THIRD-PERSON NARRATION
The revelation did not explode.
It fractured.
For several seconds after Akanni's introduction, the hall existed in suspended disbelief—like glass held together by shock alone. Then sound returned in waves.
Chairs scraped.
Whispers became murmurs.
Murmurs rose into stunned conversations.
"That's him?"
"He built all this?"
"How long has he been here?"
People stood—not all at once, but instinctively—drawn by power they had misjudged. The chaos was controlled, but undeniable. Assistants rushed to re-organize seating. Security tightened subtly. Phones came out, then were quickly lowered out of respect.
Yet through it all, Akanni remained calm.
He moved from cluster to cluster, accepting greetings with quiet authority. Governors shook his hand with renewed humility. CEOs who had once spoken down to him now angled their bodies upward, listening closely. Deals were hinted at in half-sentences, collaborations implied in nods.
No one mentioned the deception.
Because no one could.
This was not a man who had lied.
This was a man who had waited.
Across the hall, Bukky sat frozen.
Her world had not shattered—it had rearranged itself violently.
So this was Akanni.
Not the studio manager.
Not the quiet strategist.
Not the man she had measured against Demi's wealth.
This man.
Her chest tightened, not with regret alone, but with humiliation—at herself. Every comparison she had entertained now rang hollow. Every doubt she had harbored now felt exposed.
He had never been less than Demi.
He had always been more.
And she had left.
Her father leaned slightly toward her, his voice low. "Bukky… do you understand what this means?"
She nodded, unable to speak.
Across the aisle, Demi stood still.
He did not storm out.
He did not rage.
Instead, something settled in him.
Acceptance.
For the first time, comparison ended not in anger, but clarity.
Akanni hadn't beaten him with wealth.
Or power.
Or even timing.
He had simply been above the contest.
Demi exhaled slowly, adjusting his cuff.
"So this is what it feels like," he murmured to no one in particular. "To lose… without being wrong."
He glanced once toward Bukky.
Then looked away.