The lights dimmed slightly, signaling the guests to gather toward the main stage. Soft music faded, replaced by the murmuring of anticipation.
Nara stayed exactly where Keigh had left her, tucked near the back of the hall, away from the polished swirl of high-society conversation. She tried not to look at him, but her eyes betrayed her.
Up on the stage, Keigh stood beside his parents and the Alarics, tall and composed, though the tension in his shoulders told a different story. Fiona was glued to his side, her posture perfect, her smile bright, too bright.
She kept looking at him the way someone stares at a prize they refuse to lose.
Nara looked away.
This wasn't her place. This wasn't her world. She had promised herself she would stay out of the chaos, and tonight, she meant it.
The Dynamite family positioned themselves at the podium. Keigh's father stepped forward, face carved with pride and command.
"Good evening," he began, his voice echoing through the hall. "Tonight, we celebrate legacy… and the future."
The crowd applauded politely.
Nara's chest tightened. She knew what was coming.
Keigh's father continued, "As part of that future, our families are honored to present...."
He paused with a sweeping gesture toward the Alarics.
Fiona lifted her chin, glowing with expectation.
"....the union between the Dynamite and Alaric families through marriage."
The hall erupted in approving whispers, except Keigh didn't move. He didn't smile. He didn't even pretend. His father waited for him to step forward but he didn't.
A subtle frown cracked the man's expression. He turned slightly, lowering his voice just enough for the front row to hear.
"Keigh. Now."
Fiona's fingers brushed his arm possessive, urging.
Keigh stepped forward but not toward the center, definitely not toward her and not toward the announcement. He moved just enough to face the microphone directly.
"I'm not agreeing to this," he said calmly.
The microphone carried every syllable, slicing the room into silence. Gasps scattered across the hall.
Fiona froze, smile collapsing. Confusion flickered first then disbelief then something darker, hungrier, possessive. She couldn't understand this, she wouldn't accept it.
Not when she had already convinced herself that Keigh was meant to be hers.
Keigh's father stiffened. "This is not the time..."
"It's the only time," Keigh said, voice steady. "I've said it privately. And now I'm saying it here, so there's no confusion."
Fiona's mother's face twisted with insult, her father's nostrils flared and whispers spread like wildfire.
And then Keigh's father made a fatal mistake, he scanned the audience, searching for the influence he believed was corrupting his son. His gaze flicked briefly toward Nara. It lasted less than a second, but it was enough.
A realization passed through the adults on stage, silent and sharp. Someone, somewhere had shifted Keigh's alignment.
The Alarics saw it, Keigh's parents saw it and Fiona felt it.
Her eyes darted across the hall, trying to pinpoint the threat but Nara stayed exactly where she should be, still and invisible.
Keigh didn't notice the glance, or maybe he did. Maybe that was why he added, voice firm...
"This decision has nothing to do with anyone else. It's my choice. And it's final."
Fiona's heart pounded visibly in her throat.
She looked at him like he had betrayed a promise she had imagined into existence. Her nails dug into her palm. No! She would not lose him, she couldn't.
Not after all the years her family invested, and not after everything she believed she was promised.
Keigh's father clenched the podium. "We will discuss this later."
"No," Keigh replied. "We won't. My answer won't change."
The tension snapped like a live wire. The guests didn't applaud, they were too stunned, too entertained, too horrified. Within minutes, the event dissolved, conversations turning awkward, groups scattering, the perfect night collapsing under the weight of scandal.
Keigh stepped down from the stage, ignoring the furious looks from both families.
Fiona tried to follow him, but her mother held her arm firmly, eyes whispering one message, not here.
Nara quietly slipped toward the exit, keeping her head low. She didn't want to be seen, to be connected or to add fuel to a fire she never lit. But as she reached the doors, she felt a presence behind her.
Keigh.
He didn't call her name, he didn't reach for her. He simply said, in a low voice meant only for her,
"I'm done letting them decide my life."
She swallowed, unsure what to say.
"Are you okay?" she asked softly.
Keigh exhaled a long, steady release of years he had been carrying.
"For the first time," he whispered, "I think I might be."
And the night, heavy and broken, finally ended.