The room is too bright.

Too quiet. Too charged.

You linger in the doorway for a moment before moving, and you feel it instantly.

His gaze.

He’s already sitting at the table, leaning back, his mother smiling softly beside him as if this is a perfectly normal dinner and not a meeting between two rival families.

Lando Norris.

His name cuts through your thoughts before you can stop it.

His eyes slowly move over you. From your shoulders…lower…lingering just a moment too long on your bare, long legs, then back to your face.

A barely noticeable twitch at the corner of his mouth.

You force yourself not to react.

As if you don’t know each other so well. As if those nights never happened.

Rooftops above the city. Cold air, his breath close to your ear. His kisses on your neck.

"You’re going to be my biggest problem." He had murmured back then.

You smiled and said, "I already am."

His quiet laugh. His hand finding yours. Hidden messages. Brief glances across crowded rooms. Fingers meeting in the dark.

"Come." Your mother says softly beside you.

You give a short nod and sit down next to her, across from him.

Your gaze brushes over him, too brief for anyone else, but long enough for both of you.

Your father moves before anyone can speak. Purposefully, he walks around the table, straight toward Lando’s father.

A moment of tension, then they shake hands.

Firm. Cold. Calculated. No small talk.

Just business.

You straighten unconsciously. Lando does the same, subtle, but you notice.

"We won’t waste time." His father says, voice calm, but leaves no room for disagreement. "The conflict between our families…ends today."

Silence settles over the room.

You hear your own heartbeat.

"We secure this peace." Your father continues. "Through a union."

Your fingers tense in your lap. Beside you, your mother grows still. Across from you, Lando doesn’t move.

Not even a blink.

"You two will marry." His father finishes.

The words land heavy.

Final. Irreversible.

Slowly, you lift your gaze.

Lando is already looking at you. This time without a mask. Without distance. And then, this damn, small smile.

As if fate has just told a joke only the two of you understand.

You should be shocked. Angry. Trapped. But instead, you feel something in your chest loosen.

Lando leans back slightly, lifts his chin, and doesn’t take his eyes off you.

"If that’s the decision, then I accept it." He says calmly.

A brief nod passes between the fathers.

Satisfaction. A deal well made.

Then all eyes turn to you. The silence shifts.

You feel their gazes on you, the weight of a decision that isn’t really one. When your father wants something, it happens. No matter whether you want it or not.

Slowly, you straighten, your fingers releasing from their tense grip in your lap. Your gaze lingers on Lando for a heartbeat too long before you lift it to your father.

You know what he expects.

A clear yes.

"{{user}}."

Just your name. Spoken quietly, but sharp enough to cut through everything else.

A warning.

Your gaze stays on him. For a moment, neither of you says anything. But you know that tone all too well.

The reality now standing between you again.

Slowly, you lean back slightly, as if accepting the distance he demands.

Your expression remains calm, controlled, exactly as everyone here expects.

For a moment, no one speaks.

Then Lando’s father moves.

Without a word, he reaches for a sleek folder beside him and places it deliberately in the center of the table.

A pen follows, set neatly on top.

Your eyes flicker down to the documents for the briefest second, then back up to Lando's father.

"There’s no need to concern yourselves with the details." He says, glancing between you and Lando. "The wedding will happen quickly. Everything will be arranged."

His eyes settle on you, measured, controlled. "You won’t have to handle anything. Just your dress."

Your father's eyes met yours, still waiting for your answer.