When the door swung open, for a heartbeat I thought I was seeing a ghost from a bygone era.
Victoria stepped in slowly, as if she were walking onto a stage where she had once played the lead, though the lines had slipped from her memory.
Her gaze, once cold and assured, now trembled with doubtlike someone who does not know whether they are welcome.
Eleanor she whispered, her voice quivering. For the first time I heard not haughtiness but uncertainty. I never imagined you you”
That Im here? I asked calmly. Or that I never cleaned the lavatories, as they used to think?
She lowered her eyes.
It was a silly thing, she muttered. Just a cheap joke, I didnt mean it seriously
I thought, I replied softly, that back then it was easy for you to stay on top. Times have changed, Victoria. Sit down.
She obeyed, sinking into the chair opposite me. The poise that had once marked her movements was gone. Her fingers clutched the strap of her handbag nervously, while her eyes scanned the wallsframed certificates, the photograph of me at an international conference in London, standing beside the companys vicepresident.
So youre a director now, she said with a forced smile.
For three years, I confirmed. Were looking for a coordinator for new projects. Youre the candidate.
I didnt expect she whispered. That the interview would be with you.
Tell me about yourself, I said, leafing through the papers. What have you been up to these past few years?
I worked in PR, she answered quickly. Then some personal issues. Now I just want to start over.
I understand, I noted. Why this firm in particular?
She sighed, as if laying down a heavy secret.
Because nowhere else called me back.
The silence that followed spoke louder than any rebuke.
Do you remember, Victoria, I asked after a pause, how in school you said some people are born to be on top and others to tidy up after them?
She nodded slowly.
I remember. It embarrasses me.
I said nothing then. I looked at hernot the schoolgirl I once knew, but a woman who had weathered her own collapse.
I felt no desire for revenge, no urge to humiliate. Only a quiet sorrow.
If today you met that girl you used to mock, what would you say to her?
Her eyes welled.
Id say Im sorry. And Id ask her to teach me how to be strong.
I closed the folder.
Victoria, you have the education, the experience. You can start here, but as a junior officerno perks, no shortcuts. Just work.
Youd take me really? she asked, disbelief in her voice.
Im not holding a grudge, I said. But I wont forget. Prove youre different.
She nodded. Gratitude, a tone I had never heard from her, rose in her voice.
Thank you, Eleanor. I promise Ill make it work.
When she left, I lingered on the closed door for a long while.
Life has a way of bringing us back to the places where we once felt weakjust to see whether we have grown.
Months passed.
Victoria arrived early, stayed late, never complained, never tried to outshine anyone. She worked hard.
One evening I saw her helping a junior colleague craft a presentationcalm, careful, without a hint of arrogance.
A few weeks later she knocked on my door.
May I have a moment? she asked.
Of course, I smiled.
I just wanted to thank you. You didnt condemn me. You gave me a chance. I thought Id lost everything perhaps only what was holding me back from being true.
Sometimes you must lose it all to find yourself, I murmured.
She smiledwarm, unmasked. In that instant I realised I needed no vengeance. The real triumph was watching her change.
A year later Victoria headed her own department. Her projects turned a tidy profit, the team adored her, the youngsters respected her.
At a company gathering a nervous new hire approached her.
MrsGeorgie, Im terrified of tomorrows presentation
She placed a hand on his shoulder and said,
Dont be afraid. It isnt the clothes or the titles that make a person strong, but the heart and the mind.
From the side I watched her, and for the first time felt a genuine peace.
The past had finally closed.
And life, in its quiet, precise way, had met its own justice.
That night, as I walked home, a smile rested on my lipsneither proud nor victorious, but calm and true.
