CHAPTER ONE
1100 Words
New York always sounded like it was in a hurry.
Even at that hour, the city was already awake, car horns snapping through intersections, people moving too fast to notice each other. Glass buildings caught the morning light and threw it back in sharp angles.
Natalie Brooks stood across the street from one of them, Halston & Merrick Capital.
She hadn’t planned to come here today, she told herself she was just passing by, just confirming what she already knew.
But standing there made it feel real in a way.
She adjusted her coat, and stared at the building, nothing about it had changed.
That was the worst part.
Inside those walls, people were still working. Meetings were still happening. Lives were still moving forward like she had never existed in them at all.
Natalie crossed the street, she didn’t hesitate when she stepped into the lobby.
The air inside was colder and controlled.Everything designed to make you feel small without saying it.
She kept her head up anyway. The receptionist looked up briefly. Her expression flickered, then something quickly buried under professionalism.
“Can I help you?” The woman asked.
“No. I’m just passing through.”
Then the receptionist nodded.
Natalie walked past her.
No one stopped her. That was the strange thing about losing your place in a system like this, you didn’t get locked out dramatically, you just stopped being important enough to question.
People passed her without looking twice, conversations continued, phones rang.
And there, at the far end of the open workspace, she saw her old desk already occupied. A woman she didn’t recognize sat there, typing quickly, laughing softly into a headset like she had always belonged there.
Something inside her already understood and so she turned away. That was when her phone vibrated.
Jasmine Carter.
Natalie stepped out of the main office area before answering. Outside, near the building entrance, the air felt easier to breathe. She leaned lightly against the wall and finally picked up.
“You went inside, didn’t you?” Jasmine’s voice came immediately.
Natalie didn’t pretend. “Yes.”
A sigh on the other end signalling concern. “I told you not to do that alone.”
“I wasn’t alone.” Natalie replied softly. “I just… needed to see it.”
“And?”
Natalie looked back at the glass tower behind her.
“It’s still moving like I was never part of it.”
Jasmine didn’t try to fix that feeling, that was why Natalie kept her close.
Jasmine changed the conversation. “Where are you now?”
“Outside the building.”
“Stay there.” Jasmine said immediately.
Natalie frowned slightly. “Why?”
“I’m coming.”
“You don’t have to–.”
“I’m already on my way.” She interrupted her.
The call ended before Natalie could argue, she exhaled and slid her phone into her pocket.
A few minutes later, she saw Jasmine, she was walking fast, weaving through pedestrians like she had somewhere urgent to be, but when she reached Natalie, she slowed immediately.
Jasmine didn’t say anything, she saw the tiredness Natalie was hiding. The way her shoulders stayed tense even when she wasn’t moving.
Jasmine held up a coffee. “Black, extra shot.” She said.
Natalie smiled. “You didn’t even ask.”
“You never change your order.” Jasmine replied simply.
For a moment, they just stood there together outside the building. Jasmine tilted her head slightly toward the tower behind them.
“You okay being here?” She asked.
Natalie stared at it for a long moment.
“No.” She admitted.
Jasmine nodded like that was the most honest answer she could’ve given. “Then why did you come?”
Natalie lowered her eyes to the coffee in her hand.
“I think I just needed to see if it still felt like something.” She said quietly.
“And does it?”
Natalie shook her head once. “No.”
Jasmine shifted slightly closer, lowering her voice. “You’re still applying everywhere?”
Natalie didn’t answer.
Jasmine exhaled. “That’s not normal, Nat.” She said. “It’s like your name just stopped existing in the system.”
Natalie’s grip tightened slightly around the cup. “I know.”
Jasmine studied her carefully. “I’ve been looking into it.” She said.
Natalie looked up sharply. “What do you mean?”
“I mean.” Jasmine said slowly. “You’re not just getting rejected. You’re not getting responses at all. It’s like your applications are being filtered out before they even reach a human.”
“That’s not possible.” Natalie said automatically.
Jasmine just looked at her best friend and said quietly. “It is as if someone wants you gone quietly.”
Before Natalie could respond, a voice cut through the moment. “Ms. Brooks.”
They both turned.
A man in a dark suit stood a few steps away. He looked ordinary at first glance, neutral expression, professional posture, a folder tucked under his arm. But something about him didn’t seem usual.
Natalie straightened slightly. “Yes?”
He stepped closer.
“I have a message for you.” He said.
Jasmine shifted beside her.
“What kind of message?” She asked.
The man opened the folder. “An interview request.”
Natalie blinked once. “From who?”
He closed it again. “Damien Cole Enterprises.”
The name landed quietly, but it didn’t feel right.
Jasmine looked at Natalie. “That’s… the Damien Cole?”
Natalie had heard the name before. Everyone had.
Damien Cole didn’t need introduction. He was the kind of billionaire whose decisions moved markets without warning. The kind of man who didn’t explain himself publicly because he didn’t have to.
The man adjusted his grip on the folder.
“Mr. Cole does not rely on recommendations.” He said. “He relies on patterns.”
Natalie frowned slightly. “Patterns?”
The man nodded once. “Your file stood out.”
Jasmine leaned closer to Natalie, voice low. “Nat… this is your way back.”
Natalie didn’t answer, her eyes stayed on the folder.
Damien Cole Enterprises.
A company that should not have been looking at her, a man who had no reason to care. And yet, somehow, he had.
She finished her coffee slowly, like she needed the moment to decide whether it was real.
Then she looked at the man. “When?” She asked.
The man checked his watch.
“Now.”
- Writer
