The night air was colder now.
Riven stepped off the curb outside the hotel, blending into the shadows by the valet stand. Music and laughter still floated from the ballroom behind him, muffled, distant, like a party he had never belonged to.
His footsteps echoed lightly on the pavement. No one noticed.
No one ever had.
He passed a group of late arrivals heading toward the entrance. One woman paused, squinting at him.
"Isn't that-" she began.
Her friend cut in. "You mean the assistant? I think she said he was just a friend from her college days."
"Yikes," the first one muttered, already moving on.
Riven kept walking.
Further down the sidewalk, a couple exited the building, young, overdressed, probably someone from marketing. The guy glanced at Riven, hesitated, then turned to his date with a smirk.
"Didn't she use to date him?"
The girl giggled. "Ugh. Seriously? She traded up hard."
They walked off without a second glance.
Riven reached his car and stood there, hand on the door handle, staring at his reflection in the tinted window. His face looked pale. Tired. Like someone who'd just realized he'd never really been in the room.
He got in but didn't start the engine.
Instead, he unlocked his phone. No new messages.
He hesitated, then tapped Celeste's name.
The call rang once.
Then went to voicemail.
He didn't leave a message.
His thumb hovered for a moment before opening his photo gallery. Folder labeled Ward Project – Day Zero. Dozens of pictures. Celeste is on the floor with blueprints. Celeste is laughing beside a whiteboard. Celeste is asleep with a laptop still open on her chest.
One photo stood out.
The two of them are on their tiny living room floor, takeout boxes between them, designing their first pitch deck. Her hair was tied up in a messy knot. His hoodie looked too big. They both looked tired. And happy.
Riven stared at it for a long time.
Then he tapped delete.
A pause.
He tapped "Undo."
The screen went dark in his hand.
He leaned back, closing his eyes.
I was never her partner. I was just a placeholder. A quiet shadow in the backdrop of her rise.
His phone buzzed.
A message from his sister.
Come home. I need you.
Riven started the car.
As the headlights lit the empty road ahead, he looked once more at the glowing hotel in the rearview mirror.
Then he drove away.