CHAPTER 1

"What the hell!?!" Zarina burst out the moment she shut the doors to her luxurious penthouse close behind her.

She had just come back from the hospital. Last night, she had fainted and when she woke up, the doctor had solemnly informed her that she only had a month left to live.

At first, she had just laughed it off, unable to believe it. But when she was in the consultation room of the third doctor and he had said the exact same thing as the previous two doctors, Zarina's world came crumbling down. She ended up begging the doctors to save her, telling them she had a lot of money to pay them, telling the doctors over and over that she was a millionaire. But they all had told her 'I'm sorry' and one even told her frankly that even if she had all the money in the world, the result would still be the same. The final verdict was still for her to make her preparations.

"Then what the hell did I worked so hard for all my life?! Did I just worked my ass off for so many years and build all this wealth just for me to die young?!" she screamed in a fit, throwing her luxurious designer bag on the floor, not caring that the handbag that cost 5-figures was being treated like trash.

Her back slammed against the door behind her and she slid down on the floor in an inelegant heap.

Zarina was rich. She was a self-made millionaire. When she was eleven, her single-parent mother left her to her grandparents. She grew up under their very strict care. Her mother never showed her face again ever since she left her daughter to her parents. When Zarina's grandparents died, she lived by herself and after many struggles, she somehow managed to finish her degree earlier than her peers. Of course, that involved sweat and blood on her part.

She had focused herself on nothing else but her studies. And once she graduated, she immediately looked for a job all the while starting up and running a small business on the side. A few years later, her small business had grown and since then, Zarina left her full-time job and focused all her time on her business.

Now, at twenty-eight, she was a successful businesswoman, a self-made millionaire. And… dying.

She could only laugh at the irony of it all as she looked at her luxurious and regal but lonesome place. Then her smile faded at the realization that had slowly dawned to her. That she had nothing but herself and her money.

The doctors had kindly advised her to go and spend her remaining days with her loved ones or travel to places that she had always wanted to go. It was time for her to strike things off her bucket list.

But Zarina had no one that she was close to. Much less a loved one. Her mother had left her long ago and she had no idea even if she was still alive or not. She did not want to go looking for that mother who was in name only either. She did not want to see the mother who had abused her own child. Friends… she has a few, but she does not consider them as loved ones. She knew most of them were only friends with her because she has money. She has a best friend at least and she loved her but her best friend was in a very dire situation right now, caring for her terminally ill child and dealing with a painful divorce. She would not want to add up to the problems her friend has!

When she finally calmed down after just sitting slumped against her door in a daze for hours, Zarina finally rose from the floor and dragged herself to the bathroom and soaked herself in her luxurious jacuzzi. The warm jet streams pounding on her back and bubbles churning all around her with the warm and floral scent of Bulgarian rose and Neroli essential oils somehow washed away the slump and mind-numbing heaviness that had weighed her down.

Her mind felt to be clearer now. As she sighed and looked up at the ceiling, she felt like her entire life flashing by like a slide show in her mind and a bitter smile curved on her face. How was it that she only realized this now? That she had actually no life at all aside from work, work, and more work? She realized now that she had been living to work, not working to live.

One of the most obvious pieces of evidence was the fact that she was still a virgin. Her friends had told her that she already had it all, except a man… and yes, sex life. They were right. Zarina never had a boyfriend in her entire life. And no one knew the real reason why. That she has a phobia with men. She was totally fine around them when there were other women around, but she just could not stand to stay with them or any man alone, except for children. That was why whenever she has private conversations with her male business partners, she always dragged her trusted secretary along with her no matter what. If her secretary were to fall ill, she would rather reschedule than face those men alone. It was to that extent!

Zarina had kept this as her deep dark secret for her entire life. The only one who knew about it was her best friend who had always encouraged her to go for therapy to have this issue fixed. But she had told her best friend that she will go when she had time – which she never took seriously due to various reasons aside from being busy – all the while, telling her other friends that there was still plenty of time for her to look for a man and experience love and sex. For now, what is more important to her was to focus on building more wealth for herself.

Ironically, now here she was, out of time. With no man, no love life, no sex life to her name. She was just alone, rich and dying.

"One month, huh," she muttered to herself and the little villainess within her chuckled and rose to mock her. "Somehow, this life of mine is getting funnier. What an unexpected twist, Zarina."

Her eyes started to blur as her vision wavered, and in the next several minutes, she cried her heart out until she left the bathroom and passed out on her bed, hugging her beloved pillow close to her chest.

When she finally opened her eyes again, the sun was already high and blazing in the sky. She groaned as this was probably the first time she had overslept in a very long time. This was the very first time she had let herself just lie there staring at the ceiling for an immeasurable amount of time before she finally rose from the bed. Her mind had wandered and there was no solid and clear thought that she could grasp onto, but she had just allowed herself the freedom to laze about for once since she had started working.

By the time she stepped out of the bathroom after freshening herself up, she picked up her phone and there were already more than ten missed calls. It was her dependable secretary, Cecille.

Lifelessly, she picked up the phone and dialled the number that was repeated in her call log.

"Ma'am Zary! Oh thank god, you finally answered! Are you alright, ma'am?" her secretary exclaimed. Well, that was a very expected reaction and a small curve appeared at the corners of her lips. Zarina knew that her employees would freak out if she actually missed a day of work without prior notice. That was so not her.

"I'm taking a day off, Cecille. Cancel everything on my schedule." She said and the secretary fell silent. "Also, don't bother calling me until I call you, understood?" she shot out her orders one after another, clear and concise.

"Y-yes ma'am. … Are you unwell?" Cecille's professional tone softened a little as she asked after her boss.

"No."

"Then why-"

"Stop asking." Zarina snapped.

"Y-yes ma'am!" Cecille knew when she should stop.

Zarina was about to end the call when suddenly, a question left her mouth. "I have a question for you, Cecille." She asked her secretary on an impulse. It would not hurt, right? She would just get some extra ideas.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Assuming that you have a lot of money you've earned hard for, and one day you suddenly found out that you only have a month left to live, what will you do?" Zarina asked with a flat tone, as though the question was really an afterthought.

Cecille was silent for a moment. "Well, I guess I'll just go and spend all my hard earned money on myself within that entire month, buying the things I never had until there's nothing left. After all, I won't be able to bring all those riches with me to the grave, right? Why are you asking me such a weird question –"

"Alright, I see. Remember not to call me. I don't care who it is or what the problem is. Just settle it on your own. If you need, discuss with the VP. Just don't call me and don't try to come to my penthouse. Understood?" Zarina abruptly ended the call as soon as Cecille said yes.

"Spend all my money, huh…" she murmured and then a heavy sigh escaped her mouth. "Fine then, I guess that's a lot better than rotting alive like this just waiting for the day I'll die inside a luxurious penthouse." She thought that what her secretary suggested was not a bad idea at all. She was going to spend all her hard earned money within this month. Yes, she will buy everything she never had. "First things first… let's make a list of the things I don't have yet."

After an hour…

Things I never had yet.

#1. Man (must be hot!)

#2. Love life

#3. Sex life

Looking at the list, Zarina groaned out loud and covered her eyes. Despite her fear of men, she would be lying if she said that she had never desired wanting to experience having a hot man, a spectacular love life and yes, a healthy and vibrant sex life. She was a perfectly healthy woman, and she was not asexual. That was why she had already planned that in the next year, she will finally go for that therapy her best friend had been bugging her to go for and deal with her problem. But now there was no more next year for her. There was no time left and she certainly would not want to spend the remaining 30 days of her life going for therapy! No way in hell she was getting herself stuck being psychoanalysed to death – literally!!

"What the hell! These things can't be bought!?! And yes, even if I can buy a man, I'd just get scared of him and run away from him!" She flung her notebook to the side in frustration.

As she looked at the notebook on the floor, she finally saw the designer bag she had thrown in anger last night. She rose to pick it up when she saw a black coloured card that had fallen on the floor as though it had dropped out from the side pocket of her bag.

She narrowed her eyes as she stared at the card which looked like an advertisement. She did not remember who had given it to her or when did she even slipped it into her bag. She was just so out of her mind yesterday when she had walked around after leaving the doctor's office that she could not recall even where she had been the whole time after receiving that horrifying news about herself.

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