Marry me

Japheth Ramos used the name Mike when he was in America. He got that nickname from his classmates because he was handsome and a great basketball player, like the famous Mike Tyson. Seth began calling him Mike as a joke, and it soon became a rite of passage.

Seth didn't get a reply from his brother, so he turned to Cecilia and said, "My brother doesn't like owing or being owed anything, just ask for anything, no matter how small, just ask for it"

Cecilia was astonished to discover that some people were willing to bargain or coerce others into doing favors or receiving compensation. She twitched her mouth with nervousness.

"I wasn't trying to suggest that, I can't stand being criticized for doing my job. I would have saved her even if it were a stray dog. It was...

"Please don't worry! Japheth interrupted her, clearly showing his impatience. "I believe you," he said. "We looked at the surveillance cameras in the bar and saw that Nicki had gone to the storage area on her own"

"We are not suspicious of you at all" Seth quickly added, as if he had already anticipated their thoughts.

Cecilia is growing increasingly enraged by the current circumstances. She doesn't want anything from the brother and CEO, but they are unwilling to give up. However, if both of them truly want her to make a request, then she will.

" Ok, how about you give me some money? She asked, fluttering her eyes a few times.

It's said that the wealthy like to settle their disputes or debts with money, right? The trusts they have in her will be crumbled if she asks for contract or anything else.

Cecilia thought that she had put forward what she wanted, she rested her head on the pillow and looked at Nicki, who was sleeping peacefully, then yawned.

She looked back at Japheth Ramos, whose expression had by now become more uglier and taciturn, as if speaking a few words will kill him. Cecilia was at the verge of tears because he doesn't seem to want to give up.

Seth, his translating machine, seems to be tired and irritated by the turn of events. Seth stopped when Cecilia jumped up from the bed, she was getting sick of their public display of arrogance and crazyness.

Nicki awoke from her peaceful slumber with a start, jolting upright as her hand collided with the cupboard next to her bed. The sudden noise startled her, but what followed left her utterly bewildered.

Cecilia, usually composed and collected, unleashed a torrent of pent-up frustration and rage, her carefully concealed emotions bursting forth like a dam breaking free. "Be arrogant and go ahead. You should insult me. Do whatever you please!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with fury. "Is it necessary for me to announce that I don't need your reward or compensation? The situation would have been saved by any decent person. Did I have to be petty about it? Should I request something? What else could you offer me that doesn't involve your silly money? Mansions? A motor vehicle? Are you part of a firm? Or perhaps a flight ticket?"

Nicki, stunned by Cecilia's outburst, leaped out of her bed to observe the scene unfolding before her. She couldn't help but wonder if the kind person who had saved her in the storeroom was still present, or if Cecilia had undergone a sudden transformation.

Meanwhile, Japheth Ramos remained stoic, his expression unchanged as he continued to gaze at Cecilia with unwavering resolve. Seth, catching glimpses of the heated exchange, cautiously popped his head up, his thoughts veiled behind a mask of contemplation as he observed the unfolding drama.

"Marry me!" Japheth Ramos declared abruptly, his words hanging heavily in the air like a sudden thunderclap.

Nicki observed her father with wide, curious eyes, sensing the gravity of the moment. Meanwhile, Seth, hearing his brother utter those words, felt as though he had been transported into a trance-like state, unable to fully comprehend the surreal turn of events.

Cecilia, caught off guard by the unexpected proposal, was momentarily stunned into silence. Her initial shock gave way to a fit of coughing, her throat constricting with the intensity of her emotions, almost causing her to choke on her own spit.

"What? What did you just say?" Cecilia managed to sputter out, her voice hoarse with disbelief, but Japheth Ramos maintained a composed expression, his demeanor unwavering.

Turning to Seth with a hopeful expression, Cecilia silently pleaded for clarification, but Seth, too, was at a loss for words, equally taken aback by his brother's sudden declaration.

"What are you trying to say, Mike?" Seth finally asked, breaking the tense silence that had settled over the room.

Without faltering, Japheth Ramos repeated himself with an air of authority, "I want to marry you!"

The weight of his words sank in, and Cecilia's mind raced with a flurry of thoughts and emotions. Fiddling nervously with her fingers, she felt as though a light bulb had been switched on in her head, illuminating the path forward amidst the chaos and uncertainty.

With a voice quivering with disbelief, Cecilia uttered, "Are you trying to say you're offering yourself in exchange for saving your daughter?" Japheth Ramos inclined his head slightly. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded slowly. "You could interpret it that way," he admitted calmly, his demeanor betraying no hint of remorse or hesitation.

Cecilia felt a surge of indignation and incredulity at his proposition. Without allowing herself a moment to process, she firmly rejected it, her words tumbling out hurriedly, "Give me money. You asked for my help, right? Then give me money, plenty of it. You don't need to repay me with your body for that," she insisted, her voice tinged with a mixture of anger and disbelief.

Seth, who had been observing the exchange with growing concern, interjected, his tone pleading, "Mike, this is too much. You can give her money. Don't worry, I'll cover it from my own account. You can leave with Nicki. I'll take care of it." However, Japheth Ramos remained steadfast in his decision, his hands tucked into his pockets as he looked up at Cecilia, his expression unreadable.

Cecilia's mind raced with a flurry of emotions. "No one could be as shameless as this Japheth Ramos," she seethed inwardly, her frustration mounting with each passing moment. "How dare he propose marriage so casually? Is he some kind of arrogant jerk? Who proposes marriage as if it's something cheap?"

Despite her past experiences with relationships, none of them had been fulfilling. Her previous boyfriends had either abandoned her or betrayed her, leaving her with a lingering sense of distrust and disappointment. But for someone to suddenly propose marriage to her was beyond comprehension, especially someone like Japheth Ramos, whose demeanor exuded an air of superiority and entitlement.

"That arrogant bully!" Cecilia fumed silently, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

"With a face perpetually shrouded in frost, as if he resides in a fortress of ice blocks. How dare he think he could buy me off?"