IN MY NEXT LIFE, NOT MR. ALPHA

Chapter 3- First step into Faith

The morning air brushed against Amara's skin as she stepped outside her house for the first time in seven whole years. Everything felt familiar yet distant. The street vendors setting up, the noise of early traffic, the scent of freshly baked bread from the shop very close to the bustop. It was the same city, but she was now a different person living in it.

Amara's heart pounded harder the closer she got to Alpha's Corporation. The building stood tall and intimidating, just like she remembered. The building had glass walls, a busy lobby, Security guards scanning badges, and people rushing in and out with purpose. Amara paused in front of the entrance, gripping her bag tightly. “This is where everything started” she whispered. She took a deep breath and pushed the glass doors open.

Inside, the air was cooler. The doors were polished to perfection. Employees walked quickly, greeting each other with nods and forced smiles. Amara kept her head down, avoiding attention. She felt tension building up in her chest, because she knew what came next.

She approached the elevator, pressed the button, and waited. Her palms grew damp. Her throat tightened more than usual, the familiar ding echoed through the lobby. The door slid open and her world stilled. Standing instead was the last person she wanted to see this morning, the man with the sharp jawline, cold eyes, and a presence that filled the entire space effortlessly.

Adrian Alpha…

In her first life, she would have stepped in with a nervous smile, grateful for the two seconds spent close to him. But this time, her feet refused to move. Adrian flicked towards her very briefly, uninterested and unaware of the role he once played in her life.

“Are you getting in?” a woman behind her asked impatiently…. Amara swallowed hard, not today, not yet, not like this. She stepped back. “ you can go ahead” The doors closed only then did she allow herself to breathe again. Her pulse was racing, but her mind was steady…

He didn't know her. He couldn't remember her and she didn't owe him anything in this life. Amara straightened her shoulders and walked towards the stairs instead, whispering to herself, “This time I won't let him..ruin me…. Never!!”

It was quite a long walk to her desk. She turned away from the elevator, her breath shaky but controlled. The sound of her own heartbeat echoed in her ears, sharp at first then slowly settling. She tightened her grip on her bag and forced her feet to move.

The stairs felt safer. Each step upward felt like she was climbing out of the past. One breath at a time, one memory at a time. The fluorescent lights guided her up. Her palms were still damp, her legs shaky but she didn't stop. Amara got to the 7th floor, her heart raced, she quickly pushed the door open… the familiar atmosphere washed over her like a cold tide. Phones ringing, printers humming and people murmuring in the hallway. It was the same chaotic rhythm she remembered, and the same place that once swallowed her whole. But she had changed.

She took a slow, steady breath and walked forward. Her heels clicked quietly against the polished floor, each sound grounding her more in the present. She moves through the hallway, and she catches a faint glimpse of old memories…flashbacks of when she cried in the bathroom, a whisper of shame when Adrian ignored her, the sting of humiliation when she heard colleagues talking about her…But they no longer help power. She kept walking.

Amara reached the assigned corner, and she froze for a moment. The desk was small, tucked neatly under the glass table wall. Sunlight spilled across it, highlighting the smooth surface. It was exactly how she left it all those years ago. She approached slowly with her fingers brushing the edge, it was exactly how she left it all those years ago.

This same desk had once been her safe space and her prison. She pulled out the chair and sat back. The chair cracked softly the same way it used to. Amara took a deep breath and whispered to herself, “This time you wont break here”. She straightened her back, adjusting the pen holder, the notepad, the sticky notes, lined up too neatly. She wasn't the girl who used to tremble at every footsteps… she was the woman who had died and come back stronger.

Amara was still trying to put things in order, while arranging her desk, straightening her notepad, when she heard someone rushing down the corridor. Fast footsteps, paper rustling, and a deep sigh..

Then a voice she remembered too well echoes from the hallway… “Why do I do nothing ever where I leave it?, God these people will stress me today”

Amara's heart hitched… Tasha

Before she could fix herself, Tasha Bello into view- braids bouncing, expression sharp but beautiful, skin radiant and glowing.. She stopped just short of bumping into Amara's desk.

“OH sorry dear… I wasn't looking”, Tasha said adjusting her files with a huff. Amara stood up slowly, her throat tightened with emotions she wasn't ready for. “It's fine” she quietly replied.

Tasha blinked at her, “New staff”

Amara nooded. “Yeah, today is my first day”

Tasha looked at her for a second, her eyes softened a bit. “Welcome to the Madhouse” she said with a small laugh. “I'm Tasha, ... Unofficial survivor of this department”. A genuine smile tugged at the corner of Amara's mouth. “I'm Amara..

Tasha leaned slightly, “And if Mr. Alpha starts with his regular mood swings, pretend you didn't hear him. Work half the time”. Amara almost laughed.. A soft and quiet sound that felt unfamiliar after so many broken years. “I'll try”.

“There you go”, Tasha said smiling. “

At least you can smile, girl that's what hired cried before lunch”.

“Oh,” Amara replied, trying to erase the memory sting because in her old life, that girl was her.

Tasha straightened the pile of papers, and as she stepped back, she added casually.. “We should have lunch later, it gets less lonely that way”.

Amara nodded, her voice soft “I'd like that too”

Tasha flashed her a bright smile and hurried up, muttering again about lost files and incompetent co-workers. Amara stared as she watched her leave.

The chance she once lost was standing right in front of her again. She whispered under her breath, “This time I won't lose you”.

Amara had barely settled back into her seat when the atmosphere shifted. It was subtle at first the way people suddenly sat up

Straighter, the quick shuffle of files, the way conversations cut mid-sentence. A familiar tension slid through the room like a cold breeze. She didn't need to look up to know why, Adrian Alpha CEO of Alpha's Corporation was approaching.

His footsteps were steady, controlled almost too calm for someone who made an entire department panic. While he approached, Amara kept her eyes on the desk, she refused to look at him. He walked past her roll, his presence heavy enough to feel against her skin. She heard him speaking to someone.. Low, sharp, efficient. Then his steps slowed… right behind her. He didn't say anything, he didn't call her name, and he also didn't acknowledge her.

He paused, just long enough for her breath to catch. Amara forced herself to keep typing even though her hands trembled slightly. She wasn't the girl who used to freeze under that silence. She wouldn't give him that power again.

After a moment, he continued walking, speaking to another employee down the corridor, only then did she exhale… slowly. He hadn’t noticed her yet, but he had paused. And that tiny shift, was the spark of a new dynamic that neither of them could feel.

When Adrian’s footsteps finally faded down the hallway, Amara let her shoulders relax. Just a little. She placed her pen down, leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes for a brief moment. After a while, she opened her bag, pulled her small notebook book and flipped to a blank page. The paper felt fresh and untouched.. Just like this new life. She clicked her pen, hesitated, then began to write all of her new rules.

Rule one; no attachment. Not to him, not to anyone who doesn't choose her.

Rule two; no repeating the past, if something feels wrong she walks away.

Rule three; no trust without proof, no more blind loyalty. No more excuses.

Her handwriting shook at first, but its steadiness increased with every written rule. Amara stared at the paper for a long time, then quietly tore it and folded it into her palm.

These weren't just work rules, they were for survival. Amara slipped the folded note into her pocket and breathed out. A slow and steady breath that felt like the beginning of something new. Amara quietly stood up, she looked around the office and whispered to herself, “This time, I have been given a second chance to rewrite my story… I am my author”.