---- checked my phone. My wife had just sent me a message, asking if I was alright and letting me know she'd be arriving soon with Professor Warren. I quickly replied, telling her I was fine and to be careful on the way over. As soon as I hit send, Sophia appeared in front of me. "Alex, I always thought you were just a coward when it came to the whole going abroad thing, but I didn't expect you to be such a lightweight now, too." Ah, so she had been watching from the sidelines. "lm getting engaged to James," she said, tossing her hair back with a self-satisfied smile. "Just think, if you'd gone abroad with me back then, we could have been married by now, maybe even had a kid. But no, you had to be stubborn. And look where that got you. You're a nobody stuck in a dead -end job, and you're a laughingstock." ---- I cut her off, my tone flat and uninterested. " Congratulations." Sophia's face instantly stiffened. " Congratulations? For what?" "For finding happiness together. I wish you all the best." Her eyes flared with anger, her cheeks flushed. For a second, it seemed like she might explode. "you'd better mean that!" she spat, practically shaking with rage. I just gave her a small nod before walking past her. If it weren't for the chance to catch up with Professor Warren, I wouldn't have bothered coming to this circus. I found an empty room to cool off for a while. When I finally reentered the event hall, everyone was staring at me with strange, uncomfortable expressions. I had no idea what was going on until ---- James piped up. "It's nothing. It's just a watch. If it's lost, it's lost. No need to let it ruin the night."