Thomas Group.
“Don’t worry,” Peter said, noticing the troubled look on Niamh’s face and trying to reassure her. “Your design won’t lose. I have faith in you.”
Niamh managed a weak smile.
It was never the design she was worried about.
In the days that followed, Niamh buried herself in her work, pouring everything she had into her designs. Marina had already taken her husband. If her work lost out to
Marina’s too, it would feel like her entire worth had been erased.
But the market told a different story. The film *Serendipity*, backed by Neville Media Group, was a box office smash. Not only did it launch its two leads into stardom, but the jewelry Niamh had designed for the heroine became wildly popular. FY seized the opportunity, mass–producing the pieces and seeing impressive sales.
Today, Niamh set out for work as usual, waking even earlier than normal.
Thanks to the market’s response to her designs, Peter was considering promoting her again. But since she was still relatively new to FY, the company required her to go through an interview with executives from different departments.
But as soon as Niamh stepped out of her car, she saw a crowd of young people gathered at the company entrance. They’d even strung up a banner:
Niamh the Copycat–Apologize!
Before she could make sense of what was happening, someone spotted her and waved the group over.
“Copycat, apologize!”
“Don’t drag my favorite actor down with you!”
“Cindy would never wear jewelry designed by a thief!”
Niamh was quickly surrounded and couldn’t escape. She knew self–defense, but she
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20:04
couldn’t exactly fight off a crowd of teenagers who mostly looked underage.
It took the security team stepping in to get her safely inside.
Turns out, someone had accused her *Serendipity* designs of plagiarism. The story blew up on social media, and with both leads, Hanley and Cindy, newly famous, their fans had launched all–out war online. Now, the rival fanbases had united against Niamh, leading to the scene at the company entrance that morning.
Inside the boardroom, Niamh tried to steady herself, sipping the coffee Peter had made for her. “Who accused me of plagiarism?” she asked. “And where’s the evidence?”
“It was Monica,” Peter replied.
Niamh stared at him, stunned.
“After she was let go here, she took a team lead job at The Thomas Group’s new
T&R division.”
It clicked for Niamh. Either Monica was holding a grudge and blaming her for getting fired, or Marina was manipulating Monica to target her.
“So whose work does she claim I copied?” Niamh asked.
Peter gave her a wry look and raised an eyebrow. “Take a guess.”
The Thomas Group.
CEO’s Office.
For once, Jonathan was actually looking at his phone.
He was scrolling through today’s trending topics. The top post showed a photo of Niamh outside her company’s front doors, her hair being yanked by a swarm of Cindy’s fans, her face twisted in pain.
His coffee, untouched, had gone cold. Just then, his office door swung open
without a knock.
“Jonathan…”
It was Marina. The irritation on Jonathan’s face vanished instantly.
“Your coffee’s gone cold,” Marina said, her voice gentle. “Let me make you
cup.”
a
fresh
As she swapped out his coffee, Marina noticed what he was looking at–today’s explosive trending topic.
20:04
Jonathan, I’m not sure if I should say this,” she began hesitantly.
Jonathan glanced up at her. “You don’t have to be so formal with me.”
Marina blushed. “I know Niamh plagiarized. The whole thing’s become a huge mess… Honestly, it’s not uncommon for designers to run out of inspiration. You shouldn’t blame Niamh too much. But… she really shouldn’t have copied the Grand Piano Collection. That collection is so original and well–known, both in and outside the industry. Anyone can spot it a mile away…”
