The door opened with little to no sound at all. For a few seconds, the night air shifted. The peaceful and calm atmosphere turned dark.
Ben was standing still, just a few steps away from her, right by the door. His hands were in his pockets, his posture loose and his facial expression calm. His eyes moved from Anna to Francis constantly.
He was smiling, his expression completely calm, hiding his angered face.
"Hey," he said lightly, as if nothing had ever happened, still wearing that smile like he was overjoyed to see Anna. "They're calling you inside."
Anna blinked. "Oh— really?"
"Yeah." He was casual, almost amused. "Apparently you're next to go, since you're the most important guest tonight. The party won't go on without you."
She let out a soft laugh as the tension dissolved off her shoulders. "That sounds suspicious." She then let out another small giggle before proceeding to go inside the hallway.
"Go on, go on," Ben said while nodding constantly like a lizard, pointing toward the hallway. "Move quickly before they send a search party after you."
Anna laughed once more, moving first with a smile like always as the music and noise welcomed her.
She didn't even notice the change in Ben's eyes toward Francis as she passed by him. Nor did she notice the clenching of his fists together as he entered the balcony and saw how close Anna was to Francis.
She didn't notice anything because to her, nothing had changed; everything was just the same as always. But to him, something dark was brewing in his heart.
Ben looked again at Francis, who was still leaning against the railing, before proceeding right behind Anna with a scary look on his face.
Of course, no one noticed.
Even Francis didn't notice that.
The room welcomed her with loud noises and laughter.
"Anna!" someone called. "It's your turn!"
She paused mid-step, caught off guard as several faces turned toward her with smiles on their faces. Many were filled with curiosity, some excited, while others were either hateful or filled with envy.
Stephanie clapped dramatically from her seat. Although what seemed like a harmless gesture was filled with hate.
"Come on! Tell us what you've been up to since high school!" Her voice was disguised with a smile and subtle laughter.
Anna felt uncomfortable as chills ran down her spine, maybe due to PTSD from being bullied in high school. She felt pressure crawling up her spine — an old sensation of standing in front of people who once mocked her for her poverty and bullied her introverted nature. She could feel the pressure just standing there. Her fingers curled lightly at her side in fear.
She looked straight at Ben, whose face was lit with a smile that felt calming and encouraging.
Then she inhaled.
And smiled.
"Well…" she began, her voice steady and calm, completely absent of the tension she felt earlier. "After high school, I went to X University and majored in economics on scholarship."
A few impressed murmurs floated through the room.
"Isn't that the best among the top universities in the country? Wow."
"How did she get in? I heard it was harder to get accepted into X University than to jump off a bridge."
Different murmurs filled the room — some impressed, some jealous, and some straight-up bitter.
"At first I didn't really know what I wanted at that time," she continued, "but I ended up getting interested in market behavior, trend lines, and market flow… how people think when they buy things. Why they choose one brand over another."
Someone nodded like they understood, while many looked obviously confused.
"In short, I just got interested in human psychology when buying and selling goods," she said easily, trying to put their confusion to rest.
"So after school, I went into marketing. I started small, taking freelancing projects here and there just to scrape by. But over time I started building connections and creating a community." She shrugged lightly.
"Eventually I opened my own company, just a small firm that deals with connecting buyers to sellers. Nothing too over the top."
Polite applause followed.
"Wow, that's amazing."
"That's impressive."
"I always knew you were hardworking."
The compliments sounded right and fake at the same time.
She could clearly hear the space between them filled with disbelief — as though it was a fabricated story — quiet comparison, and subtle relief that she didn't seem too successful.
Anna only smiled modestly, lowering her gaze slightly.
She didn't mention the scale of her client list, nor the scale of her application, which was already topping two million active users.
She didn't mention the international contracts, nor the company value, which was already valued at 800 million dollars.
Nor did she mention that she employed more people than anyone in that room likely imagined — about three hundred thousand employees.
She gave their imagination freedom, letting them imagine the scale themselves.
It was the best way in order to avoid drama and unwanted kindness hidden behind selfish gains.
Across the room, Francis watched her with quiet interest, her forgotten phone still loosely held in his fingers, completely oblivious to it.
As he looked up, Ben was at his side, approaching with a calm and well-behaved expression as always.
Ben gave out a casual smile, friendly and harmless.
"Hey," he said, just loud enough for nearby ears to hear. "Your girlfriend's looking for you."
Francis blinked once, completely taken off guard. "My girlfriend?"
Ben tilted his head toward the crowd. "Stephanie."
Recognition flickered across Francis's face.
"Oh." He gave a small laugh while shaking his head. "She's not my girlfriend. She's my ex. We broke up a long time ago."
He paused. "Right now we're just friends."
Ben's smile stayed, but within him it felt like he lost a battle. Different thoughts slid into his mind quietly, but the one he questioned the most was why he just did that, as it was completely out of character for him.
The party softened as the night deepened.
Music lowered into something smoother, something calmer. Different conversations broke into smaller circles, mostly filled with groups that had remained friends after high school.
The laughter loosened lightly, the air became warmer, and the lights dimmed slightly, bathing the hall in amber tones that blurred edges and sharpened feelings.
Francis approached Anna once more, this time different, with his arm stretched out toward her.
"Will you dance with me?"
She hesitated slightly, almost like a dramatic pause. Her brain was in a battle between instinct and decision.
Then she made her choice, stretching out her hand and placing it in his.
"Okay."
They moved onto the dance floor as the music slowly made the atmosphere romantic, beautiful, and calm.
His hand rested lightly at her waist, and hers settled slowly against his shoulder. They seemed almost like a couple, without a hint of possessiveness or stiffness — just simply natural.
They moved slowly, swaying more than dancing.
"You really have changed," he said quietly. His calm voice sounded almost romantic at that moment.
"You can say that about yourself as well."
"In a good way?"
She smiled. "I think so."
He laughed softly. "I wasn't expecting you'd say that."
Their steps flowed like a river, moving in rhythm without effort. Not just their steps were good — their entire conversation was easy, beautiful, like a flow that only existed between lovebirds.
Around them, the room blurred, as though they had stepped into their own fantasy — a fantasy made for them alone.
Their voices stayed low, and their smiles stayed real.
Every second felt like eternity. Words couldn't explain it. It just felt calm and beautiful.
Just… effortlessly moving in love.
TBC~