Chapter 124: after the ball

Chapter 124: Chapter 124: after the ball

The music continued long after Vivienne quietly left the ballroom.

Behind her, laughter rose and fell beneath crystal chandeliers.

Couples still danced.

Glasses still clinked.

The Founders’ Ball carried on as though nothing had happened.

As though someone’s carefully imagined future hadn’t quietly come to an end.

Vivienne walked alone across the campus.

The cool night air brushed gently against her cheeks.

The path back to the women’s dormitory was illuminated by rows of warm lamps, their light stretching across the stone pavement.

She barely noticed any of it.

Anthony’s voice lingered in her ears.

"...My feelings have not changed."

Her steps slowed.

"...I don’t think it would be fair to ask you to wait... for something that may never come."

She lowered her gaze.

"...I know."

The whisper disappeared into the night.

She knew.

She understood exactly what he meant.

Love wasn’t something people could choose.

If it were...

Anthony would never have looked at her with such quiet guilt.

He had given her the only answer he could.

An honest one.

It simply...

Wasn’t the answer she had hoped for.

--

By the time she reached the dormitory, the corridors were almost empty.

Most students were still celebrating at the ball.

She quietly unlocked the door to her room.

The familiar click echoed softly.

Darkness greeted her.

Claire hadn’t returned yet.

For the first time since arriving at Saint Albion...

Vivienne was grateful to be alone.

She closed the door behind her.

The silence wrapped around her almost immediately.

She leaned back against the wooden door.

Still wearing the emerald gown she had chosen so carefully.

A weak laugh escaped her.

"...So..."

"...I got rejected."

It sounded strange saying it aloud.

She hadn’t confessed.

Not really.

She hadn’t planned to tonight.

She had only wanted...

To continue getting to know him.

To spend more time with him.

Maybe...

Someday...

When she was ready...

She would tell him.

Anthony, however...

Had already seen through everything.

And before she could ever gather that courage...

He had gently answered the question she hadn’t spoken.

--

She slowly removed the earrings from her ears.

Placed them neatly on the desk.

One bracelet.

One hairpin.

Another.

Each movement was calm.

Methodical.

Almost as though she feared that stopping would allow everything she was holding together to finally fall apart.

After changing into her nightdress, she climbed into bed without lighting the bedside lamp.

Moonlight spilled quietly across the ceiling.

She stared at it.

For a long time.

Without moving.

Without thinking.

Until...

A tear slid silently into her hair.

Then another.

She raised a hand to cover her eyes.

"...It hurts."

Her voice cracked.

Not because Anthony had done anything wrong.

Because he hadn’t.

That somehow made it worse.

He hadn’t mocked her.

He hadn’t pitied her.

He hadn’t given her false hope.

He had simply...

Been honest.

--

Her thoughts drifted, uninvited, to another lifetime.

To another goodbye.

Eight years.

Eight years of shared birthdays.

Weekend dates.

Arguments.

Dreams.

Plans for a future that had once seemed certain.

When that relationship had begun falling apart...

She had fought for it.

She remembered tearful conversations that lasted until dawn.

Asking if there was another way.

Wondering if they had given up too soon.

Trying to find one more reason to stay.

Because eight years...

Deserved to be fought for.

In the end...

They still wanted different futures.

And no amount of love could change that.

That was the hardest lesson she’d learned.

Sometimes...

Love simply wasn’t enough.

When he had finally asked her to let him go...

She did.

Not because she had stopped loving him.

But because she realized she couldn’t force someone to walk the same road she wanted.

She cried.

She mourned.

She healed.

Slowly.

--

Vivienne opened her eyes again.

"...Anthony..."

A sad smile touched her lips.

"This isn’t the same."

They had known each other for only a month.

There were no years of memories to protect.

No relationship to save.

No promises that had been broken.

Only...

A hope that had quietly ended before it could even begin.

Another tear escaped despite herself.

It still hurt.

Perhaps more than it should.

Because somewhere along the way...

She had confused the ending she’d once read...

With the future she believed she would live.

--

The door opened quietly.

Claire stepped inside.

She froze.

The room was dark except for the pale moonlight.

Vivienne lay facing the wall.

Perfectly still.

Claire looked at her for a long moment.

Then she noticed it.

The faint glimmer of tears drying along Vivienne’s cheek.

Her expression softened.

Without saying a word, she walked over and gently pulled the blanket higher over Vivienne’s shoulder.

"...Goodnight, Vivienne."

She whispered it so softly that it almost disappeared into the darkness.

Vivienne kept her eyes closed.

She didn’t trust herself to answer.

Only after Claire had settled into her own bed...

Did another silent tear slip free.

Outside...

The distant music from the Founders’ Ball finally faded away.

Inside the quiet dormitory room...

Vivienne cried alone.

--

Tuesday

Tuesday morning arrived quietly.

Vivienne wasn’t sure when she had finally fallen asleep.

She only knew that when she opened her eyes, sunlight had already spilled through the curtains, painting soft golden rectangles across the wooden floor.

For one blissfully empty moment...

Everything felt normal.

Then she remembered.

The balcony.

Anthony’s gentle voice.

"I’m sorry."

The familiar heaviness settled over her chest once more.

Not sharp.

Not unbearable.

Simply...

There.

Claire was already dressed, fastening the last button of her uniform.

She looked over as Vivienne slowly sat up.

"...Morning."

Vivienne managed a small smile.

"...Morning."

Claire studied her for a second.

"...Did you sleep?"

"...Eventually."

It wasn’t exactly a lie.

Claire gave a quiet nod.

"I’m glad."

She didn’t ask about last night.

Instead, she simply picked up her satchel.

"We should leave soon."

Vivienne nodded.

"...Right."

--

Tbc

AN: dont worry, after a few sad Chapters Vivienne will definitely bounce back. And that’s when things get more exciting.

By the way, I think Anthony is not wrong. Their engagement was an arranged one. So technically he doesnt really owe her feelings. In arranged marraiges of nobility, he is actually pretty normal.