ZARA'S POVI was done waiting.Done sitting in my bedroom like some lovesick goof while the entire world went on as if all was right with the world. Done listening to my mother's stage-whisper motivational speeches and my friends' babying phone calls. Done watching Creed just sort of go on like I had meant nothing to him.He ended the engagement like a business. Like nothing was important.And nobody batted an eye.But I did.Couldn't. Wouldn't.So I grabbed my bag, put on my best coat — the one Creed'd always say made me look "like trouble in heels" — and out the door I went. I wasn't really sure what I'd do until I was standing in front of the tall glass building with CREED X TECHNOLOGIES in silver letters above the door.I took a deep breath.Today wouldn't be about crying.It wouldn't be memories.It would be about regaining control."Good morning, Miss Zara," the receptionist chirped, clearly taken aback to see me.I smiled, as if I didn't care about the covert glances people th
Zara's POV I opened the door and was greeted at once with the reek of smoke, cheap alcohol, and some pungent unknownness. The room was dimly lit with mismatched sofas, flashing screens, bent heads over keyboards, and billows of smoke suspended in mid-air.People in hoodies, ripped jeans, half of whom had tattoos crawling up their necks and faces, all scowling through the fog at their screens like vultures over a carcass.God, this place is vile.I straightened my shoulders, clinging to what was left of my dignity. I didn't want to be inhaling this air for more than a decade."Looking for someone, sweetheart?" a greasy-eyed man with a lip ring sneered from the corner."I need Zed."I was crisp and icy in tone.A hum ran over the tables around us. A few of them looked at one another before one of them pointed down the back. "Booth twelve."I strode across tangled wires and trash-covered soda cans, heels clicking on the filthy floor, hating every second.There, in the corner booth, sat
CREED'S POVIt was midnight.And I couldn't sleep.I'm in bed staring up at the ceiling, arms behind my head, feeling like a man set to fold all the way.I was uneasy, burning to pieces inside my own fucking skull.All I'd suppressed those last few weeks — all those feelings, thoughts I'd been sealing up tight and keeping out from the world — were clawing around my belly.I was finished.And all because of her.Yuyu Roman.That annoying, biting-tongued, infuriating child with that ridiculous laugh and infuriatingly insightful eyes.The last face I hadn't laid eyes on in weeks — and yet, inexplicably, still omnipresent everywhere.In my mind.In my goddamn nightmares.Under my skin.What's going on with you, Creed?I cursed with a heavy sigh, reaching for my phone.I scrolled mindlessly for a minute or so, until my thumb hovered over the employee directory document I'd saved on my phone — the one with all the staff contacts.For professional purposes.Only professionally.Yeah, sure.I
Yuki's POVI walked into the office today with a brand-new attitude.No more creeping around.No more rolling in terror like a whimp.I had time.Time meant that I lived a little — flirted with the guy that I liked, for goodness' sake — before I vanished off to nowhere, before the reality of what I was ruined my life.I wore a star ensemble today.Bubblegum pink suit.Pants to match.Steep white stilettos.My blonde hair was drawn back into a snatched ponytail, so tight it was virtually a club. Praise God for glue and high-tech wig science, really, or my little secret would have gone sky-high months ago.Concealed under my jacket, I had on a sharp white crop top — crisp, plain, cutting.And the tie? Oh, sweetie, it was accessorized within an inch of its life.Princess Bubblegum pin. A pink bow duo. White Hello Kitty. And a dash of sparkly nonsense.I was a CEO Barbie dream turned reality — and I loved every second of it.I strode into the office as if I owned it.My bubblegum heels ta
Zara's POV My voice was tighter than I meant it to be.Not that I cared.Zed grinned like an idiot, behind me into the office.He slumped into the desk chair, plugged in the drive and his laptop, and started typing.The screen turned blue and white as files downloaded — folders within folders of work documents, names, codes, files labeled things like 'Q1 Analytics' and 'Client Data Structure'.His fingers moved fast, the clicking of keys filling the silence.After a couple of minutes, he leaned back, running a hand through his messy dark hair.“Looks pretty normal to me,” he shrugged. “I don’t think we’re gonna find much on this drive. It’s mostly work-related, charts, performance reports, boring shit.”I spun on him so fast his smirk slipped.“That is confidential shit.”I stabbed a finger in his direction.If you lose one file, one line of code — if you steal so much as the email address of one client, Zed — I'll know. I'll bury you in lawsuits so deep your grandkids'll be born in
Creed's POVFabulous.That was the best my brain could do then.She appeared… amazing.Sweat sprinkled across her forehead, a fine sheen flashing on her skin — and that dress.My God, that dress made her a princess from some faraway, unreachable kingdom.A bright, deep red, cinched just so at the waist, flowing out in liquid silk."You're in the ladies' restroom, Mr. Malcolm," she gasped, breathless, flustered — and outrageously adorable."You can be arrested for privacy… co–…" she stuttered on the word.'Code.'The phrase was privacy code, but I was too engaged in the motion of her lips, too focused on the pounding of my heart.A smile crept across my face, my heart pounding furiously, a warmth I didn't know existed burning in my chest.Do you want my assistance or not?" I queried smugly, the words rushing ahead before my mind caught up to them.I strode further into the minute bathroom, observing a tangible terror flicker across her bright, erratic eyes."I do not want your assistan
Zara's POVHis mouth was… firm.Softness encased in something desperate, something wild.His arms went around my waist as though I was the only thing propping him up, drawing me deeper into that pinched, gulping space between us.What was this?And worse — why did I like it?My fingers sank into his dirty shoulder-length hair, which was rougher than I'd intended, but his breath caught — a weak, gagged moan slipping out of him like a secret he didn't want to share.Then he released my lips, tracing the side of my neck with slow, soft licks of his tongue.Hold on.Hold on one damn minute.What the actual fuck was I doing?"Get off me!" I growled, pushing him away as if he'd scalded my skin.I glared at him, my chest heaving and falling, heat still pricking along my skin in the wake.His eyes sparkled — pleased, smug, infuriating."How dare you?" I spat.He had the nerve to laugh."Calm down. You kissed me."I stopped.My mouth dropped open, words elbowing for space, because he was right
Yuki's povThe sharp smack of my resume hitting the floor echoed like a gunshot in the room. My eyes darted to the crumpled paper lying there, a small but loud reminder of how this day had already gone to shit.I stood there, mouth slightly open, staring at the manager like she’d just cursed my ancestors. What the actual hell?“I’m sorry,” she said, though her tone suggested she wasn’t sorry at all. She crossed her arms, her nails clicking against her sleeve like a countdown to my dismissal. “We’re not hiring.”I blinked, thrown off. “Not hiring?” I echoed, incredulous. “I saw the vacancy notice. Like… this vacancy notice.” I held up my phone, scrolling to the job listing I’d literally applied for two days ago.She didn’t even glance at it. “Well, the position’s been filled.”What? No. No, that didn’t make sense. I’d prepped for this interview for days. I’d ironed my pink blazer to perfection, styled my hair like I was meeting the love of my life, and walked into this cold, soulless o
Zara's POVHis mouth was… firm.Softness encased in something desperate, something wild.His arms went around my waist as though I was the only thing propping him up, drawing me deeper into that pinched, gulping space between us.What was this?And worse — why did I like it?My fingers sank into his dirty shoulder-length hair, which was rougher than I'd intended, but his breath caught — a weak, gagged moan slipping out of him like a secret he didn't want to share.Then he released my lips, tracing the side of my neck with slow, soft licks of his tongue.Hold on.Hold on one damn minute.What the actual fuck was I doing?"Get off me!" I growled, pushing him away as if he'd scalded my skin.I glared at him, my chest heaving and falling, heat still pricking along my skin in the wake.His eyes sparkled — pleased, smug, infuriating."How dare you?" I spat.He had the nerve to laugh."Calm down. You kissed me."I stopped.My mouth dropped open, words elbowing for space, because he was right
Creed's POVFabulous.That was the best my brain could do then.She appeared… amazing.Sweat sprinkled across her forehead, a fine sheen flashing on her skin — and that dress.My God, that dress made her a princess from some faraway, unreachable kingdom.A bright, deep red, cinched just so at the waist, flowing out in liquid silk."You're in the ladies' restroom, Mr. Malcolm," she gasped, breathless, flustered — and outrageously adorable."You can be arrested for privacy… co–…" she stuttered on the word.'Code.'The phrase was privacy code, but I was too engaged in the motion of her lips, too focused on the pounding of my heart.A smile crept across my face, my heart pounding furiously, a warmth I didn't know existed burning in my chest.Do you want my assistance or not?" I queried smugly, the words rushing ahead before my mind caught up to them.I strode further into the minute bathroom, observing a tangible terror flicker across her bright, erratic eyes."I do not want your assistan
Zara's POV My voice was tighter than I meant it to be.Not that I cared.Zed grinned like an idiot, behind me into the office.He slumped into the desk chair, plugged in the drive and his laptop, and started typing.The screen turned blue and white as files downloaded — folders within folders of work documents, names, codes, files labeled things like 'Q1 Analytics' and 'Client Data Structure'.His fingers moved fast, the clicking of keys filling the silence.After a couple of minutes, he leaned back, running a hand through his messy dark hair.“Looks pretty normal to me,” he shrugged. “I don’t think we’re gonna find much on this drive. It’s mostly work-related, charts, performance reports, boring shit.”I spun on him so fast his smirk slipped.“That is confidential shit.”I stabbed a finger in his direction.If you lose one file, one line of code — if you steal so much as the email address of one client, Zed — I'll know. I'll bury you in lawsuits so deep your grandkids'll be born in
Yuki's POVI walked into the office today with a brand-new attitude.No more creeping around.No more rolling in terror like a whimp.I had time.Time meant that I lived a little — flirted with the guy that I liked, for goodness' sake — before I vanished off to nowhere, before the reality of what I was ruined my life.I wore a star ensemble today.Bubblegum pink suit.Pants to match.Steep white stilettos.My blonde hair was drawn back into a snatched ponytail, so tight it was virtually a club. Praise God for glue and high-tech wig science, really, or my little secret would have gone sky-high months ago.Concealed under my jacket, I had on a sharp white crop top — crisp, plain, cutting.And the tie? Oh, sweetie, it was accessorized within an inch of its life.Princess Bubblegum pin. A pink bow duo. White Hello Kitty. And a dash of sparkly nonsense.I was a CEO Barbie dream turned reality — and I loved every second of it.I strode into the office as if I owned it.My bubblegum heels ta
CREED'S POVIt was midnight.And I couldn't sleep.I'm in bed staring up at the ceiling, arms behind my head, feeling like a man set to fold all the way.I was uneasy, burning to pieces inside my own fucking skull.All I'd suppressed those last few weeks — all those feelings, thoughts I'd been sealing up tight and keeping out from the world — were clawing around my belly.I was finished.And all because of her.Yuyu Roman.That annoying, biting-tongued, infuriating child with that ridiculous laugh and infuriatingly insightful eyes.The last face I hadn't laid eyes on in weeks — and yet, inexplicably, still omnipresent everywhere.In my mind.In my goddamn nightmares.Under my skin.What's going on with you, Creed?I cursed with a heavy sigh, reaching for my phone.I scrolled mindlessly for a minute or so, until my thumb hovered over the employee directory document I'd saved on my phone — the one with all the staff contacts.For professional purposes.Only professionally.Yeah, sure.I
Zara's POV I opened the door and was greeted at once with the reek of smoke, cheap alcohol, and some pungent unknownness. The room was dimly lit with mismatched sofas, flashing screens, bent heads over keyboards, and billows of smoke suspended in mid-air.People in hoodies, ripped jeans, half of whom had tattoos crawling up their necks and faces, all scowling through the fog at their screens like vultures over a carcass.God, this place is vile.I straightened my shoulders, clinging to what was left of my dignity. I didn't want to be inhaling this air for more than a decade."Looking for someone, sweetheart?" a greasy-eyed man with a lip ring sneered from the corner."I need Zed."I was crisp and icy in tone.A hum ran over the tables around us. A few of them looked at one another before one of them pointed down the back. "Booth twelve."I strode across tangled wires and trash-covered soda cans, heels clicking on the filthy floor, hating every second.There, in the corner booth, sat
ZARA'S POVI was done waiting.Done sitting in my bedroom like some lovesick goof while the entire world went on as if all was right with the world. Done listening to my mother's stage-whisper motivational speeches and my friends' babying phone calls. Done watching Creed just sort of go on like I had meant nothing to him.He ended the engagement like a business. Like nothing was important.And nobody batted an eye.But I did.Couldn't. Wouldn't.So I grabbed my bag, put on my best coat — the one Creed'd always say made me look "like trouble in heels" — and out the door I went. I wasn't really sure what I'd do until I was standing in front of the tall glass building with CREED X TECHNOLOGIES in silver letters above the door.I took a deep breath.Today wouldn't be about crying.It wouldn't be memories.It would be about regaining control."Good morning, Miss Zara," the receptionist chirped, clearly taken aback to see me.I smiled, as if I didn't care about the covert glances people th
CREED'S POVJanuary 9th. Monday. The type of Monday that tasted of regret and cold coffee, eating at the back of my mind.The holidays were a blur—Zara's silence, my guilt, YuYu's kiss.God, YuYu.I had not heard from Zara for two weeks. Nothing. No text, even a suggestion that one was on its way. She was done trying, and truthfully? I didn't blame her one bit. I led her on, made her believe there was a chance when there wasn't. I gave her hope there was something left when I knew already I'd given what little I had to someone else—or at least, whatever remained of it.It was my fault. I shouldn't have treated her like that. Zara wasn't just some girl I'd once loved—she was a friend. A damn good one. Seeing someone like her get hurt… killed something within me.And now I was going to do the same to YuYu.Except this was worse. Because I didn't just lead YuYu on—I wanted her. I missed her. I yearned for her in a way that was irrational and all-consuming. I hadn't seen her in weeks eith
Yuki's POV"Stop rolling over, hell, Yuki!"I froze in mid-roll, legs trapped in my satin penguin pajamas, rosy bonnet cocked drunkenly. Lily glared at me from across my bed like she was going to strangle me with her peppermint candy cane socks."What's wrong with you?" she snarled, tugging her blanket around her neck.I hesitated, then exhaled dramatically. "Okay, so like—don't freak out—but Creed asked me on a date."Lily blinked. "What?"I flopped onto my side, curling my fists under my face like a Disney princess in peril. "He asked me. Like, in words. Actual ones. Not a joke. I hope."Lily sat up slowly, her eyes narrowed at me like she was trying to stare through my soul. "Wait. When?""Last night. We were washing the dishes. He had this whole warm, sleepy face, and then—bam, 'Go out with me on a date, Miss Roman.' Like that."She glared at me. "And what did you reply?"I laughed. "I said something just absolutely precious like, 'Let's just say I came prepared.'"Lily shook her