10

Ginevra

The beat gets under my skin, vibrating through me.

The hall I just walked into as Rachel Silverstone is packed. The music pumps through the room, covering every noise that this huge number of people would naturally make.

As Nina yells at me, I just understand enough to know that she wants to go to the bar. Having joked to her about how this were going to be my last days of freedom as I was going to be engaged soon to a man I didn’t love, I’m surprised to feel the tension slipping off me with every ticking second, instead of having anxiety crippling me further.

The hall can be accessed by several side doors that follow long stairs with white balustrades. The large crystal doors open to a little platform, with a short staircase leading to the immense hall flooring which is lined with reflective black tiles. At two sides at the end of the high and enormous hall, where there is no opening to a stairway, there is a crystal bar, with an all-transparent counter and vested decorat