Everything blurred for a moment. Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes as the words crashed over her like a deafening bell. Her stunned gaze swept across the crowd, faces closing in, curiosity sharpening into judgment.
The floor beneath her felt unsteady, as if it might give way and swallow her whole.
Her chest rose and fell painfully, a tight knot twisting in her stomach until breathing became difficult. She clenched the strap of her bag, her hands trembling so violently she thought it might tear under her grip.
She stood there—exposed, cornered—while the whispers continued to strip her bare, trapping her in the storm of a calculated office sabotage.
"Who leaked all this? My previous marriage? The pregnancy? And these absurd photos?" she mumbled, her lips quivering.
Stumbling toward the bulletin board, she tore down one picture with trembling fingers.
Then another.
And another.
