Palm Springs, 3 PM

Maria watched the baseball game on the breakroom monitor, nursing her lukewarm water. The corporate retreat in Palm Springs had been Javier's idea—of course it had. He stood by the artificial palm tree, his Panama hat tilted at that familiar arrogant angle, charming the interns like nothing had happened.

The baseball pitcher wound up, threw. Strike three.

"That's how you close a deal," Javier was saying, his voice carrying over the fake tropical ambience. "Straight and fast. No hesitation."

Maria's water glass trembled. Three weeks ago, she'd presented that exact marketing strategy—her late nights, her research, her breakthrough insight about the new demographic. Javier had listened, nodded, taken meticulous notes. Two days later, he'd presented it to the board as his own. The promotion had been his. The corner office. The praise.

Now here they were, forced into corporate camaraderie while her career withered under fluorescent lights and plastic palms.

She set her glass down on the poolside table, condensation slick on her fingers. The real palm trees outside the resort perimeter bent in the desert wind—real things surviving in harsh conditions. Inside, everything was curated, comfortable, fake.

"Maria!" Javier called, spotting her. "Come tell everyone about that grassroots campaign you're running. Small projects suit you, don't they?"

Something snapped inside her—quiet, clean, decisive.

She walked over, removed her hat, set it carefully on the table. Then she picked up her pitcher of water and poured it slowly, deliberately over Javier's shoes. The ice cubes clinked beautifully against his leather loafers.

"Oops," she said. "My hesitation. I'll work on that."

Around them, silence fell like a called strike. Javier sputtered, dripping. The palm tree seemed to nod above them.

Maria walked out toward the real palms, the desert wind. Behind her, something shattered against the concrete—maybe the glass pitcher, maybe everything she'd been holding back. Either way, the sound was perfect. She didn't look back.