Sereia's POV
I removed the freshly printed financial forecast for the next three months before stapling it.
I came to work today to say my goodbyes to Hana and Elliot, if he let me.
Yesterday, I invited my mother over and we attempted to start planning my father's funeral.
Of course, she got high and tried to share with me, I almost gave into the urge, but I didn't.
As soon as my father gets buried, I'll be out of Chicago.
I've already put my house up for sale this morning and have applied to buy a house in Maine.
It's a small, one-bedroom white cottage at the lakefront.
I can already imagine myself waking up to that each morning.
My office door suddenly swung open before Elliot stormed in with a menacing look on his face.
I flinched when he slammed the door so hard that the workers from outside turned to look inside.
"Tell me it's not true," he glared at me.
I stood up and immediately closed the blinds so that people couldn't see us.
"Tell me!" he shouted and I flinched again.
I've never seen him this angry before.
He's always calm and collected.
I looked into his raging eyes and they were no longer soft and delicate. They were furious and filled with a fire that made me step away from him.
His glare was as if the intensity of his anger could scorch everything in its path.
"I had to," I said softly. "I had to do it for Violet. I'm sorry that you didn't find out from me. I was going to tell you."
"Are you even sorry for being a liar to me?" he asked. "Was it all fake? Were those feelings you claimed to have for me real?"
Before I could answer him, he shook his head and continued. "Never mind. I don't want to know."
"I can't stand liars, you're fired," he spat at me. "Consider this the end of your career. I'll make sure no one hires you."
I held back my tears because I knew this was coming.
I then picked up the financial forecast I made for him and handed it to him. "For the next three months."
He looked at it distastefully before throwing it in the trash can. "Your replacement will handle that."
I clenched my jaw as I stared at my hard work in the trash.
"She cheats on you," I blurted out and his eyes darkened. "With Mr. Reed."
He took a step closer to me, his eyes still raging at me. "How long have you known?"
I stayed quiet.
He's better off just hating me for good.
"How long Sereia?" he asked. "Was it before or after you saw me feel like shit for liking you while trying to honour my marriage?"
I straightened my posture and looked him right in the eyes. "I've always known."
He took a step back as he shook his head in belief.
"You're a fool," I told him. "Everyone around you deceives you and you're too blind to see it. You couldn't even realize that the woman you like was lying to you the whole time."
"Is this why you have nightmares?" he asked. "Is the reason you can't sleep at night because you're so cruel?"
"Yeah and so what?" I glared at him. "I've done what I came here to do and you were just a part of my plan."
"I'll ruin you," he threatened and I laughed.
"I'd like to see you try," I told him. "There is nothing you can do that will hurt me, Elliot. I don't care about anything."
"I don't even recognize you anymore. You're not the Sereia I was with last week."
"Because it was all a lie!" I shouted. "Everything was. I never cared for you and I never meant any of the promises I made. You never knew the real me."
"Well, I hope I never have to see you again," he said. "Leave before I ask security to escort you out."
When he stormed out of my office, I sat down and let out a deep breath.
This isn't how I wanted us to end.
I wanted to explain everything to him and apologize, but that obviously didn't happen.
The door opened again and I could hear loud whispers from outside before Hana popped in.
"Is everything okay?" she asked as she closed the door behind her.
I stood up and picked up the empty boxes which I was supposed to throw away last week. "Everything is fine. Help me pack."
"Are you changing offices?" she asked confused as she grabbed a box and started to help.
"No," I said nonchalantly, hiding my tears the best I could. "I just got fired."
"What?" she snapped her neck to look at me. "Did your test come back positive?"
I shook my head, proud that I at least had that. "No, I did something to upset him."
She stayed quiet for a while before speaking up again. "And that's it? You're just going to let him ruin your career because of that? You're still so young. You have many more years of work to do."
"Maybe I'll start a flower shop," I attempted to joke so that the mood would lighten, but she frowned instead.
"It's not funny Sereia," she told me. "You're too qualified for Elliot Harrington to fire you."
"It's fine," I said as I threw my jacket in the box. "I expected this when I did what I did."
"Sereia," she frowned and I forced myself to smile.
"It's fine," I repeated. "Now help me with these boxes to my car before the securities do."
She sighed as she picked up the box and opened the door.
When we walked out of the room, I saw the shock on the staff's faces as they discreetly began to whisper about me.
"Don't worry about them," Hana whispered to me. "They're just glad for gossip."
As we continued to walk, I saw Elliot and Olivia quietly arguing in the corner.
She grabbed onto his shirt and began tugging it as she cried.
Elliot rolled his eyes before they suddenly landed on me.
I gave him a look, begging him not to hate me, but he ignored it.
He pulled Olivia's hands off his chest before walking in the opposite direction of me.
She dropped to the floor crying.
"Well, looks like their relationship is on the verge of divorce," Hana assumed before she pulled me to the elevator.
I tried to pretend that the look Elliot gave me didn't hurt.
It felt like a stab in the chest when he walked away.
I hurt knowing that every feeling he manage to make me feel and every memory we shared would just be another moment in my past; something I reminisce about when I'm sad.
I shouldn't feel guilty for getting justice for Violet.
I shouldn't have even become attached to him in the first place. This is my fault.
"Promise me that we'll stay in touch," she told me as we stepped into the elevator.
I smiled. "Only if you promise me you'll take by position by next year."
"I guess we won't keep in touch then," she said. "There's no way I'll reach to be where you're at, especially in a year."
"Well, at least promise to try, okay?" I asked as my tears finally fell.
I couldn't hold them in any longer.
I held them in when my father died right in front of me, when I confronted Olivia, and when Elliot said he never wanted to see me again.
This was too much to hold in.
Hana immediately dropped the box that was in her hand and hugged me. "Oh, Sereia."
I wiped my tears and sucked my sadness in.
"I'm sorry," I apologized as I pulled away from her hug. "I'm fine."
She bit her button lip to refrain from saying her thoughts as she picked up the box.
My lips began to quiver uncontrollably as my eyes burned when realization hit.
This was the last time I will ever see him.
...
Hey guys, what are you thoughts on Sereia this chapter? Are we liking or hating her?