Mabel was ecstatic. She grabbed her phone and texted her best friend, Adelina, on Atsapp (a social media app).

  I can’t believe I got the super important job at the Very Important Company! I’m so excited!

  Adelina replied almost instantly. Yeah, girl! I’m so happy for you. Once you get off the plane tomorrow, I’ll be there to pick you up.

  Thanks a lot! See you then. Goodnight, Mabel typed, still grinning.

  Goodnight! Sleep well, Adelina sent back.

  Mabel went to bed buzzing with excitement, eager for the new day. She couldn’t wait for the night to fly by so she could begin this new chapter of her life.

  Mabel lived in Blomy, the second most influential country in the world. A highly successful businesswoman in the tech industry, she owned her own company and understood the intricacies of managing people and business. But by dawn, she would be leaving it all behind. Not permanently, but long enough to raise eyebrows.

  She wasn’t moving to expand her company. No, she was going to work for The VIC—The Very Important Company—one of the most successful corporations of the century.

  Why? That was the perplexing question no one in her life could understand. Her employees were baffled, and her friends were even more so. And to make it worse, she refused to explain her decision. But they eventually accepted it. After all, Mabel had always been an unpredictable force—someone who got things done in the most bizarre ways.

  Morning came, and it was a flurry of final preparations. She had already handed over her company to her PA, and now, it was time to step into this new phase of her life.

  Boarding the plane to Antoria, her thoughts soared like fireworks. I still can’t believe this! I’m actually on my way to work at VIC—the Very Important Company. The name alone screams prestige. I mean, what kind of company just calls itself "The Very Important Company" and gets government approval for it? The VIC must be something else! I’m so happy!!!

  The plane landed, and her excitement only grew. It had been a long time since she felt this thrilled about something.

  As soon as she stepped off, she texted Adelina. The plane just landed. I’ll wait for you at the bus stop.

  A moment later, Adelina replied, Okay. I’m really sorry, but I might be about 15 minutes late. Hope you don’t mind waiting.

  It’s okay, I’ll wait. It’s not like I have anywhere else to go, Mabel responded.

  KK, thanks for being a darling, Adelina wrote back.

  Mabel sat on a bench, scrolling through her phone as she waited for Adelina. Then a man approached.

  "Excuse me, miss. Is this seat taken?"

  She barely glanced up, waving a hand dismissively. "No, it’s free."

  The man sat down calmly. A second later, something in her instincts made her glance at him properly. She turned back to her phone, but then—

  Wait a minute…

  Her brain processed what her eyes had just witnessed and she snapped her head back up.

  How is a person allowed to be this handsome? Even from the side, this man looks like a masterpiece sculpted by no human hands. I can’t believe he already spoke to me, and I missed the chance to admire this perfection.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Then, as if possessed by the spirit of every romance novel heroine, her mind spiraled into fantasy. What if he talks to me again? What if this is fate? Yiiiiiiiii!

  But as she stared—though only for a few seconds—he noticed.

  Through his peripheral vision, Randall saw her gazing at him. He was no stranger to admiration; he knew he was exceptionally good-looking. Normally, he ignored such reactions. But today, he had a different plan—one she would never see coming.

  He turned to look directly at her.

  Mabel, startled, snapped her head down to her phone, pretending she hadn’t just been caught.

  Randall continued staring. Then, ever so slightly, he moved an inch closer to her on the bench.

  Mabel’s heart rate spiked. What is he doing? Is he about to say something? What does he want? Then it struck her like lightning, she gasped feeling excited. What if he wants to talk to me, like in the movies?

  Then, she heard his voice. A deep, velvety voice that had a sense of serenity to it.

  "Were you staring at me?"

  Mabel's thoughts instantly came to a halt. Excuse me, what?

  Caught completely off guard, she took a second to process. How dare he ask that when he’s been the one staring at me for a while now?!

  Despite her earlier admiration, Mabel wasn’t one to let anyone push her around. She had a strict policy: call people out before they take you for granted if you sense they are about to.

  With a firm voice, she shot back, "Excuse me, sir, how can you ask that when you’re the one staring at me?"

  Randall, unfazed, leaned in slightly. "Answer the question. Were you staring at me?"

  Mabel’s awe for him evaporated instantly. Her tone turned cold. "I don’t know what your problem is, but can you move back to your side of the bench? If anyone should be calling the other out for staring, it’s me."

  What a rude man. His face doesn’t match his personality at all.

  Randall, still calm but with a slight edge to his voice, said, "I’m going to forgive your shenanigans and ask one more time: were you staring at me?"

  Mabel’s brain short-circuited. My what?! This man must have a brain injury. But then she decided to play along.

  "And what if I don’t want to answer? What would you do, huh?" she challenged.

  Randall’s expression turned unreadable. Then, he casually took out his phone and dialed a number.

  "Officers, I need you."

  Mabel blinked. Wait. What?

  Within seconds, two uniformed officers approached.

  Mabel was baffled. What is going on? Why are the police involved in such a minor issue? What would he really accuse me of? What could they possibly do if they found out that I was just staring at him, give me a restraining order, or call him out for disturbing them with such a meaningless request? I would like to see where this goes.

  Randall pointed dramatically. "Officers, this woman was staring at me and tried to deny it."

  The officers gasped. One turned to her, his face a mix of disappointment and horror. "Ma’am… is this true?"

  Mabel, still processing the sheer absurdity of the situation, asked, "Excuse me, officer, but… is this really part of your job description?"

  The officer ignored her question. "Ma’am, answer the question. Were you, or were you not, staring at the gentleman?"

  Oh, this is insane. She was in a new country so she had to accept the fact that they could have very weird laws that were different from the rest of the world. If staring was a crime here, then the so-called gentleman would be in trouble too. That kept her mind at peace as she tried to ascertain how she was going to maneuver this situation.

  She crossed her arms. "Fine. No, I wasn’t staring at him. He was staring at me!"

  Randall scoffed. "That is an absolute lie. You were the one staring at me until I caught you. Now you claim I was the one staring? The audacity."

  The officers nodded grimly. "We’ll have to take you in for questioning."

  They cuffed her.

  Mabel’s eyes widened. Is this for real?

  She had accepted the fact that staring might have been a crime in Antoria but how could they cuff her alone even though he also stared? She didn’t plan on going down without a fight. She asked the officers with flare in her eyes, “Why isn’t he also being cuffed?

  The officers looked at her with disgust as if she had committed a treasonable crime and replied, “Because we know that you are the one who stared and you are going to confess!”

  Mabel replied in frustration, “Ok, so what if I stared? He stared back, even longer than I did! If I’m to go to the station, he should go too!”

  The officer gasped. "You heartless beast! Put her in the car!"

  She was immediately shoved into the police car. She decided not to speak further and stayed calm. After all, she knew how to act like a lady but her thoughts were in a volcanic rage. This was one of the most absurd situations she had ever experienced. She could also hear the murmurings of passersby.

  "What did she do?"

  "I heard she stared at someone but denied it."

  "Ha! Kids these days."

  Mabel sat in silence. How is staring a crime here? What was so bad about staring that it is seen as so repulsive? When did it become a crime? If it is, how is it that the world doesn’t know about it yet? Antoria is the most affluent and influential country in the world, how is this law not widespread already? Am I really going to prison because I stared at a person? But he stared too, why was I taken but not him? Is it because he reported the crime first?

  She took a deep breath and calmed herself. Let’s get to the interrogation first. I need to get to the bottom of this.