Chapter 2

That afternoon, my best friend called, asking to meet up at a nearby steakhouse.

I happened to need information on what had actually happened over the past five years to make me change so much, so I hurried over to meet her.

Chloe had been my college roommate. She was the very first person to know about my crush on Dylan and had spent all three years playing matchmaker for me.

She was also the one who managed to get Dylan to show up at that graduation party.

Now that Dylan and I were together, she definitely deserved a ton of credit.

To my surprise, Chloe had changed drastically over the past five years too. Gone was the girl from my memories. Dressed in sharp business attire with subtle, elegant makeup, she looked so polished and mature that I almost didn't recognize her.

"Chloe?" I asked hesitantly, completely unable to match her with the girl in my head.

Back then, she was the one who taught me how to do makeup. She was the most chaotic, wild girl in our dorm, constantly joking about dating every cute guy on campus.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Chloe gave me a baffled look, then flagged down the server for a menu. "I remember you love the spicy seafood gumbo here."

"Since when do I like spicy food?" I asked.

Chloe froze for a second, then reached out to feel my forehead.

"I'm not sick." I laughed bitterly, gently brushing her hand away, and half-joked, "If I told you I traveled here from five years ago, would you believe me?"

"You say you're not sick, yet you're talking crazy?" She rolled her eyes playfully, then seemed to remember something. "By the way, thank goodness you helped me tweak the proposal last week. The client loved it and signed the contract on the spot."

"Consider this lunch a celebration."

Right on cue, the server brought out the spicy seafood soup. Looking at the glistening layer of chili oil on top, I forced myself to take a sip.

The searing burn hit my throat instantly, and I almost gagged it straight back up.

Yup. I really, truly couldn't handle spicy food.

For the rest of the meal, Chloe kept talking about work, throwing around business terms that sounded like complete gibberish to me.

Apparently, five years from now, I had become an absolute pro at commercial strategy. Was there anything she couldn't do?

During lunch, Chloe seemed to notice something was off with me. Assuming I was just under the weather, she urged me to get checked out at the clinic.

She always admired my fierce ambition, but she cared far more about my health.

After we finished eating, Chloe gave me a cheeky grin. "Even though the client loved the pitch, I'll probably still need your help with the follow-up. Since you drafted the strategy, I'm worried my vision might clash with yours."

Even though my mind was completely blank on the subject, I gritted my teeth and agreed anyway.