Chapter 6 - The Clean Slate
By Friday, the physical relocation of my life out of Grant’s Lincoln Park apartment was complete.
I hadn't gone back myself. I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of a face-to-face confrontation or another pathetic plea for reconciliation. Instead, I sent a professional moving crew accompanied by a neutral third-party mediator to pack up my clothes, my books, my desk chair, and all my personal effects while Grant was presumably holed up in his empty apartment trying to figure out how to explain bankruptcy to his parents.
Chloe’s apartment had temporarily transformed into a hybrid war room and design studio. Stacks of financial spreadsheets, brand mood boards, and market research reports covered every square inch of her dining table.
Elena Vance had wasted no time. Following the formal execution of Vanguard Brands’ seed round—backed by a robust seven-figure commitment from Venture Peak Capital—we were already moving into our own temporary office space in the River North district.
I was standing by Chloe’s kitchen counter reviewing final packaging drafts for Vanguard’s debut line of botanical sparkling waters when my phone chimed with a calendar notification.
10:00 AM — Executive Strategy Session with Elena Vance & Design Lead.
I smiled, running my fingers over the edge of my laptop. For two years, my name had been omitted from pitch decks, my ideas had been stolen over dinner, and my contributions had been dismissed as "useful" background noise. Now, my name was stamped across Articles of Incorporation, bank accounts, and cap tables as founder and CEO.
The front door unlocked, and Chloe walked in carrying a brown paper bag overflowing with groceries and a fresh box of celebratory pastries. She kicked the door shut with her foot and dumped the bags on the counter.
“Stop working for five minutes,” Chloe demanded, tossing a cinnamon pastry my way. “You are officially a corporate titan now. You’re allowed to eat sugar before noon.”
I caught the pastry, laughing. “I’m just reviewing the final SKU distribution timeline for the Q2 launch. If we want to hit the Whole Foods Midwest buyer meeting in February, we need the sample runs finalized by next Friday.”
“Let Vanguard Brands breathe for ten seconds, Avery,” Chloe said, leaning against the counter and studying me with a soft, affectionate smile. “Can we just take a second to acknowledge how far you’ve come in one week? Seven days ago, you were hiding in a guest room listening to your loser boyfriend call you inferior. Today, you own your own company.”
“It’s surreal,” I admitted, taking a bite of the pastry. “Part of me still expects to wake up at Grant’s dining table at 2:00 AM fixing his investor deck while he sleeps on the couch.”
“Never going back,” Chloe said firmly. “Speaking of which... heard any updates on the ghost of Christmas past?”
May you like
I shook my head. “Sarah Sterling says his corporate counsel tried to explore a settlement, but when they realized we had airtight metadata proving IP misappropriation and that Venture Peak had blacklisted him across every major VC fund in the Midwest, they dropped it. Northline House is liquidating its assets. Grant’s parents are apparently paying his legal fees to keep him out of bankruptcy court, but his reputation in the Chicago startup scene is completely radioactive.”
“Good,” Chloe said without a hint of remorse. “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”
