k. It was almost 11 PM. The office was a ghost town, just the low hum of servers and the distant sound of the clea

a local city channel. The thumbnail was a shot of me walking out of my office building yesterday, my face clearly vi

ked on it, and a wave of scrolling comments, like a

so plain. Just a

. That's why she

could just walk up to her an

utfit. She needs a man

ot. Too much o

de my skin crawl. They saw a two-second clip and wrote my entire life story, a sad

ongue. I wanted to type, "I'm a senior analyst who just led a multi-m

was pointless. A cold knot of unease formed in my gut. It wasn't just the insults, it was

y. I scrolled to my family group chat, a picture of my thre

aving now. A little freaked out by some

. John, the oldest. "On my way. Send

tonight, I was grateful for it. I packed my bag, shut down my computer,

ing the stark overhead lights. I sat on one of the leathe

slid open, but

pensive-looking streetwear, and had a smile that was too wide, too perfec

his voice booming in the quiet lobby. "The har

rds me, his sm

ping me in the frame. "You don't know me, but I'm Chad. And you,

nd blank for a second.

awe. He puffed out his chest a

smile back to me. "Tonight, I'm going to make sure a lovely, hardworking woman like you gets ho