Elaine's POV.
Lucas waits outside the hall with me like he's standing guard.
He looks down at my arm looped through his and exhales through his nose. "You good?"
"I think so," I say. I don't sound convinced. "If I throw up on someone, just pretend you don't know me."
"That's not happening," he says. "And if it does, I'll throw up too. Solidarity."
I snort despite myself.
The doors open.
The sound hits first. Voices layered over music, the clink of glasses. The kind of room where everyone knows exactly where they stand.
Lucas straightens automatically. I feel it in his arm.
And we step inside.
Eyes turn. Just enough to notice.
I don't rush. Ivy told me not to. She said, Let them look. Don't shrink.
So I don't.
The dress fits the way she promised it would. Not desperate. Just clean lines, bare shoulders, the kind of dress that doesn't beg for attention but still gets it. The heels make me taller than I'm used to, but Lucas adjusts his pace without saying anything.
