The private room at El Brío, one of the city’s most exclusive restaurants, buzzed with laughter and the clinking of glasses. Ten seats, old college friends, a reunion long overdue, each person dressed in a way that said life had moved on, but tonight, they’d pretend nothing had changed. Laughter bubbled like champagne around the grand villa’s marble courtyard. Fairy lights draped the trees, casting a soft golden glow on the elegant guests as servers in white gloves passed around flutes of vintage rosé and hors d'oeuvres too pretty to eat.

Elioans Everhart stood at the heart of it all, his crimson satin dress hugging his curves just right, diamonds glinting at his throat. he smiled graciously as another friend gushed.

At the edge of the gathering, Asael Vokovitch sipped his third glass of wine, trying not to fidget in the secondhand suit he’d dug out for the occasion. His Spanx were suffocating him, and his curls had frizzed in the humidity. No one had complimented her all night. Not one word.

Asael’s jaw clenched. His eyes lingered on Elioans’s husband, Alaric, who was speaking with another investor near the pool. He hadn’t spared Elioans a glance all evening. Still, Elioans sparkled, poised, elegant, adored. The envy dug into Asael’s chest like glass.

The hum of chatter filled the surrounding space, but in their little corner, the tension curled like smoke between sips of wine and half-finished compliments.

A tall man with sun-warmed skin and a careless grin approached the table, holding a fresh drink in each hand. His silk shirt shimmered slightly under the restaurant lights, unbuttoned just enough to signal ease rather than arrogance.

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Asael alone with his wine and a silence that felt suddenly too loud.

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The soft murmur of guests, clinking glasses, and low jazz faded behind Elioans as he stepped onto the private terrace. Alaric stood at the far end, phone in one hand, a glass of untouched wine in the other, posture relaxed, but eyes sharp and unreadable.

The silence between them hung like a blade, sharp and motionless.

With that, he turned and walked back inside, leaving Alaric alone with the cold night and his untouched glass of wine.

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The valet’s polished voice faded as the door closed behind him. Elioans let his body relax into the leather seat, his clutch resting on her lap like a second skin he couldn’t quite take off. He exhaled slowly, head turned toward the window.

City lights shimmered and danced across the glass, but his eyes were far away.

That dinner felt longer than it was. Everyone still plays the same parts... but something's changed.

He couldn’t stop thinking about Asael

The car eased through the winding hills as the streets narrowed and grew quieter. His phone buzzed in his lap: a message from Alaric

“Late again. Don’t wait up.”

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He stepped into the villa a few minutes later, heels soft against the polished tile. One of the maids greeted him with a bow of the head

He climbed the staircase slowly, sliding his hand along the railing. His heels echoed softly in the hall. The bedroom lights were already on, warm and untouched. Alaric’s side of the bed was made. Still.

He sat on the edge of the mattress and unfastened his earrings. One dropped to the floor. He didn’t reach for it.

He stood, slowly undressing piece by piece, until he was just Elioans again bare-skinned, makeup removed, no jewelry, no charm. Just a man alone in a beautiful house.

Instead, he stared across the room at his reflection in the long mirror.

The memory of Asael laughing with a wine glass tipped in his hand floated back. That sarcastic chuckle he always had. But beneath it tonight... there had been something else.

“That must be nice,”

Asael had said. Like a joke. But not really.

he crossed to the vanity and opened the top drawer. A few keepsakes lay tucked inside an old hair tie from college, a dried-out face treatment Asael had once insisted he buy, some college photos curled at the edges. The memories crept in uninvited.

Middle school

High School

College

Five Years Ago University Dorm Room – Late Night

The hum of the box fan filled the quiet space. Outside, the city flickered with a warm buzz, but in their little dorm, the world had shrunk to textbooks, tangled blankets, and the lazy comfort of familiarity.

Elioans sat cross-legged on his unmade bed, hair damp from a shower, leafing half-heartedly through a coarse packet. Across the room, Asael sprawled on the rug with his head resting on a balled-up hoodie, a half-eaten bag of chips by his side.

They both laughed. For a moment, it was just them, soaked in the kind of warmth that only comes when the world is still and the future feels far away.

A long silence.

They’d meant it then. Every word.

Present Day The echo of those words drifted in the silence between them, now older, changed, but still standing in the same space, in different clothes and with different wounds.

Sliding beneath the silk sheets, he laid on his back and stared at the ceiling. Somewhere deep in his chest, something small and wordless tugged an ache, maybe. A question. A warning.

Sliding beneath the silk sheets, he laid on his back and stared at the ceiling. Somewhere deep in his chest, something small and wordless tugged an ache, maybe. A question. A warning.

Tomorrow will be different. He didn’t know how. But he felt it.