Thursday Morning
Steel Medical Center bustled with its usual rhythm.
Doctors hurried between departments.
Patients filled the waiting halls.
The sound of footsteps and distant conversations echoed through the building.
Celina had just finished arranging fresh flowers at the nurses' station when a cheerful voice called her name.
"Celina!"
She turned with surprise.
A young man, dressed in a navy-blue shirt and carrying a paper bag, walked toward her with an easy smile.
"Lucas!"
Her face brightened.
"It's been months!"
Lucas Harper laughed as they embraced briefly.
"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten me."
"How could I?"
"You practically lived next door when we were children."
Emily, standing nearby, watched with interest.
"You never told me you had such a handsome friend."
Celina laughed.
"Lucas is like family."
Lucas placed a hand dramatically over his chest.
"'Like' family?"
"I'm deeply wounded."
The three of them laughed.
From the second-floor balcony overlooking the lobby...
Aaron stopped walking.
His eyes settled on the scene below.
Ethan, walking beside him, noticed the change immediately.
"Sir?"
Aaron didn't answer.
He simply watched as Lucas handed Celina the paper bag.
"I brought your favorite honey biscuits."
"You still remember?"
"I remember everything involving food."
Celina laughed again.
It was a carefree laugh Aaron had never heard before.
Something tightened in his chest.
A feeling he couldn't quite identify.
Lucas gently brushed a strand of hair away from Celina's face.
"You still never tie your hair properly."
She rolled her eyes.
"And you still enjoy teasing me."
Aaron's expression remained calm.
But his gaze grew noticeably colder.
Ethan followed his line of sight.
"Oh..."
He understood.
Without realizing it...
Aaron had just experienced jealousy for the first time.
A few minutes later...
Lucas excused himself to visit his grandmother, who had recently undergone surgery.
Celina watched him disappear down the corridor before returning to her duties.
She never noticed Aaron approaching.
"Good morning."
She turned.
"Oh..."
"Good morning, Mr. Steel."
Aaron nodded politely.
"You seem to be in a good mood."
She smiled.
"I met an old friend."
"I noticed."
There was something different about his tone.
Calm...
Yet unusually reserved.
"He lives overseas now," Celina explained.
"He came back to visit his grandmother."
Aaron simply nodded.
"I see."
Silence settled between them.
For the first time...
Their conversation felt awkward.
Celina frowned slightly.
"Is everything alright?"
"Of course."
"You seem..."
She searched for the right word.
"Distant."
Aaron looked at her for a long moment.
"I'm fine."
Before she could say anything else...
He excused himself and walked away.
Celina watched him disappear around the corner.
"What was that about?"
Later that afternoon...
Aaron stood inside his office, staring absentmindedly at a report.
He hadn't read a single page.
Edward Steel entered quietly.
"I've been told the quarterly figures are excellent."
Aaron nodded without looking up.
"They are."
Edward sat opposite him.
"Then why do you look like a man who just lost a billion dollars?"
Aaron sighed softly.
"I met someone today."
Edward raised an eyebrow.
"I assumed you've met many people today."
"This one was different."
Edward smiled knowingly.
"A man?"
Aaron looked up.
"No."
"A young man speaking with Celina."
Edward's smile widened.
"And?"
Aaron frowned.
"I found him..."
He paused.
"...annoying."
Edward couldn't help laughing.
"My dear grandson..."
"I believe congratulations are in order."
Aaron looked puzzled.
"For what?"
Edward stood and gently patted his shoulder.
"You're jealous."
Aaron stared at him.
"I most certainly am not."
Edward chuckled as he walked toward the door.
"Keep telling yourself that."
The door closed behind him.
Aaron leaned back in his chair.
Jealous?
The idea sounded absurd.
Yet...
Every time he remembered Lucas smiling at Celina...
That strange feeling returned.
For the first time in years...
Aaron Steel had encountered an opponent no business strategy could defeat.
His own heart.