Chapter Text
The balcony of the suite gives the illusion of floating.
One step forward and the sky swallows you whole.
The city glitters beneath my feet, a web of lights trembling in the dark. From up here, everything looks small - cars like toys, people like shadows. The hum of traffic crashes faintly against my ears, like a distant wave.
Down at the entrance, valets collect the guests’ polished cars. Doors open, fabric slips, heels strike marble. Everything precise. Everything in its place.
I wrap my cardigan tighter around my shoulders. The gauzy pale-blue dress my mother chose for tonight’s reception wasn’t made for winter air.
She tried to resist him.
It didn’t last.
My father always wins.
My phone vibrates again somewhere inside the suite. The sound splits the silence like a reminder. I’m late. They’re waiting.
I close my eyes and see them clearly.
My father, immaculate in his navy suit, the gold watch glinting discreetly at his wrist, holds my mother by the waist like a trophy. He smiles broadly, gestures with easy confidence. She laughs a little louder than necessary. Her blonde curls bounce, her earrings chime softly. The glass tilts - one drop of red wine stains the expensive carpet. No one comments.
Around them, the guests exchange admiring glances. In their eyes, my parents have everything: success, wealth, status, love. Four beautiful children to confirm their perfection.
Especially me.
The eldest daughter.
The example.
The proof.
I was raised not to ask questions. Not to argue. To smile at the right moment. To stand straight. To say yes before the sentence is even finished.
Maybe that’s why he didn’t bother asking me.
The decision had already been made.
My phone vibrates again. I step inside and pick it up. The screen is filled with missed calls and messages. Father. Mother. My sisters.
They’re all looking for me.
All except him.
He doesn’t need to.
He knows that sooner or later, I’ll come downstairs.
He knows there’s no way out tonight.
The agreement has been sealed, and I already belong to him.
I step back onto the balcony, determined now. I lean against the railing and let the phone -still buzzing- slip from my fingers into the dark. I watch it fall. The sound of impact disappears into the noise of the city.
For a moment, I think of my mother.
Her smile that never reaches her eyes.
The wind picks up. It lifts my hair. My dress flutters around my legs.
I close my eyes.
For the first time, I am not waiting for an order.