Chapter 6

Through her own efforts, Jessica secured one company after another, thereby gaining more resources from her boss. Her performance snowballed, growing larger and more impressive by the day.

She began to feel self-satisfied, no longer stepping back, understanding why her boss always said her makeup couldn't be too light. She needed to project professionalism, conceal her youthfulness, make her statements resonate with authority, and negotiate successes with even non-existent leverage.

One day, upon returning to the office, Jessica unexpectedly found Vivian and Hubert arguing with Kevin. Unable to discern the reason and failing to calm them, Jessica watched as Kevin, despite being the boss, showed willingness to de-escalate. Yet, Hubert, accustomed to pride, stormed out of the office, ignoring Kevin's calls to return.

Jessica felt the situation couldn't end like this — with Kevin, the boss, publicly slighted and Hubert too proud to yield. She chased after Hubert, persuading him to return, suggesting a private discussion rather than a public spectacle.

Knowing somehow that Hubert would comply, Jessica didn't fully understand why, but she was certain he would follow her back.

Hubert returned to his seat across from Kevin, beside Jessica, while Vivian stood by, arms crossed, watching coldly. Jessica approached Vivian, attempting to defuse the tension, only to be met with scornful laughter and accused of hypocrisy, leaving Jessica flushed with embarrassment and on the verge of tears.

Feeling humiliated, Jessica whispered to Kevin that she was heading home. Kevin witnessed everything but remained silent.

On her way home, overwhelmed with frustration and tears, Jessica reminded herself she was just a young girl struggling in a big city, momentarily forgetting she was only 22. She considered messaging her boyfriend but then hesitated, realizing Daniel couldn't solve her problems or dry her tears.

As she was about to put away her phone, a message illuminated the screen: "Don't mind Vivian. We all know about her princess attitude. Cheer up, kid."

It was from Hubert. Jessica mustered a response, insisting she was fine, before dozing off against the jostling bus window.

The dim streetlights, the scent of damp asphalt mixed with mud and grass after the rain, and the Shanghai dialect announcing "Jiangwan Road" became her anchor points of solitary days that year. Even now, the smell of rain-soaked streets enveloped her in loneliness.

Scents and sounds are time machines. Years later, at 29, Jessica kept bottles of perfume laden with memories, wary of the disorienting sensations they evoked.