The Apple of My Eye

"Mr. Li, don't you know that the news about you and Sheryl has gone viral? Even if I want to help you by retracting the news about the two of you, I cannot put an end to the circulation of the news. Kindly understand that I have no say in this matter. I'm sorry," the editor said, as politely, as he could.

Damian wasn't ready to give up yet. He pushed the request further and tried everything in his power to persuade the editor. But nothing could make the editor come to terms with Damian.

"My apologies, Mr. Li, I have an important meeting that I've got to attend. If you'll excuse me, we can talk about it some other time." He hung up on Damian before he could say another word. Clutching his phone, Damian let out a sigh, feeling powerless. He tried contacting a couple of other editors, but every single one of them had turned him down, with reasons of their own. The phone calls hadn't helped Damian in any way. They made the story more interesting and sensational instead.

The phone calls had sown the seeds of suspicion in Damian's mind. In the end, he was sure that someone had been plotting against him. Otherwise, at least one editor would've heeded to his request. Whoever it was, had been playing a different game. They had anticipated that Damian would reach out to the editors and had gotten to them before Damian could.

Damian's mind was thrumming in confusion. He was vulnerable and had no idea what to do next. His thoughts were interrupted by the blaring sound of his phone. The call was from an unknown number. Damian stared at his phone for a while before picking up the call.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Li. Would it be possible for us to meet in person? I have an important matter to discuss with you," a man's voice vibrated over the phone.

Damian frowned. "Who the hell are you? What do you want from me?"

Damian couldn't think of anyone who would want to meet him. He was new to the city and didn't have many friends here.

"That doesn't matter. You'll find out who I am when we meet."

"Why the hell do you think that I'd be interested in meeting you?" Damian hoped to find out the man's identity and the reason why he'd called him.

"I have an important piece of information about Sheryl. Don't you want to know about it?" The man was luring Damian into his trap with little crumbs of information that caught his interest. 'Something about Sheryl? Was the man involved in the incidents that connected him and Sheryl?'

Damian thought, as his frown deepened. Although he was skeptical about the meeting, Damian agreed to meet him. The caller had information about Sheryl, and he wouldn't miss that-he wanted to know what it was.

Damian hung up after taking note of the time and venue.

He had to meet the man at a cafe in an hour.

Damian had reached the cafe on time. As soon as he entered the cafe, Damian spotted a man waving at him. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses and a felt hat.

Damian thought that he must have been the one who had called him.

"Hello, Mr. Li. It's a pleasure to meet you," the man said, confirming Damian's thoughts.

Damian was in no mood for exchanging pleasantries. "Who are you? Why did you want to see me?"

"I am Rob, and I am here to help you with your problem," Rob said curtly.

Damian couldn't bring himself to trust the man. He looked stern and studied the man's face. "What do you mean? What do you know about me and my problem?" Damian asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I know that you're having a hard time. Trust me. I can help you get through all of this," Rob said, looking at Damian intently.

Rob's confidence bothered Damian even more. He felt that he had an ulterior motive in helping him out. Damian still kept his guard up and didn't want to reveal his vulnerability.

However, Rob saw right through Damian's concern and gave him a hearty smile. "You don't have to worry about me, Mr. Li. There's something that you're not aware of."

"What? What are you talking about?" Damian was confused. What could it possibly be?

"Sheryl and Charles aren't together anymore. They are divorced-it was a long time ago. So the online coverage about you and Sheryl isn't a bad thing, after all." Rob was smiling.

"What? What did you say?" Damian was taken aback. Rob was right, he had not been aware of it and hadn't even thought of a thing like this.

"I knew that you didn't know about this. Let me offer you a piece of advice, Mr. Li. Don't get worked up about this whole issue. Use this to your advantage instead. Forget everything else and go after Sheryl." Rob gave a reassuring smile.

"Tell me. Who the hell are you, and why are you telling me all this?" Damian's jaw dropped in shock. The man knew more things than he himself was aware of. Why would a stranger come to his rescue? "I'm just a well-wisher who wants to help you bring Sheryl into your life." A weird smile crept across Rob's face and was gone in an instant.

The truth about Sheryl hadn't sunk in yet and was overtaken by Damian's curiosity to find out the man's identity. He felt that he had to somehow find out who Rob was and how he knew so much about Sheryl. "Think about it, Mr. Li. It's entirely up to you to decide whether you want to go after the love of your life or not. Sleep on it, and I'm sure your mind will rest on the right decision." Rob walked out, leaving Damian alone with his thoughts.

Damian sat completely still, watching Rob walk out of his sight. This piece of information had left him feeling a wave of emotions.

Damian didn't think that he'd have a chance with Sheryl, especially not after what had happened. Just being there for her when she needed him and looking at her beautiful face from a distance was enough for him. He didn't want to push Sheryl further and ask her out because he never wanted to break her family and take her away from them.

But everything had changed when he found out that Sheryl and Charles weren't together. He didn't have to stop himself or feel guilty about going after her.

Damian couldn't stop smiling at the thought of it.

He was both happy and worried at the same time. Damian was glad that Sheryl and Charles hadn't been together for a long time. But a pang of panic swept over him when he felt that there was a possibility of Sheryl not letting him get any closer to her after the recent events.

Damian wanted to rush to the hospital and tell Sheryl how he had been feeling about her, but he couldn't muster the courage to do it. He didn't want to ruin the friendship he had with her. The internal conflict was killing him.

Was there a chance of him and Sheryl getting together?

He couldn't stop thinking about it. Every time Damian thought about it, he didn't bother finding an answer to it. What if Sheryl shunned him without giving him a chance?

The question kept ringing in Damian's head, and he sat there, unaware of how long he'd been sitting there. He finally made up his mind and went straight to the hospital.

Visiting hours were over, and the hospital was quiet-not a sound was heard, except for the constant buzzing of the monitors. Damian managed to get past the staff without getting noticed, and he sneaked all the way to Sheryl's ward.

He was extremely cautious. He didn't want to be caught before meeting Sheryl. He checked the corridor, and once he was sure that nobody was there, he decided to walk inside. Damian opened the door quietly and tiptoed into the ward. Sheryl was sleeping, and her beautiful face looked peaceful.

He sat next to her bed. Damian had been determined to confess his feelings for her when he had walked into the hospital. But all the words were buried in the pit of his stomach when he saw Sheryl's face.

He sat there staring at her. His breath caught in his throat when he saw Sheryl stir on the bed. Immediately, he stood up; he didn't want to seem like a creepy stalker if Sheryl woke up and saw him sitting on he bed. Fortunately, Sheryl was still sleeping, and Damian let out a sigh of relief.

He felt that he would have to find the right time and confess his feelings for her. If he didn't tell her soon, everything would fall apart.

Damian immediately felt stupid for picking a bad location for a special moment like this. He shook his head and walked out. He picked up his phone and called Duke.

"Hey, man! Where are you?" Duke asked nervously.

"I'm near the hospital. Look, I need a favor. I want you to check out someone called Rob," Damian said hurriedly.

"Rob? Who the hell is he?" Duke found it weird to hear such a request from Damian

"Just help me find out more information about him. I'll send you a picture of him. Meanwhile, do everything in your power to minimize the damage to my reputation due to the online coverage." Damian had tried hard to minimize the damage by trying his best to stop the circulation of the story. But his efforts had gone in vain.