On the tenth floor.

The small meeting room by the corner had become a temporary haven for Sienna and Mia. They sat facing each other, with their laptops untouched on the table, as if they had silently decided that work could pause for now.

Neither of them had officially started their day.

Neither of them could.

The reason was simple, because of Riley. Or, more specifically, whatever might have happened to him.

What had happened the night before still lingered in their minds. Riley had left without offering any real explanation, brushing off their questions with that annoyingly calm expression of his.

Even this morning, there had been no message, no update, no hint from him.

Nothing that could settle the unease slowly growing inside both of them.

Now it was already past nine, and he still hadn’t shown up.

Mia tapped her fingers lightly against the table, her brows drawn together as she stared at the empty chair beside Sienna.

"Was he really fired?" she finally asked, her voice soft but unable to hide the worry underneath.

Sienna didn’t answer right away.

Instead, she reached for her phone and opened the company’s internal forum, scrolling through announcements, updates, and the endless collection of pointless gossip threads employees treated like breaking international news.

Her eyes moved quickly across the screen, searching for anything—any mention of Riley, any official notice—but there was nothing.

After a moment, she lowered her phone and glanced at Mia before shaking her head.

"No announcement," she said calmly. "Maybe someone’s trying to mess with him."

Mia released a small breath, nodding quickly as if she desperately needed that possibility to remain true.

"You’re right," Mia said, her tone gaining a little confidence. "I thought the same thing last night. It’s just... impossible for him to get fired."

Sienna didn’t respond immediately this time. She placed her phone on the table and leaned back in her chair, reaching for her latte and taking a slow sip. On the outside, she looked completely composed, perfectly calm.

Inside, however, her thoughts refused to settle. A tiny part of her believes the text message was official.

Because she knew, Riley wasn’t the type to joke about something like this. And he definitely wasn’t the type to disappear without a word.

Something had happened. But, she didn’t know what.

While Sienna was lost in thought, Mia watched her for a moment before tilting her head slightly, her curiosity shifting to another direction.

Then, suddenly, she asked, "How about you, Sienna...?"

Sienna was a bit puzzled as she asked, "What about?"

Mia paused for a moment before asking, "When will you begin working upstairs for your promotions?"

The question lingered in the air, instantly changing Sienna’s mood.

Sienna let out a quiet sigh, her fingers tightening slightly around her cup. Of all the things Mia could bring up right now, it had to be that. Because she didn’t want to talk about it.

Worst of all, she didn’t want to leave this floor, this team, this comfortable space she had grown attached to. But reality rarely cared about personal preferences.

The email from HR had been perfectly clear; she had to move.

"Effective next Monday," she answered at last, her voice softer than before.

Mia’s expression immediately fell, and the sadness in her eyes became more obvious.

"I’ll miss you," she admitted honestly. "You have to come visit us often, okay?"

Sienna couldn’t help but laugh softly at that.

"Oh my gosh, Mia," she said, shaking her head. "You’re acting like I’m leaving the company forever."

"Well, it feels like it," Mia admitted softly.

"You’re still in my division," Sienna reminded her, her tone lighter now. "Obviously, I’ll come here often. Or who knows? Maybe you’ll be the ones coming upstairs someday."

Mia laughed, though a hint of sadness still lingered in her gaze.

"I just worry you’ll forget us."

Sienna rolled her eyes. "You overthink too much," she said. "Alright, enough emotional damage for one morning. We need to—"

She stopped mid-sentence.

Her gaze shifted past Mia, landing on the glass panel of the meeting room.

Riley had just walked into the office.

Sienna’s hands immediately tightened into fists as she tried to read his expression from a distance. But his face revealed absolutely nothing.

He looks calm and neutral, as if nothing had happened at all.

Somehow, that made everything worse.

Without wasting another second, Sienna stood abruptly and waved at him, signaling for him to come over.

Mia turned around to follow her gaze, and the moment she spotted Riley, she nearly jumped out of her chair.

Before Riley could even greet them properly, Sienna had already grabbed his wrist and pulled him into the meeting room, shutting the door behind them with a firm click.

"Sit," Sienna ordered.

Riley raised an eyebrow but obeyed, lowering himself into the chair while keeping his eyes fixed on her.

Mia quickly moved closer, scanning his face, "How is it?" she asked immediately. "Was the text true? Or did something go wrong? Maybe they sent it by mistake?"

Sienna stood there, staring sharply at Riley. "Riley, please tell us if they sent it wrong," she said.

For a moment, Riley said nothing.

Then a small, reassuring smile tugged at his lips.

"Unfortunately, it’s true," he said casually. "I got fired."

Sienna and Mia froze.

If time itself had stopped moving at that exact moment, neither of them would have noticed.

Mia’s mouth parted slightly, but no words came out.

Sienna simply stared at him, her brain refusing to process what she had just heard.

Silence filled the room.

After a few seconds, Sienna finally inhaled sharply, forcing herself to speak. "Why?" she asked, her voice controlled but visibly shaken. "Why would they suddenly fire you?"

Mia snapped out of her shock and sat across from Riley, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "Wait! Riley, please tell me this is a prank..."

Riley narrowed his eyes on Mia. "Why would I prank you?"

"Because you’re way too calm about this. I mean, if that happened to me, I would cry!"

He smirked, "So, should I cry?"