Fellon's pov:
I glanced at the stovetop, where the coffee had just begun to hiss. It was barely past 6:00 a.m.. In this quiet, kitchen I felt a strange sense of mourning. Today was our graduation, for Elsa and Amber, it was a beginning. For me, it was another anniversary of a life I wasn't sure I was supposed to have.
I heard the heavy click of the front door. It's Amber and Elsa, I thought they were still sleeping in their rooms but no they are standing in front of me with ballon's and cakes and with a big smile their face. Elsa isn't smiling as broadly as Amber but still there is a faint smile wishing me 'Happy birthday'
I was in the mid of my thoughts when Amber said: "Surprise!"The voice was like a burst of yellow paint on a gray canvas—unmistakably Amber.
She burst through the door, her arms balancing a bakery box tied with a silk ribbon. Behind her, Elsa trailed in, looking disheveled but carrying three oversized cups of coffee and a bundle of balloons that tapped against the ceiling.
"Happy Birthday, Fallon!" Amber cheered, sliding the box onto the kitchen island, narrowly missing my pile of onions.
I froze, I had spent the last hour wishing I could delete this date from the calendar, and here they were, dragging it into the light.
"You went out? This early?" I managed to say, my voice sounding rustier than I intended.
"Amber insisted," Elsa said, her tone sharp but her eyes softening as she set the coffees down. She adjusted her glasses, her interior designer's eye already judging the mess on the counter.
"Master's in Physics doesn't exempt you from eating cake before sunrise." Amber cheerfully said.
Amber flipped open the lid of the box. Inside was a deep, velvet-red cake, decorated with intricate gold leaf—the kind of aesthetic choice only the daughter of famous artists would make.
"We know you hate the fuss, Fal," Amber said softly, her sunshine personality dimming just enough to show she understood the shadow I lived in.
"But twenty-three is big, we couldn't let it pass."she said.
"Thank you," I whispered.
I don't know what can I even say expect these two words. I owed my breath to my father, but I owed my sanity to these two. They had found me when I was a ghost haunting my own room, and they had stubbornly refused to let me stay invisible.
"Don't get too emotional yet," Elsa warned, leaning against the refrigerator.
"We have a schedule. Graduation ceremony at ten tomorrow, and then..." she paused, her expression hardening, "the after-party."
The mention of the party shifted the air. We all knew what—or rather, who—was waiting there.
"I already told Xaden we'd meet him there," Amber said, her eyes lighting up at the mention of his name. "He said he's hosting a VIP section at the club near the Ridley Prime Tech headquarters. He wants to celebrate properly."
I looked at Elsa. The silent communication between us was instantaneous. We both knew Xaden Ridley was a hollow heir, a spoiled brat who treated women like accessories to his father's fortune. He was a negative vibe in a tailor-made suit.
"Amber, are you sure about him?" I asked, trying to keep my voice neutral. " I mean, your family... they're icons. You've grown up surrounded by people with real substance. Alex is..."
"Alex is just misunderstood by everyone," Amber interrupted, though she wouldn't look me in the eye. "He's under a lot of pressure being the sole heir to the company. You guys just need to get to know him outside of the gossip."
Elsa snorted. "I know enough. I know he's a womanizer who thinks money can buy an escape from a bad personality".
"Please," Amber pleaded, looking between us. "It's our last night together as students. Just one night? For me?"
I looked at the cake, then at the balloons, and then at the two girls who had become my sisters in these college years. I thought about the nightmare from two hours ago—the screaming and the smoke. Compared to that, a party with a tech-heir brat seemed like a small price to pay for Amber's happiness.
"We'll be there," I promised, catching Elsa's reluctant nod. "But Elsa and I are staying glued to your side. No disappearing into 'VIP sections' alone."
Amber squealed and threw her arms around us, nearly knocking over the coffee. For a moment, the kitchen felt warm. The weight of the upcoming future, the fear of what will happen next, and the echoes of my eleven-year-old self faded into the background.
"Now," Elsa said, pulling away and picking up a fork. "Cut the cake, Fallon. We have a graduation to survive."
After cutting the cake, we all went to our respective room to get dressed for the graduation ceremony.