The Night I Left, He Turned Grey

Leila remembered. He was the man in the hotel elevator—the one who had reminded her to press the floor button.

Back then, she had been anxious about being recognized, so she kept her head lowered and used her hair as a shield. That also blocked her view of everything around her.

All she could recall from that moment was a pair of polished, red-soled leather shoes and a tall, lean silhouette. She had never seen his face.

It was Nathaniel Cole—the head of the Cole Group. And now, he was her boss.

When they were in the café, Leila sat upright, meeting Nathaniel’s gaze with steady composure, while he regarded her with a faint, knowing smile.

"Remember now?" he asked again.

"I do," Leila said, nodding. "Thank you, President Cole."

"What are you two talking about?" Cherry leaned dramatically across the table, eyes darting between them. "What did you remember, Pretty Leila?"

Leila wasn’t used to the nickname, but seeing Cherry’s bright, expectant expression, she really didn’t know what else to say.

Sean’s sister Cecilia was also talkative, but Leila had always found her exhausting. Cherry, on the other hand, felt more like an overexcited little kid than an annoyance.

"President Cole and I met before," Leila said.

"Yeah," Nathaniel nodded.

Cherry’s eyes widened. "Where? I’ve never heard him mention this before!"

"At a hotel," Leila replied.

"Wow!!!" Cherry nearly shot out of her seat. "You two—don’t tell me—AAAAH! This calls for a celebration!"

Her excitement was abruptly cut off when Nathaniel reached over and covered her mouth, warning her with a glare.

Cherry nodded obediently, though she clearly didn’t want to.

"Sit properly," Nathaniel said flatly. "Stop fidgeting."

"Okay, okay!" She straightened immediately, then leaned toward Leila in a whisper. "Don’t be fooled by him. He looks fierce, but he’s worse when you’re not looking."

Leila let out a soft laugh.

"That’s why no one wants my brother as a boyfriend. Our parents are already stressed from all the blind dates they’ve set up for him."

Leila didn’t respond. She simply sipped her coffee, calm as if the noise around her belonged to another world entirely. But she couldn’t—Cherry kept talking like a small, unstoppable radio.

"Pretty Leila, are you really not from R&D? You’ve got that vibe. I can tell! I’m stuck in the lab every day with those old-timers. It’s torture. I’m only twenty-two, and I’m rich and happy. I don’t need overloaded work! But for my son, I still need to put in some effort. Oh yeah, are you really going to work in the President’s Office? My brother already has a special assistant and two secretaries. You’d be the third. That’s such a waste of talent. But you’re resigning, right—and ah! What’s that for, Nath!"

Nathaniel had just given the back of her hand a light slap.

"You talk too much," Nathaniel said.

"Then what? I don’t want to be like you." Cherry shot back. "Two words every half hour and leave everyone guessing what you mean. Pretty Leila, working for him is going to be tough. Torture, even."

Leila smiled faintly.

Cherry felt that Leila genuinely liked her and said, "Also, thank you for catching me today—I would’ve hit the ground hard—and thank you for helping with my data. We’re friends from now on!"

She pulled out her phone eagerly. "Can we exchange contacts? I promise I won’t bother you too much, but please let me visit you sometime, okay?"

Leila hesitated for just a moment, then took out her phone. But the screen wasn’t responding, and there was a crack running down the left side.

Cherry pressed her lips together, thinking, ’It’s so shabby not to get a new phone when this one looks so broken.’ But she was well-mannered and didn’t say anything. Instead, she used her own phone to add Leila to her contacts.

Leila was aware that her phone looked worn out, and she hadn’t shared her thoughts with anyone else. But somehow, she spoke of her own accord. "I can’t afford a new one. I spent all my savings on the family."

Cherry pursed her lips, sounding genuinely sad. "Your family is lucky to have you... But you’re not very lucky."

Leila hadn’t expected to get sympathy from a young girl, and she felt some warmth flow into her heart.

Nathaniel, who had been silent all along, said, "So President Sinclair can’t even afford a phone worth a few hundred dollars? And he can’t cover household expenses? It seems his company has no humanity within."

Leila froze. Nathaniel had looked into her background.

She stood up and said, "Miss Cole, I’m done with coffee. Thank you. And, President Cole, what do I need to do at work?"

"Zachary will brief you."

"Understood," Leila replied and left.

Nathaniel leaned back in his chair and took a slow sip of coffee, warning, "No Americano next time."

"I’m used to that sort of coffee. It keeps you awake—especially useful for hardworking researchers!" Cherry muttered. "Nath, who’s President Sinclair? You seem to have upset her!"

"This is adult business. Stay out of it." Nathaniel stood up and strode away.

"I don’t think you can catch up with her!" Cherry muttered. "Even with those long legs!"

THUD!

A hand caught the elevator door that was just about to close. Leila was taken aback. When the doors opened again, Nathaniel stepped in with composure.

Leila took a step aside and said, "Greetings, President Cole."

"Greetings." Nathaniel threw her a sidelong glance and noticed she was quite absent-minded. So he didn’t dig further.

Leila didn’t say anything either. She just walked out of the elevator with Nathaniel and met Zachary, who was going to brief her on her work duties.

Her work mostly consisted of scheduling agendas—meetings, business trips, and collaborations. It was very easy for Leila.

"Leila learns fast," Zachary said to Nathaniel.

"Okay." Nathaniel replied, then asked as he looked up, "How much does someone like President Sinclair of Stellaxis Technologies make a year?"

Zachary was lost for words. Was President Cole trying to poach talent? He replied, "Tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. For someone at his level, it’s likely over $738,000, excluding shares." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Most directors at high levels in a company would receive shares, and the dividends would be much more than their salary, no matter how small the shares could be.

Nathaniel sneered. "Interesting. He has so much money, and his wife still uses an outdated phone? And she even has to cover living expenses with her low salary?"

Zachary nudged his glasses upward and said with a tone of wisdom, "Either he loses at the stock market or gambling. Or he spends the money on some other woman rather than his wife." Then he added, "I heard that Ms. Lynch has moved into their residence."

Nathaniel gave a mocking smile. "You have a lot to share."

"Just doing my job, Sir."

Nathaniel’s gaze went through the glass door and looked at Leila at her desk, snapping, "She is a piece of work... Get her in."

Zachary did what he was told, and Leila walked in, asking, "Greetings, President Cole, what can I do for you?"

"Are you good at data processing?"

"Not very."

"Process all the data from this report within 24 hours."

Leila stepped forward and took the stacks of files into her arms. She had trained herself well in arms by moving equipment in the lab and making food at home.

Nathaniel was stunned. He had wanted to instruct someone to help her, but now he withdrew the words. She looked skinny, but she had strength.

What did Sean Sinclair make her do at home? Nathaniel thought and frowned.