Chapter 4

Ryan spotted me too, a flash of panic crossing his drunken eyes before he blurted, "Babe, you're here."

Emily jolted, her face going pale before she quickly composed herself, forcing a gentle, gracious smile—as if nothing had happened.

I stood there in silence, watching Ryan and Emily bathe in the warm glow of the streetlamps.

Ryan stood tall, handsome and refined, with his arm around Emily—graceful, serene, almost ethereal in that glow. Together, they looked like a perfect pair carved from a painting.

The warm golden light rippled outward, encircling them and their friends as if sealing them inside a…