"H-Hello?" Lillian nervously said as she answered the call.
"Hey," Ethan's calm and composed voice came through. "Are you free to talk?"
"Um, yeah. What's up?" Lillian quickly stepped out of the kitchen and into the living room, clutching the phone like it might escape her grip.
Aria peeked out from the doorway with curious eyes.
"Can we meet up?" Ethan asked, "it's about Sentinel."
'Sentinel?' Lillian thought, 'did he sell it?'
"O-Okay. When?" she asked, her voice a bit steadier now.
"Right now, if you're free." He answered.
"Now?" Lillian glanced at the clock on the wall. "Yeah, I mean—I'm free. Just… give me like fifteen minutes?"
"You can take twenty," Ethan said with a chuckle. "We'll meet at the same Sammy's diner as last time."
"R-right," Lillian said, "I'll be there in twenty."
As she ended the call, Lillian turned to face Aria who leaned on the doorway leading to their kitchen with a teasing grin on her face.
"Ooh, is that another date I hear about?" Aria teased, causing Lillian's face to become bright red.
"I told you, Ethan and I are not together like that." Lillian defended.
"Whatever you say," Aria replied with a chuckle, "just hurry and leave, I'll handle the cooking."
Lillian looked a bit hesitant, more so because she knew Aria's kitchen skills but on the other hand, she didn't want to be late for her meeting with Ethan.
After a moment of internal struggle, Lillian sighed in defeat and rushed to her room.
"Just don't burn the apartment down!" she called over her shoulder, already halfway through yanking off her hoodie and tossing it onto the bed.
"No promises!" Aria replied, her voice mischievous.
Lillian quickly slipped into a light-blue blouse and dark jeans, her clothes were casual but clean. Her hands hovered over her small makeup kit, then dropped.
No, this isn't a date. She fluffed her hair with her fingers and dabbed on some lip balm anyway.
Grabbing her purse, she gave herself one last look in the mirror.
He just wants to talk about Sentinel. This is business.
Busi-ness.
_________
Ethan arrived at Sammy's five minutes early and took the same booth where he and Lillian had last met.
The corner seat gave him a clear view of the entrance, and at the same time, a view of outside.
Ethan was dressed in a dark blue jacket with a white hoodie, coupled with black jogging pants and white sneakers.
He would've preferred something lighter but his wardrobe was filled with either hoodies or jackets, so he just put on what he could find.
Ding
The bell above Sammy's diner's door pulled him from his thoughts as he looked up to spot Lillian walking in.
She stepped inside, brushing a bit of windblown hair behind her ear as her eyes scanned the diner.
The moment they landed on Ethan, her lips curled into a small, tentative smile.
Ethan gave a nod in acknowledgment, standing briefly as she approached.
"Hey," Lillian greeted, her voice soft but warm.
"Hey yourself," Ethan said with a smile of his own , gesturing toward the seat across from him. "Glad you made it."
"Well, I couldn't just leave everything to you now that we're officially partners," Lillian said as she took her seat.
"I guess you're right," Ethan nodded.
"So you said you wanted to talk about Sentinel?" Lillian asked.
Her previous nervousness when talking to Ethan had completely disappeared since she was a lot more comfortable with him now.
"Right," he nodded before taking his phone out and sending something to her.
Ding!
Lillian's phone let out as it received a new notification.
Taking the phone out, she blinked in surprise when she read what Ethan sent, she then blinked again before her jaw slowly dropped.
"Y-you made $5.7 million dollars from just testing Sentinel?" Lillian asked in surprise as she read the message multiple times over.
"Yep" Ethan replied with a grin, "Sentinel discovered twenty vulnerabilities in their systems which I sold to them for that amount."
"Wow," was the only thing Lillian could say due to how surprised she was.
She looked at the screen again before locking eyes with Ethan, "So....do you plan on just fishing for vulnerabilities in the systems of big companies with Sentinel?"
Her expression made it clear she'd be disappointed if that were his entire vision.
"That's the second reason I called," Ethan said, maintaining the eye contact. "The money from Google would be used to officially launch OmniTech Corp."
"OmniTech Corp?" Lillian asked.
"Yeah," Ethan nodded, "an umbrella company focused on multiple fields of innovation—starting with cybersecurity, but expanding into AI, biotech, green tech, and even space eventually"
"W-wait," Lillian stuttered, "isn't that too ambitious?"
"Maybe, but so was Sentinel." Ethan answered, "and it has earned $5.7 million dollars in just it's testing phase."
"I.... I guess you're right" Lillian muttered, finding no way to refute his words.
"OmniTech is going to change the world Lillian, and I want you to be part of that change as it's COO"
"Huh?" Lillian froze at his words.
"I want you to be OmniTech's COO," Ethan repeated.
Lillian stared at him, her brain seemingly stuck in buffering mode.
"C-COO? As in… Chief Operating Officer?" she finally said, blinking like she'd misheard him.
Ethan nodded, leaning back slightly with a calm confidence.
Lillian opened her mouth, closed it, then rubbed the back of her neck as she glanced down at the table. "I-I'm just a part-timer at Best Buy. I-I mean, I haven't even finished my degree yet…"
"And I'm just a 20 years old college graduate, yet here I am with a lot more than I could've made working a normal job" Ethan interrupted.
She let out a soft, incredulous laugh. "I feel like I'm dreaming."
"You're not," Ethan said, tone softening. "You've got what it takes, Lillian. You just haven't had the chance to prove it—until now."
Lillian looked at him again and his steady gaze was locked on her face, causing her heart skipped.
Was this really happening?
She swallowed hard. "What would I even do as COO? I mean, I'm not experienced in running a company—"
"You'll learn," Ethan said confidently. "I'll handle the tech and the vision—you'll manage operations, people, and strategy. I need someone smart to help run the company, and that's you, Lillian."
He leaned back slightly, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
"Remember when I said I'd share the pie with you?" he added. "This is me keeping that promise."
Then he fell silent, as he waited for her response.
There was a pause.
Lillian's fingers slowly curled on the edge of the table.
"…Okay," she said, her voice barely above a whisper before adding in a louder tone " I'll do it."
Ethan smiled, proud but not surprised. "Welcome aboard, COO."