He used to be fun. He used to have fun.

 

Now all he had was paperwork.

 

Eli sighed heavily at the stack of papers on his desk. Most days he didn’t mind his work. Over the last year he had come to rather enjoy his work, enjoy the power he had holding such an important position with Kim Industries. But sometimes when he stopped to look back, he realized he had sacrificed much to uphold his family name. Maybe too much.

 

It had only been a year since he started working at the company, going through a brief internship to introduce him to the business world before being given the title of Junior Vice President. Within a few years, he hoped, he would be given the position of director and things would get easier. For now there was enormous pressure as the only son in the Kim line.

 

Still, he knew he was missing out on a lot. He never saw his friends anymore, rarely went out, and neglected his relationship. He felt a pang of guilt at the thought of Leina. Of all the things he had to sacrifice for his job, she was the one he regretted the most. She understood, of course, but he could sense her frustration, her disappointment every time their plans went unfulfilled. He wished he could change it, but his situation made it difficult. His family made it difficult. His father, the Chairman, did not want his son associated with a girl like Leina. There wasn’t anything wrong with her, except that the company did not benefit from her. Marriage to them was a contract, and only those who could prove beneficial to the company could be considered. Chairman Kim had allowed it while they were in college, but now that he was a company executive, he was expected to date only company approved people. At least publicly. Privately, Eli and Leina were able to continue being together, although his job left little time for anything. Sometimes he thought his father kept him busy on purpose.

 

In any case, he continued to work diligently, and hoped that once he had proved himself to the company and its investors, Leina and him could begin to repair whatever damage had been done.

 

As he returned to the stack of paperwork waiting to be reviewed, his mind wandered to Leina, sitting in her office milling through her own pile of documents. He knew how hard she worked to move up the ranks in her accounting firm, never truly concerned about her status, but rather working hard for everything she had. He knew very well she had not had it easy growing up, and it was one of the many things he admired about her. His thoughts were quickly brought back to work when his office door opened, revealing his father standing in front of his very nervous looking secretary.

 

“Dad.” Eli stated, putting down his pen and waving at his secretary, who promptly closed the door behind Director Kim.

 

“Eli.” His father replied gruffly, “How’s the documentation coming?”

 

“Slowly. What’s going on?” He didn’t mean to sound impatient, but his father had a habit of hovering and controlling everything Eli did.

 

“I thought maybe you could leave early today.”

 

Eli was genuinely taken aback by this. His father did not often allow him to leave early, and if he did, there was usually a reason behind it. Eli waited for his father to continue, expecting an ulterior motive.

 

“Diana is free tonight, and I’ve made reservations for you at 7.”

 

“Dad,” Eli groaned, “you can’t be serious.”

 

“Why not? Diana is a proper young woman, and it is about time you started getting serious about settling down.”

 

“Dad, I’m 25.  You can’t really expect me to agree to arranged dates until you find the one you consider good enough for me to marry. You don’t get to decide that.”

 

“The hell I don’t.” Director Kim spat, angrily moving toward Eli’s desk, “You are a Kim. And as my only son, who you marry is of the utmost importance. Our reputations are at stake. You want to fool around with Leina? Fine. But you will not marry her. This family has sacrificed too much to have you ruin it over the first girl you think you fell in love with in college.”

 

Eli closed his eyes and sighed heavily. They had had this argument many times before. He knew better than to press the issue of Leina with him. But expecting him to date, to get married even, was much more than Eli was willing to do.

 

“I work hard for this company, I know how much is at stake,” Eli replied, looking at his father. “But this is too much. Isn’t is enough that you broke me and Leina up? Isn’t it enough that every waking hour is spent doing something for this empire you are so proud of?”

 

“Eli, this is our life. This company, this world that you have been brought into has rules. You’re an adult now. If you want to stay here, you will abide by them.”

Eli wasn’t sure if his father had meant to say that last statement as a threat, but it sounded like one to him. Despite disagreeing with his father, he owed him everything; he loved his family, and he would do what he needed to protect them. So he gave up for the time being, and sat quietly, letting tension fill the space between them.

 

“Just dinner Eli. If you don’t like her there are others. We aren’t deciding anything today.”

 

Eli scoffed at his father. This was an act of kindness, in his own twisted way. He was giving him an option, just not the ones he wanted. He knew he wasn’t getting out of this. He was getting good at resigning himself to his family’s will.

 

“7 pm.” His father stated, his tone making it clear the conversation was over. Eli sighed and watched as he left the office, mulling over how he was going to explain to Leina that he was going on a date. He picked up his phone and found the number he was looking for, leaning back in his seat as the phone rang.

 

“Hey Eli, what’s up?”

 

“Kevin I need your advice.” Eli replied, trying not to sound as drained as he did. If anyone understood, it was Kevin. They had been best friends since high school, and now Kevin worked for Kim Inc. He had been witness to the kind of pressure Eli was under for a long time now.

 

“What did your dad do this time?” Kevin asked casually, not surprised by the phone call.

 

“He set me up on a date for tonight.”

 

“Ooooh.” Kevin said in surprise. They both knew this was coming, they just didn’t expect it to happen now.

 

“I can’t get out of it.”

 

“No, you really have to go. It’ll just get worse if you don’t”

 

“What am I supposed to do on a date I clearly don’t want to be on?” Eli muttered, annoyed at the situation he was being put in.

 

“I don’t know, just try to get through it as fast as possible. Tell her about what you do at work all day, it’ll bore her so much she won’t want to stay.”

 

“Funny.” Eli replied.

 

“No, I’m serious. Just make it clear you don’t want anything more to happen. Then leave early and get back to your life.”

 

The idea of getting back to the paperwork on his desk sounded like a sad use of an afternoon off. But maybe there was something to Kevin’s idea.

 

“Well even if I do that,” Eli continued, “what do I tell Leina?”

 

There was a pause on the other end, Kevin unsure of how to advise him on this situation. Leina was not going to be happy, and really no one could blame her. She had tolerated more than anyone else could. She was better than Eli deserved, he thought to himself bitterly, but she had stuck with him this long, so maybe this would just be another hurdle they had to overcome.

 

“Or you could not tell her.” Kevin finally said, settling on keeping the secret instead of causing a fight.

 

Now it was Eli’s turn to remain silent. He didn’t like lying to Leina. He didn’t do it often. But he hated hurting her more, hated the way her eyes filled with sadness and disappointment every time he had to tell her his family was in the way again.

 

“I hate lying to her.” Eli sighed. He really wished there was another option, but it seemed like Kevin was right. He was going to have to keep this from Leina. He hoped he wouldn’t have to continue doing this for long

 

***

“Well, I have to say, you’re much better looking than I thought you would be.” Diana said from across the table. Eli fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat, not bothering to try and reply.

 

“I figured you would be one of those guys who works all day, you know, boring.” She continued, “ although I’m pretty good at taking your mind off work.” She smiled, reaching across the table to touch his hand. Instinctively, he pulled his hand away. Diana pursed her lips, but was interrupted by the waiter serving them a glass of wine before she could say anything. She watched as Eli took a gulp of wine, bigger than he had intended, avoiding eye contact with her.

 

“You don’t want to be here, do you?” Diana said, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair. Eli looked over at her startled. “Look I get it. Do you have any idea how many of these I’ve been on? I’m the only girl, and I refused to go to business school. Marriage is my only hope, according to my family.”

 

Eli looked over at her apologetically. He must have come off as rude, not even trying to make conversation.

 

“I’m sorry,” Eli finally said. “I’m sure you’re great. But I’m really not interested.”

 

“Well that’s no fun.” Diana said with a small smile, “these dates at least end in most of the time.”

 

Eli was sure his cheeks were turning red from embarrassment at her implication.

 

“ There’s a reason you’re acting like this, isn’t there?” She asked, leaning forward toward him curiously.

 

“I just have-” Eli paused to clear his throat, trying to come up with an excuse instead of blurting out that he had a girlfriend. To everyone else, they were broken up. “I have to work”

 

“Mhmm,” Diana eyed him, “Work. You must really like your work to be this desperate to go back to it.”

 

“I do.” Eli replied awkwardly, unsure if she knew work was a cover up for something else. He guessed from her gaze that she did.

 

“Well, then you should go do your work.” Diana said, placing her palms on the table and sliding back away from Eli. “But eventually, you’re not going to be able to leave. It probably won’t be me, but you can’t get out of this forever. This is the life we’ve been cursed to live.” She stated with a dark chuckle.

 

Eli wasn’t sure if it was a good idea for him to leave. His father would find out, he was sure, if he didn’t put in at least some effort.

 

“Oh don’t worry,” Diana spoke, waving a hand at him, “I won’t tell. The waiter won’t tell. The drinks are on you though.” She smiled, picking up her glass of wine. Eli forced a smile, but nodded.

 

“Thank you.” He replied awkwardly, getting up from the table. He pulled out a few bills from his wallet and dropped them on the table. He gave Diana another apologetic glance, but she was already on her phone, calling someone to come meet her. Eli couldn’t be mad, he was the one leaving after all. He couldn’t help but feel guilty though, not because he felt like he owed her something, but because she was in the same situation as him. And he was afraid, she was right, and one day he wouldn’t be able to get out of these situations anymore. As he turned to go, he decided he wasn’t going to waste the time he did have on work. There were more important things that mattered. He had almost made it to the entrance of the restaurant, when he heard someone call his name.

 

“Serena?” Eli exclaimed, surprised to see her.

 

“What a coincidence seeing you here,” Serena smiled at him. There was no warmth in her smile, and Eli wasn’t surprised. Serena was not his biggest fan, and she had made that very clear.

 

“Yeah, I was just..” He trailed off, unsure of what excuse he could use that she would believe.

 

“Having drinks with pretty rich girls?” Serena finished the sentence for him. Eli looked down and sighed. So much for not telling Leina.

 

“It’s not what you think.” He responded. Serena shook her head. “What are you even doing here?”

 

“I have a date, not that it's any of your business.” Serena spat. “And that’s exactly what it looked like you were doing here.”

 

“Serena,” Eli dropped his voice and grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the staff who were giving them looks, “It was not a date. I am not here by choice. I talked to her for a few minutes, and now I’m leaving. That’s it.”

 

Serena rolled her eyes and pulled her hand away from him. “For work, I’m sure.”

 

“Serena-”

 

“You are very lucky that I have a very attractive man waiting for me, otherwise you would be getting chewed out so hard right now.” Serena whispered angrily. Before Eli could explain to her, Serena had turned and begun to walk back toward the tables.

 

Eli sighed and left the restaurant, rubbing his temples. Of all the people he could have run into, Serena had to be the worst possibility. He knew keeping this set up from Leina wasn’t the best idea, but he wanted to at least attempt to maintain some semblance of peace between them. Now even if he wanted to tell Leina himself, Serena had probably already beaten him to it. Still, he figured it was better to see her in person, especially if she was upset.

 

***

 

“Eli?” Leina asked surprised, standing in the doorway of her apartment. She was wearing comfortable shorts and an oversized tee, hair pulled up into a messy bun. He smiled at her, a feeling of warmth spreading through his chest. Maybe it was the lack of time they spent together, or maybe it was the way her eyes lit up when she looked at him, even though she didn’t say or do anything else, that made all of his stress evaporate instantly. He reached out and pulled her to him, enjoying the feeling of her body against his. He kissed her softly, feeling as her initial shock dissipated and she melted into the kiss, wrapping her arms around him.
 

“Hi.” He said softly when he finally pulled away, holding her face tenderly in his hands.

 

“Hi.” She smiled up at him. She was surprised to see him, but overjoyed that he was here. They didn’t get to spend much time together, so she cherished the moments they did have. She pulled away from him to close the door behind him, pulling him into her apartment. Almost as soon as she had done so,  he reached for her again, missing her touch.

 

“I’m really glad to see you.” Leina giggled, letting him hold her. She didn’t want to ruin the moment, but her gut was telling her there had to be a reason he was here. The few times they did get to see each other, it was usually later, and always with previous notice. In order to keep their relationship secret from the rest of the business world, they had to do a lot of sneaking around. Showing up unannounced was uncharacteristic of him.

 

Eli could almost see the thoughts tumbling around in her head. He knew she was surprised, and probably confused. He didn’t blame her. But this was a rare opportunity for him to spend time alone with her, and he intended to make the most of it.

 

“Don’t question it.” He whispered, leaning into her neck and planting small kisses.

 

Leina’s eyes fluttered closed, relishing in the sensation. She knew better than to let him distract her with things like this, a method he had employed extensively during their college days. It took all of her self control to keep her thoughts together and ask, “did something happen?”

 

Eli assumed from her attitude, she hadn’t heard anything from Serena. Good. He didn’t want to be sneaky and keep things from her, but he didn’t want to waste an evening fighting. So instead, he tightened his arms around her waist and continued to bury his head in her neck, muttering, “I got off work early.”

Leina wanted to ask for more information, somehow not sure that was enough of a reason for him to be here. She noticed bitterly, how sad that statement was, that her boyfriend having an evening off and deciding to come and see her was too much of a rarity to not set off an alarm within her. It was difficult to keep her mind from straying to Eli, very aware of his hands moving down her body. She sighed contentedly as Eli kissed a particularly sensitive part of her neck, sending a shiver down her body. Maybe she was overreacting, she thought, falling back against the kitchen island as Eli moved up to her jawline.

 

“Okay.” She mumbled, more to herself than him, letting go of the thin hold she had on rationality. Eli, not missing a beat, crashed his lips onto hers, much more urgently than before. Leina let out a small moan, enjoying the intensity of his kiss, pleased that he still needed her the way she needed him. She pressed a palm to the back of his neck, deepening the kiss. She had missed him. Not just seeing him, but being with him. He had been everything she wanted, and in this moment she felt as if all the sacrifices they had to make to be together would be worth it.

 

Eli nipped lightly at her bottom lip, taking advantage of her surprise and slipping his tongue into . He pressed against her, bringing their bodies as close together as he could. He poured all of his emotions into that moment, wanting more than anything to make sure she knew how much he missed her, how much he thought about her, how sorry he was for everything. Because she deserved better. He knew that, and he wanted to make it up to her some how. Pressing her firmly against the island, he reached down and lifted her onto the counter, reveling in the gasp she let out. She smiled down at him in the brief moments their bodies separated, before pulling  him to her again and wrapping her legs around him. Both of their breaths quickened as their kisses grew more fervent, hands groping each other.

 

Eli pulled away from her slightly, his heavy pants warming her face. She groaned softly, wanting nothing more than to melt into him. He looked at her sweetly, brown eyes meeting hers, brushing the strands of hair that had fallen out of her bun away from her face. Leina blushed at his gaze, no longer used to having his eyes on her, looking at her so intently. She looked away, but Eli quickly cupped her face in his hand and turned her back to him. She held his gaze this time, feeling butterflies flutter in her stomach as her heart went racing.

 

“I love you.” Eli spoke softly, keeping his gaze trained on her. He needed to make sure she still knew that.

 

Leina felt her face heat from a combination of embarrassment and elation. Being loved by him was the only thing she had asked for. Satisfied with the way her eyes lit up, Eli connected their lips once more, swiftly pulling her off the counter and carrying her out of the living room and down the hall into her bedroom.