The next day, Faye re-entered the Lon Company and was going up the elevator. Once she exited the elevator, she spotted Eve timidly talking to Dave for the first time. Faye entered the office, not wanting to interfere with Eve's love drama. She sat in her chair and saw the laptop was still open. She glanced at the presentation and report to see Eve was on the right track. The door opened, and Eve entered the office. "How does it look?" Eve said, super curious and eager to improve.
"You are on the right start," Faye said. "Great!" Eve said as she smiled so brightly. "What should I do next?" Eve asked.
"Your outline is great. Now, it's time for you to input all the research you have done in the presentation and report," Faye said.
"Okay!" she eagerly nodded her head and started working on the presentation and report. While Eve was working on the presentation, Leo passed by their office and saw how Faye would casually teach and point out issues that Eve needed to fix here and there. "Sir, the meeting is ready for you," Dave reported behind him.
"Alright," Leo responded as he took one more look at Faye's guidance. A sudden smile appeared on Leo's face as he noticed the potential Faye had that she seemed to try to hide.
Faye left first again. Eve was going to try and leave at the same time as Dave. Faye entered the elevator, and before the door closed, it re-opened again. Leo entered the elevator as well. They both looked into each other's eyes before Faye looked away. They rode the elevator in silence before Faye's phone rang. She answered the phone, "What's the problem, Andrea?"
"Faye, what should we do? The company we usually get the roses from had a major flower infection and can't send us any flowers. We have massive orders of roses coming up. Also, a couple of our tea plants have started to be infected. What should we do? We can't stop manufacturing," Andrea said in distress while Faye listened carefully.
"First, contact the buyers and inform them of the news about the roses. Then send them a list of flowers that we have instead that look like roses, and ask if those can work. Also, tell them that we will give them a discount for the inconvenience. As for the tea plants, immediately tell the farmers to separate the infected plants from the not infected plants. Then dispose of the infected plants and even the ones that have the slightest sign of infection. Then tell the farmers to report to us what they have been doing, so we can figure out what has caused the issue," Faye instructed through the phone, while Leo curiously watched Faye. "Can you guys manage the rest?" Faye asked.
"Yes, and I will report back to Robert," Andrea said before ending the call. Leo quietly glanced at Faye. He was impressed that Faye could handle and manage the issue. His eyes showed great interest and quietly smiled before exiting the elevator. Faye watched Leo exit the elevator first and find it funny that he hasn't done or said anything to irritate her lately. She assumed that he would irritate her these past few days.
The days went by, and it was time to present their presentation. The four of them (Faye, Eve, Leo, and Dave) were in the conference room, and Eve was the only one standing up in the front. Eve was presenting the findings and the best company to invest in was Green Star. After Eve had finished, Leo seriously stared at Eve as Eve felt cold shivers go down her spine.
"You say that Green Star is a better company than Roseville, but how can you prove that? You point out the reasons, but where's the evidence to prove that what you say is true? How can you explain the reason when I don't see the evidence? Do you think your words are enough to back you up? Where are your resources? How can you call this a report," Leo scolded Eve. Eve's face toned down as she slightly trembled.
At that moment, Faye slammed a black binder in front of Leo. "Here is the evidence and resources," Faye said, coldly. Leo opened the binder and saw all the charts and information on Green Star's sales and productivity. The binder also had Roseville downfalls, like their charts and information of their inconstant sale and productivity and the history of the land they purchased of how it was cheaply bought with a horrible soil foundation. Faye had prepared this in the background just in case Eve had forgotten to show the evidence of her findings.
"I inform you that she is my assistant, and you don't have any right to scold my employee. If you have something to say, then you can talk to me. I will not tolerate your behavior," Faye said, deadly.
Leo smiles before closing the binder, "Alright, I apologize for my behavior and listen to your words. However, I am surprised that you have a great deal of knowledge in business. I thought you had majored in floriculture and became a tea sommelier. Have you taken any business courses?" Leo was pleased that Faye was doing the work, as he assumed she had let Eve do everything.
Faye felt like he saw right through her and knew her secret. "I have not," her face was grim as she recalled her torture memories of her majoring in business and fashion in her past life.
"It seems like you are denying it," Leo said, seeing her hidden past.
"Why does it matter to you?" Faye said coldly. She held her hand together to stop herself from trembling. "Why don't you take advantage of it to help you? You do an excellent job in managing business, but you let someone else take your credit and effort. Why are you willing to be in the background?" Leo's words echo in her heart.
"Why does it matter? It's not like I'll be noticed," Faye said as she tried to hide her pain.
"I think it's not that you haven't been noticed, but rather that you've been stolen from your spotlight," Leo said. In that moment, Faye recalls her past memories that every time she received a reward for being at the top of her class or business rewards when she was going to inform her parents about the good news, Rin would always announce something to draw their attention to her instead, as Faye was forgotten in the background like she wasn't heard.
Faye couldn't stay there any longer, or her past would be exposed. She abruptly left the conference room. "Why are you running away from it?" Leo had followed her out.
Faye stopped and turned her back before saying, "I'm letting it go," as she could still remember and hear her grandmother's words in her head.
"It doesn't look like you are letting it go. It's more like you are running away," Leo said. Faye's heart trembled and said, "What's the difference between running away and letting it go? It's the same concept."
"Running away is letting it control you while letting it go is not letting it control you. Why not face it, and then you can embrace it to help you improve yourself," Leo's words had a deeper meaning as he was talking about business and something more.
"I don't need to face it. It's not worth my time. I'm letting it go," Faye entered the elevator, and her finger trembled as she pushed the first-floor button. She didn't understand how he could see through her. Why was he the one who could break her?
She remembered her past. She would constantly study all night long, trying to do her best. She would have business and fashion classes during the day, so the only time she had to study and do her assignments was at night. She would stay up all night long to finish her assignments.
She clearly remembers the day that everything went horribly. That day she was busy preparing for the fashion show for the next day as she could only study for her final business exam that night. She had overworked herself until she had a nosebleed. However, she couldn't stop studying, and before she knew it was the next day. She didn't get proper sleep or meal, so when the fashion show was beginning, she was feeling light-headed and dizzy. She accidentally stumbled and bumped into Rin, who was fixing her dress, and before Faye knew it, she and Rin had fallen on the ground as Rin had a ripped piece of her dress in her hand. Someone screamed in shock as everyone was in shock and looking at them. Everyone was rushing towards Rin to help her up. They all saw what was in Rin's hand and glared at Faye, who was slowly getting herself up with her right hand holding her head as she hit her head on the floor.
"How dare you push Rin?" someone said. "I didn't mean it...," Faye tried to say.
"Look at what you did! How dare you ruin Rin's dress? What is she going to do now!" another person yelled at her while others were trying to comfort Rin.
"Since you ruined Rin's dress, you have to let her use yours instead. You better take responsibility!" They forced Faye to take responsibility. In the midst of everything, Rin didn't say anything, but she smiled in secret.
Faye didn't participate since she had no other dress to show, so she received a zero in the grading. She silently watched the show from backstage. After the show, she received a slap from her mother, "I heard you ruin Rin's dress. That's why she didn't win first place. Are you happy?"
"Mother..., it's not like that," Faye tried to defeat herself again.
"Auntie, it wasn't Faye's fault. It was an accident," Rin said.
"Rin, you are too nice," Faye's mother said. "Fine, I'll let it go," Faye's mother said, showing great disappointment in Faye as Faye stood there, unjustified.
Before Faye could leave the show to take her business exam, everyone forced her to do the cleanup since she made the mess. So, Faye stayed behind cleaning up as she was still not feeling well but continued to force herself to clean. By the time she finished, she had to run to make it on time for the exam. She hurried to her exam, but her body couldn't endure it any longer, so she fainted and was brought to the hospital. When she woke up, she had missed the exam, and she was all alone in the hospital. The nurse told her that all the people on her phone went straight to voicemail, so they couldn't contact anyone.
As a result of missing the final exam, she failed her business class. The sound of a slap was heard. Faye's father finished slapping her before shouting, "I'm greatly disappointed in you! I guess you will never be as talented as Rin! No matter how much you try, you can't be compared to her level." Faye coldly listened to his words as she had to retake the course again. By the time she graduated from college, her reputation got ruined because of Rin. Faye clenched her fist as she hated those memories as she silently waited for the elevator to open.
---
"What do you mean you can't find her? Didn't I pay you to find answers? So do your job properly! In two days, I want news," Rin was screaming into the phone before hanging up. Rin was in her room with her hand clenching on her phone. She has been staying home for a couple of days to stay away from the paparazzi and hoping the social media will die down about her.
However, she wasn't going to let Faye escape as she hired someone to tailor her, but for some reason, they couldn't find Faye. She couldn't find any information about Faye's whereabouts or inside information about Faye as it angered her to death. She didn't understand how a woman like her could disappear in thin air.