The Catalyst Marketing team was buzzing with excitement as they prepared to finalize their pitch for Vivienne Verde. The luxury cosmetics line was poised to be their biggest client yet, and the team had poured weeks of effort into crafting a campaign that was bold, innovative, and reflective of the brand's ethos.
Maya sat at her desk, double-checking the presentation slides for the hundredth time. It had been a grueling process, but she was proud of the result. The campaign was sharp, polished, and brimming with creativity.
That's when Priya burst into the office, her usually calm demeanor replaced by frantic energy. "Guys, we have a problem," she announced, her voice cutting through the hum of productivity.
Ryan, who had just walked out of his office, stopped mid-step. "What is it?" he asked, his tone calm but carrying an undercurrent of concern.
Priya held up her tablet, her fingers trembling slightly as she swiped through an article. "Titan Strategies. They just presented their pitch to Vivienne Verde. And... they're using our concepts."
The room fell silent. Maya blinked, her mind struggling to process what Priya had just said. "What do you mean, 'our concepts'?" she asked, rising from her chair.
Priya placed the tablet on the table and turned it toward Maya. "Look at this. Their pitch has the same core themes as ours—'natural luxury,' the eco-friendly imagery, even the tagline is dangerously close to what we came up with."
Maya leaned in, her heart sinking as she scrolled through the article. Priya was right. The pitch outlined by Titan Strategies mirrored their own work almost word for word. Even the graphics were suspiciously similar.
"This has to be a coincidence," Liam said, though his voice wavered with uncertainty.
"It's not a coincidence," Ryan said, his voice low and steady, but with an edge that hinted at the storm brewing beneath. "This isn't just similar. This is theft."
The weight of his words hit Maya like a ton of bricks. She felt the color drain from her face as she stared at the screen. "But how?" she whispered. "No one outside of this office has access to our work."
Priya hesitated before speaking. "Unless someone shared it."
All eyes turned to Maya as a dreadful realization dawned on her. Her chest tightened, and her mind raced back to the portfolio site she'd updated months ago. The designs she'd been so proud of. The concepts she thought were long buried.
Maya's voice was barely above a whisper. "I think… I might know how this happened."
Ryan's gaze snapped to hers, his expression unreadable. "Explain," he said, his tone curt but not unkind.
Maya took a deep breath, her fingers nervously twisting the edge of her sleeve. "I uploaded some of the initial designs to my personal portfolio a while ago. It was before we officially started working on the campaign—just some rough drafts. I thought they'd be harmless, but I didn't take them down when we began using them for Vivienne Verde."
The room was dead silent.
"You're saying this is your fault?" Priya asked, her voice sharp with disbelief.
Ryan held up a hand to silence her. "Maya, are you saying someone could have found your portfolio and used it as the basis for their pitch?"
Maya nodded, her throat tightening. "I think so. I didn't think anyone would..."
Ryan's jaw clenched, but he didn't lash out. "Do you have proof? Timestamps? Anything that shows when the work was uploaded?"
"Yes," Maya said quickly, her voice trembling. "I have everything. I can show that the designs were mine first."
"Good," Ryan said, his tone firm. "Because we're not letting Titan get away with this."
Liam broke the tension with a tentative question. "So, what's the plan? We can't just accuse them without solid evidence."
Ryan's eyes narrowed. "We gather every scrap of evidence we can. Then we make it impossible for Vivienne Verde to ignore the truth."
For the next few hours, the office was a whirlwind of activity. Maya combed through her old files, pulling together timestamps, drafts, and screenshots of her portfolio. Ryan worked alongside her, methodically building a case to present to Vivienne Verde.
Despite the gravity of the situation, Maya couldn't help but notice how composed Ryan remained. His focus was laser-sharp, his movements efficient and deliberate. It was reassuring, even if she still felt like she was walking on thin ice.
Claire, who happened to stop by the office during the chaos, immediately picked up on the tension. "What's going on?" she asked, plopping herself into an empty chair.
"Plagiarism," Ryan said tersely. "Titan Strategies stole our campaign."
Claire's eyes widened. "You're kidding. How did they get their hands on it?"
Maya winced, and Ryan's gaze flicked toward her briefly. "We're handling it," he said simply, a note of finality in his voice.
But Claire wasn't one to let things drop so easily. She sidled up to Maya, her tone conspiratorial. "Let me guess. You're the star pupil who accidentally gave away the answers to the test."
Maya managed a weak laugh. "Something like that."
"Well, don't worry," Claire said, patting her shoulder. "Ryan's got your back. Even if he acts like he's got a stick permanently lodged somewhere."
"Claire," Ryan said warningly from across the room.
"What?" she said, grinning. "I'm just saying. He's scowling a little less than usual today, and I think that's progress."
The boardroom was pristine, almost intimidating in its gleaming modernity, but Maya barely noticed as she sat across from the representatives of Vivienne Verde and the rival agency, Titan Strategies. Her focus was on the thick dossier in front of her, its contents both damning and nerve-wracking.
Ryan sat beside her, silent as ever, his expression unreadable, his demeanor calm and collected. His presence was grounding, but Maya couldn't shake the self-recriminations swirling in her mind. This was her fault, and now they were fighting to salvage not just the campaign but their professional integrity.
As the meeting began, Ryan took the lead, his sharp, concise words slicing through the air like a blade. He presented their evidence with an almost effortless authority, leaving no room for rebuttal. Maya watched him, awed as always by his ability to command a room. But when it was her turn to speak, she felt the weight of every eye in the room bearing down on her.
Her hands trembled slightly as she picked up her notes. Her voice wavered on the first word, but she pushed through, detailing the unique aspects of Catalyst's work and the clear evidence of plagiarism by Titan Strategies. As she spoke, Ryan glanced at her, and though his expression didn't change, there was a flicker of something in his eyes—reassurance, maybe.
Across the table, Claire was seated next to Vivienne Verde's lead designer, watching the interaction with a small smirk. Ever the opportunist, she jumped in during a brief pause, her voice light and teasing.
"You know," Claire said, leaning forward with a mischievous grin, "Maya's been burning the midnight oil on this campaign. I told my brother he should thank her properly. Maybe flowers? Or chocolates?"
Maya nearly dropped her notes in shock. "Claire!"
The room fell silent for a beat before the designer next to Claire chuckled, breaking the tension. Even Vivienne Verde's stern-faced executive cracked a smile.
Ryan, however, didn't flinch. He simply turned his gaze toward Claire, his tone as flat as ever. "You're helping a lot," he said dryly.
"Always happy to contribute," Claire replied breezily, leaning back in her chair. "Besides, I think Maya deserves a little cheering up. She's worked so hard."
Maya's cheeks burned, and she quickly resumed her presentation, focusing on the material rather than the smirk she knew Claire was giving her.
We value our clients' trust above all else," Maya concluded, her voice steady despite the tension in the room. "And we will always fight to protect the integrity of our work."
When Ryan picked up from where Maya left off, his tone shifted—firmer, sharper. "It's not just about trust," he said, his gaze piercing. "It's about ethics. Titan's actions undermine not only our work but the integrity of this industry. I trust Vivienne Verde is a brand that values authenticity."
The room was silent as Vivienne Verde's representatives exchanged looks, their expressions shifting from skepticism to clear frustration with Titan Strategies. One of the senior executives turned to the Titan team, her voice cold as steel. "Care to explain yourselves?"
Titan's representatives stammered, their earlier bravado evaporating. By the end of the meeting Titan's representatives left with their heads hanging low, and the campaign was officially back in Catalyst's hands.