A Love Once Known

News of Ivan's pursuit of his true love was so widely reported that even my parents knew about it.

The moment I walked through the door, I overheard them talking about how cruel I was to have dumped him back then. Not to mention, they were worried about what he might do now that he was powerful.

But after the day's events, I could barely explain anything to them. I merely said, "Mom, Dad, all you need to know is that I would never dump anyone casually like that. But there are things I need confirmation of."

Once in my room, I quickly searched for Ivan's interviews, and a flood of results instantly popped up. Almost every headline included my name.

I clicked one at random, and a handsome man appeared on the screen. His expression carried a hint of longing.

"In my hardest times, thoughts of her kept me going."

The camera cut to the host's moved expression after hearing his words.

The video ended with Ivan sighing and saying, "Even though she once told me we could never be together."

At the end of the video, the top liked comment glared back at me. "His true love must regret leaving him now. I can't wait to see her crawl back to him!"

When I was done watching the video, I dug out my old graduation photobook from the corner of the house. I flipped it over and checked the names one by one.

At the very edge of the picture, I finally found Ivan. He stood in the corner, almost swallowed by shadows.

His overgrown bangs hid his eyes, making his face hard to see, and his uniform collar was crooked and loose. He stood out starkly against his classmates, who were smiling brightly.

He looked nothing like the confident man who now spoke eloquently on financial news.

Yet, no matter how many times I replayed his words from those interviews, I still had no memory of him.

…

I hadn't anticipated how unsettling Ivan's fixation would become. My apartment rent had mysteriously been covered for three years, and every time I tried to work in a café, a piece of cake would show up at my table without me ordering it.

The whole thing made me feel a fear I had never known before. It was like I was being watched. But in addition to the fear was fury.

I had come home to spend time with my family and contribute my knowledge to the country. I didn't come back for romance.

After sending in a job application, I received a notice to attend the interview. But the moment I handed my résumé to the receptionist, her eyes widened. "Are you Mr. Olsen's…"

My heart skipped a beat, and I cut her off sharply, "I'm Jennifer Palmer, and I'm here to apply for the Principal Investigator position."

The interview went unbelievably smoothly, and the questions were comically easy.

At the end of the interview, the HR manager adjusted his glasses with a sheepish smile, saying, "To be honest, Ms. Palmer, you didn't need to go through the interview process. Olsen Group is our major partner, and Mr. Olsen has told me about you."

I could feel my hands trembling with anger at the mention of Ivan.

"I graduated from one of the world's top three universities, and I have four first-author papers published in top-tier journals and two patent projects under my name. You're telling me none of that compares to some ridiculous connection?" I stressed each syllable as fury boiled inside of me.

In an instant, the conference room went dead silent.

The HR manager's round face turned stiff and awkward. "That's not what I meant. It's just that Mr. Olsen has instructed…"

I stood up before he could finish his sentence and emphasized, saying, "Please tell Mr. Olsen that his intervention has already affected my life. If he tries to interfere with my career choices again, I'll file a report with the authorities for workplace discrimination and abuse of power.

"Besides, your behavior has made me doubt whether or not I'd have room to grow here. Hence, I don't think I would fit your company's culture, so please hire someone else."

When I walked out of the building, I immediately called Tara. "Are there any class reunions happening soon?"

"I was just about to tell you that Ivan booked out Paramount Restaurant for the day after tomorrow…"

"I'll be there," I cut her off. "I want to ask him why he's spreading those lies about me."

Perhaps Tara sensed I was upset, so she quickly hung up after muttering a few words.