01
The conference room was packed with executives, the air so heavy with tension that it felt suffocating.
Colleagues I had fought alongside for years wore expressions of frustration and pity. Their looks made me falter as I walked in, and my eyes instinctively sought out Leonard at the head of the table.
The moment I saw who was sitting beside him, my heart stopped.
“Leonard,” I said, my voice calm but tightly controlled. “Who is this?”
gestured toward the woman occupying what should have been my seat.
Ten years ago, when Leonard’s father passed away, he left behind a debt–ridden company on the verge of collapse.
him.
Back then, driven by a foolish crush on Leonard, I gave up a lucrative overseas job to work for
At first, I was his only employee because everyone else had abandoned him.
I wore every hat imaginable: secretary, driver, copywriter, while also managing his meals. and laundry.
Without me, there would be no Denol Tech and certainly no Leonard standing at the precipice of his dreams.
And now, just as the company was about to go public, a stranger was sitting in my place. The plan of my proposal now seemed like a joke.
Why?
The room fell silent as all eyes turned to Leonard. The air was heavy with tension.
He avoided my gaze, his expression cold and distant. “Cecilia, this is Rachel, the company’s new Vice President,” he said with forced nonchalance.
“After the meeting, please help her with onboarding and give your office to her. It’s closer to mine, so it’ll be more convenient for us to communicate.”
I froze, the words hitting me like a punch to the gut.
A Vice President? My off
For ten years, I’d worked tirelessly to pull Denol Tech from the brink of collapse to the cusp of success. I had been the de facto VP all along, even while holding the title of Marketing Director.
Yet the official position had always remained vacant until now. And it wasn’t being given to me but to a newcomer, and I even had to give up my office. How absurd!
I could ignore the fact that I wasn’t promoted, but he knew how much affection I had devoted over the last decade. It was the main reason for Denol Tech’s success.
Even worse, Leonard hadn’t thought I was worth the courtesy of a conversation beforehand. Was this really what I meant to him? A disposable tool?
I clenched my fists, my mind racing through the years of sacrifices I had made for him. I clung to a shred of hope and forced myself to ask, “Can you give me a reason?”
12:07 Mon, 16 Dec.
37% LVOII WUIDO, LOvun noun thought was wuluuno vyureay vilu cuiivei Sulivii DeTVI SI 1U) IU, Was this really what I meant to him? A disposable tool?
I clenched my fists, my mind racing through the years of sacrifices I had made for him. I clung to a shred of hope and forced myself to ask, “Can you give me a reason?”
I searched his face, hoping for something to prove that I still mattered to him. This was far more important than any position.
But Leonard avoided my eyes, his gullt poorly hidden behind a veneer of indifference. “The company is about to go public. We have bigger plans and a brighter future ahead. Rachel is simply better suited for the role.”
His words were like ice, sinking into my chest.
The cold was unbearable and suffocating.
