Chapter 8

Joanna hung up in such a hurry that Corinne didn’t get to ask anything. Since she was still wrapped in a towel, she opened the closet to see if there were any clothes she could wear. However, it was filled only with Jeremy's clothes. With few choices available, she grabbed a random white T-shirt and put it on before hurrying out of the room. Jeremy's T-shirts were huge for her, and the hem reached down to her knees. It was the perfect size to be styled like one of those oversized casual shirt-dresses. - Upon reaching Alpha Enterprises, Corinne swiped her access card at the door, and Joanna—who seemed particularly agitated—ran out to find her. "Corinne, you're finally here! The manager wants you to go to his office immediately! You gotta psych yourself up…" "The manager is looking for me?" It was rare to see Joanna looking so nervous. "What happened?" Joanna looked around to make sure that no one was around. She then whispered to Corinne, "The company's computers were all infected with a virus, and the system has crashed completely! All of the company's important files were lost..." Corinne frowned. "And what does that have to do with me? They should be calling a technician to fix it if the computer's broken." Joanna was worried. "The technicians are doing their best to repair it. The point is, Zoey reported to the manager that the virus came from your computer after you downloaded a game on the company computer. "To make things worse, the boss invited some big shots to take a look at the company's new project today, but it's impossible to recover the presentation file that our department has worked so hard on. The entire situation left the manager fuming, and he'll definitely take it out on you right now!" 'Zoey? Zoey Firwood? The one whom everyone says has inside connections in the company?' Corinne thought. Zoey, like Corinne, was still midway through their internship period. Their company, Alpha Enterprises, made the international top 500 list of companies. Annually, a large number of excellent students went to great lengths to get into the company. Corinne secured the internship after receiving a letter of recommendation from the principal of New Capital University, which was mainly due to her excellent academic performance. Nonetheless, rumor had it that Zoey was the manager’s relative. With only one quota left for the permanent position that year in Alpha Enterprises, there was competition between Corinne and Zoey. By connecting the dots, Corinne could form a rough idea of what happened. - Before Corinne knocked on the door of the manager's office, she heard Zoey's voice from within. It sounded like Zoey was trying to persuade the manager to calm down. "Don't worry, Uncle. The computers will be fixed eventually! This is all Corinne's fault for playing video games during working hours..." The manager, Richard Channing, said angrily, "Where is that blasted Corinne? Why isn't she here yet?!" Corinne knocked on the door and pushed it open. "You wanted to see me, sir?" When Richard saw her, he yelled, "Finally caring to show up? Are you supposed to clock in for work this late? You didn't give any reasons for your absence from work yesterday either! What kind of work ethic do you have right now?" Corinne walked in and explained in a kind manner, "I'm sorry, sir. I got married yesterday, and I'm late today because I encountered some trouble this morning." Richard felt what she said was ridiculous. "You got married? Well, assuming you did, couldn't you have applied for leave? What do you take the company for? Your own home? This is the first time I've seen an employee who does whatever they want at work! First, you were absent, then you came late today, and after that, you played computer games instead of doing your work!" Corinne seemed to have learned a lesson as she uttered, "I don't have a lot of experience in marriage. It is my first time, after all. I promise I'll apply for leave next time around." Richard was speechless, while Zoey could not stand to hear the conversation anymore. "You're downright shameless, Corinne. If you were absent without a reason, just say so. It’s so ridiculous to use 'marriage' as an excuse! That's the worst lie I've ever heard!" At that moment, the door of the office was still open. Alfred Ganz, the owner of Alpha Enterprises, stood at the door with another imposing-looking man. They happened to hear what Corinne last said to Richard. The man who came with Alfred was none other than Jeremy, and he narrowed his charming eyes slightly. Richard was about to continue tearing into Corinne. However, as soon as he saw the two men at the door, he jumped to his feet and nodded at them before bowing to greet them. "Ah! Mister Alfred, when did you and Mister Jeremy arrive? Please, come right in." Zoey looked over, and her eyes were filled with little hearts the moment she laid her eyes on the handsome, dignified man next to Alfred. Corinne was spacing out, so she casually turned to look at them and was stunned. 'That weird man again? Why is he everywhere?' Alfred asked with a serious expression, "What were you arguing about earlier, Richard? Did I hear something about the company's computer system crashing? What's going on?" Richard sweated profusely as he pointed at Corinne and explained, "Mister Alfred, our company's new intern played computer games during work hours, which caused our systems to be invaded by a virus. The technical department is giving it their all to restore everything..." Incensed by what he heard, Alfred asked, "What? Why is she still around then? Are you planning to give her the permanent position?!" Richard shook his head at once. "No! Of course not, Mister Alfred! I'll fire her right away!" Zoey smiled slightly. Jeremy glanced ats Corinne indifferently as if they were complete strangers. He said icily, "Mister Alfred, it seems that I came at an inappropriate time today. We should reschedule if that's the case." "I'm so sorry, Mister Jeremy. It was an oversight on my part." Alfred felt incredibly ashamed. He had gone to great lengths to invite Jeremy, and the chances of Jeremy accepting another future invitation would be even slimmer! Corinne saw Joanna peering anxiously from outside the office and immediately remembered that the new project was the result of Joanna's first time leading a team. It would be difficult for her to take up bigger responsibilities in the future if her present efforts went down the drain just like that. Furthermore, Joanna had taken very good care of Corinne during her internship. "Mister Jeremy!" Corinne called out suddenly. Jeremy stopped in his tracks and turned around. Corinne walked toward him and said, "I understand you’re busy, Mister Jeremy, but the fact is that you're already here. If you just leave like this, wouldn't it be such a waste if you ended up missing out on a good project?" Jeremy's gaze was cold. "But you have nothing to show me right now." Corinne gave them her word. "I'll have the new project plan shown to you in the time it only takes for you to enjoy a cup of coffee!" Alfred and Richard looked at Corinne in disbelief. Zoey rolled her eyes in contempt. She doubted that Corinne would be able to fix something that even overwhelmed the professional technicians. 'Yeah, just lie through your teeth! This is just a desperate attempt at trying to fix the situation.' After a brief silence, there was a touch of interest in Jeremy's expressionless face. "Young people sure love a challenge. Alright, Mister Alfred, I'm here, and I'm feeling a little thirsty, so could I trouble you for a cup of coffee before I leave?" Alfred snapped back to his senses and immediately ordered, "Well, why are you guys still standing there? Hurry and make some coffee for Mister Jeremy!" "Yes, sir!" Zoey wanted to avail herself of the chance to interact with Jeremy, so she trotted away gracefully to make some coffee. Corinne returned to her workstation and inserted a USB flash drive into the computer. Joanna walked over curiously and asked, "What are you doing, Corinne? Do you know how to fix virus-infected computers?" Corinne had a focused expression as she moved the cursor and replied, "I'm installing some antivirus software!" Her response discouraged Joanna. "Corinne, that's useless! The technicians said that the company was targeted by hackers, so there's nothing antivirus software can do about it!" Corinne raised her head slightly and smiled faintly at Joanna. "No harm trying. Who knows what'll happen?"