The Girl Who Shouldn’t Be There
1556 Words
The elevator ride felt too quiet.
Lila stood awkwardly beside Adrian, clutching her bag like it might protect her from whatever strange situation she had just walked into. The smooth hum of the elevator only made her more aware of everything—his presence, the polished mirrors, the fact that she absolutely did not belong here.
She sneaked a glance at him.
Tall. Composed. Dressed in a way that screamed power without needing to show off.
Definitely rich.
Definitely important.
Definitely someone she should not have followed.
“…So,” she said carefully, “just to be clear… you don’t actually know me, right?”
Adrian didn’t look at her. “No.”
“Okay, good,” she nodded quickly. “Because for a second I thought I forgot something important like meeting you before or—”
“You said you needed a job.”
She blinked. “I did.”
“And I offered you one.”
“That’s… not how this usually works.”
“It is today.”
Lila opened her mouth, then closed it again.
“…Right.”
The elevator doors slid open.
The executive floor.
It was even more intimidating up here—quiet, sleek, powerful in a way that made her footsteps feel too loud.
Adrian walked forward without hesitation. Lila followed, trying not to stare at everything like a tourist.
Too late.
“Wow…” she whispered under her breath.
Adrian stopped outside a large office and opened the door.
“Inside.”
Lila stepped in slowly—and froze.
“This is… your office?”
“Yes.”
She turned in a slow circle, taking in the massive windows, the city view, the minimalist yet expensive design.
“Okay,” she said finally. “I’m officially nervous.”
Adrian walked past her and took his seat behind the desk. “Sit.”
She sat immediately.
Too immediately.
“…Sorry,” she muttered.
He studied her for a moment.
“You said you could do anything.”
“I mean… not anything,” she corrected quickly. “Let’s not get crazy. But yeah, I can learn fast.”
“What’s your skill?”
Lila hesitated.
“…Music.”
Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Music.”
“I compose,” she said, a little more confidently now. “Not professionally—yet—but I write, arrange, sometimes play. Piano mostly.”
“That doesn’t help me here.”
Her shoulders dropped slightly. “I figured.”
“But,” he continued, “your lack of connection to this world does.”
She frowned. “That sounds like I’m being hired for being clueless.”
“In a way,” he said calmly, “you are.”
“…Wow.
He leaned back slightly. “I need someone who isn’t influenced by business politics. Someone who doesn’t care about status, alliances, or expectations.”
“And you picked me because I walked in looking confused?”
“You walked in looking honest.”
That caught her off guard.
Lila looked down at her hands.
“…That’s a weird compliment.”
“It wasn’t meant to be one.”
She laughed softly despite herself.
Adrian slid a document across the desk. “You’ll assist me.”
Her eyes widened. “Assist you? As in… like a personal assistant?”
“Yes.”
“Sir,” she said slowly, “I don’t even know what half the things in this building do.”
“You’ll learn.”
“And if I mess up?”
“You will.”
“…You’re very reassuring.”
“But you’ll improve,” he added.
Lila looked at the document again.
A job.
A real job.
Her stomach twisted slightly—not from hunger this time, but from something unfamiliar.
Hope.
“…Okay,” she said quietly. “I’ll do it.”
Adrian nodded once. “Good.”
At that exact moment, the office door burst open.
“Adrian, we need to—”
The woman stopped mid-sentence.
Silence.
Lila turned.
And blinked.
The woman standing there looked like she had stepped straight out of a magazine. Perfect posture. Sharp eyes. Expensive everything.
And an expression that clearly said she was not used to being interrupted—or surprised.
“…Who is this?” she asked, her tone cold.
Adrian didn’t react. “My assistant.”
Lila choked slightly. “Hi.”
The woman’s gaze dragged over her slowly, unimpressed.
“She looks lost.”
“I was,” Lila admitted. “Five minutes ago.”
The woman didn’t smile.
Instead, she stepped fully into the room, closing the door behind her.
“You replaced the entire selection process… with her?”
“Yes.”
“That’s reckless.”
“That’s intentional.”
The woman crossed her arms. “You’re playing a dangerous game.”
Adrian’s expression didn’t change. “I always do.”
Lila raised her hand slightly. “Um… should I leave?”
“No,” Adrian said.
“Yes,” the woman said at the same time.
They both looked at her.
Lila froze. “…I’m just going to stay very quiet.”
“Good choice,” Adrian said.
The woman sighed sharply, then turned her attention back to him. “Your board is furious.”
“I expected that.”
“They’re already moving behind your back.”
“They’ve tried before.”
“This time is different,” she said. “The Devereaux family is involved.”
That name hung in the air.
Adrian’s eyes darkened slightly.
“I’m aware.”
“They’re pushing the marriage harder than ever.”
Lila blinked.
Marriage?
Her eyes darted between them.
She probably shouldn’t be hearing this.
Definitely shouldn’t be hearing this.
“…I can plug my ears if needed,” she offered.
Neither of them acknowledged her.
“They won’t stop,” the woman continued. “And you refusing them publicly has only made it worse.”
“I don’t care.”
“You should.”
Adrian stood.
And suddenly, the room felt heavier.
“I won’t marry someone for a deal.”
The woman’s expression softened—just slightly.
“I know.”
There was a brief silence.
Then—
“Well,” she said, glancing at Lila again, “if this is your solution…”
“It’s part of it.”
Lila blinked again.
“…I’m part of what?”
Adrian didn’t answer.
The woman sighed. “You’re unbelievable.”
“So I’ve been told.”
She turned toward the door, then paused.
“…Good luck,” she said quietly.
Then she left.
The room fell silent again.
Lila slowly turned back to Adrian.
“…I have questions.”
“Later.”
“No, I think now is a good time.”
He ignored that. “You start immediately.”
She stared at him.
“…You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
She leaned back in her chair, exhaling.
“Okay,” she said. “I just got a job, witnessed what sounds like a forced marriage situation, and somehow became part of a mysterious plan I don’t understand.”
“Correct.”
“…Cool.”
—
Elsewhere in the city—
Scarlett Devereaux zipped up her bag.
Her room—once pristine—was now in controlled chaos. Clothes, documents, essentials. Only what she needed.
Nothing more.
She glanced at herself in the mirror.
Still perfect.
Still composed.
But her eyes—
Determined.
“They really thought I’d just accept it,” she muttered.
A knock came at the door.
“Scarlett,” her father’s voice called. “We’re not finished discussing this.”
She smirked.
“Oh, I think we are.”
She grabbed her bag, walked to the balcony doors, and opened them.
The night air rushed in.
Below—far below—the city stretched endlessly.
Most people would hesitate.
Scarlett didn’t.
She stepped onto the balcony.
“One life,” she said softly. “My rules.”
And then—
She climbed down.
—
Back at Vale Industries, Lila stood in the middle of Adrian’s office, holding a tablet she didn’t understand.
“…What does this do?”
“Schedules.”
“…And this?”
“Emails.”
“…And this?”
“Financial projections.”
She looked at him slowly.
“You’re setting me up to fail.”
“You’ll adapt.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You have a lot of confidence in someone you met ten minutes ago.”
“I trust instincts.”
“…That’s either very wise or very dangerous.”
“Both.”
Lila sighed, then looked at the tablet again.
“Okay,” she muttered. “Don’t panic. It’s just buttons. Expensive buttons.”
Adrian watched her quietly.
For the first time in a long time—
Something in his carefully controlled world had shifted.
And he wasn’t sure if it was a problem…
Or the beginning of something he didn’t yet understand.
—
Outside, the city moved as it always did.
Unaware.
Unprepared.
Because somewhere within it—
An heiress had just escaped her fate.
A composer had just stepped into a world she didn’t belong in.
A sensitive young man was about to be pulled into something far bigger than himself.
And a powerful man who had never needed anyone…
Was about to have his life turned upside down
- Writer
