The Like That Broke The CEO

The moment I knew we were over wasnt during a screaming match or a tearful confession. It was over a piece of cheesecake.

Id found a new bakery and was raving about it, holding out a forkful of the creamy dessert to my fianc, Ethan. He loved sweets, usually snatching them from my hand without a second thought. But this time, he just gave me a tight, awkward smile.

I didn't think much of it, turning away to pull a compact from my purse and touch up my lipstick. But in the mirror's reflection, I saw it. I saw Ethan carefully, almost surgically, break off the part my fork had touched. He palmed the tiny piece of cake, and when he thought I wasn't looking, dropped it into the trash can beside our table.

When I turned back, he was already putting the remaining piece in his mouth, chewing with exaggerated enthusiasm. Wow, youre right, he said, his voice a little too loud. This is incredible. We should get more tomorrow.

At the time, I brushed it off as one of his quirks, a new manifestation of a latent germophobia. It stung, left a small, cold stone in my stomach, but it wasnt enough to end an engagement over.

That stone didnt dissolve. It sat there until a company dinner a few weeks later. Hailey, Ethans new assistant, took a bite of roasted eggplant, made a face, and then, in front of everyone, casually scraped the half-eaten vegetable from her plate into Ethans.

Without a moments hesitation, he picked it up with his own fork and ate it.

That night, when we got home, I told him I was calling off the wedding.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, the picture of weary frustration. Because I ate a piece of eggplant she gave me?

Because shed already taken a bite of it, I corrected, my voice dangerously calm.

Audrey, people are right about you, he scoffed, his voice dripping with condescension. Youre pathologically jealous. You blow every little thing out of proportion.

Fine, I said, the word feeling clean and final. If you want out, Im not stopping you. Just dont come crawling back to me when you realize what youve lost.

He laughed, a short, ugly sound. He was so sure of me, so certain of my devotion that he couldn't imagine a world where I wouldn't be the one to break. He didn't understand that even the deepest love can be eroded, worn down to nothing by a thousand tiny acts of disrespect.

This time, I was really leaving.

1

The next day, I told my parents I was exploring the merger with the firm in the South instead. They were surprised but, seeing the resolve in my eyes, they supported my decision.

After that conversation, Ethan initiated his usual cold war protocol. My number was blocked. I was unfriended, unfollowed, and removed from every shared game and platform. It was his signature move, a childish power play designed to isolate me and force my hand. He was confident I wouldn't be able to stand the silence, that Id be the one to click Add Friend and beg for his forgiveness.

But this time, my cursor hovered over the button, and for the first time, I didn't press it.

A week later, a notification popped up from the company-wide group chat.

To celebrate our CEOs birthday, Ethan is hosting a party tonight at The Crimson Lounge. Attendance is mandatory for all staff. No exceptions.

To avoid making a scene and putting my colleagues in an awkward position, I went.

The moment I stepped into the private room, I saw them. Ethan was in the main booth, the king on his throne, and Hailey was pressed right up against him. Her lips were practically touching his ear as she whispered something, her hand resting on his thigh. They were enclosed in a private bubble, a world so intimate that no one else dared to enter. A moment later, they both burst out laughing, their faces so close a slight turn of the head would have resulted in a kiss.

I looked away, a sour taste in my mouth, and found an empty seat in a dark corner.

As people started presenting Ethan with their gifts, I ignored the spectacle, focusing on the slow burn of bourbon in my glass. It wasnt long, however, before a shadow fell over me.

I looked up into Ethans impeccably handsome face, marred by the familiar look of impatience he reserved just for me.

Audrey, wheres my present?

In the past, I would have started planning his birthday gift months in advance. The most memorable one took me half a year to build: a scale model of the house from his favorite movie, Up. Id handcrafted every detail, right down to the hundreds of tiny, multi-colored balloons. When Id launched it, the little house floating toward the sky, hed promised we would be like Carl and Ellie, together until the very end.

Id actually believed him. I never thought his forever would have a three-year expiration date.

Faced with his demanding question, I gave him a flat, empty answer. I forgot.

My indifference clearly enraged him. His patience snapped.

Audrey, are you done with this tantrum? he hissed, keeping his voice low. Are you really going to let one stupid little thing ruin my birthday?

I looked at him, really looked at him, and noticed a faint smear of pink lipstick near the corner of his mouth. Haileys shade. The bourbon in my stomach curdled.

Im not throwing a tantrum, I said, my voice as steady as a flatline. And I was serious about calling off the engagement.

For a split second, his expression froze. But then Haileys hand found his, her touch grounding him, and his composure returned. She was at his side, her face a mask of concern.

Audrey, please dont misunderstand, she said, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness. I only gave Ethan my food because I hate to see things go to waste. If if my presence makes you this uncomfortable, I wont come to the next dinner. I can just wait and eat everyones leftovers at the end.

Her words hit their mark. Ethans face softened with a rush of protective pity.

Hailey, dont say that. You deserve the best of everything in this world, he said, turning his glare on me. If anyone shouldnt be here, its Audrey. Who the hell does she think she is? That everyone has to cater to her every whim?

Hailey placed a placating hand on his arm. Ethan, dont say that. Audrey might be a little sensitive, but shes still your fiance. You should try to be patient with her. I really dont want you two fighting because of me.

Patient with her? he spat. Who does she think she is? If my parents hadnt begged me to go through with this merger, I would never have gotten involved with her. She finds a reason to be angry about every little thing. Im sick of it. It's exhausting.

Hailey then walked over to me, placing a hand on my back and leaning in as if sharing a secret between girlfriends. Audrey, listen, she said in a tone of profound wisdom. From one woman to another, youre being a little dramatic this time. Ethan has been so stressed about this he hasnt been sleeping. I know you two don't seem compatible, but you have the merger to think about. Maybe you should both just take a step back.

I knocked her hand away. You know what I admire most about you, Hailey? I asked, my voice low and sharp. A cold smile spread across my face. Its your complete and utter shamelessness. The way you can spew that sanctimonious bullshit and steal another womans fianc without even batting an eye. Its truly a gift.

The smug satisfaction on her face vanished, replaced by a flicker of shock.

Ethan, however, went from zero to a hundred. Audrey, who the hell gave you the right to talk to Hailey like that?

Am I wrong? I shot back, my voice rising to meet his. Then tell me, why does she have a matching version of every gift youve ever bought me, which she then makes a point of showing off at the office? Why is it that every time you and I have a fight, an exaggerated, twisted version of it becomes gossip in the breakroom, courtesy of her? And how, exactly, does she know about the birthmark on your"

Thats enough.

The word was punctuated by a sound that silenced the entire room. A sharp, cracking smack.

My world dissolved into a dull, ringing chaos. My vision, however, was crystal clear. I could see every face in the room turned toward me, their expressions a sickening collage of pity, contempt, and morbid curiosity.

2

When the ringing in my ears finally subsided, the first thing I heard was Ethans voice, loud and declarative.

Alright, everyone, new game, he announced to the stunned room. Hailey and I are taking a picture together. I want to see a thousand likes on it. The moment it hits a thousand, Im dumping Audrey and taking Hailey to get a marriage license.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her from the room without a backward glance. Just before the door swung shut, Hailey looked over her shoulder and gave me a look of pure, triumphant victory.

After they left, the room began to empty. The spell was broken.

Someone snickered as they walked past. She has no idea who shes dealing with. Pushed him too far, and now shell regret it.

Another person, one of the kinder ones, stopped by my table. Look, your pride isnt worth losing him over. Just go apologize. You know hell take you back. Before he really does go and marry Hailey.

I knew, of course, that this was all a twisted test. It was his way of forcing me to bend, to come crawling back and admit I was wrong.

But this time, I wouldn't. Not even if it killed me.

Soon, the once-boisterous room was empty, leaving just me and the wreckage. I picked up a half-empty bottle of tequila from the table and drank straight from it, the fiery liquid searing a path down my throat. The burn brought tears to my eyes. A relationship that had spanned decades was really over. Just like that.

A corporate marriage a thousand miles south. He couldn't bother me there.

I didnt understand why, then, my face was already wet with tears.

Back at our apartment, I started packing.

Ethan and I were childhood sweethearts. Wed spent more of our lives together than apart. The sheer volume of shared history was suffocating. Untangling my life from his felt like an archeological dig.

Here was the little red paper star hed won in kindergarten. He had toddled over to me, his little legs working so hard, and pressed it into my palm. I could still hear his lisping voice: Im gonna give all the best things to you, Audrey.

Here was the photo hed secretly taken of my mortified face the day I got my first period. Id missed the health class lesson and was convinced I was dying of a rare disease. Id run to him in a panic, telling him to take care of himself for the rest of his life, that he could get a new girlfriend but she couldnt be prettier than me. Hed been utterly baffled until he figured it out. He ran to the corner store and bought me pads, and then we sat together and looked up how to use them online. He teased me for not paying attention in class, and I, red-faced and humiliated, bit his arm as hard as I could. Years later, he told me it didn't hurt at all, but that it was the first time hed ever felt something different for me.

Then we were a couple, separated by different colleges, our relationship measured in bus tickets and mileage. Four years. One hundred and twenty thousand miles was the distance we crossed to be with each other. Back then, his world revolved around me. He never once complained about the hours on the road.

My fingers brushed against a small, hard box. Inside were the simple silver bands wed made for each other. I had moved back to this northern city for him the day after graduation. Hed immediately dragged me to a jewelry-making workshop. I remember the weight of the ring as he slipped it on my finger.

With this ring, hed whispered, youre mine. Locked down for life. Dont even think about leaving me.

Neither of us could have imagined that he would be the one to let go.

3

The day Hailey interviewed for a position at the company, her performance was abysmal. Ethan was openly dismissive of her. I didnt give the under-qualified, unimpressive candidate a second thought.

I never understood how, against all odds, she was not only hired but was promoted from an anonymous cubicle dweller to Ethans executive assistant.

The first time I truly felt the ground shift beneath my feet was when I saw my ringour custom-made, one-of-a-kind ringon Haileys finger.

In the beginning, when I confronted him, Ethan was patient. Hed explain, soothe my fears, and charm me back into complacency. But over time, his patience wore thin, replaced by a constant, simmering irritation.

My willingness to forgive, to compromise, to appease him, only emboldened him. His favoritism toward Hailey became more and more flagrant.

Company dinners were catered exclusively with her favorite dishes. She started working half-days, spending the rest of her time with Ethan at lunches, galleries, and matinees, while her actual duties as his assistant were quietly offloaded onto my plate.

Her name started creeping into our conversations with increasing frequency. First, it was casual praise and admiration. Then, it became comparisons. I wasnt as easy-going as Hailey. I wasnt as thoughtful as Hailey.

One afternoon, during a coffee run, Ethan mentioned how good his iced latte was. Hailey, sitting nearby, pouted and said she wanted to try. Without a word, Ethan slid his cup over to her. She took the straw, the same one hed been drinking from, and took a long sip, leaving a perfect pink lipstick print behind. Then, Ethan took the cup back and, without wiping it, continued drinking right where her lips had been.

In that moment, it felt like an invisible hand had reached into my chest and squeezed my heart until it was bruised and aching.

After that, Haileys "platonic" encroachments became more frequent and more brazen. Shed rub sunscreen all over his arms and neck at company picnics, claiming she was worried hed get burned. She started bringing him homemade lunches on the same days I did, then would eat the one I made, gushing about my "amazing" cooking skills while Ethan ate hers. He even canceled the elaborate birthday dinner hed promised me because Hailey came down with a minor cold.

Every time I expressed my unhappiness, my sense of betrayal, he would shut me down with the same infuriating line.

God, Audrey, you have such a dirty mind. Hailey and I are just friends. Its a completely platonic relationship. Stop projecting your own insecurities onto her.

Toward the end, even he didn't sound convinced when he said it.

The blow that shattered my remaining denial came when our industry held its annual gala. It was a black-tie event, and attendance with a partner was expected. Ethan never even mentioned it to me. He took Hailey. I only found out after the fact, when several acquaintances awkwardly asked if Ethan and I had broken up.

When I confronted him, he somehow managed to be angrier than I was. I was helping Hailey network! I was developing talent for the company! Why do you have to be so damn petty about everything?

We didnt speak for a long time after that. Long enough that I thought, this time, it might actually be the end.

Then, late one night, my phone lit up with a text from him: Babe, my stomach hurts.

All the walls I had built, all my carefully constructed indifference, crumbled in an instant.

And so the toxic cycle began again: I would confront him, he would get angry, I would placate him, and he would forgive me.

I snapped the ring box shut and threw it into the trash bag at my feet.

Deep in a drawer, I found one last artifact: an apology letter hed written me when we were eighteen because hed forgotten to text me back once. He had been so afraid of losing me then.

Now, the only person he was afraid of losing was Hailey.

I took the letter and tore it into tiny pieces, letting them fall like snow into the trash.

With decades of emotional baggage cleared out, the apartment felt vast and empty. My heart felt like it had been emptied out right along with it.

The company group chat was still buzzing with photos from the party. Hailey making Ethan laugh, Hailey feeding him a piece of his own birthday cake. My colleagues, sensing the shift in power, were all rushing to validate the new royal couple.

OMG, Ethan and Hailey are so perfect together.
A guy needs a girl like Hailey, not someone like Audrey whos always miserable and nagging.
Lets be real, Audrey only has her job because of her family. Hailey earned her position. Theres no comparison.

I was done reading. I closed the app and dialed my lawyers number. I told him to begin the process of liquidating all my investments in Ethan's company, effective immediately.

4

The next morning, I went to the office to pack up my personal belongings.

I walked into my private loungea small, quiet office Ethan had designed for me years agoto find Hailey reclining on the sofa, her feet propped up on my desk. She was wearing a short, silk nightgown. Her makeup, her clothes, her personal effects were strewn across every surface. My thingsmy books, my photos, my awardshad been unceremoniously dumped in a pile outside the door.

This room was my sanctuary. A place Ethan had created specifically for me. Everyone in the company knew it was my space; no one would have dared to set foot inside without permission.

Haileys actions were a deliberate, blatant declaration of victory. She wasn't just moving in; she was pissing on the ashes of my territory.

I didnt even bother speaking to her. I turned around, walked out, and called the police.

In the sterile mediation room at the local precinct, Haileys composure finally cracked. I was just getting a file for Ethan, she said, her voice trembling. Do you really need to call the cops over something so small?

That is my private, personal space. Did I give you permission to enter it? I asked calmly. Entering without asking isnt that just another word for theft?

At the word theft, Haileys eyes welled up with tears. I felt a familiar sense of dread. I knew what was coming.

Sure enough, I turned to see Ethan standing in the doorway, his face a thundercloud.

Ethan! Hailey cried, rushing into his arms. I was just trying to help you get that file, but I think Audrey really hates me. Shes insisting I was trying to steal from her. I mean, youve given me so many gifts I can barely fit them in my new condo why would I want any of her old things?

This room. This tiny office was Ethans reciprocal gift for the Up house Id built for him. It was our "paradise," a space filled with so many sweet memories. I had believed, foolishly, that this one place would remain untouched, a final bastion of dignity for what our love used to be.

But Ethan seemed determined to personally tear down every last one of my illusions.

He stroked Haileys hair, murmuring comforting words, before turning to the attending officer. This is all a misunderstanding, he explained smoothly. We all know each other. Sorry to have wasted your time.

Then, he turned to me, his voice dripping with disgust. What is wrong with you, Audrey? When did you become this bitter, jealous shrew? Does it make you feel powerful, using your position to bully an innocent employee like Hailey? You disappoint me. You really, really disappoint me.

His accusations rained down on me. Before I could even form a defense, Hailey started her performance again.

Ethan, dont blame Audrey. It was my fault for being careless.

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