Chapter 5

She stared at me for a long time, her patience visibly wearing thin.

“Without Miller seed capital, your venture won't get off the ground. Are you really throwing your future away over petty jealousy?”

“If he actually brings Chloe on and you try to crawl back later, that seat won't be waiting for you.”

My fingers gripped the edge of the desk. A faint ache twitched in my chest.

Seven years of marriage hadn’t simply vanished because I was reincarnated.

That man had shared my mornings and nights. No matter how late his business trips ran, he had always checked in to say he was safe.

I had loved him for a very long time.

So long that even when returning to the very beginning, rejecting him felt like tearing away a layer of my own skin.

“Then let her have the seat,” I said.

I opened my desk drawer, pulled out the keycard and spare key Nathan had given me, and laid them on the table.

“His life, his career, and his marriage have nothing to do with me from this moment on.”

Less than ten minutes after his mother left, Nathan arrived.

He was carrying a box of the chestnut pastries I loved, sweat glistening at his temples. He had clearly run all the way here.

“Did my mom come by?”

I kept my head down, taping up a moving box, and didn't answer.

The box held only textbooks.

My passport and essential documents were already stashed in my carry-on. There was no luggage left out that could tip him off.

He set the pastry box down and took the roll of packing tape from my hands.

“She can be blunt. Don't take it to heart. I already told her to stay out of our business.”

Watching his practiced hands seal the box for me, my mind drifted for a second.

Throughout our four years of college, he had never let me carry heavy boxes.

“Nathan.”

His hands slowed. “Yeah?”

“If only one of us can be part of the startup—me or Chloe—who do you pick?”

Nathan set the tape down and slid the pastry box an inch closer to me.

“I’ve already compromised. Chloe will only do administrative work; she won't touch core strategy. You make all the calls. What else do you want me to choose?”

“Make her leave.”

“She has no degree and no network. What happens to her if she leaves now?”

“Then this is where we stop.”

I pushed the pastries back to his side.

The softness in Nathan’s eyes dissolved.

“Nora, don't force me to choose between loyalty and you.”

“I’m not forcing you.” I slipped the final folder into my tote bag. “You’ve already made your choice.”

“I chose a way that wouldn’t hurt anyone!”

“Except every single exit route you build for her comes straight out of my pocket.”

He fell silent for a beat, then abruptly pushed the dorm room door shut, dropping his voice to a low hiss.

“Did you get an offer from another firm? Or did Evelyn promise you something?”

Evelyn looked up from her desk. “What the hell does this have to do with me?”

Nathan ignored her.

“Nora, opportunities outside aren't as stable as you think.”

“Come back. We can draft the equity agreement today. We can negotiate your salary, too.”

In my past life, that would have been enough to soften me. But then he added:

“Chloe’s arrangement stays as is. All she needs is a job. She isn't taking anything that belongs to you.”

I zipped my bag shut.

“Nathan, commencement is tomorrow. I won't be joining your team.”

“You’ll be there,” he said with absolute certainty.

“The roster is already submitted. Everyone knows we’ve spent four years prepping for this. You aren't going to throw that away.”

I didn't bother correcting him.

On the day of commencement, Evelyn guided me through the rear exits of the auditorium.

In the distance, Nathan stood dressed in a sharp suit, surrounded by classmates reviewing the run of show.

Across the crowded hall, his eyes found mine.

He raised a hand, gesturing for me to wait, a rare, relaxed smile finally breaking across his face.

I raised my hand in return.

Then I turned on my heel and stepped into the rideshare headed for the airport.

Right before boarding, my phone buzzed with a text from Mrs. Miller:

Come over for dinner after the ceremony. Your seat at the table is saved.

I deleted the text, snapped the SIM card in half, and dropped it into an electronics recycling bin at the terminal.

As the plane climbed through the clouds, Evelyn leaned over.

“Any regrets?”

I looked down at the shrinking city below. The phantom ache in my ribs finally, quietly, faded away.

“No more waiting.”

Under the commencement stage lights, Nathan was preparing to announce my name as his co-founder.

And by then, Evelyn and I were already cruising at thirty thousand feet, bound for New Zealand.