Chapter 1

I was scrolling through Reddit when a viral post on my feed caught my eye:

*[I ruined a major company project due to my own stupid mistake. How do I guilt-trip my roommate/coworker into taking the fall for me?]*

Among the flood of angry comments calling out the poster, one reply stood out, cold and calculated:

*[Easy. Play the victim. Blame it on your toxic, controlling parents.]*

*[Tell her your parents are forcing you to buy your brother a new car, and if you lose your bonus or your job, they’ll drag you back to your dead-end hometown to marry some abusive old creep. Be sure to cry your eyes out. Look absolutely suicidal. People with savior complexes will always rush to play the hero and confess to the boss for you.]*

I scoffed and was about to swipe away when my roommate, Maya, walked into the living room, her eyes red and swollen.

"Chloe... my dad just called. He said if I don’t get my full bonus this month, he’s going to drag me back to Oregon and force me to marry that abusive divorcee from our town."

"About the error in the financial report... could you please talk to the director and tell him it was your mistake? I really don't know what to do..."

For a second, I froze. Maya stood before me, speaking almost word-for-word what was written in that Reddit post.

But I quickly pushed the ridiculous thought away.

Maya and I had been college roommates. After graduation, we rented this apartment together and joined the same company.

She had always been so sweet to me. When I had stomach flu, she stayed up late to make me soup. When I worked overtime, she always left the porch light on for me.

How could such a gentle, caring girl be the scheming snake from that online thread?

"Maya, take a breath. Don't cry," I said, handing her a tissue.

"But a mistake on the financial report is a big deal. It completely halted Project Nova, and the director is furious right now."

"If I take the blame for you, I could get fired."

Maya looked up, tears streaming down her face.

"Chloe, I know I'm asking for too much."

"But it's different for you. You're a local. Your parents have great retirement funds, and even if you lose this job, you won't starve. You have a safety net."

"But if I get fired, my dad will lock me up in that small town. He'll use my forced marriage to clear my brother's debts."

She suddenly dropped to her knees, grabbing my legs.

"Chloe, please, save my life. Just this once."

"I swear, I’ll repay you. I’ll do your laundry, clean the apartment, anything! Just please don't let them take me back."

Looking at her desperate, weeping figure, my heart ached.

I thought about how she skipped meals to save money, never buying new clothes, sending every penny back to her family.

The word "okay" was right on the tip of my tongue. But then, that Reddit post flashed across my mind.

That split second of hesitation saved me. I changed my mind.

"Maya, get up first."

"We can figure something else out. Tomorrow, I'll go to the office and pull the raw data logs from the system. Maybe we can find a way to patch the error."

Maya froze. Her grip on my wrist tightened instantly.

"Chloe, no! You can't check the logs!"

"The director said the more we dig, the worse it looks. If we pull the raw system logs, it will alert the executive board."

"If that happens, both of us are done for."

A wave of exhaustion washed over me.

Why was it always like this?

Every time something went wrong with her work, there was always some urgent, unquestionable reason why we couldn't look into it.

I remembered when we first joined the company and were responsible for basic data entry.

Maya had made a massive typo, but she had cried and begged me just like this.

"Chloe, I'm still on probation. If they find out I messed up, they won't keep me."

"You're already the star employee. The manager loves you. Please, just say it was your entry error."

My soft heart yielded, and I took the fall.

Later, when the manager called me in, I suggested checking the system logs to prove it was just a minor, accidental system glitch. But Maya had stopped me immediately.

"Chloe, the manager is already angry. If you try to argue, it'll only make him think you're making excuses."

"If you dig into this, you're going to get me fired. Are you trying to ruin me?"

Because I kept giving in, Maya became more and more dependent on me.

She even started handing her high-profile clients over to me when they got difficult, only to put her name back on the contract right before closing so she could claim the commission.

She said she needed the money for her brother’s college tuition.

I valued our friendship, and I pitied her situation, so I chose to turn a blind eye.

But Project Nova was different. The budget involved was massive. If I took the fall for this, my entire career in this industry would be dead.

Seeing me remain silent, Maya pleaded in a small, trembling voice.

"Can you at least feel out the manager tomorrow? Just imply that you compiled the final sheet."

"He respects you so much. He'll definitely let you off with a warning."

"I know it's unfair to you, but I promise I'll make it up to you in every other way, okay?"