MEET AGAIN

  He is tall...

 Too tall... it's him!!!

     The voices in Kira's head would not stop screaming. Her hand shook furiously around the wine glass. She didn't know if it was excitement or longing.

    There, in front of her, discussing with a group of guests, stood her first love. Edward Wellington. The boy she hadn't seen in three years.

   Edward stood out. Not just because of his towering height, but because of his face. In his early twenties, but refined, matured. The kind of man who stole the spotlight the moment he entered a room.

 And even though he had just arrived, he was already stealing all the attention. All eyes were on him.

He felt it — a stare, intense and burning, boring into the side of his face.

 Edward frowned. He turned towards the source of the irritation and saw her.

Kira Dickens. Staring at him like he owed her something.Kira who was still busy staring at him got startled when he suddenly turned towards her,his eyes owning no warmth and just simply staring straight through her.

To ease up the awkwardness of getting caught staring at him,she flashed him a smile,one which he did not return sadly.

Instead he walked towards her fast,which took her by surprise.Her heart was beating loudy against her chest,that she felt he could hear it from where he was.

She placed her hand on it as if it could stop the fast beat."Was he coming to meet her personally??The thought screamed in her mind.

 He kept walking. Closer. Closer.

 Her smile grew wider.

He walked right past her. Like she was air. Like she didn't exist.

The smile died on her face.

It was like someone had poured cold water over her heart. Her hand was still on her chest, but now it wasn't to stop the fast beating — it was to hold the pieces together.

He didn't remember her.

Or worse... he did, and he just didn't care.

She turned towards the direction he faced and saw that he went to meet her grandfather, the celebrant of the day.

   

Grandfather 82nd birthday party was nothing short of extravagant. Her grandfather, Arthur Dickens, had rented out the entire Grand Ballroom of the Royal Palms. Crystal chandeliers hung like frozen waterfalls from the ceiling, a live string quartet played in the corner, and a five-tier vanilla and gold cake stood taller than Kira herself. Every table had fresh white orchids flown in from Holland that morning. This wasn't just a birthday; it was a statement — the Dickens were still one of the most powerful families in the city.

  Kira watched as Edward stopped before her grandfather. He straightened his suit, and for a second, all his coldness disappeared, replaced by perfect, practiced respect.

 "Mr. Dickens," Edward said, his voice deep and polite. "Happy 82nd birthday, sir."

  Her grandfather's face lit up. "Edward? Edward Wellington! My boy, I thought your grandfather was coming."

  "He wanted to come," Edward replied smoothly. "My grandfather, Harold, sends his sincerest apologies and his best wishes. He was hospitalized two days ago. A mild cardiac episode, but the doctors have insisted on rest. So he sent me on his behalf."

 "Oh, Harold," Arthur sighed, his joy dimming with genuine worry. "Is he alright? That old fool never listens to his doctors. Tell him I will visit him myself tomorrow."

  "He is stable. He will be glad to see you," Edward said, handing him a small, dark blue velvet box. "He asked me to give you this personally. He said, 'For 60 years of friendship, nothing cheap.'"

 Arthur laughed loudly and opened it — inside was a vintage Patek Philippe watch that made the men standing nearby gasp.

 Kira stood frozen. He had walked past her because she simply wasn't important enough to stop for.

The doors of the ballroom swung open and the whole room turned.

 Celeste had arrived — with her mother,or should she say their mother, Eva, who was Grandpa Arthur's only daughter.

Eva was kira's biological mother,who got remarried when kira was six.At age six,kira lost her father to a car accident.

Her mother remarried a widowed man who already had a daughter two years older than kira.So automatically Celeste became kira's step elder sister.

Celeste was dressed to steal the show. A tight, blood-red dress with a slit that ran almost to her thigh and a back that was completely open down to her waist. Every step she took, her long legs flashed and the diamonds on her back sparkled under the chandeliers. 

Her mother, Eva, walked beside her in a more elegant gold dress, smiling like she owned the party — like she owned the entire Dickens family.

 "Daddy!" Eva called out sweetly, air-kissing Arthur. "Happy birthday, Father. 82 and still the most handsome man in the room."

Celeste pushed forward, her voice honey-sweet, loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Grandpa! Happy birthday!" she sang, leaning in to hug him. "I prayed for you all morning. May God keep you for us for many more years! I bought you something from Paris, you'll love it!"

 Grandpa Arthur gave a tight, polite smile. The same smile he used for business partners he didn't like.

"Hmph," he snorted quietly, patting her back for only half a second before letting go. "Thank you, Celeste. How... thoughtful."

Everyone else clapped at her sweet speech, but Kira saw it — the way her grandfather's eyes went cold. The way his jaw tightened. He didn't like Eva, and he tolerated Celeste even less. He never forgave his daughter for marrying two times and turning his granddaughter into... this.

 Celeste didn't notice. Or she pretended not to. Her eyes had already found the only man in the room she really came for.

 Edward Wellington.