get someone that thinks she is already in someone's grasp."
He exhaled even as he closed his eyes tightly knowing he was up against Xavier. He was a victim, in a way because he is trapped by his own best friend.
No matter what Tyler does, no matter how much Maya turns out to hate Xavier, and if by some miracle she deems him fit as a rebound and he sneaks his way into her life like that, Xavier was too big a presence to be ignored.
He would always come up in their future, always come begging, wanting to explain and even though he didn't, she just might still have love in her heart for him and who was he to compete with that?
He shook his head, standing up in a frenzy, even as he shook his head, he can't leave like that, let his angered friend ruin Xavier's, Maya's, and his life just because of one grudge he can't let go of.
Breaking into a run to catch up with Tyler and luckily try to talk sense into his head, he dashed out of the office.
***
Maya leaned against her desk breathless, not believing that she had sprinted from the lobby even though that would do nothing to reduce the glaring fact that she had arrived an hour late.
A full 60 minutes that she would have used to get so much work done.
Jessica came in a few minutes after, with a pitiful expression that was so fake, a four-year-old won't buy it.
Maya felt like scoffing knowing that she was obviously so excited that her devil-like boss who emphasizes perfection could make such a huge mistake of undermining the principle of punctuality.
She closed her eyes wondering what she would have told Jessica and Jasmine after work if she had worked for who she has become, and knowing that her thought would have been similar she looked away knowing that she couldn't blame young Jessica.
Spite was something she should get used to now and with time just like Xavier had leisurely told her, smirking you stop feeling the little stabbing pain of employee's hatred just because you want something that looks like perfection.
She grinned, they were really a match made in heaven, just that she was a bit late to accept it.
"Have you turned in the concluded files from last week to Mr. Salvador?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Have you gotten his signature for the final agreed animated gifs needed?"
"Yes, ma'am."
Maya's lip twitched noting the defiance in her eyes as she waited to fire back in affirmative to every of her question and she could see herself months ago breaking her neck so she would stare at Xavier just like this and nod in affirmative at every question he asked.
It was funny how she was now the one sitting and being dished the cocky replies.
"Did you arrange the files chronologically according to their alphabets?"
She amended her stance, her posture so stiff and Maya almost broke into a grin knowing what her reply would be.
"I arranged them both with their alphabets and dates."
She placed a book above her face so she could grin, even as she tried to sober before she faced Jessica again.