Elias closed the laptop. He didn't try to call Maya; that would be another ego move—a demand for closure or a quest for forgiveness. Instead, he walked to the local community center he’d been hired to redesign. He looked at his blueprints—the grand, imposing marble entrance he’d insisted on to "make a statement."
When he finally double-clicked the file today, it didn't contain documents or spreadsheets. It was a curated map of the person he had forgotten to be. More Love, Less Ego.zip
The realization hit Elias like a physical weight. His ego had been a wall he built to protect himself, but all it had done was keep the love out. He had spent years trying to be the most "impressive" person in the room, forgetting that the only person whose opinion mattered just wanted him to be present. Elias closed the laptop
He took out a red pen and crossed it out. He replaced the marble with a wide, open garden and a circle of wooden benches. He looked at his blueprints—the grand, imposing marble