Like any girl with a hopeless crush, I never dared say a word about it. The bravest thing I ever did was send my résumé to his company. Being a little closer to him, staying near him in whatever small way I could—that was enough for me.
I worked myself half to death during that stretch, pulling overtime shifts and clawing for every scrap of skill I could gain.
All so that one day I'd be worthy of standing beside him, and I'd hear Drew Henson say with his own mouth:
"Delilah, I've had my eye on you for a long time."
But the market back then was brutal.
A campus star.
Step into the real world, and you're just a speck of dust caught in the current.
Of the people who joined the company the same time I did, some jumped ship, others switched industries entirely.
I was the only one still there beside Drew.
Once, the endless late nights finally caught up with me and I ended up in the hospital.
My parents were frantic, begging me every day to find a different job.
And that was exactly when Drew confessed.
He reached for my hand at the hospital bedside—no preamble, no buildup. His eyes were steady, already looking past me toward something only he could see.
"Delilah, stay by my side."
"I want you with me when we take Stellaris Group to the top."
Years of wanting him in silence, and it all came down to that one moment.
I couldn't have said no to him if I'd tried. Not with him looking at me like that.
All I could do was try harder.
Construction runs on dinners and drinks. I learned to walk in heels. Learned to hold court at tables full of executives twice my age. Learned how to plant my feet in a business that chews people up and spits them out.
Building a future alongside Drew was punishing.
I gave everything I had, and it was never enough to satisfy him.
He always said I hadn't done enough, hadn't given enough.
Always felt I wasn't truly trying my hardest.
Just like this time—even losing the baby after months of overwork and sleepless nights only got me:
"Delilah, the workplace is that cruel."
"As the head of Stellaris Group, I have to keep work and personal matters separate."
"The capable rise. Even if you're my wife, I can't show you any favoritism."
At the time I believed every word. I threw myself into proving I deserved my place.
Now I understand. All of it was just an excuse.
He was stern with me, cold with me, so measured it cut like cruelty—simply because he didn't love me.
My legs gave out and I hit the floor hard.
People in the break room glanced over, one after another. The second they saw it was me, every single one of them turned away and left.
Drew was right about one thing.
The workplace really is that cruel.
Nobody extends a hand to someone who's about to be eliminated.
But at least, over the past eight years,
I'd already learned to face everything alone.
No matter how bitter, no matter how hard, I could clench my teeth and stand back up on my own.
There were no spare clothes at the office.
I put in a leave request with HR and drove myself home.
Maybe it was just getting older.
The whole drive, I couldn't stop my mind from wandering.
Thinking about my past with Drew.
Thinking about how grueling the road here had been.
The more I thought, the less any of it felt worth it.
Over the years, plenty of companies had come knocking.
Salary and benefits ten times what Stellaris Group was giving me, easily.
I couldn't let go of Drew, so I turned them down, again and again.
Stayed stuck at the deputy director level, year after year.
Watching one new hire after another climb right over my head.
Before all this, I could still tell myself it meant something—that Drew had a plan for me.
