When they got to the venue. Harris handed Elara the dress and walked away imdiately, leaving no room for any further discussions.
Elara, also, did not stop him. Her gaze only followed him for a mont before moving down to the material in her hands.
It was exactly the kind of dress she would have chosen for herself. Simple but striking.
After the makeup artist was done and she finally looked at herself in the mirror again, there was no trace of what had happened earlier. Only a calm and composed face staring back at her.
When she stepped out and walked toward the backstage area, her feet stopped on their own at once.
Tonio was standing right on the stage. Still speaking amidst the noise.
Elara simply stood frozen in place and watched him. It was only when Ziva’s voice ca from behind her, telling her to move quickly, that she gave a small nod and stepped forward again.
The mont she crossed the line, the lights went out.
Another wave of sounds and reactions rose from the audience.
Then the lights flickered back to life. Different colors moved across the stage before settling in one place. When the light finally fixed, it landed directly on two figures.
Elara and Tonio.
Tonio turned his head instantly, his eyes widening the mont he saw her beside him.
Elara only gave a small smile as she stared back at him.
He blinked, then let out a quiet laugh under his breath, like he had just rembered where he was. He stepped back from the microphone quickly and gave her a quick wink. Without saying anything more, he walked off the stage.
Elara faced the audience.
Before she ca here, she had already seen the video that played on the screen. She knew what they had seen and what they might be thinking.
But sohow, her heart remained calm. She was not worried about the people who already doubted her. Those kinds of people would always exist.
What she cared about, even if only a little, were those who had believed in her before tonight.
But she had nothing to explain.
Ziva had already told her everything had been managed. There was nothing she could add that would make it better. It would only make things feel heavier.
She walked to the microphone and stopped in front of it with unshakable confidence.
The soft instruntal of her song had already started playing in the background.
She lifted her gaze and looked over the crowd once more. Then she took a small breath and opened her mouth...
–
Far from the stage, near one of the side windows where the light barely reached was Adrian.
He knew he could have left.
Everything that needed to be done had already been done. She had been found, brought back, and now she was on stage.
There was no reason or obligation for him to stay here. Yet he had not moved the entire ti.
He stood there, leaning against the glass with his gaze fixed on the stage.
He had never been interested in concerts or cared for music. But now... for so reason he did not bother to question, he could not look away.
He brought out a cigarette case and took one stick out. Soon the smoke was already curling upward as his eyes remained fixed ahead.
Behind him, Harris approached and stopped a short distance away.
"Boss, about tonight’s schedule... the eting with the partners. The one you said absolutely cannot be moved unless the sky falls or the building catches fire... well, the sky is still up and the building is still standing, but I personally feel like sothing else is falling, so maybe we should reconsider..."
Adrian did not look at him.
When did he ever said that.
"Cancel it," he said with a scoff. "Tomorrow."
Harris froze and blinked as if he had misheard. Then he quickly nodded. "Of course. Yes. Tomorrow is a very good day. A much better day."
Still, he leaned forward again. "But, Boss... if the board asks, should I say it was postponed due to an ergency, or should I say...?"
There was no response.
Harris swallowed and straightened up imdiately. "Ergency," he muttered to himself. "Definitely ergency."
Adrian stayed silent. It was as if he had not heard a single word.
The only thing that reached him was the sound of her voice. His gaze did not leave the stage, not even when the song reached its end and the crowd suddenly erupted into cheers.
Even when she was led away from the stage, he continued to stare at the empty space she had left behind, as if she were still standing there.
Ti passed, though he did not seem to notice how much. It was only when Harris cleared his throat again that he moved his eyes away. His expression returning to its usual cold calm as if nothing had happened at all.
By then, he saw that the venue had already started to empty.
Harris let out a sigh of relief when he finally got a response. He straightened his back again.
"Boss, Miss Elara is already in one of the rooms with the Rye coordinators. They’re... celebrating." He hesitated, then added, "She’s already drinking."
He paused, scratching the side of his head. "I’m just... a little concerned, that’s all. Considering everything that happened today... if she drinks too much, she might..."
Before he could finish his sentence, soone stumbled past him.
Harris jumped instantly, startled. He turned his head just in ti to see a figure pass between them unsteadily, leaving the faint scent of alcohol behind.
When Adrian turned, he recognized the figure at once.
It was Elara. She was walking toward the side door with slow, careful steps. Harris followed his gaze and his eyes widened imdiately.
"Miss Veyne?" he exclaid in shock, then lowered his voice in confusion. "Where is her assistant? Can’t she see she’s leaving like this?"
Adrian did not reply. From the faint scent around her and the sway in her steps, he could already tell.
She was drunk.
He flicked the cigarette in his fingers into the nearby bin and straightened up before walking toward her. She was still moving forward when he reached her. Just before she got to the door, he grabbed her arm.
She turned imdiately and shook his hand off without hesitation.
Adrian paused and looked at her. Behind them, Harris stood frozen for a second, then quickly turned his face away when Elara’s gaze shifted.
Elara stared at Adrian for a long mont, her eyes fixed on his face as if trying to recognize him.
"You’re drunk," Adrian said calmly.
She did not answer at first, as if she had not heard him. Then she turned away again and continued toward the door.
"I’m going ho," she said. Her voice calm even in such situation.
Adrian frowned a little, then stepped forward and pulled her back again. The force made her stumble into him.
He held her in his arm tightly, not sure if it was to steady her... or sothing else entirely.
Behind them, Harris coughed awkwardly. "I’ll go look for Miss Korr," he said quickly, then turned and left without waiting.
Elara pushed herself away from Adrian almost imdiately and stepped back. "Keep your distance," she said coldly.
Adrian took a slow breath as he looked at her flushed face. She did not look completely out of control, but he could tell she was not herself.
"Let take you ho," he said quietly.
"No need, I can walk ho myself" she replied.
Adrian almost scoffed.
Did she even know where she was.
A voice ca from behind them suddenly. "Oh my..."
Ziva walked over quickly and held Elara in her arms. "She’s drunk,"
Adrian gave a small nod. He watched them for a second, then spoke.
"Take her to my car," he said calmly. "I’ll drive her back."
–
After Ziva helped her into the car, she adjusted Elara’s position and then stepped back.
"I still have a few things to settle here. You should leave." she said, glancing between them. Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked away.
Soon, the car pulled out smoothly onto the quiet starry road.
Harris is focused on driving while Adrian was leaning back in his seat, his gaze resting on the woman beside him.
There was a faint smile on his lips, one he did not seem to notice himself. He could not quite believe she could look like this... unguarded and a little lost.
Elara kept shifting in her seat, not settling for long. After a while, she turned her head and looked at him with unfocused but calm eyes.
"Where are you taking to?" she asked.
Harris cleared his throat from the front seat. "Uh... Voice," he replied.
Elara stared out of the window for a second, then turned back.
"I’m not going there," she said.
Adrian’s brows lifted slightly. He watched her for a mont before speaking up in amusent. "Then where do you want to go?"
"Your place." she said without hesitation.
The words fell so simply that the air in the car seed to pause. Adrian’s expression froze. Even Harris’s hands tightened on the steering wheel from shock before he forced himself to focus again.
Before Adrian could respond, Elara moved closer to him, as if she had already decided everything in her mind.
"You heard right," she added softly.
She leaned back again and frowned. "Or... what," she murmured, "I’m not good enough to go there?" She then gave a small, mockful laugh. "Right... you hate so much anyway."
Her words began to lose shape, slipping into each other.
"You always look at like that... like I’m...," she muttered, though she had already leaned closer again without noticing.
Adrian did not speak. The calm look on his face had already cracked, replaced by sothing caught between surprise and sothing he did not na.
She shifted again. And before he could react, she had moved onto his lap. Settling there as if it was the most natural place in the world.
The car fell quiet imdiately...
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