A pulled back curtains to reveal a sight of the city lights. Respectful neighbors are living in a peaceful and quiet indoor apartment. Things would be different once you stepped outside the building. Noise from cars, doors closed or slammed, and the giggling of children and adults using the elevator will fill the background—an ordinary day for the well-off.

**

Adeline slouched, sitting on the sofa, texting, and smiling stupidly. 

"Are you chatting again, Adeline?" Betty, her longtime best friend, said while combing her hair in her scrub suit. 

"It's nothing," Adeline said while replying to someone on the phone. 

Betty got annoyed and swiftly grabbed the phone away from her and read it.

"Hey!" Adeline shouted as she tried to reach for it. 

Betty was surprised to read the message as it was a guy confessing his feelings and wanting to see Adeline in person. The tone of the text message was pretty straightforward. Although, it sounded a little cheesy. Adeline's frowning face did not say a word. 

"Ya! Adeline, is this the same guy you have been chatting with for the last two years from Moscow?" Betty wondered while holding the phone. She looked at Adeline's relieved expression. 

"Are you planning to meet him in person?" Betty said with her arms crossed and a rested face. 

Adeline nodded and pondered while staring at the coffee table. "I don't know, maybe."

"You're not stupid, aren't you? You're way too old for him, Adeline." Betty said with a cold tone. 

"I already said that to him many times in the last two years, Betty. But he's persistent and keeps telling me how he felt for me and wanted to see me in person. I was not in contact with him for the last few months, but then, out of the blue, he messaged me and told me it was time for us to meet." Adeline was indeed in denial. 

Betty shook her head disappointedly. 

"Please, don't tell me that you didn't say anything stupid to this guy; he is so eager to see you after two years." Betty looked at her because she knew Adeline did things naively as long as the other person felt comforted.

**

Adeline and Betty have been best friends since high school. They went to the same prestigious University and graduated in different Cohorts. Adeline Adams completed Business Management and is the Head of Sales in a publishing company. At the same time, Betty Wilson is a registered nurse and worked in aged care private rest homes. Both of them get along despite their personality differences. Betty is enthusiastic, flexible, and easy-going yet protective over Adeline due to her good-nurtured personality that people take advantage of, specifically with a man. Adeline is kind, considerate, and humble. She works hard to earn independently without depending on her parents' enormous fortune. Apart from a silver spoon family, Adeline is a competent and diligent woman in work or business. 

The apartment they rented has three bedrooms. They each have one spacious room with wide wardrobes. The third room serves as a guest room. A spacious living room, a tidy kitchen, and between their rooms is the bathroom with a separate toilet just next to it. The laundry and dryer are on the other side, next to the guest room. As the view outside includes a variety of building heights and the sounds of a nearby train station, they prefer to keep the enormous curtains drawn in the living room. 

**

Adeline looked at Betty timidly, and she did say something to the guy.

"Well, he's a nice guy, Betty. So, I told him that I would consider meeting him in person once he finished his degree and could work and earn his own money." Adeline knew she made a stupid mistake. 

"Are you out of your mind!" Betty nagged. Adeline turned her head aside, staring blankly at the ground as Betty stood beside her.

"Now, I understand why most people would say "Love is Blind." But, Adeline, you are 17 years older than him. Even though he said it does not matter, other people would address you as a cougar in the eyes of the many who do not understand it. Have you ever thought about that?" Betty stormed off in a cold tone but worrying for her. 

Adeline was disheartened and having second thoughts. Betty sat beside her, put the phone on the coffee table, and sighed wholeheartedly.

"Isn't your boyfriend Johnny younger than you?" Adeline said softly. 

"It's a different case for Johnny, Adeline. I am 5 years older than him, and that's alright." Betty was unamused. 

"What I'm saying is, you've gone through a lot of dating already, and you just end up with a bunch of assholes all the time. You're not even ugly to start with. You are the kindest person I've met. But those scumbags have just taken you for granted because of your kindness. You easily get too attached to someone who shows you affection only when they need you and discards you when you no longer have any use for them. And now, you're planning to meet this very young guy you have not seen for a long time. You have to think carefully, Adeline; you do not want to make the same mistake repeatedly. And as your best friend, I am concerned about you; you know that, right?." Betty sincerely advised her as a sister. 

Adeline looked at her sadly but with a relieved face. She suddenly hugged Betty. 

"You're my best friend." She smiled and hugged her. 

"Oh well, that's what best friends are for. Anyway -" Betty released from hugging and stood up.

"I better get going, or I'll be late for work. See you tomorrow morning before you leave for work too."

"Okay, Betty. See you tomorrow." Adeline said. Betty gave her a sweet smile before she left. 

Alone, Adeline looked at her phone on the coffee table. She wondered if she would reply to Maxim, the boy Adeline had been chatting with for the last two years. Maxim fell for Adeline quickly despite their infrequent online photo exchanges since she was so sweet to him. When he was facing a challenging situation he couldn't seem to get out of on his own, Adeline was the one who gave him the most encouragement and mental support. And so, for Adeline, he was very open-minded and sincere with his words. Whenever she fell in love with the wrong person again, she questioned whether she was doing the right thing. She hopes her next relationship won't be as painful as her previous ones were. She has not been dating since before she started online chatting and met Maxim by chance. 

**

A loud banging in the sales department. 

"Hey, Adeline! Why have you not approved the order project that is needed urgently? We need 300,000 copies more." grumpy Freddie shouted. 

Everyone starts to feel anxious as Adeline and Freddie don't get along well. Freddie is the Project manager that manages the books from concept to completion and looks into the marketing team's work progress for promotions. At the same time, Adeline reviews all the stores selling performance of the books that they have distributed across the bookstores nationwide before approving any additional requests or projects from the project and marketing team.

"Oh, don't you dare shout at me, Freddie! We already talked about this at last week's meeting. We cannot approve 300,000 copies due to the low revenue of last month's sales. I mentioned clearly that we will only approve 200,000 copies of your request order." Adeline scolded him. 

"What?! We worked hard on this, and now you only give us 200,000 copies. We could manage to increase the sales and revenue for this month if you approved the 300,000 copies today. Why is it so hard for you to approve it this time?" Freddie shouted, glaring his eyes at her. 

"I don't want to argue with you, Freddie. Two hundred thousand copies are 200,000 copies as approved. If you still want to argue with me about that, I suggest you put your complaints to the higher-ups." Adeline crossed her arms, snubbed at him, and walked away. 

"I'm not done talking to you, you-" Two of the sales team stopped him from making an unnecessary commotion in the department. He left with an angry face and slammed the door. 

Adeline is quite strict about working in a prestigious publishing company. Her work ethics and work values make her stand out in other departments. Although some colleagues envy her image, like Freddie, she does not care as long as she knows she did not break the company rules. She knows how to handle her team, and she knows how to handle a knotty person professionally. Her only weakness is when she falls in love.