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  3rd POV

  The room stayed silent after Claire dropped the bomb like that. She could be blunt about anything and never felt ashamed of it.

  Why? Because she was already married.

  Unconditional love, remember? And they already know her character just like that.

  Anyway, only Ted dared to break the silence, laughing as loud as he wanted, completely ignoring Claire’s dagger-like stare.

  After a few moments, Ted finally calmed down, wiping his tears and grinning at everyone around the table.

  “So? What’s the problem with this? I mean, it’s literally a good novel, right?” Ted said, still smiling.

  Claire, keeping her composure, looked straight at Ted and then at the manuscript in front of her.

  “It’s a good novel, yes, but it’s not good for your brand. Not for Mr. White.”

  Mr. White was Ted’s pen name—not a racial reference, but simply his preference for something plain and unpretentious.

  One of the editors at the table nodded. “Yeah, Mr. White is known as a fantasy creator. If you publish this under that name, sure, it’ll attract attention, but the old fans will feel betrayed.”

  Indeed, Ted’s other novels were all fantasy adventures, the new worlds that drew readers in, letting them live and breathe in the universes he built.

  He understood what they meant. He could just write another fantasy book, but he didn’t want to abandon this one.

  In his previous life, this series novels had sold over a hundred million copies even before the film adaptation came out. That was a massive amount of money, something Ted wasn’t eager to let go of.

  “This one’s too bold and too dark,” another editor said helplessly. “It’ll cause a huge controversy in the literary world. It could ruin Mr. White.”

  Yeah, that would ruin everything he had built.

  “I want this one published under ‘Evelyn’ name.” Ted said with a firm nod.

  He’d already thought it through. He knew what kind of backlash could come.

  “That’s actually what we were going to suggest,” Claire replied, writing down the new pen name. “It won’t be a fast-selling hit, but it’ll be safe.” She paused, glancing up. “Why Evelyn?”

  “…That’s my middle name. With a Y, not an I,” Ted said, correcting her spelling.

  “Huh…”

  There was a brief silence in the room. Everyone tried to hold back their laughter, staring at the table like it was the safest place in the world.

  “Fine! Laugh all you want, damn it!” Ted said, throwing up his hands and that was all it took for the men in the room to burst out laughing.

  They didn’t say a word, though. Usually, they’d tease him endlessly, but this was Ted Mosby, The Mr. White, the man who brought in the big bucks and big bonus to them all. So, they just laughed.

  “Using a woman’s name, smart move. It actually feels like it was written by one,” Claire said, glancing down at the manuscript. "And I’m sure it’ll attract not just female readers, but male readers too.”

  “Alright,” she continued, her tone shifting into business mode. “We’ll discuss the contract later. You can bring your lawyer later if you want.”

  Even though they were friends, business was still business, and Claire never mixed the two.

  “Okay,” Ted said, leaning back slightly. “Tell me what you’ve got on the book so far.” He looked around at the four people in the room, but mostly at Claire, the one who always tore his work apart piece by piece, but it's not like Ted nodded his head every time she tried to change his mind.

  The last time they argued, it was over The Hunger Games, and it got so heated they practically yelled at each other.

  “Not here, Ted,” Claire said, tidying up the pages in front of her. “At first, we just wanted to convince you not to publish this under Mr. White, but since you already agreed to use a different name, there’s not much else for now.”

  She stood up, clutching the script firmly. “We’ll reread the whole thing and see what needs fixing.”

  The others nodded, silently agreeing with her plan.

  Ted smirked. “You just want an excuse to read it again, don’t you? Who’s your fantasy this time? Is it the same domineering CEO? Or someone else?”

  Claire shot him a death glare. “That was only the first time I read your book. The next ones I read are for work.”

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  She was about to leave when Ted casually dropped another bomb.

  “This series, and the other dark, bold novels will all be released under Evelyn. You guys can handle that, right?”

  The male editors stared at him, utterly speechless. This man is a monster! A machine who not only wrote bestsellers, but kept churning them out faster than anyone could keep up.

  He already had several finished manuscripts waiting for release. The publishers couldn’t drop them all at once, it would flood the market and it's bad for business. So they sat there, like gold mines waiting to be tapped.

  And now he wanted to start a new series, and it’s in a completely different genre.

  “Series?!” Claire shouted, eyes wide in disbelief. “This novel has a series version?! How many have you written already? Give them to me!” She grabbed his collar like a furious fan who just found out her favorite author was hiding sequels.

  Ted blinked, completely stunned by her sudden burst. “Hey! It’s just a plan! I haven’t even started the series yet! I have an actual job, you know!”

  “Then quit! Just quit and be a full-time writer, you idiot!” Claire snapped, glaring at him. “Why are you still working anyway?! You’re rich enough to buy a damn mansion!”

  She looked at him like he’d just confessed to a crime. She truly couldn’t understand why Ted Mosby, already a multimillionaire author, was still working… as an architect.

  “Hey! Don’t underestimate my passion for living!” Ted said, pulling Claire’s hands off his shirt and straightening it with exaggerated dignity. “I have a dream, you know.”

  Claire snorted, unimpressed with what he's saying. “You talking serious like that makes me want to puke.”

  She gave him a side glance. “Just keep writing like this, and don’t forget Mr. White, alright? I’m not losing my year-end bonus just because you’re out there ‘playing architect.’”

  “It’s not playing! It’s honest work!” Ted yelled, but Claire was already walking away, waving her hand dismissively like she couldn’t care less.

  Ted turned to the other editors. “You guys believe in me, right?”

  “Of course!”

  “Absolutely!”

  “You’re terrific, Ted!”

  Ted narrowed his eyes at them, unimpressed. “You guys are terrible liars,” he said, then snorted before heading out, leaving the others quietly laughing behind him.

  Still in a sour mood, Ted walked toward the reception desk, where Brittany was helping a visitor.

  She smiled the moment she noticed him, finishing her task quickly but gracefully and professionally as ever.

  “Good job today,” Ted said when she was finally free. “Sorry to bother you, but I need a little mental booster right now.” He leaned against her desk, flashing his usual grin. “Seeing you smile like that? Totally worth it.”

  Brittany couldn’t help but smile, even though part of her was still mad at him. “Really? Why’s that?”

  “Claire belittled my work! She said I’ll never be a good architect! That’s cruel, right?!” Ted said, crossing his arms and snorting dramatically.

  “You’re… an architect?” Brittany asked, genuinely surprised because he didn't look like one. To her, Ted seemed more like some executive, or maybe even a shareholder in the company. She's already starting to believe the rumors of Ted being one of the Shareholders of this company.

  “Great! Now you don’t believe me either!” Ted exclaimed, half-joking, half-offended.

  Brittany widened her eyes. “No! It’s just… you never told me what you actually do! You just buy me clothes, and then we… we…” she stumbled over her words, “...had sex.”

  The words slipped out before she could stop herself, and she instantly froze.

  “Oh my God… what am I even saying…” Brittany muttered, cursing herself under her breath.

  “Don’t be embarrassed,” Ted said with a teasing smile, though he was clearly caught off guard too. “I enjoyed it as well.”

  “You’re terrible, Ted…” Brittany said, blushing furiously.

  Ted was about to keep talking, maybe lighten the mood, when Claire appeared again out of nowhere—like she had a radar for ruining his moments.

  “What are you still doing here? Go back home!” she barked.

  “Alright, alright! Geez, you’re a terrible woman! I hate you!” Ted shouted as he walked off, earning himself one last death glare from Claire.

  “You stupid horny man!” she yelled back.

  As Ted disappeared down the hallway, Claire glanced at Brittany, who was still sitting and buried herself to the desk, trying to disappear from Claire's gaze. No matter how much she changed her look, Brittany was still the same geeky girl inside.

  Claire just snorted and walked away. To her, Brittany was just another fling, someone Ted slept with between nights.

  Better for him not to get too attached, she thought. That way, he could keep finding new “inspirations.”

  But in the end, as long as Ted kept writing like this, Claire didn’t really care how he found his muse.

  —----

  {Kids, when you go on a date—don’t text your date like I did.}—Old Ted

  Robin woke up feeling great. She couldn’t help but smile, replaying last night in her head.

  It felt… nice.

  They’d talked and talked until late, and for some reason, she didn’t want the night to end.

  It was weird, wasn’t it?

  She barely knew the guy, but something about him; his laugh, his warmth, his cringed, it just felt right.

  Like maybe… he was the one.

  But Robin didn’t believe in that.

  She didn’t believe in “love at first sight,” or marriage, or any of those romantic clichés. Hell she's even only dating for 2 months top then breakup. That's why she calls her friend who is getting dumped is weak.

  She was still young, and marriage was not on her radar and The One is not right at the moment.

  Still… she couldn’t stop thinking about it.

  Robin sighed, got out of bed, and walked to the bathroom to wash her face, hoping the cold water would wash those thoughts away too.

  She wasn’t about to let some stranger from a bar mess with her head.

  But what about him?

  Ted.

  The guy from last night, the one she couldn’t stop thinking about.

  Was he thinking about her too?

  ‘No. No, stop it, Robin! Don’t go there!.’ she can't help but shake her head, erase the thought.

  The splash of cold water helped chase away the sleepiness and maybe a bit of the butterflies too. She grabbed her towel, dried her face, and then reached for her phone.

  First, she checked her missed calls.

  Nothing.

  Then her messages.

  Still nothing.

  “...Should I call him?” she muttered to herself, staring at her phone.

  Yes, she could. She was an independent woman. She didn’t believe in that silly stereotype where the woman has to wait for the man to call first.

  “Alright,” she said, psyching herself up. “I’ll just text him. It's totally normal, right?”

  Robin looked at her phone again then messaged him, “... Better ask him if he knows better restaurants and if he doesn't, I will recommend it.”

  Oh god, even she knows that's just some excuses!

  Oh no, it's too late to change her mind. She already clicked Send.

  Then she waited.

  There's still none from him. She should have breakfast. There's still none from him. She should have taken a shower right?. There's still none from him.

  She waited for more than two hours until his message came.

  “....Is he a heavy sleeper? Wow, bold.” Robin can't help but open her eyes and see the message from him. “Nobody does that on the first date.” she chuckled and typed again, “...Leave the restaurant address and the time.”

  Then she hesitated… bit her lip… and, with a mischievous grin, typed another message:

  ‘...Smurf penis means it’s blue, right? First experience to have dinner while seeing blue penis or normal penis.’

  She rolled her eyes for being so cringey! But he's started!

  Oh no, she can't change it again because she's already clicked send.

  She knows that he's just joking, so why not? He seems like a fun guy.