Fred Nork stepped out onto the executive floor of Majesties HQ. His charcoal-gray suit fit so well in his tall frame like it had been stitched onto his skin,It suits him so well. His eyes were sharp and calculated. He scanned every part of the hallway as he walked past glass walls.
Everything was under control,everyone was working. But then, Fred noticed something, he noticed something strange that had begun to rise inside him lately.
At first, it used to be a fat lady, but now, it was a new person, a very slender figure that caught him. It had been just a blur in his vision, a figure in a cleaner's uniform, she was low near the marble staircase, she was quietly wiping down the railing.
The first day,The second day,The third day.Then he started seeing her more frequently. By the lobby windows, outside his office, in the executive lounge.
She never looked directly at him. Never.
Fred paused as his eyes settled on the young woman crouched near the floor-to-ceiling windows. She was dusting the frame, slow and methodical. If there was one thing he'd noticed about her, it was how hardworking and dedicated she'd been since she started.
Her dark hair was tied back in a messy bun, and her features were partially hidden, but there was something oddly familiar.
His brows furrowed.
"Fred?" came a high-pitched voice from behind.
He turned to see Tiana, his fiancée approaching, her red hills clicking on the polished floor, her Chanel purse swinging on her elbow like a trophy. "You weren't answering your phone. We are having dinner tonight, remember?"
Fred's attention flicked back toward the window.
The cleaner was gone.
"I remember," he said, but his voice had dropped into a murmur.
Tiana narrowed her eyes, following his gaze. "What were you looking at?"
"Nothing," he lied.
Tiana glanced around and spotted a lone cleaning bucket near the window. Her lips twitched. "There was a cleaner there"
"Cleaner?"
Tiana smirked. "You looked like you were just about to follow her. Is she new?"
Fred's jaw tightened. "You're imagining things."
But he wasn't so sure.
Later that night, Ana stood silently outside Fred's office, holding a mop handle like it was her only anchor in the world. The empty corridors breathed money and power, a stark contrast to the cheap wool sweater she wore beneath her uniform. Her stomach turned slightly, the morning sickness had started showing up at the worst times.
She had done everything right, stayed out of sight, avoided eye contact, never entered his floor unless assigned.
So why had he looked at her today… like he almost remembered?
She leaned against the wall, breathing shallowly. She couldn't afford to slip, to be weak. Not now.
"Miss Thompson?" a voice startled her.
Ana turned around to see the night supervisor, frowning at her clipboard.
"You're assigned to the executive floor for the next two weeks. We are short-staffed."
Ana blinked. "But... I usually clean the lobby."
Ms. Grier sighed. "New system. There must always be rotations. You'll be fine." Then she walked off before Ana could argue.
Fine? Cleaning outside his office?
Where he worked. Where he met his fiancée. Where everything about his life screamed do not enter.
Ana's hands shook. She had no choice. She already signed up for this when she began working there.
Fred stayed late. His office lights glowed against the darkness of the city. He was staring at the monitor, but not really reading. His mind kept wandering back to that girl.
Why did her posture feel familiar?
A knock on the door pulled him back.
"Come in," he said absently.
The door creaked open, and Ana's figure appeared, only slightly, just her shoulder as she peered in.
"Sorry, I…." she started, quickly lowering her gaze. "I didn't realize you were still here. I can come back."
Fred sat up straighter. "What's your name?"
Her heart thundered. She hadn't prepared for that question. Not this soon.
"Ana," she said quickly. "Ana Thompson."
The name didn't ring a bell to him.
Fred stood, walking slowly toward her. "How long have you worked here?"
Ana nodded with her eyes on the floor. "A few weeks."
There was a pause.
Fred tilted his head. "You look… familiar."
Ana's throat clenched. "People say that sometimes," she said softly.
Fred studied her. There was something in her voice, like a tremble wrapped in steel.
"Good night, Ana," he finally said, and turned back to his desk.
She bowed slightly and closed the door behind her. But her chest was burning. He was starting to notice. She had to be more careful.
Ana returned to her tiny rented room later that night, a cramped, freezing place above an old grocery store. She sat on the mattress and pulled out the photo she kept tucked in her bag, a sonogram from two days ago.
She smiled faintly. "We're doing okay, baby. Just a little longer."
Her fingers brushed her belly.
Inside the Majesties HQ the next day, Fred entered the executive lounge and froze.
Ana was there, alone, polishing the bar counter. The morning light filtered through the windows and highlighted the softness of her face.
She didn't see him yet.
But he watched her. Closely, very closely That same flutter in his chest returned. There was something about her that attracted him to her. The way she bit her lower lip when she was nervous. The careful way she tucked her hair behind her ear.
He had seen it before. He had felt it before.
His eyes narrowed.
"Ana," he said suddenly.
She startled and turned, her wide eyes meeting him.
Time slowed.
And in that second, Fred saw something flash across her face.
A memory. A recognition. A buried truth trying to stay hidden.
"Ana," he said again, more softly. "Do I... know you?"
She opened her mouth, but no words came.
The silence between them was thick.
And then, his phone buzzed.
It was Tiana.
Her name on the screen broke the moment like shattered glass. He stared at it. Then back at Ana.
But it was too late. She had turned and was walking away.
Fred watched her disappear through the corridor, the sound of her footsteps growing fainter.
But the look in her eyes…
He'd seen it before.
And this time, he wasn't letting her vanish.