HER BABY

The alarm blared out of control: a loud electronic rooster piercing his eardrums unceasingly. This was the only sound that could wake him- it could raise one from the dead, Jake described.Jake's eyes were forever numb from a sleepless night. He was up till three, ironing, going over notes on the company's biography and chewing up top names to seem knowledgeable. It took a miracle to win this internship program. One of his lecturers from night school happened to know a guy, who knew a girl who also knew one of the managers in HR.Staying a humble, outstanding student, who did not say no to requests had finally paid off. "Auuu," Jake's hand came to his rescue, moving blindly to turn off the alarm. "Five more minutes," His lips muttered on their own. He cranes his head like a cobra but then falls flat back down.*COCK-A-DOODLE-DOOOO*"Ahh!" Jake rolled off the bed out of sheer shock. Luckily he missed the bedside table and suffered a minor bump on the head. "Arhhh, yeah, I forgot the ba

Jake scratched the back of his head, pensive in his small apartment while a powerful woman took a private tour of the living room. "Care for some...water, juice?" He was so nervous he could barely feel his tongue. An asteroid could fall out of the sky and he wouldn't be this affected.He stood stiff when Iris veered. "I do not sip from every cup out there.""Are you here to sue me for what happened? Cause I swear it was an accident. I wouldn't dream of causing harm to anyone and...""Why have you not answered our calls or shown up at the company?""You...your calls?" Jake was lost."Your application letter painted you out as one who was dying to work with us, yet here you are disrespecting my leniency," Iris did not blink."Pardon me but I had no idea Amery had been trying to reach me. My roommate was hoarding the mail for days, I just found out. May I ask what this is about?""A girl. About this height with purple hair. Says you defended her against a bully in an ally."Jake tilted h

They say the universe always provides, and that a good name is often better than riches. Jake was starting to believe it. Some god or cosmic power must be looking out for him. How else would he explain the present chain of events?By some miracle, he landed in his dream company as an intern. The CEO promised him a job in the future, and he was finally away from his disgusting roommate and anything that had to do with his old apartment. And the rent?"Two hundred bucks a month. I will add mine so we can pay the cleaning lady.""What?" Jake google-eyed. "Two hundred dollars? You can't be serious, Larry."Larry pushed his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. "I was going to say a hundred, but you kept going on about wanting to pay, I figured you'd be happy with this.""...""Look Jake, I do not need the cash for any reason. I have the space and lack friends who truly give a shit. You seem like a real guy, so I wanted to help take some weight off your shoulder.""This is too much, yo

Apollo drank from a tiny metal flask just before the door opened. Earlier on, Iris made him leave the room; something about Jake feeling cornered by his presence.Being alone gave him time to sort out his thoughts. And right now, he was more troubled to see the pest leave the building. Apollo went in with a billion reasons why Jake was not fit for the job."He said no." Iris broke the news after listening to his complaints. Apollo instantly shut up, too shocked to admit that it was unbelievable. "It's probably for the best," he said."No." Iris pushed herself out of her seat. She approached the balcony, calming her mind with the view. "My mother always said that if one was patient enough, one could dissect an ant and harvest its organs without damaging them.""This man is a nobody." Apollo pointed out. "Everybody is nobody, Apollo." Iris checked her wrist for the time. "I asked your men to dig up information about him. Is there something I can use?""...""Apollo." Iris did not appr

"Larry, the fax is here!" "I'm on it!" Larry doubled up to retrieve the document from the fax machine. The department was on the hunt for the next big talents out there; for advertisement purposes. After Jake's overnight transfer, Larry became a much-preferred candidate for errands. It wasn't done to punish him; Larry was just that good at handling pressure.That, however, did not stop everyone from asking about his friend and fellow housemate. His answers, of course, were puzzling. Larry knew how to read a situation; telling his colleagues that the CEO and President of Amery came to his house to have a mano-a-mano with Jake was totally uncalled for. He imagined the rumours that could spark.When the chance opened up, Larry hid in the kitchen to enjoy a cup of coffee. "Haa, this sucks. Jake's coffee tastes way better." He sipped slowly.That privilege did not last when the supervisor walked in. "Shouldn't you be filing the report for the add company?" "Come on, Drizella, I'm gonna d