The lantern's warm, steady glow pushed back the encroaching shadows of the blackout, but it did more than that. For Anita, it chased away a lifetime of darkness. She stared at the flame, hypnotized by the way it danced, and for the first time in years, the blank mask she presented to the world slipped.
A procession of men flashed through her mind. The ones who saw her as a conquest, a challenge to be overcome. The ones who dismissed her as "emotional" when she pushed back against their mediocre ideas. The ones who loved the idea of her—the powerful, successful CEO—but resented the reality of her ambition. They saw her as a trophy, not a partner. They brought her expensive gifts, made grand gestures, and spoke in platitudes, but their eyes held the same glint of entitlement, the same condescension she had seen in her father's eyes when he'd told her she should have been born a boy. They wanted her success, not her.
But John… John brought her a cup of coffee and a single flower. He gave her a thought, a shared observation, without demanding anything in return. And now, this. A simple lantern in the dark. No grand declaration, no over-the-top display. Just a practical, quiet act of service. He had seen she needed light, and he had given it to her.She looked up at him, her cool composure a fragile thing in the soft, flickering light. His earlier, embarrassing confession of love had been easier to dismiss. It was a violation of boundaries, a cliché she had heard a hundred times. But this… this was an act of genuine, unvarnished kindness.
It was utterly devoid of ego. He didn't preen or draw attention to himself. He simply did what was needed and returned to his own work.The silence that had previously felt so tense was now something else entirely. It was a quiet space, a bubble of peace in the chaotic dark of the office. She saw him not as a problem employee, but as a man. A man who, in a world full of noise, had chosen to communicate through gentle, thoughtful actions. A man who had looked past the title and the power and had simply seen her.The lantern on her desk suddenly felt like a small, precious gift. The glow it cast illuminated not just her workspace, but a small, carefully guarded corner of her heart she had long since sealed off.
For the first time in a very long time, Anita felt a blush creep up her neck. She had no idea what this meant, or where it would lead, but as she watched John's silhouette bent over his laptop, she knew one thing for sure: the ice around her heart had just developed its first, undeniable crack.