The bell above Sammy's diner door let out a a soft chime as Ethan walked inside.
The scent of coffee, pancakes, and slightly overcooked bacon hit him instantly—nostalgic, in a strange way.
His eyes scanned the place, landing on her almost immediately.
Lillian was already there, seated in a booth near the window, nervously fiddling with a straw wrapper.
She was still in her blue best buy Lacoste, but Ethan immediately noticed that her hair was down, instead of the usual bun she tied it in.
As her eyes darted around, she suddenly spotted him standing and their eyes locked.
She gave him a small smile and a wave. Ethan returned it with a casual one of his own and made his way over.
"Hey," he said, sliding into the booth across from her.
"Hi," she replied, voice barely above a whisper. Her fingers fidgeted under the table, hidden from view, but he could tell.
He motioned to the menu. "Hope you haven't ordered yet. I'm starving."
She shook her head, relieved. "No, I was waiting."
He picked up the laminated menu, but mostly for show as his attention drifted back to her.
"So… you come here often?" he gently asked.
Lillian let out a soft laugh, a bit of the tension easing from her shoulders. "Only when Aria drags me out. She says I need to touch grass."
This got a chuckle out of Ethan too.
A waitress came by, took their orders, and left with a practiced smile.
The booth suddenly went quiet, not because of awkwardness but because Ethan was waiting for her to say something.
After all, the past conversations were always led by him and this time, he wanted her to be comfortable enough to lead.
The waiter soon returned with their orders—pancakes for her, bacon and eggs for him. A mug of coffee was placed in front of each of them.
Lillian murmured a quiet "thank you" to the server, then picked up her fork, cutting into the stack of pancakes.
She took a small, measured bite, almost like she didn't want to look messy in front of him.
Ethan, on the other hand, didn't hesitate. He stabbed into the bacon and popped it into his mouth. "God, I missed greasy diner food."
Lillian smiled faintly, her fork pausing mid-air. "You talk like you haven't eaten in years."
"In a way, I haven't." Ethan sipped his coffee, letting the bitter warmth settle him. "Been too deep in code and noodles and to bother with real meals."
There was silence again, but this time, it felt like Lillian was gathering courage. She finally asked, "So… you mentioned you were working on something big?"
Ethan gave her a slight nod, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Yeah. Sentinel. It's a cybersecurity tool with real-time detection and patching of vulnerabilities."
Lillian blinked. "Like antivirus software?"
"More like a bodyguard that makes sure every point of attack is identified and dealt with." His tone was calm, but she could hear the pride behind his words.
She lowered her fork, intrigued. "That sounds… ambitious."
"Maybe," Ethan said, taking a sip of his coffee, "but I've already built an MVP for it."
"Alone?" Lillian asked, surprised.
She might not know a whole lot about coding but she knew that even creating an antivirus software usually took teams of coders.
"Yeah" Ethan nodded.
"T...that's really impressive" She gave a tiny smile at that.
"Thanks," he smiled back "but I do need your help."
"M-my help" Lillian stuttered, caught off guard by his words.
"Yeah," Ethan said, watching her reaction carefully. "I know it sounds out of nowhere, but I really do."
This was a turning point, her reply would determine whether the future Midas would be on his side or not.... And he preferred if she was.
Lillian's eyes widened slightly. She tucked her hair behind her ear, a nervous habit, he noted, and stared down at her coffee like it might explain what he meant better than he just did.
"I… I'm not really a tech person," she murmured. "I mean, I understand some of it, b-but I'm not a coder or anything."
Ethan gave a soft chuckle, her answer was just as expected so he still had her right where he wanted.
"Don't worry, I'm not asking you to be a coder," he started "I just need a business advice."
Lillian blinked. "Business advice?"
"Yeah," Ethan nodded. "I've got the tech down. The prototype works (not actually tested, but she didn't need to know that). But turning it into something people actually buy? That's the battlefield I can't win alone."
She looked at him, still unsure. "But I'm not some business guru either, Ethan. I'm just a college student who works part-time at Best Buy…"
"And yet you've helped three local businesses increase their sales just by walking in and talking to the manager," he countered smoothly. "I read the posts. Your tweaks to shelf placements, your feedback on customer flow—it's simple stuff, but it worked."
He might've done a bit of research on her, during the past two weeks and his discoveries were just as expected.
She was already on her way to being the famous Midas, she just needed to a little push.
"That's just… common sense," she said, cheeks coloring a bit.
Ethan leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. "Common sense isn't so common in this world, Lillian. You see things others miss. That's what I need."
She hesitated, clearly caught between disbelief and curiosity. "So… you want me to tell you how to sell your program?"
"That's step one," Ethan said with a confident nod. "But long-term? I want you thinking bigger. Branding, positioning, customer psychology—the stuff that makes or breaks a product once it leaves the oven."
Lillian raised an eyebrow, a hint of skepticism breaking through her nerves. "You want me to be your… marketing strategist?"
"I want you to be my partner," he replied simply.
The words hung in the air between them, heavier than either of them expected.
Her mouth opened, then closed again. She glanced out the window, processing, her fingers curling tightly around the edge of her mug.
"Ethan… I don't know if I'm cut out for that," she said quietly. "I've never even—this is all new to me."
"I know," he said. "But every expert starts as a beginner. What matters is potential. And I see it in you."
She looked down, silent for a long beat.
"I was expecting a chat over pancakes, maybe talk about Sentinel… not a job offer."
"Why not both?" He grinned.
That got another soft laugh from her, more real this time. "You're insane."
Ethan just smiled in response, she has no idea.
"But seriously, I'm not asking you to drop your life overnight. Help me part-time. Learn as we go. If it's not your thing, we walk away, no hard feelings." He said.
Lillian bit her lip, her fork pushing around a piece of pancake absently. "And what do I even get out of this? Besides stress and late nights?"
"Equity," Ethan said smoothly. "A real stake in the company. If Sentinel takes off, so do you."
She blinked, caught off guard. "You'd give me a piece of it?"
"I don't need yes-men," he said. "I need people who care, who want this to succeed as much as I do. And I'd rather share the pie with someone I trust than eat it alone and choke."
That quieted her. She looked at him again, her eyes more serious now.
Finally, she whispered, "You really think I can help you?"
"I know you can," he said firmly.
Lillian drew in a breath, held it, then slowly nodded. "Okay… I'll try."
Ethan smiled, the kind that started in the eyes. "That's all I needed to hear."