Chapter 1 · Don't Touch My Coffee

My coworker was absolutely convinced that drinking iced coffee would make me drop dead on the spot.

Every day, while I was in the bathroom, she'd sneak over and pour out my coffee, swapping it for plain water behind my back.

I was a stock trader, and coffee was my lifeline for staying sharp during those endless hours glued to the screen.

After a few days of this, I kept zoning out from sheer exhaustion and missed out on several key moments to close my positions.

The director was furious, yelling that if I caused any more losses, I'd be out the door and have to pay for it myself.

I pleaded with my coworker, "I'm juggling hundreds of thousands of dollars every second. There's no room for mistakes. Please, stop messing with my coffee!"

Her eyes welled up with tears, clearly hurt.

She accused me of being ungrateful, saying I was treating her concern like it meant nothing.

Seeing this, the supervisor poured a cup of hot water right onto my keyboard.

She snapped, "Can't you just go to bed earlier at night? Why do you have to throw her kindness back in her face?"

Staring at my blank screen, it suddenly hit me.

The account crashing right now was the one the supervisor's husband had maxed out with ten times leverage from an online loan.

Whatever. Let her pour it out, for all I care. It was not like I would be the one to jump off a building.

*****

It was two in the morning.

The AC in the trading room was cranked down to 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

I was glued to the screen, watching the candlestick chart bounce around like crazy.

My right hand was gripping the mouse so hard my palm was slick with cold sweat.

I was a stock trader, and tonight was the make-or-break moment for a multi-million-dollar account.

On my desk sat a massive iced coffee, loaded up with four shots of espresso.

Whenever I felt myself nodding off, I'd take a big swig.

The icy, bitter brew hit my stomach like a punch, snapping me right back to reality.

The door swung open. Grace Archer walked in, her flats tapping quietly on the floor.

She was holding a pink thermos, staring straight at the iced coffee on my desk.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?" she shouted.

She rushed over and snatched my plastic cup right out of my hand.

Before I could even react, she popped the lid off and dumped most of the iced coffee into the potted plant next to my desk.

The soil instantly turned a murky, dark brown.

I shot up from my chair.

"Grace! What the hell are you doing?" I yelled.

Grace tossed the empty cup into the trash and slammed her pink thermos down on my desk.

She shouted, "I'm saving your life! Drinking iced water loaded with caffeine at this hour? Your heart's gonna give out!

"Those wellness influencers on TikTok swear you'll drop dead for sure if you drink like this. You're literally shaving years off your life!"

I yanked at my hair, pointing desperately at the screen where numbers were flashing red and green nonstop.

I shouted, "I'm a stock trader! I'm running trades worth hundreds of thousands of dollars every second. There's zero room for error!

"This account has 2.5 million dollars in it, leveraged five times. If I zone out for even a second and don't close in time, at least a million dollars could disappear just like that! There's no way I can survive this without coffee!"

Grace pouted, her eyes brimming with tears.

She said, "What's more important? Money or your life? I'm staying up all night here with you because I'm scared something bad might happen to you.

"And instead of appreciating it, you yell at me and act like my care is just a nuisance!"

Grace whipped out her phone, pulled up a bunch of over-the-top clickbait videos, and thrust the screen right under my nose.

A robotic male voice boomed from the phone. "Shocking! 20-year-old office worker stays up all night, drinks iced coffee, and instantly suffers a fatal heart attack right at his desk..."

I shoved her phone away and jabbed a finger at the door.

I snapped, "Get out. Now. And keep your hands off my stuff."

Grace wiped her tears and ran out, her flats thundering across the floor.

I rubbed my throbbing temples, grabbed my phone, and ordered another iced coffee for delivery.

Half an hour later, the delivery guy dropped off my new iced coffee at the front desk.

I picked it up. While I was at it, I ducked into the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face, trying to snap myself out of the haze.

Back at my desk, I grabbed the coffee and took a huge gulp through the straw.

But there was no icy jolt, no bitter coffee kick.

Instead, some warm, syrupy liquid with an overpowering taste of chocolate washed over my tongue.

I nearly puked and spit it all into the trash can beside me.

I turned around and saw Grace standing outside the glass door, looking at me with a deeply satisfied smile, like she was finally at ease.

She even cheered me on with a little fist pump.

She'd replaced my iced coffee with a steaming hot cocoa.

My stomach churned. That warm, syrupy sweetness didn't wake me up at all. Instead, it hit like a sledgehammer and wiped out whatever was left of my focus.

A wave of exhaustion crashed over me all at once.

My eyelids drooped, and my vision started to blur.

Chapter 1

My coworker was absolutely convinced that drinking iced coffee would make me drop dead on the spot.

Every day, while I was in the bathroom, she'd sneak over and pour out my coffee, swapping it for plain water behind my back.

I was a stock trader, and coffee was my lifeline for staying sharp during those endless hours glued to the screen.

After a few days of this, I kept zoning out from sheer exhaustion and missed out on several key moments to close my positions.

The director was furious, yelling that if I caused any more losses, I'd be out the door and have to pay for it myself.

I pleaded with my coworker, "I'm juggling hundreds of thousands of dollars every second. There's no room for mistakes. Please, stop messing with my coffee!"

Her eyes welled up with tears, clearly hurt.

She accused me of being ungrateful, saying I was treating her concern like it meant nothing.

Seeing this, the supervisor poured a cup of hot water right onto my keyboard.

She snapped, "Can't you just go to bed earlier at night? Why do you have to throw her kindness back in her face?"

Staring at my blank screen, it suddenly hit me.

The account crashing right now was the one the supervisor's husband had maxed out with ten times leverage from an online loan.

Whatever. Let her pour it out, for all I care. It was not like I would be the one to jump off a building.

*****

It was two in the morning.

The AC in the trading room was cranked down to 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

I was glued to the screen, watching the candlestick chart bounce around like crazy.

My right hand was gripping the mouse so hard my palm was slick with cold sweat.

I was a stock trader, and tonight was the make-or-break moment for a multi-million-dollar account.

On my desk sat a massive iced coffee, loaded up with four shots of espresso.

Whenever I felt myself nodding off, I'd take a big swig.

The icy, bitter brew hit my stomach like a punch, snapping me right back to reality.

The door swung open. Grace Archer walked in, her flats tapping quietly on the floor.

She was holding a pink thermos, staring straight at the iced coffee on my desk.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?" she shouted.

She rushed over and snatched my plastic cup right out of my hand.

Before I could even react, she popped the lid off and dumped most of the iced coffee into the potted plant next to my desk.

The soil instantly turned a murky, dark brown.

I shot up from my chair.

"Grace! What the hell are you doing?" I yelled.

Grace tossed the empty cup into the trash and slammed her pink thermos down on my desk.

She shouted, "I'm saving your life! Drinking iced water loaded with caffeine at this hour? Your heart's gonna give out!

"Those wellness influencers on TikTok swear you'll drop dead for sure if you drink like this. You're literally shaving years off your life!"

I yanked at my hair, pointing desperately at the screen where numbers were flashing red and green nonstop.

I shouted, "I'm a stock trader! I'm running trades worth hundreds of thousands of dollars every second. There's zero room for error!

Grace pouted, her eyes brimming with tears.

She said, "What's more important? Money or your life? I'm staying up all night here with you because I'm scared something bad might happen to you.

"And instead of appreciating it, you yell at me and act like my care is just a nuisance!"

Grace whipped out her phone, pulled up a bunch of over-the-top clickbait videos, and thrust the screen right under my nose.

A robotic male voice boomed from the phone. "Shocking! 20-year-old office worker stays up all night, drinks iced coffee, and instantly suffers a fatal heart attack right at his desk..."

I shoved her phone away and jabbed a finger at the door.

I snapped, "Get out. Now. And keep your hands off my stuff."

Grace wiped her tears and ran out, her flats thundering across the floor.

I rubbed my throbbing temples, grabbed my phone, and ordered another iced coffee for delivery.

Half an hour later, the delivery guy dropped off my new iced coffee at the front desk.

I picked it up. While I was at it, I ducked into the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face, trying to snap myself out of the haze.

Back at my desk, I grabbed the coffee and took a huge gulp through the straw.

But there was no icy jolt, no bitter coffee kick.

Instead, some warm, syrupy liquid with an overpowering taste of chocolate washed over my tongue.

I nearly puked and spit it all into the trash can beside me.

I turned around and saw Grace standing outside the glass door, looking at me with a deeply satisfied smile, like she was finally at ease.

She even cheered me on with a little fist pump.

She'd replaced my iced coffee with a steaming hot cocoa.

My stomach churned. That warm, syrupy sweetness didn't wake me up at all. Instead, it hit like a sledgehammer and wiped out whatever was left of my focus.

A wave of exhaustion crashed over me all at once.

My eyelids drooped, and my vision started to blur.