When everything was finally done, Mia felt like she could barely breathe. The dress had been fitted, adjusted and admired by everyone in the room... Elian had circled her like a man possessed, muttering under his breath about perfection, symmetry, and how the final stitching had elevated everything beyond his expectations. Melissa had stood close by the entire time, watching, occasionally nodding, occasionally correcting the maids when needed. Mia had stood there through it all still and silent, smiling when she had to. Answering when spoken to. But inside, her chest had felt tighter with every passing second. By the time Elian finally declared himself satisfied and the dress was carefully packed away again, Mia felt like she had been holding her breath for hours. “Perfect,” Elian had said, his eyes gleaming with pride. “Absolutely perfect.” Mia had nodded. But the word echoed differently in her mind. Perfect. That was what Max wanted too, wasn’t it? A perfec
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