Everyone remembered how Chloe had been disgraced and expelled for plagiarizing my work. And yet here she was, returning boldly as an architect. Without the Miller Family’s support, who else would dare give her such a chance?
“A world-renowned architect forced to work alongside someone with a black mark on her record?”
“Isn’t this outright humiliation?”
“How could Sophia stomach working with the very woman who stole her work? Unless, of course, the story we know isn’t the whole truth…”
“Word is, the Carters were powerful back then. Maybe Chloe was silenced. Now that she’s made a comeback, perhaps Sophia’s family fears the past will be exposed—maybe that’s why she’s allowed back.”
Public opinion swelled and twisted. My name was mentioned again and again alongside Chloe’s, with some even daring to question whether my so-called international awards had been won honestly—or stolen.
I stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, a fresh newspaper clenched in my hand.
The headline on the front page blared:
“Genius Architect Feud? Former Classmates in the Design World Set for a Direct Showdown.”
“Miss, should we issue a statement?” my assistant asked nervously, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Clarify?” I let out a cold laugh. “Do you really think a clarification will silence gossip? They don’t care about the truth—they want a spectacle.”
I tossed the newspaper into the fireplace, watching as the flames devoured those glaring headlines.
“If they want a show,” I murmured, “then I’ll give them one worth watching.”
Three days later, the press conference.
The hall glittered with bright chandeliers, cameras flashing in dizzying bursts.
Ethan stood confidently on stage in a tailored suit, while Chloe wore a pristine white dress, her face radiant with a carefully cultivated fragility.
But the moment she began speaking, her voice cracked into a trembling sob.
“I know many of you hold prejudice against me, but I’m willing to prove myself with real talent.
The misunderstandings of the past… maybe they happened because I was young, reckless, and didn’t clarify things in time, which led people to believe I had plagiarized.”
She paused, gazing at the reporters through tear-filled eyes, her voice quivering.
“But as for some of those drafts—who first sketched them—well, I believe those who truly know the industry already understand.”
The words hit like a bombshell.