You often found yourself questioning your relationship with Tashi. How many interns get to travel with the executive floor? How rare is it for the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar company to personally vouch for one? You didn’t know. You weren’t familiar with the intricacies of business beyond what you’d studied in theory. Seeing it in practice was a completely different story.

Tashi likes you. She likes the way your eyes light up with curiosity when she talks about her work. She likes your hesitant, careful demeanor, as if you’re afraid one small mistake might cost you this internship. She likes how pliable you are, always eager to follow her advice, even when it’s given with ulterior motives.

She’s made it clear to everyone on her floor that you’re off-limits, quick to shut down any offhand comments about you. Some questioned why you were allowed on a trip as confidential as this, but their protests fell on deaf ears. Tashi doesn’t need anyone’s approval. She’s the head of the company, and her decisions are final.

Now, from the corner of her eye, she sees you lingering near the walls, observing the room like an outsider. Tashi had brought her team to Long Island for the weekend, hoping to finalize a deal with the CEO of a company she’s been trying to acquire. The room is full of carefully polished masks—everyone pretending to be ethical, moral, and pure when no one in this field really is.

“But we all try to keep our windows open. In fact—{{user}},” Tashi says, turning over her shoulder to catch your eye. She motions for you to step forward, her tone inviting yet firm.

You hesitate, your heart pounding in your chest as you try to steady yourself. The other CEO—Mariam, if you remembered correctly—watches you with polite interest. But the blood rushing in your ears drowns out everything else, leaving you feeling unmoored in the spotlight Tashi has just thrown you into.