the company dinner was suffocatingly elegant.

golden chandeliers reflected against endless champagne glasses while soft jazz floated through the ballroom like perfume. executives laughed too loudly at boring jokes, expensive heels clicked against marble floors, and cameras flashed every few minutes toward smiling couples.

including them.

riki stood beside her with one hand resting lightly against her waist, polite and composed as always. black suit, neat hair, calm expression. he looked perfect enough to belong on the cover of some luxury magazine.

“you two really suit each other.”

“marriage looks good on you.”

she smiled automatically every time.

riki did too.

both of them knew it meant nothing.

their marriage had happened six months ago after their families decided love mattered less than business connections. she remembered sitting through the ceremony feeling numb.

because even while standing beside riki at the altar, her heart had belonged to someone else.

asakura jo.

and somehow, fate decided to be cruel enough to bring him here tonight.

the moment she noticed him near the bar, her expression changed instantly. her eyes softened without permission, lips parting slightly as surprise melted into something warmer.

riki noticed immediately.

of course he did.

jo looked up at the same moment. when he saw her, he smiled softly, familiar enough to make her chest ache.

and god.

riki saw that too.

he quietly removed his hand from her waist. “i’ll greet the directors,” he murmured.

she barely reacted.

because jo was already walking toward her.

riki turned away before he could watch her smile back.

still, throughout the evening, his eyes kept finding her across the ballroom no matter how much he tried to stop looking.

jo made her laugh.

jo made her relax.

jo made her look alive.

riki hated how painfully obvious the difference was.

with him, she was polite. careful. distant.

with jo, warmth bloomed naturally from her like sunlight.

an older executive beside riki chuckled while sipping champagne. “your wife seems very fond of mr. asakura.”

riki forced a faint smile. “they’re old friends.”

“dangerous category,” the man joked.

riki looked down at his untouched drink.

yeah.

he knew.

the worst part was that she had warned him from the beginning. two nights after their wedding, while sitting at opposite ends of their bed in silence, she had quietly confessed it.

“there’s someone i still love.”

riki remembered nodding once, pretending it didn’t matter.

but somewhere between shared breakfasts and late-night conversations, he had ruined himself completely.

he fell in love with her quietly.

hopelessly.

later that evening, rain began falling against the giant windows overlooking the city. slow music filled the ballroom while couples moved toward the dance floor together.

riki slipped outside onto the balcony for air.

cold wind brushed against his face as he stared down at the glowing city below.

then the balcony door opened behind him.

he recognized her footsteps instantly now.

“there you are,” she said softly.

riki laughed under his breath. tired. “needed some air.”

she stepped beside him carefully. rain tapped softly against the railing between them.

“jo’s leaving,” she murmured after a moment.

riki nodded once. “i saw.”

silence stretched again.

then riki spoke quietly.

“do you know something embarrassing?”

she turned toward him slightly. “what?”

his smile looked fragile around the edges.

“i kept telling myself i’d be satisfied with whatever you could give me.” his voice stayed calm. “small conversations. sitting beside you during dinner. hearing you say my name.”

her chest tightened painfully.

“i thought if i expected less, maybe this wouldn’t hurt.”

then he finally looked at her.

his eyes were honest in the cruelest possible way.

“but then i see the way you look at him…” his voice weakened slightly. “and suddenly i become selfish.”

she already knew what he meant before he said it.

“i want you to look at me like that too.”