When Zenith remembered all that had happened, she couldn’t believe it. Her brows furrowed, and she frantically looked down at herself. But because the light wasn’t sufficient in the room, she couldn’t make herself out quite well. Twisting, she turned to find the switch to turn on the lights. Once the room brightened up, she checked herself. And the moment she saw herself in the change of clothes, her heart dropped. Those flashes weren’t some imaginations. It all happened for real. And ... Both her eyes and thoughts paused at the clothes scattered on the floor. And her face grew red. Those clothes weren’t hers, but she knew well who they belonged to. Especially that suit jacket. She had helped Ryan put that on in the afternoon. How could she not remember it? Tears of embarrassment, laced in her eyes as she clutched the sheet between "Zenith," she muttered to herself, clutching the sheet between her fingers. She squeezed it as though she was squeezing herself, punishing herself. "How could you do this? How could you force your boss to sleep with you? How?" She had had a crush on Ryan since always, but never had she let her attraction rule her instincts. She never dared to let her emotions surface, even in her gaze. Then how could she not hold back yesterday? "Don’t be crazy to blame yourself, Zenith?" A voice made her pause and glance up. When Zenith raised her gaze, she saw herself standing in front of her. "You didn’t do it intentionally. You acted on the drug that was given to you. So, stop blaming yourself." Zenith’s brows furrowed, and she shook her head. "It was a drug. I could have chosen better than forcing him. How can I not blame myself?" ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚⚫𝙣𝙚𝙩 Her mirror image frowned. "Chosen better? What could have been the other choice? You were not even in a situation to recognise yourself. How could you have chosen something else?" "Still, forcing my boss to sleep with me ruined everything. How will I face him now? How will I be able to work with him without thinking about what happened between us?" Zenith covered her face, not having enough courage to even face her inner voice. One thing that she always tried not to give up on her principles. She was confident that no matter what happened, she would never do anything that would bring her shame or embarrassment. Yet, all it took her was just one night of delirium to forget all that she had always boasted about. "How are you so sure that you forced him?" Her inner voice made her look up again. And when she did, it continued. "Have you ever thought maybe it wasn’t actually forceful, and CEO Foster actually slept with you at his own wish?" Zenith paused at that; her brows drew tighter. "What do you mean?" Her mirror image smiled before she spoke again, "Zenith, you don’t have to be so clueless. If sleeping with Ryan Foster had been as easy as just taking a drug, there would have been many women over the years who would have succeeded. Since they didn’t, there could be a chance that all this wasn’t merely because of the drug effect." "Shut up!" Zenith snapped. "CEO Foster isn’t like that. He would never take advantage of anyone. And he just proved that right when he appeared to save me from those men." "And just as she snapped, she heard the door click. She turned to look, only to see Ryan walking in, dressed in fresh clothes. "You are awake?" he asked, for some reason their gaze not meeting each other. Zenith avoided his gaze first. Humming, she responded in a small voice. "Yes." Ryan paused when he felt that she didn’t sound right. He turned to look at her, his brows furrowing a little. "What’s wrong? Are you feeling alright?" He already picked up his phone, ready to make a call. "Shall I call a doctor?" Zenith quickly gazed up, shaking her head. "No," she rushed urgently, "there would be no need for that. I am fine." The moment her eyes met his, she looked away as though his gaze made it unbearable for her. Ryan noted her reaction, and that made him frown. He didn’t like it at all. But then, he realized that the last night hadn’t been easy for her. He tried to understand her and slowly began, "Last night —" Before he could even begin properly, Zenith interrupted him. "Thank you for last night, Sir. I am sorry I caused you the trouble. I don’t blame you for whatever happened, and you can rest assured that I won’t ever bring this out again. I won’t cause you any more trouble." How could she blame him for what happened between them when it was all because of her? She might not have the whole of her memories from last night, but she remembered too well that it was here who begged him to help her. He did it all to help her. She couldn’t be ungrateful not to realize it. "I know what I did was wrong, and for that, if you choose to punish me, I am ready to take it," she said, knowing the extent to which the previous night could affect them. "I am ready to face the consequences, even if it means losing my job." Ryan heard her, and with her every word, his frown only deepened. His patience snapped the moment she mentioned resigning from her job. "What did you say?" he asked, his voice laced with subtle warning. "You are going to leave the job?" Zenith paused. The job meant a lot to her. She had worked for years to get where she was now. Giving it up wasn’t easy, but with the need of the situation, she doesn’t want to make it awkward. Nodding, she slowly replied, "I know, after what happened last night, that’s the only way to forget it all. I don’t want to be trouble for you and —" Before the rest of her words could come out of her lip, Ryan charged in her direction in sheer madness.