When I step out of my room this morning, I'm already dressed in my office suit and ready to go to work. I find the maids still looking for Nevaeh's earring in the living room. Some others look in different areas of the house.

"Still haven't found it?" I ask, and they all give me a negative answer.

I've instructed everyone to look for it, but finding a small earring isn't an easy task.

The image of Nevaeh almost crying flashes in my mind, and I urge, "Look thoroughly. Every spot."

They nod, and Ian steps into the site.

"Where's Nevaeh?" I ask.

I haven't seen her this morning, even during breakfast time. She has never skipped her breakfast before.

"She has a morning class today, but she said that she wanted to check the pool first," Ian says.

"The pool?" I frown.

"Yes. She might have dropped the earring there, since she went swimming yesterday. She spent a long time looking for it in her bedroom this morning, but she hasn't found it," Ian says sadly.

I stride across the living room and head to the swimming pool. When I step into the area, I find Nevaeh standing near the water.

She's already dressed in her smart casual attire to go to college, her bag on her shoulder and her back facing me.

She turns around just as I walk closer to her. She's surprised to find me here, but I'm even more taken aback when I look at her.

Tears are streaming down her face. Her hand clutches her bag tightly.

"Aiden--" She chokes between her sobs.

I've never seen her so devastated, not even when she'd just been attacked by the security guard.

"What should I do?" Her voice is barely a whisper, filled with so much sadness. "I can't find it. I think I lost it in the pool."

"Are you sure about that?"

"I don't know." She shakes her head desperately.

She takes a deep breath, turns around, and drops her bag onto the ground. I quickly catch her arm before she can get closer to the pool.

"What are you doing?" I warn. "Are you thinking about jumping into the pool right now?"

She struggles, but I pull her closer to me and turn her around. I grab her shoulders firmly while she's shaking in my arms, probably due to the emotions eating her.

"You don't understand," she cries. "I have to find it no matter what. This earring can't lose its pair. It's nothing without the other."

Now that I stare at her condition, I realize even more how serious this matter is to her. There's a history about these earrings, a reason why they're so important to her parents and Nevaeh herself.

"Can't you wait?" I ask. "You can't just jump into the pool right now, in these clothes. You have a class, remember?"

She shakes her head wildly. "But what if--"

"I'll handle it. You don't have to deal with it right now. I'm not letting you jump in this condition."

"But--"

"Nevaeh," I insist, holding her shoulders even more firmly.

She freezes as I lock my eyes with hers.

"I'll find it." My voice is filled with implacable authority.

Nevaeh seems to be at a loss for words. She's not struggling anymore, but her tears are still falling.

I take a deep breath and loosen my hold on her, trying to calm down myself. "For now, just go to your class as usual. You're going to be late."

She looks hesitant to do that, but when I finally let her go, she doesn't object to what I said.

She sniffles. "You're right. I'm not thinking clearly. I'm sorry." She wipes her tears, picks up her bag, and leaves.

The moment she's out of sight, I turn around toward the pool. I shut my eyes and rake my fingers through my hair.

A small earring. Inside the pool.

How the hell am I going to find it?

Seeing Nevaeh's condition just now stirs something inside me. I hate to see a girl cry. I never like to see a girl cry.

But seeing Nevaeh cry triggers something else too. Her crying face is so disturbing. Too disturbing. The tears aren't supposed to fall from those beautiful sky blue eyes. I hate to see those broken eyes.

My jaw tightens, and I clench my fist, still staring at the pool before me.

"Aiden." Ashton arrives at my side. "We should go now. You have a meeting. The stakeholders are waiting in the office."

"Delay the meeting," I order. "I can't go now. Tell them to wait."

There's no response, probably because Ashton is still trying to digest my words.

"Did you just tell me to delay the meeting?" he asks in disbelief. "But you said that it was urgent--"

"I said, postpone it," I speak through gritted teeth.

I still haven't turned my head toward him, so I can't see his expression.

"Very well," Ashton says. "I'll settle it."

The sound of his shoes stepping on the ground gradually fades, a sign that he walks out.

Without a second thought, I take off my suit and unbutton my shirt.

Goddammit. I promised Nevaeh that I'd find her earring. And I will find it.

Just when my bare foot touches the edge of the pool, someone shouts, "Sir! What are you doing?"

A male servant totters in my direction, his eyes wide in shock.

Well, can't he see that I'm about to dive in? This is my swimming pool, after all.

"Sir, we're trying our best to find it." He pants. "With all due respect, Sir, I don't think that you need to jump just to search for an earring. We can vacuum the pool and drain the water, if necessary."

I glare at him, and he gulps nervously.

That's the last option I would consider. I don't want to damage the earring or risk it missing.

I ignore his words and jump into the pool.

I can understand Nevaeh. It's not about how valuable the jewelry is. It's about how much it means to the person. I've seen my father wear a promise ring for years like it was his life.

I travel my eyes around, swimming underwater and holding my breath as long as possible. After a while, I come back to the surface, taking another deep breath before going down again.

I don't want to see her cry again today. The sooner I can find the earring, the better.

This time, I search longer than before, making sure that I don't miss anything. The moment I reappear on the surface, I curse, "Fuck."

Anger begins to fill me. I can't let that earring be gone forever.

I clench my jaw before diving back into the water again. I search everywhere underwater, long enough that the moment I gasp for air, the male servant who's waiting for me looks as pale as a paper.

I pant heavily, leaning toward the edge of the pool with my arms on the ground. I'm still not planning to get out.

Rushed footsteps approach me, and when I look up, Ashton and Ian are running in my direction.

"Aiden," Ashton starts. "You can't possibly search--"

"Shut up," I cut him off, almost harshly.

I don't know why I'm angry. I'm angry that I can't find it.

"Aiden--"

Whatever it is Ashton is about to say, I don't hear it because I'm already swimming underwater again. My eyes start to hurt, forced to scan every little thing underwater.

Just when I'm about to run out of air again, I finally find it.

Near the corner of the pool.

A tiny butterfly floating underwater.

I grab it and push myself toward the surface. When I reach the edge of the pool, my chest is heaving up and down.

Slowly, I open my fist, and there it is.

The butterfly earring. It's silver-plated, with a slight hue of baby blue.

I dry my hair with a towel and step out of my bathroom. When I open my closet, I can't help but think about Nevaeh. I've texted her that I found the earring, and she's coming home after her first class.

Of course, she can hardly believe that I've found it. She can't wait to see it with her own eyes.

A smile curves on my lips as I remember her voice that was filled with disbelief and happiness.

I wear a shirt and take the earring from my nightstand. Just after I hold it again in my hand, the door bursts open.

Nevaeh is standing there, panting. "You've found it?"

I nod. She walks toward me, and so do I. I open my hand, and the moment she sees the earring on my palm, she gasps.

Her hands shoot to her mouth. Her eyes water with happy tears.

"Oh, God. You really did."

"I told you I would." I smirk.

I suddenly feel like I've never been this proud of myself, which is weird.

Nevaeh takes the earring and, to my surprise, engulfs me in a tight hug. She's so happy, I can feel her shoulders shaking.

"Thank you." She pulls away, staring at me with such tenderness that warms my heart. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Before I can respond to that, she walks toward the mirror and wears the earring carefully. She beams with delight now that she has those two little butterflies with her.

I can't take my gaze away from her.

She turns her head to see me over her shoulder, tucking her hair behind her ear. Her smile is beautiful. So beautiful. It makes me feel like nothing else matters.

That's when I feel it. My heart.

It thumps so hard, so suddenly. I almost feel like it can burst out of my chest.

Nevaeh says something. I can hear her happy voice, but I can't really hear what she's saying because of the way my heart thumps.

I feel like everything else stops. Just like that. All I'm worried about is this pressure in my chest, against my ribs.

The moment I'm snapped back into reality, the voice inside my head shouts at me.

What the hell was that all about?

What the hell just happened?