It's Not Over Yet

Emily nodded slowly, her eyes red and hollow. “Everything. It’s like they wanted to erase us.”

I barely heard them. My mind was spinning so fast it felt like I was being dragged underwater. I'd just thought I found a place to hide. A place to start over!

What would I do after this? Where would I go?! I have no money!

My stomach twisted painfully, and for a brief moment, I thought I might throw up right there between the fancy velvet chairs and gold-rimmed glasses.

Sarah’s voice cut sharply through my haze. “Who owns Our Family Resort?” she demanded.

Emily gave a shaky laugh, bitter and humorless. “Nobody knows. It’s buried under layers of dummy companies and shell corporations. Mark tried to trace it once... but he hit a dead end every time. It’s like the people behind it don’t want anyone to find them.”

I pressed a hand against my chest, willing my heart to slow down.

Dead ends. Living in the shadows… It was exactly Ryan's style.

Was he truly just a coincidence? Our Family Resort… Our Family… I blinked. Something clicked in my head.

When I was going through his laptop, I'd tried to opened a file, named: Our Family Resort. But it was passworded.

Could it be…

I opened my mouth to speak - maybe to tell them, maybe to warn them - but the words caught in my throat.

Because what if I was wrong? What if I dragged old wounds into the open for nothing? What if... what if Ryan was truly the monster I was beginning to realize he had always been?

Our food arrived then, extravagant plates steaming under silver covers. Emily wiped her tears hurriedly, forcing a smile for the sake of the waiter.

Sarah muttered a curse under her breath and began stabbing her fork into her salad with unnecessary force.

I just sat there, numb, staring at the untouched plate in front of me.

I wasn’t hungry anymore. I was starving for answers. And deep down, I knew there was only one way to get them: I had to face Ryan.

But I couldn't do it.

…

It had been a month, yet the memory of him still clung to me like salt on my skin after a swim. Detroit. I didn’t even know if that was his real name. I'd searched for him everywhere on the internet but never saw his face.

Don't say I'm nagging too much. It's just how I feel. I can't help it.

I’d wake in the middle of the night, aching in places I didn’t know could long. I’d lie there, trying to convince myself it meant nothing. Just a moment. A one-night stand. But the truth was… he’d left a mark on me. And worse, he left nothing behind to make sense of it. No reason. No explanation. Just absence.

I sighed, pushing those thoughts away as I sat behind the reception desk, staring at nothing in particular. The lobby was quiet. Too quiet. A resort without guests was like a heart without a beat. Lifeless.

Mark had called a staff meeting this morning. His eyes were heavy, voice strained, as he told us what we already feared.

Ocean View was finished. The auction would be taking place tomorrow night. We had until tomorrow evening to move out.

Tomorrow, Mark said, he’d pay us our last wages and officially close the doors.

I felt something twist in my chest. It wasn’t just about losing a job. This place… it had started to feel like home. Safe. Familiar. I thought I’d rebuild my life here, one stitch at a time.

Now I’d have to start over again.

And then he walked in.

Not Detroit – no. Someone worse.

I recognized him immediately from the smug expression alone. Tall, clean-cut, expensive shoes that didn’t match the dusty floor he walked on. The Our Family Resort badge on his chest was just the cherry on top.

“Still hanging on by a thread, I see,” he said, voice loud enough to fill the empty lobby.

Mark stood up slowly from his office chair. “What do you want, Louis?”

Louis.

So that was his name.

“I was in the neighborhood,” Louis shrugged. “Thought I’d see how my old friend was doing. Clearly, not so well.”

Emily shifted uncomfortably at the bar. Sarah moved closer to me. No one said a word. But I could feel the heat rising in the space. Mark didn’t even blink.

“You got what you wanted,” Mark said quietly. “Now leave.”

Louis let out a low laugh. “Oh no, no. Don’t be like that. I came to offer you a job. You can clean our restrooms. Or maybe be the gardener. I’m generous like that, old friend.”

Friend.

The word was poison on his tongue.

“You two know each other?” I asked before I could stop myself.

Mark didn’t answer. Louis, however, turned to me with a mocking smile.

“College roommates,” he said proudly. “Mark here thought he was better than everyone. Always top of the class. Always Mr. Perfect. So I thought I’d humble him a little.”

“You sabotaged the resort?” My voice came out colder than I expected.

Louis shrugged again. “Business is war, sweetheart. If your weak little team can’t handle the heat, you get burned.”

Mark’s jaw clenched, but he said nothing. The silence from him was louder than any insult Louis had thrown. Because I saw it now… not just sadness, but pain. Regret. And something else… shame.

Louis smiled like he’d won something. “The offer is still open, in case you want to consider it.” With that, giggled, turned on his heel, and strolled out the door.

No one moved for a long moment.

Then Mark finally sat down again, dragging a hand down his face. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I really tried to save this place.”

I looked at him, and for the first time since arriving here, I saw the weight he’d been carrying. It wasn’t just about pride. It was about loyalty. Love. Just like the couple who raised this resort like a child, Mark had been trying to protect a legacy.

And now, it was slipping through his fingers.

I swallowed hard. “We’re not done yet,” I whispered, more to myself than anyone.

Because somewhere deep inside me, a fire was starting to flicker again. A determination I hadn’t felt in a long time… it was that time I was determined to enroll into the same college as Ryan.

Whatever I set my mind to, I achieve and this... This is my business now.