Click.
The screen glowed softly in the dim room. A list of reports, projections, and financial breakdowns filled the display. Lily scrolled through them with one hand, the other tapping against the armrest of her chair in thought.
The biotech proposal was still open in another tab.
"Unlocking human potential."
It sounded like something pulled straight from a science fiction novel, but the numbers didn’t lie. The research was in its early stages, but the data they had collected was solid. Cell regeneration. Enhanced cognitive functions. Increased physical capabilities.
If this worked…
A new market. A revolution.
She leaned back, her eyes narrowing. But also a risk.
Investing in something like this wasn’t just about money. It was about ethics, power, control. If she stepped into this, she wouldn’t just be funding a company—she’d be playing god with the future of human evolution.
Her lips curled slightly.
"And why not?"
A vibration on her desk broke her focus.
Her phone. Another message.
Alice: "Miss Lily, do you want me to set up a meeting with the biotech team?"
Lily stared at the message for a second before typing back.
Lily: "Yes. As soon as possible."
A pause. Then, another reply.
Alice: "Understood. Tomorrow at 10 AM."
She locked her phone and exhaled.
Her past still lingered, the echoes of betrayal still whispering at the back of her mind. But it was just that—an echo.
What mattered now wasn’t what she had lost.
It was what she was about to gain.
Lily shut her laptop with a soft click. The glow of the screen faded, leaving only the dim light from the city outside to illuminate the room.
Tomorrow.
A new opportunity.
She exhaled, rolling her shoulders before standing up. Her body still ached from the hours spent hammering at the punching bag earlier. The soreness in her muscles was a quiet reminder of the emotions she had forcefully buried beneath layers of logic and ambition.
No more distractions.
She walked to the mini-bar in the corner of her penthouse, pouring herself a glass of water. As she sipped, her gaze wandered to the large glass window overlooking the skyline.
The city stretched endlessly before her, a sea of artificial lights glowing against the dark horizon. From up here, everything seemed small. Insignificant.
Just like emotions.
Just like love.
A bitter smirk tugged at her lips. I was a fool.
Her fingers tightened around the glass for a moment before she forced herself to relax.
It didn’t matter. Not anymore.
Tomorrow, she would step into something bigger. Something beyond the trivial heartbreak of human relationships.
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With a final sip, she placed the glass down and turned off the lights.
Tonight, she would rest.
Tomorrow, she would change the future.
Lily lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Even with her body exhausted, sleep refused to come. The events of the day still played in her mind, but she no longer felt the sharp sting of betrayal—just a distant, muted ache, like an old wound.
Her phone buzzed on the nightstand.
Another message.
She reached for it lazily, expecting another update from Alice. Instead, the screen displayed a name she hadn’t seen in a while.
[Mom]
Lily hesitated before unlocking her phone.
Mom: "Lily, are you okay? You haven't called in a while."
She sighed. A part of her wanted to ignore it. To pretend she hadn’t seen it. But she knew her mother—if she didn’t reply, she’d just keep messaging until Lily gave in.
Lily: "I’m fine. Just busy with work."
The reply came almost instantly.
Mom: "I saw the news today. About him. Are you sure you’re okay?"
Lily’s grip on her phone tightened. News?
She quickly searched his name. Within seconds, a dozen headlines popped up.
"CEO’s Secret Affair Exposed—Fiancée Betrayed!" "Power Couple No More: Infidelity Rocks the Business World!" "Lily Melanova’s Silence—What Comes Next?"
Lily scoffed. So now they care?
For months, the media had praised them as a "perfect match"—a young, talented businessman and his equally successful fiancée. But the moment scandal hit, they turned on him without hesitation.
She closed the article. She didn’t need to read the details. She had lived them.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard.
What was she supposed to say? That she had cried? That she had been humiliated? That she had punched a sandbag until her knuckles bruised just to feel something other than rage?
No.
She wasn’t that girl anymore.
Lily: "I really don’t care."
A pause. Then—
Mom: "You don’t have to pretend to be strong all the time, sweetheart."
Lily let out a breathless laugh. Pretend?
Strength wasn’t something she pretended to have. It was something she had built. Something she had earned.
And tomorrow, she would prove it.
Placing her phone back on the nightstand, she finally closed her eyes.
Sleep came quickly this time.
Lily woke up the next morning, the soft light of dawn creeping through the curtains. Her body felt heavier than usual, as if the weight of the night had not fully let go. Her eyes were still tired, still carrying the weight of the conversations she hadn’t had yet, the promises she hadn’t kept to herself.
She sat up slowly, letting the cool air of the morning brush against her skin. Her phone buzzed once again, this time with a reminder from Alice, her personal assistant. Business awaited, and for Lily, it always did. The mess of emotions she’d felt yesterday—the betrayal, the anger, the hurt—had already begun to fade into the background. It was time to move forward. She didn’t have the luxury of lingering in the past.
"Meeting in an hour, Lily. Do you need anything?" Alice’s message blinked at her from the screen.
Lily sighed, her fingers tapping on the screen as she read the message over and over. Everything was still in motion. There was no stopping now, no pausing to breathe. She had to keep going, even if it was just to prove to herself that she could.
"I’m fine. Just send me the details."
She set the phone down and stood, stretching her arms above her head. Her thoughts drifted, but only for a moment—then it was back to business. She had a meeting in an hour, and she needed to be sharp.
The world outside her window was busy, filled with the usual noise of a city that never slowed down. Yet, for Lily, everything seemed distant. The world of the press, her ex-fiancé, his betrayal—it was all background noise. She didn’t have time for it. She needed to focus on something that mattered, something she could control.
She made her way to the kitchen, the hum of the coffee machine filling the silence around her. Her hands moved automatically, as they had a thousand times before, preparing breakfast in a practiced routine. A quick meal, a few moments of calm before the storm of the day.
But as she stood there, waiting for the coffee to brew, a thought passed through her mind. Could she really move on from this?
The answer was simple: she had to. She wasn’t going to waste time feeling sorry for herself, not when there were so many things she could build, so many things to accomplish. She had more than enough to keep her mind occupied.
As the coffee dripped slowly into the pot, Lily leaned against the counter, her thoughts wandering back to the previous night. She remembered the anger, the frustration, but mostly, she remembered how she had fought it. Not with tears or tantrums, but with focus. That was how she survived. That was how she thrived.
Her phone buzzed again—this time, an email from one of the investors she had been negotiating with for weeks. The subject line read: Finalizing Details for the New Deal.
Lily’s heart beat a little faster. She opened the email, her fingers scrolling through the figures, the strategies, the terms. This was it. This was the future she had been working for, the future that had no room for personal drama or heartbreak.
"I can’t let this go to waste." She whispered the words to herself, almost as a promise. The deal was huge, and it was one step closer to making her vision for the company a reality.
She had a plan. She had a future. The past? Well, the past was just a shadow.
Lily finished her coffee quickly, gathered her things, and left the apartment. Her mind was sharp, her thoughts no longer consumed by betrayal but by the deal that lay ahead. She’d let herself feel for one night, but today was about moving forward.
As she stepped into the elevator, her reflection in the mirrored doors showed a woman with fire in her eyes. A woman who had learned the hard way that nothing was handed to her—everything had to be earned.
Today was going to be a good day.
To be Continue...
Lily wakes up, a new day but the weight of the past still lingers. She knows she can’t afford to dwell on the pain. The future waits for no one. With business at the forefront of her mind, she pushes forward, determined to not let emotions get in the way of her goals. As she prepares for a crucial meeting, Lily realizes that the path ahead is one she must carve herself. Can she truly move on from the betrayal? Will she focus only on what lies ahead?