“IF YOU don’t want to get hurt, give me your bag!” the theft whispered, making Meredith to stiffen in her position.

She tightened her grip on her bag because it contained the money she had saved for a month to pay off some of her father’s debt. Their boss gives them tips for their hard work at the café, that’s why they are all blessed so she had saved a lot somehow. The fog that night was cold, but she was sweating because of the danger she was facing right now.
“P-please, have mercy on me. I have a lot of debt to pay,” she pleaded. The grace period given to them is next week. What to do?
“I’m sorry, Miss, but I owe a lot as well, so don’t talk too much. Will you hand over your bag or I will bury my knife in your waist?”
No way! She needed to flee. Until she had no choice but to step on his foot with all her strength to force him to release her. She immediately ran but he caught her hair. She couldn’t do anything but closed her eyes to the possible consequences when the theft suddenly fell on the ground.
“Mer, hop on! Quick!”
She frowned as the man who was riding a Ducati knew her and now handing her a helmet. He was wearing a helmet so she couldn’t recognize him. 
She didn't hesitate to take the helmet and get on his motorcycle when she noticed the theft moving. During those times, all she could think about was getting away from that place.
She was even more surprised when he pulled over to a convenient store. Who is this guy?
“R-Randall?” she said when he took off his helmet.
“I’m hungry,” he said as he entered the convenience store.
She felt like the theft was still following her that’s why she did nothing but follow him. 
Randall handed her a bottled water. “Here! Drink it to calm you down.”
“T-thank you!”
Only now did she realize that they had not seen each other for a long time.
“How come you’re still outside at this hour?” he asked when they sat down at one of the tables there.
“W-well, I worked overtime at the café.”
“You’re what? Working? At the Café?” She nodded.
“H-how come? You’re still a minor!”
She lowered her gaze and fiddled with her fingers. “I begged Shanaia’s cousin, who owns the café, to accept me despite the fact that I was still a minor.”
“Then what is your position there?”
“I worked there as a dishwasher,” she answered honestly because she had nothing to be ashamed of. 
And he knows her status in life because she told her life history when they were both imprisoned in the meeting room of the Swimming Club.
“A dishwasher? Why did you accept it?”
“Since I’m a minor, they had to put me there so no one would see or recognize me that I’m working at the café.”
He frowned. “Why do you have to work? Is your shop not generating enough revenue to cover your daily expenses?”
She bit her lower lip. “Well, I just have to pay something, so I need some extra income.”
“How much do you have to pay? Are you really willing to give up your time rather than devote it to your studies? You would have died sooner if I hadn’t come,” he said after sipping the soup from the cup noodles he was eating.
“Dad left us with a massive debt that we must pay.”
“How much?” he asked. 
She just smiled at him. A smile that shows she didn’t want to tell him the amount of their debt and Randall respected it that’s why he didn’t ask her anymore.
Silence enveloped them until Meredith broke it.
“Thank you for saving me earlier and also for what you did at the resort.” Finally, she was able to thank him.
“It’s nothing. Just be careful next time.”
She nodded. “Do you want something to eat?”
“No thanks! I’m just craving for noodles,” he declined.
“No. I mean, maybe you want something else to eat aside from noodles? My treat! Consider it as my gratitude.”
“I’m full already. Maybe next time.”
“Okay!”

“HOLD tight,” Randall said when they got on his motorcycle.
She tightened her grip on the Ducati’s back end. “Okay! I’m fine now!”
He shook his head. “When I say hold tight, you should hug me, tightly.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “Huh?”
Randall put her arms around his waist. “I said hug me. I just don’t want you to blame me in the end when you fall.”
“O-okay then,” she said then started his big bike.
Randall smiled as he felt Meredith’s warm embrace. And for an unknown reason, his heart beat faster.

“WHAT now?! Are you going to pay off your debt or not?” scene that Meredith and Randall encountered when they arrived in front of their house.
She quickly got off the motorcycle when she saw her mother and Mr. Hakim arguing.
“Mr. Hakim! What are you doing here at this late hour?” she asked as she stepped between them.
“He’s here to collect our payment,” her mother said behind her.
“What?!” she exclaimed.
She faced Mr. Hakim. “Isn’t the one-month grace period you gave us next week?”
“I do not care! Your father hid from us for so many years that’s why we have right to collect your debt whenever we want!”
“Here’s the forty thousand. That’s all we’ve saved since we built our shop.” Then her mother handed the money to Mr. Hakim.
She also included her ten thousand from her savings. 
“I know it’s still not enough in terms of interest, but that’s all we have right now.”
The paunchy man accepted it and insulted them even more. “Fifty thousand? Are you serious? It doesn’t even cover the one percent of your one million peso debt! Even if you sell all of your properties, it will not suffice!”
“It’s just a down payment. Maybe in a year or two, we’ll be able to pay you–”
“When? One year? Two years? Unbelievable!”
“Sorry to interrupt, Sir, but you’re talking to a woman so you have to respect her, especially the one who’s older than you.” Randall intervened.
Meredith looked back to Randall. She had almost completely forgotten about him. She couldn’t believe that he was still around.
“And who in the world are you?”
“It doesn’t matter if who I am. All I wanted to say was, aren’t you ashamed that at this hour of the night you are bubbling nonsense?”
He pointed a finger at Randall. “Don’t interfere with my business. Mind your own!”
“They owe you a million?” he asked causing Meredith to look at him.
“Yes! They owe me one million pesos!”
“Give me three days to pay off their remaining debt.”
“Randall! What are you saying?!” Meredith abruptly whispered.
“Can’t you see? I’m helping you.”
“But–” she didn’t finish what she was going to say when Mr. Hakim took Randall’s calling card.
“Just make sure you stick to what we discussed because if you don’t, you’ll be dead.”
The paunchy man looked at her and her mother. “And you! If you run away from me again, you already know what will happen,” he said then left.
“Randall! What made you do that? You’ll be dead for the prank you did on him,” Meredith said.
“I’m not pranking him. I will pay off your debt.”
They gasped. As if one million pesos is easy to earn.
She pulled him away from her mother and spoke softly to him. “Are you out of your mind? One million pesos is not easy to earn!”
“I know!”
“Then where are you going to get the money in three days?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll handle this.”
Randall didn’t have that much money, but he could only think of one way.