Chapter 20
After a few bland pleasantries, everyone silently turned back to their computers, as if I were invisible. The air was thick with silent exclusion.
"Your desk is over there," Amelia said, pointing with her perfectly manicured nail toward a spot in the corner directly facing the restroom door, her tone barely concealing her glee. "Once you're settled, come find me, and I'll assign you some work."
With that, she swayed her hips and click-clacked away in her heels, returning triumphantly to her director's office.
I walked over to the deliberately assigned workstation. A thin layer of dust covered the desk—clearly no one had used it in a long time.
The colleagues around me were all heads-down at their work, but I could feel countless eyes secretly watching my every move through the reflection of their computer screens, waiting to see me fail.
I calmly took out wet wipes from my bag and methodically cleaned the desk and chair, then turned on the computer.
Humiliating? Of course.
But these petty little tricks were nothing compared to the betrayal and pain Michael had once inflicted on me.
Amelia thought this would break me, make me give up, and leave.
She was wrong.
What I'm best at is crushing people who look down on me.
I ignored those pitying or spectating glances, tidied up my desk, and began reviewing all of StoryArc Media's project files.
Just as Benjamin had said, StoryArc Media was a tangled mess internally. Most projects were empty shells that existed only to support these nepotism hires—completely worthless.
I was getting a headache from reading when a coquettish laugh came from the other end of the office.
"My computer froze again, Nash. Come help me look at it." A female colleague wearing a knockoff Chanel suit and elaborate makeup was acting cute with a guy from the tech department.
The colleague named Nash immediately rushed over attentively, fixed the problem in no time, and she handed him a coffee with a sweet smile of thanks.
The surrounding colleagues weren't surprised at all—a few female colleagues even looked at her enviously.
I found her name in the HR files: Tessa White.
The "star employee" of Marketing Department Two, supposedly extremely capable, having signed several big deals and earned Amelia's trust.
But with just one glance at the shopping website on her computer screen and the error-filled project report on her desk, I knew she was another empty shell.
More interestingly, I learned from others' gossip that Tessa constantly hinted that she had family connections with the White Group's upper management.
She enjoyed this false prestige and used it as capital to boss people around in the department, distributing her work to male colleagues who had fantasies about her.
A fake socialite—how interesting.
Just as I was thinking this, the office's stale air was cut through by a bright figure.
Aurora walked in like a gust of wind in red heels. She took off her sunglasses, scanned the office, and her eyes finally landed on me. She was about to speak.
"Are you Ms. Rivera?" But Tessa stepped forward first.
She had clearly dressed up carefully today. Seeing Aurora in haute couture, a flash of jealousy crossed her eyes, but it was quickly covered by a professional smile.
She elegantly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, striking the most proper pose.
"Hello, I'm Tessa White from Marketing Department Two. I'll be in full charge of this collaboration with your studio." She extended her hand, her tone carrying unquestionable authority.
Aurora raised an eyebrow, glanced at Tessa, then at me sitting quietly in the corner playing the role of "newbie Luna," a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes. She didn't shake the hand hanging in mid-air, but lifted her chin and asked, "I have an appointment with Luna."
Tessa's smile froze for a moment, then she glanced at me, her tone taking on a hint of contempt and matter-of-factness. "You mean Luna—she's a new intern who doesn't know anything. Ms. Rivera, for such an important collaboration, we can't feel comfortable having a newbie handle it."
Just then, Amelia's office door opened.
She walked out slowly with her arms crossed, backing up Tessa. "Tessa's right. She's the backbone of our department, very experienced. Ms. Rivera, you can rest assured leaving the project with her."
She paused, her gaze turning to me with a tone like she was doing me a favor. "Luna, as a newbie, you should really treasure such a good learning opportunity. Just follow Tessa, take meeting notes, and learn something."
Tessa and Amelia perfectly excluded me while trying to pin the label of "ungrateful" on me.
Watching their clumsy performance, I just found it funny. I was worried about not having a chance to see what kind of weirdos were in this department, and they'd voluntarily stuck their faces out.
I stood up, showing just the right amount of awkwardness and flattery on my face, and bowed slightly to Tessa. "Tessa, you're so experienced. I'd love to learn from you. Could I sit in and take meeting notes? I promise not to disturb you."
My humble, pleasing manner greatly satisfied Tessa's vanity.
She lifted her chin proudly, speaking like a queen granting a favor: "Fine, you can follow along. Be sharp, and don't embarrass our department."
"Thank you, Tessa!" I said gratefully.
Aurora, on the side, almost couldn't hold back her laughter. She gave me a look—
In the conference room, Tessa naturally took the main seat. She casually flipped through two pages of the materials I'd prepared, then began boasting endlessly about her past "glorious achievements."
Aurora listened patiently for five minutes before finally interrupting her. "Ms. White, I think we can discuss those later. Now, can we talk about your initial ideas for our collaboration?"
Tessa's expression froze—clearly she hadn't prepared anything.
She cleared her throat, trying to bluff her way through. "Ms. Rivera's designs are very... very beautiful, very artistic! I think we could first spread some press releases on a few social media platforms, create some buzz, like 'Genius Designer Returns Home'—what do you think?"
Aurora's mouth twitched. The fake smile on her face was about to crack.
I kept my head down, pretending to take notes seriously, while actually texting Aurora under the table: [Don't worry, let her perform.]
Aurora took a deep breath and continued guiding her. "My brand positioning is accessible luxury custom design. The target audience is elite women aged 25 to 40 with independent financial means and aesthetic taste. Which specific social media platforms are you talking about? What's the focus of the content distribution? And what's the budget and expected conversion rate?"