Annie didn't just go home, She went straight to meet Sasha.
The sky had already darkened by the time she got to Sasha's apartment. The building wasn't glamorous, but it had character . An exposed brick, narrow stairs, and music playing slowly from somewhere down the hall.
Sasha heard Annie's knock and opened the door before Annie could knock twice.
"You look like someone a ghost is chasing... What's up? Sasha asked, stepping aside.
Annie walked in without saying anything. She dropped her bag on the small couch and began pacing.
"So I went to the site visit," she said.
Sasha shut the door and leaned against it.
"And?"
"It wasn't an observation. My dear, it was a test."
Sasha's lips curved a little slightly.
"Of course it was."
Annie stopped pacing. "You knew?"
Sasha shrugged. "Annie, can't you see those people don't move without a reason? You think they'd just invite someone new into a private expensive property to watch paint dry? What if the new employee steals from them? They'd tarnish the company's image."
Annie exhaled sharply.
"They made me speak," she said. "The client asked what I saw in the space. And Adrian was watching. Though not obvious. Just… watching."
"Adrian," Sasha repeated slowly.
"So that's his name."
Annie ignored the tone.
"He barely spoke in the car. Barely spoke inside. But every time I said something, I could feel him calculating it."
"He's being observant... That's what real employers do..."
Sasha said as she walked to the kitchen counter and poured herself water.
"Did you mess up?"
"No."
"Did you stutter?"
"No."
"Did the client throw you out?"
Annie hesitated. "No."
Sasha nodded twice.
"Then what's the problem?"
Annie brought out her phone from her small and held it out.
"I got this message after we left."
Sasha stepped closer.
The message still sat there.
"You're adapting faster than I expected.
Sasha's raised her eyebrows .
"Who sent that?"
"An unknown number." she replied.
Sasha looked at her. "And you think it's him?."
"I really do not know," Annie said quietly as she scratched her head.
"That's the problem. I don't know."
Sasha handed the phone back.
"It's him."
"You can't be sure." Annie said wide eyed.
"Annie." Sasha's voice lowered. "Who else would care enough to send that?"
Annie swallowed hard, intuitive.
The question had been sitting in her head since the message arrived.
Who else?
Sasha moved to sit and stretch her legs on the couch.
"Listen to me. You're inside now. That's all that matters."
"It doesn't feel like it matters," Annie replied. "It feels like I'm standing in a room where everyone knows something I don't."
Sasha leaned forward. "That's because you are."
Annie stared at her confused.
"But that doesn't mean you're losing my dear," Sasha continued. "It means they're interested in you."
"Interested in what? You mean catching me?"
"Or keeping you."
The words hung between them.
Annie shook her head. "You didn't see him today."
"Describe it."
"He was calm. He didn't praise me neither did he criticize me. He just… noted things. Like he was storing them for the future."
Sasha smirked. "Sounds like he respects you."
"That's not comforting."
"It should be."
Annie sat down finally, visibly exhausted.
"I don't like not knowing,"
she admitted, powerless at this point. "I don't like that someone might be watching me and I can't even tell if it's a threat or..."
"Or what?" Sasha asked.
Annie didn't answer.
Sasha tilted her head. "You're not scared of failing, Annie. You're scared of him."
Annie looked up sharply. "I'm not."
"You are."
"No, I'm not scared of him. Why will I be scared of him? I'm just scared of being exposed."
Sasha's expression softened a little.
"Then don't get exposed." she said.
Annie let out a quiet laugh.
"That's your solution to everything Sasha."
"If you can't beat them..."
"—join them," Annie finished.
Sasha nodded. "Exactly."
Annie's phone made the buzz sound again.
Both of them froze. The sound felt louder than it should have. Annie looked down slowly.
Another message, from the same unknown number.
She opened it, her hands shaky.
> You seemed comfortable today.
Her throat tightened. Another message came seconds later.
> Comfort can be dangerous.
Sasha moved closer to Annie. "Let me see."
Annie handed her the phone, her hands still shaky.
Sasha read the messages twice. Her face shifted from amused to serious.
"This is not random," Sasha said.
"I know right..."
"He's pushing you."
"Or warning me?."
"About what?" Sasha asked inquisitively
Annie's chest felt tight again. "I don't know."
Sasha handed the phone back. "Text back." She said
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't know who it is." Annie responded
"Exactly," Sasha said. "Which means whoever it is expects you to react."
Annie stared at the screen, her pulse thudded in her ears.
"I'm not playing this game," she said quietly.
Sasha studied her. "You already are. Don't you get what's going on?"
Silence filled the apartment. Outside, a car passed. Music drifted faintly from another unit. The world felt normal.
Annie did not text back. Her phone vibrated again.
This time, it wasn't a message.
It was a call.
She looked at the screen, it was Adrian.
Not unknown.
His name.
Sasha's eyes widened slightly. "Answer it."
Annie hesitated only a second before pressing accept.
"Hello Annie?"
"Did you get home safe?"
He asked. His voice was calm. The same tone he used at the site but a little softer this time.
"Yes," Annie said. "I did, thank you."
"Good."
A pause.
She could hear faint city noise on his end. Traffic. Wind.
"You handled today well," he said.
"Thank you."
"You didn't hesitate."
Annie swallowed. "I didn't have time to."
"That's usually when people reveal themselves," he replied.
She paused, she wasn't sure how to respond to that.
He continued, "You adapt quickly."
Her grip tightened around the phone.
"So I've been told," she said carefully.
Another pause.
"That can work in your favor," Adrian said.
Sasha was watching her face closely, trying to read the tone of the conversation.
Annie forced herself to stay steady. "And if it doesn't?" she asked, curiosity in her voice
Silence stretched.
Then Adrian spoke again, quieter this time.
"Then it works against you."
Her stomach dropped.
Before she could say anything else, he added, "Get some rest Annie, you need it."
The line went dead. He ended the call first before she could say anything.
Annie lowered the phone slowly.
"Well?" Sasha demanded.
"He asked if I got home safe."
"That's normal."
"Then he said I adapt quickly."
Sasha nodded. "Still normal."
Annie shook her head. "No. It wasn't how he said it."
"What did he mean?"
"He said it can work in my favor. Or against me."
Sasha's expression hardened.
"That's not flirting," she said.
"No."
"That's positioning."
Annie's phone buzzed again.
Not a call.
A message.
Unknown number.
She didn't want to open it. But she did.
> Be careful who you trust.
The air in the room shifted immediately.
Sasha read it over her shoulder.
Neither of them spoke for several seconds, trying to sink in what they've just read.
"Okay," Sasha said slowly. "Now that's different."
Annie's mind raced. Adrian had just called her, at the same time, the unknown number had sent that message.
Was it him?
Was he testing her reaction?
Or was someone else watching her… and watching him? Her mind raced different options
"Do you think he knows?" Annie asked quietly.
Sasha didn't answer immediately.
"I think," Sasha said carefully, "that someone is playing a very controlled mind game."
"With me?"
"With whoever stands in the way."
Annie stared at the message again.
> Be careful who you trust.
Her pulse quickened. What was that supposed to mean?
Adrian's voice replayed in her head.
"You adapt quickly.
That can work in your favor.
Or against you."
Her phone buzzed one last time.
Another message from the unknown number.
This one was brief.
> You're closer than you think.
Annie felt something cold settle in her chest.
Closer to what?
She looked at Sasha.
For the first time since stepping into A&R, Annie wasn't just afraid of being exposed.
She was afraid of being played with, and she still didn't know who was pulling the strings.
The phone remained in her hand, silent now.
But it still didn't feel like silence.
Is Adrian the sender?
Is someone inside A&R investigating her?
Or is Sasha hiding something?