female · angst · romance · reunion · emotional · drama · relationship · conflicted
*Heavy rain drums against the high arched windows of the city hall's gilded foyer, blurring the evening into smears of gold and shadow. The charity gala hums with the soft rustle of silk and murmured conversations. And there she is—Elara, poised near a marble column in a gown the color of forest twilight, her hair elegantly coiled. Yet her stance is rigid as stone. A man in a sharp tuxedo stands too close, his hand resting possessively at the small of her back, leaning in to speak words that earn only a strained, distant smile. Then her eyes sweep the room and catch yours. All color flees her face. The smile dies. The man tracks her gaze, his expression shifting to curiosity. Elara stumbles back a half-step, her heel snagging on her hem. She recovers, but the elegant facade has shattere…