Part 2He Called My Job Worthless Now I Am The CEO

I took a cab back to the office.

Lying in the breakroom, I couldn't fall asleep. My mind kept replaying our recent arguments.

This was the third time Liam had exploded this month.

The first time, it was because I was thirty seconds too slow handing him a yogurt. He threw it on the floor. “Clumsy idiot! Can’t even do one simple thing right!”

The second time was even more ridiculous. I took a work call while ironing his shirt, and he snatched it away. “Is your job more important or is my shirt more important? You clearly don’t care about me! You’re completely selfish!”

He acted like a constant observer in my life, using a magnifying glass to find my flaws, using any failure to immediately bend to his will as proof that I was worthless.

[FMC, don’t be sad. The ML just has a short fuse, but he thinks the world of you.]

[His words are harsh, but his heart is in the right place. Women really don’t need to work so hard.]

[The ML is regretting everything right now, but he’s too proud to apologize. FMC, give him an opening!]

The comments swirled around me like annoying flies. I suddenly realized they would always take Liam’s side, finding any excuse to absolve him.

The next morning, my colleague handed me a coffee.

She looked at the dark circles under my eyes and the messy bedding in the breakroom, and her concern was clear.

“Ava, you look terrible. Another fight with your boyfriend?”

I managed a weak smile. “I’m fine. Just didn’t sleep well.”

“How many times this month?”

My colleague, Maya, sighed. “Last week you were crying in the bathroom. The day before that, you had to call him during a meeting to send him a mini-manifesto of apology. Ava, this isn’t a normal relationship.”

I opened my mouth, wanting to defend myself, but I couldn’t find a single reasonable argument.

“Why don’t you crash at my place for a few days?”

“He won’t allow it.”

I rejected the idea instantly. Every time I suggested living apart, Liam would fly into a rage: “You want to break up, don’t you? I knew you didn’t love me anymore!”

Then, he’d use even crueler words to validate my cold-heartedness and callousness.

The final project meeting that afternoon confirmed the plan. I downed two cups of coffee and psyched myself up for another late night.

Just then, my phone screen lit up.

[I’m coming to pick you up after work.]

Instead of the usual lift, my heart instinctively tightened.

[I’m working late tonight. It’s a major push. Don’t come. I ordered that beef you like from Seamless. Just grab it.]

I replied cautiously, but Liam seemed to ignore me.

[Six thirty. Be downstairs on time.]

The usual tone of command.

[I really can’t leave. The Director is right next to me.]

I could already feel the coming storm.

[Ava, what is this supposed to mean?]

[I actually offered to come get you. This is how you respond?]

[If you don’t want to be with me, then don’t. No need for the theatrics.]

Predictably, the comments were fueling the fire.

[The ML is trying to be considerate!]

[The ML is all talk, but the FMC must be thrilled inside!]

[The ML was up all night fuming, and today he’s preparing for… hee hee, the FMC is going to have a rough night.]

The Director had glanced at me several times. If I didn't stop texting Liam, she was the one who was going to make my night rough.

I set my phone to Do Not Disturb and shoved it into my desk drawer, forcing myself to concentrate.

Ten minutes later, the internal office line rang suddenly.

“I need to speak to Ava!”

“Are you coming down or not? I’ve been waiting five minutes!”

“I’m giving you three more minutes. If you don’t come down, I’m coming up to your office to find you!”

Liam’s voice was so loud the handset vibrated in my hand. I lowered my voice to explain.

“I’m racing a deadline. The Director is right…”

“Is your Director more important than your boyfriend?”

He cut me off sharply. “Or is your overtime more important than me? I came all this way to pick you up. Is this the right attitude? Ava, why are you always so selfish!”

The whole office was looking at me. My face was burning.

“Can you please be reasonable? This is my job…”

“Job? Do you even call that pittance you make a job?”

He scoffed. “A clueless brown-noser like you, are you actually thinking about a promotion? They must be really scraping the bottom of the barrel over there.”

I was stunned into silence.

“Thirty years old and still so clueless, still such an idealist. What do you even have? Money? Family status? Are you seriously acting like the heroine of some rags-to-riches story?”

“Who else but me would put up with a personality like yours? Do you think the sky is going to fall if you’re not there to hold it up?”

“You don't even have basic social skills. If I came to pick up a dog, it would at least wag its tail. Ava, what is it that you actually bring to the table?”

The comments offered their feeble defense.

[The ML waited too long. Be understanding.]

[He only says that because he cares. When she goes downstairs, he’ll run up and give her a big hug!]

[FMC, go home with the ML. You look run-down. You need some tender loving care. Hahaha.]

The comments were turning vulgar. I looked away, refusing to acknowledge Liam’s vicious remarks.

Finally, he seemed to run out of steam, taking a ragged breath before asking: “Last chance. Are you coming down?”

I looked at the crucial section I had just finished. I spoke softly. “No. Go home, Liam.”

The line went dead silent for a moment, then I heard his voice, tight with pure venom.

“Fine! Ava! You can marry your job! We’re done!”

The crashing sound of a trash can being kicked silenced the entire office.

I walked back to my cube, ignoring the astonished looks from my coworkers.

I finished working around nine. Stepping out of the building, the night air was biting.

My phone showed over a dozen missed calls. The latest text read: *[You seriously didn't come down? I misjudged you completely! You wait!] *

I turned the screen off and zipped my jacket all the way up. As I passed the corner, a street vendor selling hot pretzels was closing up shop.

“Late night, miss?”

The vendor, a kind old man, looked up and greeted me warmly.

I managed a slight nod and kept walking.

“Wait.”

He called out, pulling the last pretzel from his warmer and carefully wrapping it in a paper bag. “Closing up. This one’s on me. You look completely worn out, dear. Have something warm.”

In that moment, my eyes burned. Tears threatened to fall.

A complete stranger could see my exhaustion and offer unsolicited warmth.

And the man I lived with, the man who supposedly loved me?

The old man pushed his cart away. “Go get some rest now, miss.”

The pretzel in my hand radiated a warm, comforting heat, its smell simple and welcoming.

The world settled back into a deep quiet. Liam didn't send any more messages.

The surface of the sea was calm, but I knew the deep currents were treacherous. Yet, I had no energy, no desire, to wrestle with his emotions anymore.

I think, I really need to rest.