Chapter 3: I've Always Known What Matters Most

Elena's POV

The apartment is too quiet. Gray sofa, glass coffee table, bare walls. The kitchen looks unused. Papers scattered on the floor, laptop glowing blue in the dark.

I'm sitting on the floor, back against the sofa. There's a glass of red wine next to me. Haven't touched it. My laptop's open but the cursor just blinks at me.

My fingers tap against the floor. That habit again.

Three years of red flags. I ignored every single one.

I thought if I worked harder, proved myself more, showed him I could be both... he'd choose me eventually.

Stupid.

I pull the laptop closer. The screen shows a blank document titled "Evidence." I start typing, then stop. Grab my phone instead. Scroll through old photos. The further back I go, the colder I feel.

The phone freezes on one image. NexTech A round party. Ryan's in the center, champagne raised, grinning at everyone. I'm at the edge, half out of frame, laptop in hand.

Two years ago. The office converted into party space.

Ryan's voice carries over the crowd. "Everyone who made this happen should be here!"

I walk up next to him. Keep my voice low. "Can I bring someone?"

His smile falters. He looks around. "Elena, you know we can't."

"Can't what? Stand next to each other at a party?"

He pulls me to the corner. Drops his voice even lower. "My mom's talking to investors. If she sees us..."

"Sees us what? Acting like a couple? Like your wife?"

He hugs me but it feels wrong. Like he's trying to calm me down instead of hold me. "Just wait a bit longer. When we close the B round—"

"Right. The B round."

I told myself it made sense back then. Bad timing. Business first.

Now I see it. There was never going to be a right time.

His hand is on my shoulder but he's looking at the investors across the room. I don't hug him back. Diane's watching from somewhere, eyes cold. Ryan notices. Lets go fast.

I believed him. Smiled and nodded. He went straight back into the crowd like nothing happened. I stood there alone while he shook hands, his smile perfect.

My finger keeps scrolling through the photos.

My big corner office. Year and a half ago.

Diane standing in the doorway, talking to Ryan. "Does the CTO really need this much space? We could turn it into a conference room."

Ryan turns to me. "She's got a point. You're in the lab most of the time anyway. It's kind of wasted—"

"Wasted on me?"

"That's not what I meant. Just from an efficiency standpoint—"

"Fine. Where do you want me?"

Diane's arms are crossed. Victory smile. Ryan won't look at me. I start packing. Mechanical movements.

Week later, I'm in a cubicle. Same size as everyone else. Nameplate in a plastic sleeve. Temporary.

One year ago. Coming back from the bathroom. Diane's voice through Ryan's office door.

"You need to prove you can do this alone, Ryan. Without leaning on her."

"Mom, Elena is my partner—"

"She's your technical support. Not your crutch. Investors need to see you as the leader. Not some package deal."

Pause. "What do you want me to do?"

"Stop letting her talk at investor meetings. You present. She stays in the background."

I'm standing outside. Hand on the doorknob. Shaking. I breathe. Turn around. Walk away slow.

Should've confronted him right then.

I didn't.

Six months ago. My apartment.

Ten PM. Sitting at the table. Instant noodles. Small cupcake with a dead candle.

Door opens. Ryan walks in reeking of alcohol. Tie loose.

"Why are you still up?"

"It's my birthday."

His face goes white. "Shit. I was with investors all day, I completely—I'll make it up to you—"

"Don't bother. You're busy. I get it."

"Elena, please—"

"Going to bed. Lock up when you leave."

He wants to come closer but something stops him. I take the bowl to the kitchen. When I pass him, we don't touch.

Bedroom door closes. He's alone with the dead candle.

That night I opened my laptop in bed. Kept coding. Outside the window, New York glittered.

---

I toss the phone aside. Stand up. Walk to the bedroom. Bottom drawer of the nightstand. Old photo frame inside. Cheap wood. The photo shows a woman in her forties. Dark hair, tired eyes. Warm smile.

My mother.

Died when I was nineteen. Liver failure. Too much drinking.

Before she died, she grabbed my hand. Voice weak.

"Promise me, Elena. Promise you'll never be like me. Never give yourself up for any man."

She squeezed harder. "I thought love mattered more than my career. Thought he'd always love me back. He didn't. Now I have nothing. My code, my patents—all under his name. I'm nothing."

"Promise me you won't let anyone take your power."

And I promised.

My hand shakes. Almost drop the photo. I wipe my eye before anything falls. Put the photo back. Gentle.

I sit back down on the floor. Straighter this time. Expression harder.

"Almost broke that promise. For Ryan. For a man who can't even stand up to his mother."

I look at my hand. The silver wedding band catches the light. Cold.

Slowly, I take it off. Set it on the table.

Doorbell rings.

Jamie's at the door with two paper bags. Thai food. Two bottles of wine.

"Emergency bestie meeting. Brought pad thai and wine."

I smile. Bitter. "How'd you know I'd be awake?"

She walks in. Looks around. "Because I know you. When you're upset, you don't sleep. You sit in the dark overthinking."

"Not overthinking. Reviewing."

"Reviewing what? All the ways Ryan screwed up?"

She sets the food on the table. Sits on the sofa. I close the door. She sees my face. Stands and hugs me immediately. I go stiff, then slowly relax.

"Talk to me. What happened after you left?"

I tell her everything. The vote. The parking garage. The ultimatum.

She gets angrier as I talk. "That fucking coward."

I laugh. Bitter. Sit on the floor. "Don't. He's in a tough spot."

"Tough spot? Elena, listen to yourself. Three years of hiding, three years of taking his mother's shit, three years pretending to be colleagues. And he can't back you up in one board meeting?"

Silence.

She sits next to me. Grabs my hand. "I know you love him. But love shouldn't make you smaller."

The words hit. My eyes flicker.

"You're the most brilliant person I know. Your MIT research made professors speechless. Your algorithm changed the industry. But since you've been with him, you've gotten careful. Always compromising. Always accommodating."

I close my eyes. "I wanted it to work."

"But it doesn't. A good relationship makes you stronger, not weaker. More yourself, not less."

"My mom used to say that."

"Then she was smart."

"Until she gave up everything for a man who didn't deserve her."

Jamie's voice is firm. "Then don't be her. Don't let Ryan turn you into someone who gives up their power."

I look at her. Eyes clear now. "I won't."

I pull my laptop onto my lap. Start typing.

"What are you doing?"

I'm writing my resignation letter. And something they won't see coming.

Outside, New York's night is deep. But my eyes are brighter than they've been in years.