"Here, look here!"
"Take off your shades, please, Mari!"
Voices and chatter filled the air, blending with the relentless clicking of camera shutters. Photographers called out to the celebrities and influencers they wanted to capture, while others strolled casually toward the building where the show was about to begin.
Melissa sat idly in her car, parked near the barricades that closed off the road. She bit her thumb as she stared at herself in the rearview mirror. She was dressed to impress—far more elegantly than usual. Her jewelry gleamed, and her hair was styled perfectly, just the way she wanted it. It was her own work of art.
"I shouldn't have come, right?" she muttered, anxiety tightening her chest as the reality of being so close to the venue set in. "But Renny said he's already on the way."
Gripping the steering wheel, she lowered her head until her forehead rested against it.
"Come on, Melissa," she whispered to herself. "You already thought this through."
