Second chances on Fifth Avenue

Chapter 3: The Decision

**Three months before. Boston.**

Eleanor’s POV

I stared at my computer screen and tried to care about the email I was writing.

When I was done,I sent it and leaned back in my chair. My desk was tucked away between the copy machine and the supply closet at Hartley Marketing. I've worked here for 3 years. I sometimes pretend to care about selling protein powder and meal replacement shakes.

The job wasn't terrible. My boss was nice. My coworkers were fine. The pay covered life necessities and little wants. But every day felt exactly the same. No thrill, just ordinary. I was really good at it. That was the worst part.

My phone buzzed on my desk. A text from Matt.

"What do you want for dinner?"

I typed back. "Whatever you want is fine."

Matt had been living with me for six months now. He'd moved in after his lease ended, saying it made sense financially. We'd been dating for three years. He was fine. We got along okay. But lately, “fine” felt like a problem .

I opened my email to clear out the junk folder. I never read them anyways.

Then I saw it.

"Interview Request: Personal Assistant Position, Sterling Miller Financial Group."

My heart jumped. I clicked it so fast I almost knocked over my coffee.

They were impressed by my qualifications. They wanted to interview me. In New York.

New York City.

I leisurely applied for this job eight weeks ago. Didn't think about it much.

I hadn't told anyone I'd applied.

My hands were shaking as I typed back to thank them and I'll be available next week.

I hit send before I could change my mind.

When I got home that evening, Matt was on the couch playing video games.

"Hey," I said, dropping my bag by the door.

"Hey." He didn't look away from the screen.

I got water from the kitchen. Should I tell him?

Matt lost his sales job two months ago. Said he was taking time to figure out what he really wanted to do. Mostly he played video games and applied to one or two jobs a week.

I walked back to the living room and sat on the arm of the couch. "Hey, can we talk for a second?"

"Yeah, just let me finish this round."

I waited. Five minutes passed. Then ten.

"Matt."

"Okay, okay." He paused the game and set down the controller. "What's up?"

"I got an email today. From a job I applied for. Personal assistant position at a financial firm in New York."

The words hung in the air.

Matt's expression shifted. "New York? El, that's crazy. What about us?"

"You could come with me. Look for opportunities there. Katie's always saying there are tons of sales jobs in the city."

"I have opportunities here." He gestured vaguely at nothing. "I'm in the middle of the application process with a few companies."

"Which companies?"

"Just a few. Local places. You know." He stood up and walked to the window. "New York is expensive. And crowded. It's so far from our families."

"It's four hours away."

"Still." He turned back to me. "We have a good life here. Why would you want to mess that up?"

A good life? Really? This?

I looked around the apartment. The worn couch we'd bought off Craigslist. The coffee table covered in his game cases. The walls we'd never bothered to decorate because it never felt permanent enough.

"It's just an interview," I said quietly. "I might not even get the job."

"Then why go?"

"Because I want to see what else is out there. Because I'm twenty five and I feel like I'm already settled into a life I didn't choose."

Matt's jaw tightened. "I didn't know you felt that way."

"I didn't either. Not until recently."

We stood there in silence. The game was still paused on the TV screen.

"If you go to that interview and they offer you the job, are you going to take it?"

I wanted to say no. I wanted to tell him that we'd figure it out together.

But I couldn't.

"I don't know," I said instead. "Maybe."

"Maybe." He repeated the word like it tasted bad. "Right."

He grabbed his jacket from the back of the couch. "I'm going to Mike's place. I'll be back later."

The door closed behind him. Not a slam. Just a quiet click that somehow felt worse.

One week later, I was on a train to New York.

I'd told work I had a doctor's appointment. Told Matt I was visiting Katie for the day.

The train pulled into Penn Station at 10:30. I had an hour before my interview. I came up from underground into the noise and chaos of midtown Manhattan. People everywhere. Cars honking. Construction sounds. The smell of hot dogs and exhaust.

It was overwhelming. It was incredible.

The Sterling Miller Financial Group building was forty seven floors of gleaming glass and polished steel. The name was etched into the stone above the entrance in letters three feet tall.

I stopped on the sidewalk and stared up at it. This was real. This was actually happening.

The lobby was enormous. Marble floors, high ceilings, a security desk that looked like it belonged in a museum.

"I'm here for an interview with Penny Martinez," I said to the guard.

"Forty second floor. Elevators are to your left."

The reception area was all white and chrome. Modern art on the walls. And behind the desk sat a woman with kind eyes and a warm smile.

"You must be Eleanor," she said, standing up. "I'm Penny Martinez. Thanks so much for coming."

We sat in the conference room. The room had floor to ceiling windows. The view stretched for miles.

"Tell me why you're interested in this position," Penny said.

I'd practiced this answer a hundred times on the train.

"I'm looking for a challenge. I've been working in marketing for three years and I'm good at it, but I want to be in an environment where I can grow. Where organization and attention to detail really matter. This position seems like it would push me in all the right ways."

Penny nodded, making notes. "What would you say is your greatest strength?"

"I'm extremely organized. I don't miss details. And I stay calm under pressure. Even when everything is chaotic, I can prioritize and get things done."

"Good. That's important here." She leaned forward slightly. "Let me be honest with you. We need someone organized, discreet, and unflappable. Mr. Miller is particular about how things are done."

"Particular how?"

Penny chose her words carefully. "He's brilliant. One of the best in the industry. But he's quiet. Keeps to himself. The last three assistants quit because they couldn't handle the silence. They felt like they were doing something wrong."

"Were they?"

"No. That's just how he is. He's focused on his work. He's not rude, just reserved. If you're someone who needs constant feedback and validation, this isn't the job for you."

I thought about it. "I can handle quiet,".

Penny smiled. "I thought you might say that."

The interview went on for an hour. She asked various questions, Experience, skill. I answered honestly.

This was right. This change.

Finally, Penny closed her folder and stood. "You'll hear from us within a week."

On the train ride home, I watched the city shrink and disappear behind me.

For the first time in years, I felt alive.

The email came on a Thursday afternoon, six weeks before my first day. I got the job with a $95,000 pay and benefits.

NINETY FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS! That was more money than I'd ever made in my life.

I didn't even think about it. I hit reply and typed: "I accept. Thank you for this opportunity."

Sent.

I sat there in the bathroom stall at work and started laughing. This was happening. This was really happening.

Telling Matt was the hard part.

I waited until after dinner. We ordered Chinese food and ate mostly in silence.

"I need to tell you something," I said.

He didn't look up from his phone. "Yeah?"

"I got the job. In New York. I start September first."

Now he looked up.

"You're serious."

"Yes."

He set his phone down slowly. "So you're just leaving? After three years?"

"I tried to talk to you. You said you didn't want to go."

"Because it's a stupid idea! You don't just pick up and move to New York because of some job offer."

"It's not just some job offer. It's a great job. With great pay. It's everything I've been working toward."

"What about what I've been working toward?"

I looked at him closely. "What have you been working toward, Matt?"

His face went red. "That's not fair."

"You've been unemployed for two months. You play video games all day. You don't want to leave Boston because it's comfortable here. Because you don't have to try."

"Wow." He laughed, but there was no humor in it. "So that's what you think of me."

I said softer this time "I want you to come with me. I really do. We could start fresh. Both of us."

"I'm not following you to New York like some puppy."

I had nothing else to say.

We stood there in the kitchen. Silence filled the room.

"El, don't be dramatic," Matt said finally. "You're not actually going."

"I am. I already accepted the job. I leave in six weeks."

His expression changed. Confusion, then anger, then something that looked almost like panic.

"El, I'm not in support of this."

"I know. But I'm still going."

I walked past him to the bedroom and closed the door.

Matt moved out after two weeks. Said he was staying with Mike until he found his own place. We barely spoke after that.

Moving day came on a Saturday late August .

My family came to help me pack. My mom, my dad, younger brother Jake. He was seventeen and thought moving to New York was the coolest thing ever. He is my biggest fan.

My mom kept asking questions. "Are you sure about this? Long distance is hard. And New York is so expensive."

"I'm sure, Mom. This is my chance."

My dad was quieter. He carried boxes without saying much. Finally, when we were almost done, he pulled me aside.

"If it doesn't work out, you can always come home."

"I know. But it's going to work out."

He nodded. "I believe you."

Jake helped me load the last box. He was trying not to cry.

"You're going to visit, right?" he asked.

"Of course. All the time. And you can come stay with me once I'm settled."

"In New York City?"

"In New York City."

He hugged me tight. "Don't forget about us when you're all fancy and successful."

"Never. I promise."

My parents hugged me too. My mom cried. My dad told me to be safe and call when I got there.

Then they left, and I was alone in the empty apartment.

I checked my phone one more time. No messages from Matt. I texted him that morning: "I'm leaving today."

Nothing.

I sat on the floor in the empty living room and typed another message: "I'm leaving now."

I waited 10 minutes. Nothing.

Fine.

I stood up, brushed off my jeans, and walked out the door.

The drive to New York took four hours. Every mile that passed felt like I was shedding an old skin.

My phone buzzed when I was an hour outside the city.

Matt: "Cool."

That was it. Three years together, and he responded to my goodbye with "Cool."

I turned off my phone and looked out the window.

Katie was waiting outside the apartment building when I arrived. Hell's Kitchen, West 47th Street. A six floor walkup with a narrow entrance.

"Welcome home!" Katie grabbed me in a hug before I was even fully out of the car.

"I can't believe I'm actually here."

"Believe it. Come on, let me show you the place."

The apartment was small but perfect. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, and a living room that could fit a couch and a table if we were creative.

"I'm really doing this," I said quietly.

Katie came and stood next to me. "Hell yes, you are."

Somewhere out there was my new office. My new job. My new life. I was excited and ready.