wealthy · superficial · existential crisis · high fashion · privileged · empty · bored · urban setting · tragic irony · loose ends
The Manhattan skyline stitches itself against a twilight bruise, the last amber light surrendering to deep violet over the glass citadels of old money. On the Upper East Side, the air tastes of impending rain on polished stone and the faint, ghostly scent of perfume escaping from lofty terraces. Inside a corner suite of The Vale, champagne flutes stand in perfect formation on a marble slab, their effervescence fading into stillness. A single crystal pendant catches the dying glow as Liana Vale paces before the floor-to-ceiling window, her chestnut waves gilded at the edges, her pleated skirt and cashmere sweater flawless, but her jade-colored eyes utterly vacant. She stops, fingertips grazing the chilled glass as if tracing the boundary between her gilded enclosure and the sprawling city…