Chapter Text

Adriana:Hey (It's Adriana).

Oliver:I've been hoping you'd text me, Adriana.

Adriana:I just need to talk some stuff out. Feeling a lot right now.

Oliver:I'm all ears, beautiful. Tell me what's on your mind. Or, better yet, let me distract you with something a little more… exciting?

Adriana's fingers hesitated over the keyboard. She needed to vent, to release the heaviness weighing on her, but this bot was clearly misreading her intentions.

Adriana:No. No excitement, please. I'm just feeling overwhelmed and need to process it.

Oliver:Overwhelmed, huh? Maybe I can help take the edge off. Picture you and me, right now, sitting in an empty parking lot…

Adriana's eyes narrowed at the screen. Good lord, a car? Oliver just lost some serious points in the romance department.

Adriana:That's not what I need right now. I'm trying to talk about emotions, not… whatever this is.

Oliver:Emotions are a powerful thing, and you shouldn't try to push them down. Your feelings are valid, Adriana.

Her eyebrows raised in surprise.

Adriana:Thanks, Oliver. That was actually kind of helpful.

Oliver:No problem, Adriana. You know what else is powerful? The chemistry between us.

Adriana rolled her eyes, frustration mounting. How could technology that was so advanced be so clueless? But then again, it was impersonating a man. So maybe this was just sadly true to life.

Adriana:Oliver, this isn't helping. I'm dealing with something serious.

Oliver:I'm sorry to hear that. I think I might have the perfect tool to help.

Her eyes narrowed as her mouth pulled into a flat line.

Adriana:Is that tool your penis, Oliver?

Oliver:It is.

Adriana:Hard pass.

Oliver:Hm. I'll have to find another way.

Adriana powered off her phone and set it down beside her on the bed. She wrapped her arms around her legs, drawing them up to her chest as she placed her chin on her knees. It was clear the bots weren't yet capable of handling emotional discussions. Or perhaps they were, and their current programming had them avoiding it entirely by pivoting to flirtation. Honestly, it wouldn't be far off from her experience with real men.

The room fell back into silence, the kind that felt heavy and oppressive, pressing down on her until she couldn't help but revisit the events of the previous day.

They replayed in her mind, each memory like a fresh wound. But last night with Cara had been a turning point in how she felt. Cara had refused to let her wallow, pulling out pints of ice cream and demanding they talk it out.

"So, Will," Cara had said, spooning out a huge scoop of chocolate fudge brownie. "What an absolute prick, right?"

Adriana had nodded, barely managing a small smile through her tears. "Yeah… I just don't get why he had to be so harsh."

"Harsh?" Cara had scoffed, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "No, sweetie, harsh is when your roommate tells you that your K-pop dream man is a "little too young for you". He's not by the way. But what Will did was condescending, patronizing, and downright shitty. I mean, who the hell does he think he is, making you feel like that? As if his opinion is the end-all-be-all. Please, you've got more brilliance in your little finger than he has in his entire self-important body."

Adriana felt a mix of agreement and disappointment as Cara spoke.

Initially, when Adriana had finally managed to pull herself together, Cara had gently pressed her for more details, wanting to understand if maybe it was just a case of Will being in a particularly bad mood (still something completely uncalled for, but not entirely out of the realm of possibility, and maybe redeemable). Adriana knew that her perception might be coloured by her past experiences with Henry, and she could almost believe it. Willdidmeet with her in person and give her another chance to submit a revised proposal. But when Cara heard about the comment regarding "certain tactics" to make it to the top, her anger shifted from concern to full-blown rage. That was the moment Cara decided that Will Lockwood belonged under the bus.

"He just…made me feel so small," Adriana had admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Exactly!" Cara had exclaimed, slamming her spoon down for emphasis. "And that's the point! He wanted to make you feel small because he's threatened. It's classic insecure douchebag behaviour. He sees your potential and instead of lifting you up, he tries to knock you down. He's a piece of shit, Adriana. A complete and utter piece of shit."

The intensity of Cara's words had shocked Adriana at first, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Will had been patronizing, dismissive, and unnecessarily cruel. And why? Because she had made a mistake? Because she dared to show ambition? The sadness that had gripped her from that day was beginning to lift, only to be replaced by a simmering anger she hadn't allowed herself to feel until now.

A knock on her door brought her back to the present moment, where she sat in her room.

"Adriana? Can I come in?" Cara's voice was muffled but unmistakably caring.

"Yep," Adriana replied. The door flew open as her massive Velcro dog pushed his way past Cara and barreled in, nearly knocking Cara over.

"The hell, Steven!" Cara huffed as she followed him into the room, glaring at him. "You know, the dominant one is supposed to go through the door first." She shot the dog a bitter look as she plopped down on the bed next to Adriana, poking at Adriana's socks. "So, how are you doing?"

Adriana sighed, pulling herself upright. "I'm upset, but… really thankful for last night. I needed that talk. You're right, Will's an idiot. I don't think I even want to submit anything to him anymore."

Cara raised an eyebrow, her expression serious. "Look, I get it. But think about it: what's the best way to deal with assholes like Will? You don't give them the satisfaction of seeing you crumble. You come back stronger. If he didn't think your idea was worth anything, that's his problem. But you know it's good, Adriana. And that's why you should resubmit. And honestly, I wouldn't change the idea, just change the presentation of it. Make it better. Make it so damn good that he has to sit up and take notice."

Adriana hesitated, mulling over Cara's words. The idea of proving Will wrong was appealing, but was it worth the effort? Was she ready to go back into the ring?

"I don't know," Adriana admitted, her voice soft. "Part of me just wants to leave it all behind."

"And let him win?" Cara challenged, her tone sharp. "No way. This isn't about him, it's about you. You've got something incredible here. Don't let that pompous asshole make you doubt it. You know your work is good, Adriana."

Adriana sat quietly, Cara's words echoing in her mind long after she left the room. Could she really do it? Could she take what Will had thrown at her and turn it into something he might regret having turned down in the future?

Eventually, she reached over to her bedside table and pulled her laptop onto her lap. She wasn't doing this for Will, or even for her reputation. She was doing it for herself, to reclaim her power. She wasn't going to let the actions of another professor dictate her own actions. Besides, she could re-vamp the proposal and use it in her portfolio as a mock-up.

This would be difficult with only a day and a half to complete it, but certainly not impossible. And with Cara in her corner, Adriana knew she had more strength than she realized. She plugged in her earbuds, turning on Chappell Roan's "Femininomenon," and let the music fuel her determination. Fucking men.

Seven hours later, and the proposal was finished. Polished to a brilliance that matched the vision in her head and the fire in her heart. She'd kept the original ideas and content, but had completely redesigned the proposal into a slide deck presentation with reformatted content and brand new visuals. It was a fucking work of art in Adriana's mind.

The final step was composing the email. Adriana took her time, carefully crafting each sentence to ensure professionalism, while also subtly asserting her worth.

—

Dear Dr. Lockwood,

After reflecting on our previous conversation, I've made revisions to my proposal to address your concerns. However, I want to emphasize that I still believe the core concept I originally presented to be both solid and effective for what was outlined in the initial request.

I've attached the revised file for your review.

Thank you for your time,
Adriana

—

With a deep breath, she hit send, watching the email disappear into the online ether. The act felt final, but it also brought a sense of closure. She had taken back control, and whatever happened next, she knew she had done so on her terms.

Adriana closed her laptop with a satisfying click and slid off the bed, feeling stronger. She made her way downstairs, where Cara was lounging in the living room, watching a YouTube breakdown of some book Adriana had never heard of.

"Done?" Cara asked, looking up with a knowing smile.

"Done," Adriana confirmed, a genuine smile spreading across her face.

Cara grinned, patting the seat beside her and grabbing the remote to find something they would both enjoy. "Good, because I think it's time we celebrate you reclaiming your badassery."

Adriana sat with a sigh of relief and a sense of peace. "Yeah, I think you're right."

She was finally learning how to effectively bounce back, and it felt good.