Chapter 2033 A Sudden Message

'Something is different with him lately, ' Don mused as he watched Damian from the corner of his eye. He had been acting strange—brooding for a long time alone and being absent. If Don didn't know any better, he would almost say he was moping around, but that was wrong. Damian never moped.

'Could it be…He's in love?' Don wondered to himself. Whatever was the matter, only one thing was for sure: Damian was not himself these days.

On the other hand, Damian was well aware of what his subordinate was thinking. Don had tried to be subtle, but it wasn't exactly easy to ignore him when he kept watching with a curious look written all over his face. After some time, Damian could no longer bear the scrutiny. Standing up, he swept across the room and announced, "I'm going out for a couple of days. Take care of this place while I'm away."

Don gaped at him. "You're going out? Are you serious?" he asked.

He almost couldn't believe his ears. Damian had never, NEVER, left the studio, unless he absolutely needed to. It was like an added organ or a limb to him— his life was attached to the place. Even when he was ill with a high fever, he had refused to go out. But here he was now, saying that he was going out so nonchalantly.

Seeing the surprise on Don's face, Damian didn't bother explaining. He valued his privacy, and he didn't feel the need to share it with anyone. Instead, he gave Don instructions, "I'm going back to China. I might be staying for a while. Please continue to work here as before while I'm away. Your wages will also be the same. Don't slack off. I would know if this place was being neglected."

Knowing that his questions would be left unanswered, Don simply nodded in response. Damian was all business as usual, which was also why he had no worries about his own salary. Damian was a billionaire, after all, and even a year's worth of his payroll would probably be like some loose change to him.

On second thought, managing the studio himself would be a difficult task. Damian did not like to keep a lot of people around, and it was usually just the two of them, and now that he was leaving, he was going to be left alone. However, Don knew that his boss trusted him, and he didn't want to let him down. Damian had been absent-minded for the past days. Maybe a break was what he needed. Hopefully, whatever was bothering him would be resolved by the time he came back.

"Don't worry, Damian. I'll come here every day and take care of everything. You can trust me. I'll see to it that nothing will change," Don assured him.

"Thank you, Don. I'm counting on you." Damian nodded. He took a padded Kraft bag from the drawer and handed it to Don with an encouraging smile.

"This is a whole year's salary, plus an extra two months. Take it," he said.

Don gaped at him for the second time that day. He brought his hands forward and waved them in refusal. "Oh, no! I couldn't possibly...you don't have to, Damian!" he protested.

Damian only smiled patiently. "Just take it already. I know that your family is having trouble with money. I've actually already thought of paying you in advance, but I was afraid it would hurt your feelings, so I was just waiting for you to ask me. Now that I'm leaving, this would be the p

od for arguments tonight.

At this time, Sheryl was lying on her bed, her eyes heavy with drowsiness.

It had been a wonderful night. She had played with her kids and spent time with them before tucking them into bed later on. She was about to fall asleep when her phone rang with a WeChat message lighting up on the screen.

Sheryl scrunched her eyes, having no intention to read it.

She turned to her other side and tried to sleep. However, she wondered. Who would be sending her a message at this hour? 'Maybe it was from Charles?' she thought.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she took the phone in her hands and tapped the screen. Her eyes widened a bit as she saw who the message was from. He was someone she had not heard from for quite a long time.

"Long time no see, dear Sher. Are you missing me?" it read.

Sheryl couldn't help the smile that crept on her lips as she read.

She gazed at the message as her mind went elsewhere, thinking back to when they first met each other. His message came as a surprise. She and Damian hadn't been in touch since she had returned from abroad.

Her smile grew wider. It seemed as if some things didn't change. Damian's humor was still the same.

"Of course, I miss you. How are you doing these days? Still busy with your work?" Sheryl asked, more of courtesy than interest.

"Not really, but time has passed by before people started noticing it. How about you? You lost contact the moment you left. I was wondering if you ever took me as your friend!" Another message came immediately.

She knew he was feigning anger. "Oh, stop it. I know you're not angry. It's late now, so I'm gaping to sleep. Maybe we can catch up with each other another time? Good night."

On the other side, Damian was a little disappointed at her reply, but he didn't give up and sent another message to Sheryl.

"I'm so hurt. I thought you would be thinking of me. Ah, I won't be able to sleep tonight."

Seeing his persistence, Sheryl humored him one last time and sent a smile emoji and a good night emoji as a reply. After that, she muted her phone and stuck it under her pillow, drifting off to sleep the next moment.