Episode 9
582 Words
The Truth They Buried
The rain poured heavily over the city.
From the large windows of Emerald Motors, Jade watched the dark clouds gather.
Rain.
It was the one thing she hated most.
Not because of the weather...
But because it reminded her of the day her life changed.
---
"Miss Jordan?"
Diana's voice pulled her back to reality.
"The board members are waiting."
Jade nodded.
"I'm coming."
The meeting lasted two hours, but Jade barely heard a word.
Brian's apology kept replaying in her mind.
So did the memories she had spent years trying to forget.
---
Seven Years Earlier...
The university campus buzzed with excitement.
Jade Jordan wasn't a billionaire then.
She was simply a bright, cheerful student who believed in love.
She had fallen deeply in love with Brian.
He was kind.
Funny.
Ambitious.
Or so she thought.
One afternoon, Jade walked toward the library carrying lunch for him.
As she approached the campus garden, she heard familiar laughter.
She smiled.
"Brian must be with his friends."
But when she got closer...
Her smile disappeared.
Brian stood beneath a tree...
Kissing another girl.
The lunchbox slipped from Jade's hands.
Brian turned around.
"J-Jade..."
The girl beside him smirked.
"So this is your girlfriend?"
Jade couldn't speak.
Her heart shattered into a thousand pieces.
"I'm sorry..." Brian whispered.
But before he could explain...
Layla, Tiana and Ariana appeared with dozens of students behind them.
One of them held up a phone.
Everything had been recorded.
Within hours...
The video spread across the entire university.
The captions were cruel.
"Poor Jade."
"She wasn't enough."
"She got dumped."
Students whispered whenever she walked past.
Some laughed openly.
Others pretended to pity her.
The humiliation became unbearable.
From that day forward...
Jade stopped believing in love.
She built walls around her heart.
And she promised herself...
No man would ever have the power to break her again.
---
Present Day...
Jade slowly opened her eyes.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"So that's why..." Diana whispered after finding Jade quietly crying in her office.
Jade quickly wiped her tears away.
"I told myself I'd never cry because of him again."
"You didn't."
"You cried because you remembered who you used to be."
Diana gently hugged her best friend.
"You survived it."
"And look at you now."
"You're one of the most successful women in the world."
Jade smiled weakly.
"I still have scars."
"So does everyone."
---
Meanwhile...
At Larson Automotive...
Kyle noticed Jade's absence from their scheduled design meeting.
"She's late."
Verona looked at the empty chair.
"Maybe something happened."
Kyle remained silent.
For reasons he couldn't explain...
He felt uneasy.
---
Later that evening...
Brian stood alone outside Emerald Motors.
He held a small gift box in his hands.
Inside was the necklace Jade had once given him in college.
"I should've fought for us," he whispered.
"I should've protected you."
Just then...
Layla approached him.
"Feeling guilty?"
Brian looked at her angrily.
"What do you want?"
Layla smiled.
"Remember our deal."
Brian clenched his fists.
"I never agreed to hurt Jade."
"You don't have a choice anymore."
She leaned closer.
"If you refuse..."
"We'll make sure everyone learns the truth about what really happened that day."
Brian's face turned pale.
"What... are you talking about?"
Layla simply smiled and walked away.
Brian stood frozen.
There was...
More to the story than Jade knew.
And whatever secret Layla was hiding...
It had the power to change everything.
End of Episode 9
- Writer
