The Assistant's Awakening

. I spent the first few days just sitting in the empty living room, breathing in the quiet. There were no demands, no last-minute deadlines, no heavy sense of being constantly watch

ious prison I had just escaped, and

ciety blog. Sophia Chen. I knew the name, of course. Her family owned a rival development firm, a corporate giant. This wasn't just a marriage, it was an alliance, a merger of power and influence. The ac

about the confirmation of my own worthlessness in his story. He had used me for convenience and company, a placeholder until the real leading lady arrived.

. My finger hovered over the ignore butto

hadn't just walked out on him. "I need you to come to the

s. "Why would I

nking. A beat of silence. "My former assistant. It would look good

g the old assistant. I pictured the scene: Sophia, draped in diamonds, looking down

lans," I said,

ar. Wear the blue dress I bought you." He said it like an order, not a request.

s. A silk, backless gown he' d picked out for an awards ceremony last year. It was still in a garment bag, a relic

dn't break me anymore. When the black car arrived, I was ready. I wore the blue dress, but I had taken a pair of scissors to it that aft

colleagues, and rivals all swarmed around him and Sophia. They looked at me with open curiosity. The whispers followed me as

my modified dress with a flash of anno

own," I said,

d make it. Liam has told me so much about how... helpful you were." The w

was a very... demandin

possessive pull on my arm, as if to show he could still summon me at will. But his attention was on Sophia.

ous. I just felt a profound and heavy sadness. I had mistaken a cage for a home. I had mistaken his control for care. Seein

proper partner, the pet was no longer needed at his side. He just

red. I slipped out of the gala without saying goodbye, leavi