Yeh and Lin never reached out to each other privately. The silence was mutual, and understood.
Still, the project moved forward. The investors came through. Before long, everything was essentially confirmed.
It unfolded almost exactly as Yeh had outlined in the proposal she'd written for working with Lin's team.
She had already aligned with Fiona: all updates would go through her, passed on in a single, orderly channel.
So when Fiona posted in the group chat—
We're cleared to start. Let's go, ladies.
—it was simple. And yet it felt like a door being opened again, one that had only just been closed with care.
Yeh didn't reply right away. She didn't want to seem too eager.
Still, a quiet, irrational satisfaction rose in her—
as if the distance between her and Lin hadn't widened during these days of silence.
Everything was proceeding as planned.
More smoothly, even, than she had anticipated.
She couldn't help thinking: fate, when handled carefully, could be surprisingly cooperative.
As long as she stayed within bounds—kept things rational—she and Lin could continue to work together. Perhaps even remain friends.
When Lin saw the message, her eyes brightened, just a little.
She had expected delays, complications, maybe even a quiet collapse. Cross-team, cross-region projects rarely escaped friction.
But this one had gone through—cleanly.
She knew why.
Yeh was goal-oriented.
Focused. Steady. Ambitious.
Yet Lin didn't message her privately.
And Yeh didn't reach out either.
It felt like an unspoken agreement between them—
Keep the distance, and the path stays clear.
Cross no lines, and nothing breaks.
The group chat quickly filled with excitement: timelines, budgets, assignments. Messages stacked one after another, scrolling fast.
Yeh and Lin stayed silent, each on her own screen, playing their roles as nothing more than collaborators.
Only they knew—
this moment was more delicate than any private conversation could have been.
Because it meant one thing:
They were still moving forward on the same path.
Not drifting apart.
Not losing touch.
Just confirming, with the utmost restraint,
that they were both still there.