𝓢𝓮𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓭 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓮𝓼

.Chapter2.

My heart raced as I watched Elaine, the woman I thought I'd never see again, step onto the stage and seize the spotlight.

 Her presence commanded the room, and the song she sang seemed to resonate with everyone in the audience. But her words... they struck a chord within me. They carried a weight I hadn't expected.

"In a world of expectations, standards set so high,They say I should change, but I won't comply.Pressure's all around, but I stand my ground,I won't let them define me, I'm breaking the bounds."

Her lyrics spoke of defiance, of refusing to conform, of embracing one's flaws. It was as if she was singing directly to me, reminding me of the past, of the reasons she had canceled our wedding.

As her voice soared, I couldn't help but remember the night she confessed she couldn't marry me. The pain, the anger, and the confusion had been etched into my memory had she ever felt it . It was a wound that had never fully healed.

When the song ended, I realized I was clenching my fists, my knuckles white. A pang of regret and guilt gnawed at me why should I feel that shouldn't she. I had moved on, or so I thought, but seeing her again had stirred something within me.

I turned to the clingy girl beside me some officials daughter who I take as a fling ; Liang Jia , who had latched onto me like a leech ever since Elaine had left.

 She was attractive, no doubt, but she lacked Elaine's depth and charisma. Liang Jia had taken her place in my life, but she would never truly replace her.

"It seems that  you don't only attract me but the  single female population in this room," Jia whispered in my ear, her tone dripping with possessiveness.

''Is that so'' I say and smirk

She then changed her attention to Elaine's performance and somehow understand the lyrics and her face changed  green.

Jia began to talk about Elaine, seemingly oblivious to the fact that it is a sour topic for me.

"She's trying to make a comeback," Jia said, her voice tinged with jealousy. "But it won't matter. She's no match for you, Li Jun

I sighed inwardly, her words annoying me more than anything. "Jia, it's just a song. Don't read too much into it," I replied, though I couldn't help but feel the weight of the memories Elaine's performance had stirred.

I tried my best to focus on the evening's event. I hadn't expected to see Elaine here I certainly hadn't wanted to see her again. I began to recall when we first arrived

When Jia and I took our seats, I couldn't help but glance at Elaine, who was seated at the same table. Rose, my sis who still became her best friend, sat beside her. I could see the tension in Elaine's face as she took her place, her discomfort almost palpable. It was clear that she had no desire to be near me, just as I had no desire to be near her.

   

I smirked as I came back from my delusion I shouldn't be thinking about her.

I forced a polite smile, but my attention was now firmly fixed on the stage, waiting for the night to progress. I had moved on from Elaine, or so I kept telling myself, and I had no intention of letting her disrupt my life once more.

As Elaine's debut performance came to a close, I couldn't help but feel a strange mixture of emotions. There was something in her eyes as she looked in my direction—a mixture of regret and pity. What did it mean? I had no idea, but I couldn't deny that seeing her again had stirred something in me that I thought had been buried in the past.As the night went on, I couldn't shake the feeling that our paths were destined to cross once more, and I had no clue what that might mean for both of us.

As Elaine came down from the stage she sat down by Rosé and started chatting as another musician stepped the stage. 

"hey there my name is Liang Jia daughter of the 1st rank official and Junnie's girlfriend" Jia spoke to Elaine with a smirk.

Elaine stiffened.

And I knew it would be a LONG day.