**Title: “The Day 22 People Left”**

I never thought that one day, I would stand in the lobby of a 50-story glass building — once the pride of my career — and sign my resignation letter right after receiving an award. But life has unexpected turns.

My name is **Elena Brooks**, 32 years old, creative director of **Nova Dynamics**, one of the leading technology companies in the US founded by CEO **Alexander Reid**. People call him “the golden brain of Silicon Valley,” but to me, he is just the person who made me love, believe — and learn to fall.

—

Three years ago, when I was accepted to Nova, I was a person with nothing but passion and crazy ideas. During the interview, Alexander Reid – a man in a white shirt, no tie, cold and unreadable eyes – looked at me and asked:

> “If I gave you a team, a budget, and no limits, what would you do?”

I answered without hesitation:

> “I would create something that would make the whole world look up — and see Nova.”

He chuckled, and from that moment on, I was hired.

—

The next three years were hell and heaven all rolled into one. I practically lived at the company, leading a 22-person creative team on the biggest project in Nova’s history — the **Lumea** platform, an AI system that automates global manufacturing processes.

Every day, we worked until 2–3 a.m. I slept on the sofa, ate cold pizza, and coded while listening to the coffee maker sputter. But every time I saw the Nova logo light up on the demo screen, my heart pounded.

Alexander was very demanding, but he was always there — even at 3 a.m. He had a way of looking at people that made you want to prove yourself and fear that you were never good enough. I don’t know when, but that look made me believe that I was building something bigger with him than just a job.

When **Lumea** was finished, Alexander held a big press conference. The whole tech world was there. He stood on stage, talking strongly about the future, about the “talented team” that had made it happen. And I stood backstage, tears welling up.

Little did I know that, just **a week** later, he would call me into his office, look me in the eye, and say:

> “Thank you, Elena. But Nova is going in a different direction. You are terminated today.”

—

I was stunned.
I thought he was joking, like he always did when he tested my endurance.

“What did you say?” I asked, trembling.

“Nova is merging with Titan. They don’t want the independent creative team anymore. I… can’t keep you.”

I looked straight at him. “Can’t, or *don’t want*?”

He was silent. His once warm eyes were now cold.

I walked out of the room like a lost soul. Outside, the 22 people on the team were celebrating the news that “the project was selected for global expansion.” I didn’t say a word, just smiled awkwardly. That night, I cleaned up my desk in silence.

The next morning, I returned to hand in my employee ID. As I walked out the door, I heard a voice behind me:

> “Elena, wait.”

It was **Marcus**, the chief engineer of my team. He placed an envelope in front of me:

> “We know. We all know.”

I looked at him, not understanding. He smiled sadly:

> “No one forgets who really built Nova. He can fire you, but he can’t erase the way you made us believe in ourselves. Wherever you go, we go.”

I burst into tears. In that moment, 22 people — people who had stayed up all night with me, laughing, arguing, hunched over their keyboards — stood up, put their employee badges on the table. A long row of badges, like little medals.

—

The news spread like wildfire:
**“22 key personnel leave Nova Dynamics after the firing of the Creative Director.”**
The press rumored that I was “betrayed,” that this was an “internal rebellion.”

Alexander didn’t comment. He only said one sentence at the press conference:

> “Those who no longer fit the Nova vision will leave.”

I was hurt. But then, instead of wallowing, I chose to start over. With the little money I had left, I rented an old basement and built a small company called **Astra Lab** — the logo was a lone star in the dark sky.

“We’re going to do it again,” I told the 22 people who had followed me. “It doesn’t have to be big, it just has to be right.”

—

We worked like survivors of the explosion. No investment, no shareholders, just faith. Freelancing to survive during the day, returning to Astra at night.

Half a year later, we launched **Pulse** — an AI platform that helps small businesses access technology without a lot of capital. It wasn’t as flashy as Lumea, but it was *ours*.

Three months later, Pulse was named “The Humane Invention of the Year” by *TechWave* magazine. Small businesses across America were using it.

One morning, I got an email:

> **From:** Alexander Reid
> **Subject:** We need to talk.

I read it over and over again.

—

We met in the usual coffee shop near Nova headquarters. He looked more tired than before, his hair streaked with gray, but his eyes were still sharp.

“You’re doing better than I thought,” he said. “Pulse is attracting investors that Titan wants. They want to buy Astra.”

I smiled faintly. “

What do you want to buy back? A group of people you abandoned?”

He paused, then said softly:

> “Elena… I had to. Titan forced me. If I didn’t fire you, Nova would be swallowed up. But I knew you wouldn’t stop.”

I was stunned. “You’re saying… you *sacrificed* me to save Nova?”

“Not just Nova,” he said softly. “Saving you too. I knew Titan would kill the creation project. But if you stay out, you’ll be free. And you’ll win.”

I looked at him, my heart pounding. Anger, hurt, betrayal — all mixed together in one unnamed emotion.

—

Three weeks later, Nova filed for bankruptcy. Titan withdrew its funding, its stock plummeted. But Astra’s Pulse exploded, attracting millions of users and backed by hedge funds.

In the media, people asked me how I felt about successfully “getting revenge.” I simply replied:

> “I never wanted revenge. I just wanted to prove that loyalty is not to the company, but to human values.”

—

**Final twist:**

A year later, I received an anonymous handwritten letter at Astra’s office. Inside the envelope were shares — 30% of Nova Dynamics — and a small, handwritten note:

> “I was the founder of Nova. Now, Nova belongs to the right person.

> – A.R.”

The next day, the news broke: **Alexander Reid died in a car accident on his way to Washington.**

I sat quietly in my room, holding the crumpled paper. 22 of my team walked in and stood around me. Marcus whispered:

> “He knew we would continue.”

I looked up at the window. Outside, the sunset fell into the sky, reflecting off Nova’s old glass building. I felt only one feeling — both loss and fulfillment.

—

**Three years later**, Astra had become one of the largest philanthropic tech companies in America. On the plaque in the main lobby, engraved were the words I’d written that first night in the basement:

> “22 people left — not for money, but for the belief that people are irreplaceable.”

And underneath, I added a small sentence, just for myself:

> “Thank you, Alexander. For firing me — so I could be free to do what was right.”