My first day at AURELIA GROUP turned out to be nothing like I had imagined.
I thought everything would get better once I found a job.
I was wrong.
Entering a new world meant I also had to face new people.
And not everyone would accept me.
I sat at my desk, reading the documents Clara had given me.
Project data.
Financial reports.
Meeting schedules.
Everything felt unfamiliar.
I took a deep breath.
"I can do this."
I couldn't give up just because it was difficult.
I had already been through so much.
I had been humiliated.
I had been treated as if I were useless.
I had watched people walk away when I needed help.
But I was still standing today.
"Hey."
I turned around.
A woman in expensive clothes stood beside my desk.
Her hair was perfectly styled, and her face radiated confidence.
"You're Maya, right?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
She gave me a faint smile.
"I'm Vanessa."
I stood up politely.
"It's nice to meet you."
Vanessa glanced at my desk.
"So you're the one who started yesterday?"
"Yes."
She folded her arms.
"I heard you were hired directly by Mr. Ethan."
The atmosphere around us suddenly changed.
Several people began to glance our way.
I knew there was something behind her words.
"That's right."
Vanessa smiled faintly.
"Interesting."
"I've worked here for three years, but I've never seen Mr. Ethan personally step in for anyone."
I stayed silent.
"What are you implying?"
Vanessa leaned a little closer.
"Don't get me wrong. I'm just curious."
Her gaze dropped to my clothes.
"Because usually, anyone who gets in here through Mr. Ethan's personal attention isn't ordinary."
I understood what she meant.
She was saying I didn't belong here.
I drew a breath.
"I was accepted because of the work I was given."
Vanessa raised an eyebrow.
"Let's hope so."
Then she walked away.
I turned back to my computer screen.
My hands slowly curled into fists.
I had expected something like this to happen.
But I hadn't expected it so soon.
Around noon, I received my first assignment.
I was to help prepare a report for an important meeting.
I read through the documents over and over.
There were a lot of figures that needed to be checked.
I didn't want to make a mistake.
Because I knew...
One small mistake could give people a reason to say I didn't belong here.
A few hours later, I found something strange.
One of the figures didn't match.
The project's total expenses differed from the previous report.
I hesitated.
Should I say something?
I was only a new employee.
Who would believe me?
But if I stayed silent and there really was a problem, I would be held responsible too.
In the end, I gathered my courage and went to see my supervisor.
"Excuse me."
The man looked at me.
"What is it?"
"I found a discrepancy in the data in this report."
He took the document from me.
He looked at it for a moment.
Then his expression changed.
"Are you sure?"
I nodded.
"I've checked it several times."
He immediately checked it again.
A few minutes later, he fell silent.
"You're right."
I was a little surprised.
"There was a data-entry error."
The man stared at me.
"How did you find this on your first day?"
I gave him a small smile.
"I was just trying to be thorough."
By late afternoon...
Word began to spread about the mistake the new employee had found in the report.
Not because I was seeking attention.
But because the error was serious enough, and it had been fixed before the meeting.
However, not everyone was happy.
Vanessa watched me from a distance.
She didn't look pleased.
"She just got here, and she's already attracting attention."
Someone beside her said,
"Maybe it's because Mr. Ethan has taken an interest in her."
Vanessa bit her lip.
"I want to know who she really is."
In the CEO's office...
Ethan read the report Surya had given him.
"The new employee found an error in the project report."
Ethan set the paper on his desk.
"Her name is Maya."
Surya smiled.
"It seems Your decision wasn't wrong after all."
Ethan remained silent.
He remembered how Maya had refused the money when another woman might have accepted it immediately.
How she had continued to worry about her mother even while she herself was hurting.
"She's different."
Ethan said the words quietly.
Surya looked at him.
"It's rare for you to say that someone is different."
Ethan didn't answer.
Because he didn't know why his thoughts kept returning to that woman, either.
That night, as I was about to leave...
I found a new message waiting for me.
It was from an unknown number.
"Maya, we need to talk."
I looked at the sender's name.
Adrian.
My heart stopped for a moment.
After everything that had happened...
After his family had thrown me away...
Why was he contacting me now?
I stared at my phone screen for a long time.
In the past, I might have answered right away.
But I'm not the same Maya anymore.
I had learned what it felt like to be humiliated by the person who was supposed to protect me.
I turned off my phone screen.
I didn't know...
That Adrian, who had once considered me worthless, was now beginning to fear losing me.
And I also didn't know...
That inside the same building, someone had begun to see me not as an ordinary woman...
But as someone who was slowly changing his life.