Five years ago...
Narrator
It was early evening. Elizabeth sat in the living room, animatedly recounting her day to Natasha, who was sprawled out on the couch, laughing uncontrollably.
"He called you Raven?" Natasha snorted. "Like... what? A bird?"
"You should've seen how confidently he said it," Elizabeth complained. "Like I couldn't lay a finger on him."
Natasha cackled, nearly choking. "Of course! You can't do anything to him. Have you forgotten he's the great, almighty Sebastian Jasio Lolek Jakub? I see him like the almighty Baahubali."
Elizabeth scoffed. "Baahubali, my foot."
"Do you remember—" Natasha's words were cut off as the door creaked open. Bianca stepped in, looking as though she'd been robbed and beaten.
"Jesus!" Natasha gasped.
"Oh my God—what happened to you!?" Elizabeth exclaimed.
They both jumped to their feet, rushing to her.
Bianca looked nothing like her usual self. Her eyes were swollen and red from crying. Her eyelashes were clumped together with tears. There was a raw, red mark on her left cheek that looked like a slap—maybe worse.
Elizabeth and Natasha were frozen with worry, panic etched across their faces as they struggled to piece together what had happened.
"Oh, dear… What happened to you?" Natasha whispered, gently guiding her to the couch.
Elizabeth darted into the kitchen and came back with a glass of lukewarm water. "Here—drink this first. Then tell us everything."
The three of them sat on the couch, Bianca sandwiched between her friends.
After draining the glass, Bianca handed it back. Elizabeth set it on the side table and placed a hand on her arm. "Take a breath, Bia. Then tell us everything—start to finish."
But Bianca didn't know where to begin. She sobbed like a child who'd dropped her only lollipop.
Natasha rubbed her back softly. "Hey, if it's about the project, just let it go. You can always try again. A promotion's not worth this kind of breakdown."
Bianca shook her head and cried harder. "It's not about the project, Tasha," she said, burying her face in her palms.
Natasha glanced toward Elizabeth, searching her friend's eyes for answers.
Elizabeth slowly shook her head—she had none to give.
Both of them leaned in, silently urging Bianca to speak.
Finally, Bianca lifted her face. She wiped her cheeks, and though her voice trembled, her tone turned sharp. "This is the final straw. I'm done. I quit."
Elizabeth and Natasha exchanged confused looks.
"Quit what?" Elizabeth asked, eyes narrowing with concern.
Bianca clenched her jaw. "That bastard. That good-for-nothing moron laid his filthy hands on me—called me disgusting names."
"He did what!?" Natasha shot to her feet, fists clenched. "He hit you? Who the hell does he think he is!?"
"I'm going to make him regret ever touching you!" she yelled.
"Tasha, please," Elizabeth said, rising slightly, palms raised. "Don't escalate this. Let's not make it worse than it already is."
Natasha's voice cracked with rage. "How can you say that? Antoni Jan Mikolaj Jakub has gone too far! He crossed the line, Lizzy. And I swear—he's going to pay for what he did to Bianca."
Elizabeth was losing control of the room. She understood Natasha's fury—it was justified—but violence wouldn't fix anything.
"We need to calm down," she said gently. "There has to be another way to handle this."
She watched Natasha pace the room like a lioness in a cage.
"Tasha, listen to me. Anger won't solve anything," Elizabeth said calmly, wrapping a protective arm around Bianca's shoulder.
"I don't care anymore!" Natasha snapped, tears forming in her eyes. "What did Bianca do to deserve this kind of hate? Tell me, Lizzy!"
Elizabeth sighed deeply. "Honestly? I don't know."
She turned to Bianca. "Tell us how it all happened. From the beginning."
Natasha stood still, hands planted firmly on her hips. "We're listening."
Bianca wiped her tears again, her voice barely above a whisper. "You remember the project I've been working on, right? I've had so many sleepless nights. I finally finished it last night. This morning, I submitted it to him."
She paused, breathing shakily.
"I don't know if he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, but he didn't even glance at it. He threw the file at me and called me useless. Said my father wasted his sperm creating me... and my mother wasted her life raising me. He kept insulting me—over and over again. And when I finally talked back, he slapped me. Hard. I lost my balance and hit my head on the wall."
"Shh. It's okay now," Elizabeth said, wrapping her arms around her, holding her close.
Natasha's face turned crimson, trembling with fury.
Elizabeth braced herself—Natasha could break something any second.
"Tasha," she whispered, "please don't do anything rash. Do it for Bianca."
"How do you expect me to stay calm, Lizzy? How!?" Natasha shouted, voice cracking. "He has no idea how hard Bianca's parents worked to give her a future. He doesn't know the sacrifices they made just to keep her in college, to make her life decent!"
Her tears spilled freely now. "He thinks everyone lives in some fairytale like he does—born with gold spoons and magical privileges. That man is a monster. And he just threw away the best thing he'll ever have. I swear, he'll regret it, Elizabeth."
"I resigned today," Bianca said suddenly.
"What?" Elizabeth blinked in shock. "Bia, no. That's not the solution."
Bianca turned her gaze to her like a storm cloud. "I had to. And if you were in my shoes, you would've done the same."
"I understand," Elizabeth murmured.
"No, you don't," Bianca said flatly. She stood up. "Tomorrow morning, I'm starting a job hunt. I won't sit around waiting to be broken."
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked into the bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
The room fell silent, leaving Natasha and Elizabeth alone—each heavy with their own helpless grief.