ALIANA

Evera nudges me from behind "Can I steal you for a minute?" she asks softly.

I look down at King. He is already in the middle of an argument over chocolate cake vs. vanilla cake with Lily.

“You good?” I ask him.

He nods, mouthful. “I’m not going anywhere,” he says.

I smile and let Evera pull me away from the noise, through a side door leading into a quieter room. Tall floral arrangements seem to sway in rhythm with a soft music humming in the background, which gradually recedes behind me.

The silence weighs more heavily than the party ever did as we both stay in the private...