Content Warning

This chapter contains depictions of workplace harassment, psychological abuse, verbal humiliation, and coercive power dynamics. Reader discretion is advised.

Noah Harper, thirty-two years old, woke up with a start in the bedroom of his small apartment, his chest heaving and his skin slick with sweat. He had had an unpleasant dream —one that returned far too often. In it, he was barely a teenager, around thirteen years old, and he was bullying another boy: pushing him, mocking him, hurling cruel words at him. But the most disturbing part was not the violence itself, but what he kept repeating between shouts, as if he needed to convince himself: that he had never felt anything for him.

“Basti, understand! It’s what’s best for both of us.”

Basti was the other boy’s nickname, the one he humiliated in his dreams.

Noah lay staring at the ceiling for several minutes, trying to catch his breath. It wasn’t the first time that dream had visited him, and yet the discomfort lingered. Finally, he forced himself to get up. Work wouldn’t wait.

He had never told anyone, but,... during his university years, he had suffered a serious car accident. As a result, he lost part of his memory. He retained no clear recollections of his life in high school; his adolescence was a blank zone, an incomplete puzzle he preferred not to touch. That absence of memory unsettled him more than he was willing to admit.

After the accident, his mother, Claire, took care of him through years of therapy and rehabilitation. She was the one who held him together when his body and mind seemed not to respond. When he finally decided to live on his own, he did so convinced that he needed to regain his independence. Although his memories remained fragmented, he made an effort to lead a functional, orderly life, without depending on anyone else.

Since he had found a job —just three months earlier— at a prestigious advertising company located in the city center, called Blast Corp, he had decided to keep the work environment he was subjected to a secret. Even his mother was unaware of what went on there. He didn’t want to worry her.

***

That morning, he followed his routine with automatic precision: he showered, prepared his breakfast and lunch, carefully chose his clothes, and hurried out toward the bus stop. The commute passed in silence, like almost everything in his life lately.

There were more than enough reasons for Noah not to feel comfortable at that job, but he had been there far too little time to allow himself to quit. Since his arrival, one thing had been evident: his coworkers avoided him. They watched him with disdain, mocked him behind his back, as if he had committed an unforgivable offense.

Noah never understood why. He tried to be kind, to offer help, to greet them politely. The response was always the same: indifference or insults disguised as jokes, criticism of the way he spoke, his hair, the way he dressed.

An hour later, he arrived at the Blast Corp building. He rode the elevator up in silence and, upon entering the office, immediately felt the familiar tension. Over time, he had learned not to get close, not to speak more than necessary. He considered their behavior childish, even ridiculous. On one occasion, he confronted them and demanded explanations, but no one responded. Since then, he had decided to limit himself to doing his job.

He sat down at his cubicle and began his administrative tasks. He drafted reports, organized meetings, reviewed documents. He worked late into the night, sometimes even on weekends. No one seemed to notice.

Hours later, just as lunchtime was approaching, a voice called out to him from the doorway of a large, lavishly decorated office.

“Noah. Come here, now. I need to speak with you.”

It was Sebastian Cross, the company’s CEO, also thirty-two years old. He was dressed with impeccable elegance: designer clothes, confident posture, a presence that commanded respect —or fear. His blue eyes were intimidating, and his treatment of employees was cold, severe, distant. He possessed a kind of beauty that provoked all sorts of reactions, and that… pleased him.

Noah stood up immediately and walked toward his office without saying a word. He knew what Sebastian wanted. He had repeatedly demanded the delivery of a report for an upcoming meeting. The office was spacious and ostentatious, with a privileged view of the city.

Sebastian watched him coldly before allowing him to enter. Noah greeted him politely and handed over the documents. As with the rest of the office, he felt that his boss held a particular standard for him: harsher, stricter, more cruel. He treated him as if he were insignificant. Noah didn’t understand the reason, but he did his best to remain professional.

Sebastian took the report, skimmed through it with visible disdain, and without warning, threw the papers onto the desk.

“Do you really consider this decent?” he said. “Because to me, it’s a disaster.”

Noah frowned, confused.

“W-what did I do wrong, Mr. Cross?” he asked cautiously. “I can fix it.”

Sebastian sighed, as if his time were being wasted.

“Your work is as mediocre as you are.”

The blow was direct. Noah felt something tighten in his chest, but he still tried to defend himself.

“I’ve reviewed the data. The studies are in line with what will be presented at the meeting. I need to know what to correct so I can do it immediately, Mr. Cross.”

Sebastian smiled. It was not a kind smile. He approached him slowly, clearly savoring his discomfort.

“I can hire someone more competent at any moment,” he murmured venomously. “People who actually know how to do their job.”

Noah took a deep breath, trying to stand his ground.

“I was hired for my experience and skills. I’ve fulfilled my duties since I arrived. I’m only asking for the opportunity to continue working here.”

Sebastian looked him over, assessing him as if he were a disposable object.

“You are not valuable to this company,” he declared. “If you want to prove that you’re useful for something, you’ll have to push yourself much harder.”

Noah clenched his fists.

“If I’m not important, then y-you never should have hired me.”

Sebastian laughed, pleased.

“It was a mistake to do so,” he replied brusquely. “And I can replace you whenever I want. You’re nothing more than a pathetic employee.”

He stepped even closer. For a moment, he raised his hand, as if he were about to touch Noah’s cheek, almost possessively.

“S-stop,” Noah said firmly, stepping back. “I’m not here to endure… humiliation. Why are you doing this? Why do you find it so amusing?”

He then accused him of spreading rumors among his coworkers.

Sebastian immediately withdrew his hand.

“I’ve never spoken badly about you,” he replied. “Whatever,... this isn’t amusement. It’s justice.”

Noah didn’t understand. But Sebastian avoided explaining himself.

“If you want to prove that you’re a good employee,” he continued, “review all the reports from the last month. Organize them. Correct them. I want them in a week. And on top of that, prepare a presentation for tomorrow’s meeting.”

Noah’s eyes widened. It was impossible.

Before he could speak, Sebastian gestured toward a table near the door, covered by a mountain of papers.

“Take them. And now, get out of my office. I don’t like to wait.”

Noah checked the time. He would barely have time to eat lunch. He knew that workload would force him to stay very late. But he didn’t protest —he never did.

As he left, Sebastian watched him until he disappeared. His smile faded. He sat down at his desk, satisfied. Control was his… for now. The truth he wished to reveal to him could wait.

Noah headed back to his cubicle with his self-esteem in shreds and a mountain of documents in his arms. He felt that his work was worthless, but he pulled himself together quickly and began working on the presentation for the next day.

It took him hours. Then he moved on to the reports and found serious errors that required exhaustive revision.

Night fell. The office was empty, except for him… and Sebastian.

“You’d better arrive early tomorrow,” his boss warned him before leaving. “Before me, or… you’re fired.”

Noah panicked and kept working.

Sebastian left laughing, watching him humiliated. Minutes later, he drove to his penthouse in his expensive sports car, indifferent to what might happen afterward.

He didn’t care if Noah spent the night there. To him, that punishment was only the beginning. He had not forgotten what had happened in high school. He had not forgotten the humiliation. And he had no intention of forgiving him.