Chapter 3

That afternoon, the planetarium lounge was quiet.

I was sorting through the final handover documents when a notification appeared on my phone. It was a new post from Lula.

In the photo, Elton was resting his head on her shoulder with his eyes closed, apparently fast asleep. In the corner of the frame, my blurred figure stood in the distance.

The caption read: [The groom-to-be is such a handful. It takes both of us to keep him in line.]

Our mutual friends had already flooded the comments with jokes.

[If I didn't know better, I'd think you were the bride.]

[Elton gets a buy-one-get-one deal. Not bad!]

[Maybe keep these pictures in the private chat next time, or Betsy's going to overthink things again.]

...

Elton hadn't asked Lula to take the post down. Instead, he'd replied to one of the comments himself.

[Betsy knows how we've always been. She won't overthink it.]

I stared at those words for a long time before opening the comment box and typing a single sentence.

[Wishing you two a lifetime of happiness.]

After posting it, I immediately left the group chat that included dozens of our mutual friends.

Less than a minute later, Elton called, his voice tight with anger.

"What are you throwing a fit about now? It was just a harmless joke. Did you have to embarrass everyone like that?"

I put the call on speaker, set my phone on the desk, and continued sorting through my files.

I asked back, "Did you even ask me before speaking for me and deciding I wouldn't mind?"

There was a long silence.

At last, he managed, "We're all friends here. We were just joking around. Do you really have to turn everything into a huge drama?"

I countered, "If it was just a joke, why are you so worked up about it now?"

All I heard was his heavy breathing. Then he abruptly hung up.

Two hours later, I headed to the main theater for my final rehearsal. It would be my last public presentation before transferring to the Arctic research station.

But the moment I reached the backstage control area, I stopped in my tracks.

Elton and Lula were standing in front of the console, while the planetarium director stood beside them with an ingratiating smile.

The moment Lula saw me, her face lit up. "Betsy, I've never seen the backstage control room before, so Elton offered to show me around."

Elton approached me, his voice suddenly gentle. "Lula felt bad about what happened with the tour reservation this morning, so she came to clear things up with you.

"There's no need for you to give the public lecture today. We can show her around the exhibits together instead. You can give us a private tour."

Lula timidly tugged at his sleeve. "But won't that interfere with Betsy's work?"

Elton waved away her concern, and the director seized his chance to flatter them.

"Since Mr. Werner has requested it, I'll cancel today's public session."

He even ordered the control room staff to activate the star projections across the dome.

Lula shrilled like a child seeing something magical for the first time. She grabbed Elton's arm and shook it excitedly. "Wow, Elton, look! It's so beautiful!"

She pointed at the brightest nebula projected across the dome before turning to me.

"Betsy, what's that? It looks like a big clump of pink cotton!"

I kept my eyes on the control panel. "The Orion Nebula. M42."

"What about that one over there? The stars that form a W?" she asked, pointing in another direction with wide-eyed curiosity.

"Cassiopeia," I replied curtly.

Lula giggled and leaned even closer against Elton's chest.

"Elton, look at that reddish star! What does it mean? Does it symbolize eternal love? Betsy, tell us the romantic story behind it!"

Elton looked down at her with indulgent affection.

"It's rare for Lula to take an interest in astronomy. Why don't you explain it in simple terms she can understand?"

I closed the presentation notes on the desk, pressed my lips together, and said nothing.

"Why did you stop?" Elton frowned, his voice edged with irritation. "Lula asked you a question."

I unclipped my staff badge, placed it on the desk, and turned to the director.

"I resign. I won't be giving any more lectures."