Eli didn't sleep.
He lay in bed staring at the water stain on his ceiling—the one shaped like a bird if you squinted—and tried to convince himself this was insane. That he could just not go. Stay in his apartment, ignore the texts, pretend Adrian Vale was just another stranger he'd helped and forgotten.
Except Adrian Vale wasn't the forgetting type.
At 6 AM, Eli gave up on sleep. He showered in his cramped bathroom where the tiles were cracked and the water pressure was a joke. Stood in front of his closet—if you could call it that—and stared at his options. Everything looked wrong. Too casual. Too cheap. Too him.
He settled on dark jeans and the one button-down shirt he owned that didn't have a coffee stain. It would have to do.
By 7:45, he was standing at his window again, coffee mug in hand, watching the street. The black sedan was still there. Same spot. Like it had been waiting all night.
At exactly 8:00 AM, his phone buzzed.
Unknown: The car is ready, Mr. Park.
Eli's hands were shaking when he locked his apartment door. The hallway smelled like someone's burnt breakfast and old carpet. He took the stairs instead of the elevator—five flights down—because he needed the time to think, to breathe, to figure out what the hell he was doing.
The driver was waiting on the sidewalk. Same man from last night. Tall, broad-shouldered, expression professionally blank. He opened the rear door without a word.
Eli hesitated.
"Mr. Vale doesn't like to be kept waiting," the driver said. His voice was neutral, but the message was clear.
Eli got in the car.
The interior was pristine. Leather seats, tinted windows, that new-car smell mixed with something expensive—cologne, maybe, or whatever rich people used to make their lives smell better than everyone else's. A bottle of water sat in the cup holder. Unopened. Waiting.
The driver pulled into traffic with smooth precision. No music. No conversation. Just the hum of the engine and the city sliding past outside.
Eli tried not to think about how Adrian Vale knew where he lived.
Vale Industries occupied the top fifteen floors of the Apex Tower—a building Eli had walked past a hundred times without really seeing it. Up close, it was different. Intimidating. All glass and steel and sharp angles that caught the morning light like a blade.
The driver pulled up to a private entrance. No main lobby, no crowds. Just a sleek door with a keycard reader and a security guard who nodded like he'd been expecting them.
"This way, Mr. Park."
Eli followed because what else was he going to do?
Inside, everything was cold and perfect. Polished marble floors, minimalist furniture, walls of frosted glass that turned people into shadows. The elevator was glass too—transparent on three sides—and as it rose, the city dropped away beneath them. Eli's stomach dropped with it.
They didn't stop until the forty-second floor.
The doors opened onto a reception area that looked like it belonged in a museum. A woman sat behind a curved desk, her hair pulled back so tight it looked painful, her smile professional and empty.
"Mr. Park," she said, like she'd been briefed. "Mr. Vale is expecting you. Please, follow me."
The hallway was long and silent. Their footsteps were swallowed by thick carpet. Eli caught glimpses through glass walls—conference rooms, offices, people in expensive suits moving with purpose. No one looked at him. No one smiled.
They stopped at a door at the end of the hall. Solid wood, no nameplate. The woman knocked once, then opened it without waiting for an answer.
"Mr. Park, sir."
"Thank you, Claire."
The voice was the same. Low, controlled, unmistakable.
Eli stepped inside, and the door closed behind him with a soft click.
Adrian Vale's office was exactly what Eli expected and nothing like he'd imagined.
Floor-to-ceiling windows wrapped around two walls, offering a view of the city that made Eli feel like he was standing on top of the world. The furniture was minimal—sleek desk, low leather chairs, a single shelf with what looked like first-edition books. No clutter. No personal photos. Nothing that suggested a human being actually worked here.
Adrian stood by the windows, hands in his pockets, silhouetted against the light. He didn't turn immediately. Just let Eli stand there, taking it in, feeling small.
When he finally turned, Eli's breath caught.
Adrian looked different than he had in the hospital. Put together. Commanding. A charcoal suit that fit like it had been made for him—because it probably had—dark hair styled back, sharp jawline, and those eyes. Still dark. Still assessing.
"Mr. Park." Adrian's gaze moved over him, slow and deliberate. "You came."
"You didn't really give me a choice."
A flicker of something crossed Adrian's face. Amusement, maybe. "There's always a choice."
"Is there?"
Adrian moved to his desk, gestured to one of the chairs. "Sit."
It wasn't a request.
Eli sat. The leather was cold through his jeans.
Adrian didn't sit. He leaned against the edge of his desk instead, arms crossed, looking down at Eli with that same unreadable expression.
"You saved my life," Adrian said.
"You already said that."
"And I told you I don't forget debts."
Eli shifted in his chair. "I didn't ask for anything."
"I know." Adrian tilted his head slightly. "Which is why I'm offering."
"Offering what?"
"Mentorship."
The word hung in the air between them.
Eli blinked. "What?"
"You work in a call center," Adrian said. It wasn't a question. "You're smart. Observant. You see things other people miss. But you're wasting your potential answering phones for people who don't appreciate you."
Eli's jaw tightened. "How do you—"
"I make it my business to know who I'm dealing with." Adrian's tone was matter-of-fact, like having someone investigated was perfectly normal. "You have a degree in business administration. Graduated with honors. But you're stuck in a dead-end job because you don't have connections. You don't have access."
"And you're offering me access."
"I'm offering you an opportunity." Adrian straightened, moved around his desk, pulled a folder from a drawer. He set it in front of Eli. "Three months. You shadow me. Learn how this world works. Attend meetings, review contracts, observe negotiations. At the end, if you've proven yourself, I'll write you a recommendation that will open doors you didn't know existed."
Eli stared at the folder. Didn't touch it. "Why?"
"Because you helped me when you had no reason to. Because most people wouldn't have." Adrian's voice softened, just slightly. "And because I'm curious to see what you'll do with a real chance."
"This feels like a test."
"Everything is a test, Mr. Park."
Eli looked up, met Adrian's gaze. There was something there—something beneath the control and the cold precision. A challenge. A dare.
"What if I say no?"
Adrian's mouth curved, barely. Not quite a smile. "Then the car will take you home, and we'll never speak again."
"And if I say yes?"
"Then your life changes."
Eli's heart was pounding. This was insane. He didn't belong here. Didn't belong in this office, in this world, sitting across from a man who could probably buy and sell him without blinking.
But God, he wanted it.
"Okay," Eli said quietly. "I'm in."
The first task was simple. Observe.
Adrian had a board meeting at ten. Eli was to sit in the back, say nothing, and watch. Learn how power moved in a room. How decisions were made. How Adrian controlled everything without raising his voice.
The boardroom was on the same floor—another glass-walled space with a table that looked like it cost more than Eli's yearly salary. Twelve people were already seated when they arrived. Expensive suits, expensive watches, expensive smiles that didn't reach their eyes.
They all stood when Adrian entered.
Eli hung back, took a seat against the wall. Tried to make himself invisible.
Adrian moved to the head of the table, didn't sit. "Let's begin."
For the next hour, Eli watched Adrian dismantle arguments, redirect conversations, and make grown men stumble over their words with nothing but a look. It was brutal. Efficient. Almost beautiful in its precision.
And then, halfway through, someone new walked in.
Late. Unapologetic.
He was younger than most of the board members—late twenties, maybe—with styled blond hair, a suit that screamed money, and a smile that was all charm and no warmth. He slid into an empty seat like he owned it, met Adrian's gaze without flinching.
"Sebastian," Adrian said. His tone didn't change, but something in the room shifted. "How kind of you to join us."
"Wouldn't miss it." Sebastian's eyes flicked to Eli, lingered for a beat too long, then returned to Adrian. "I see you've brought a guest."
"An observer."
"How\... progressive of you."
The words were light, but there was an edge beneath them. Eli felt it, even if he didn't understand it.
Adrian didn't respond. Just continued the meeting like Sebastian's arrival hadn't disrupted anything.
But Eli noticed the way Sebastian kept glancing at him. Curious. Calculating.
Like he was already figuring out how to use him.
When the meeting ended, Adrian dismissed everyone with a curt nod. They filed out in silence, Sebastian last, pausing at the door to look back at Eli one more time before disappearing into the hallway.
Eli exhaled.
"You did well," Adrian said.
Eli looked up, surprised. "I didn't do anything."
"Exactly." Adrian's gaze was steady. "You watched. You listened. You didn't try to prove yourself. That's smarter than most people manage on their first day."
Something warm unfurled in Eli's chest. He tried to ignore it.
"Who was that?" Eli asked. "Sebastian."
Adrian's expression didn't change, but his jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. "Sebastian Cross. Board member. Investor. Someone you should be careful around."
"Why?"
"Because he's charming. And dangerous. And he doesn't do anything without a reason." Adrian moved toward the door, paused. "Come. I'll show you your workspace."
Eli followed, but the warning lingered.
The day blurred after that. Adrian moved through Vale Industries like a force of nature—meetings, calls, decisions made in hallways and elevators. Eli trailed behind, trying to keep up, trying to absorb everything.
And in the small moments—waiting for an elevator, walking down a hallway, standing too close in Adrian's office while he signed documents—Eli felt it.
The weight of Adrian's attention. The way his gaze would linger half a second too long. The way his voice would soften, just slightly, when he explained something.
It wasn't warmth. Not exactly.
But it was something.
At six PM, Adrian finally stopped.
"That's enough for today," he said. They were back in his office, the city glowing orange and gold beyond the windows. "The car will take you home."
Eli nodded, stood. His head was spinning. His feet hurt. He felt like he'd run a marathon.
"Mr. Park."
Eli turned at the door.
Adrian was watching him, expression unreadable. "You did well today. Better than I expected."
"Thanks," Eli said, because what else could he say?
"But understand something." Adrian's voice dropped, quiet and deliberate. "This world doesn't forgive mistakes. And being close to me makes you a target."
Eli's pulse kicked. "A target for what?"
Adrian's mouth curved, barely. Not quite a smile. "Everything."
The door closed between them, and Eli stood in the hallway, heart pounding, wondering what the hell he'd just agreed to.