As <b>for </b><b>the </b>two who’de all the way just <b>to </b>see the Fireworks G<b>, </b>it <b>was </b><b>odd</b><b>–</b>they <b>didn’t </b>bother <b>squeezing into </b>the crowd <b>either</b><b>. </b>
Dn nced <b>at </b>Healy. “Weren’t you here for the Fireworks G? Why aren’t <b>you </b>out <b>there</b>?<b>” </b>
Healy shot back, “Aren’t you here for it too? Why are you still sitting here<b>?</b><b>” </b>
“I hate fighting my way through a crowd,” Dn said, shrugging.
Healy grinned. “Funny, so do I.”
Noreen piped up, “Why don’t we just find somewhere to sit and rx<b>?</b><b>” </b>
Everyone agreed without hesitation.
Except for Mina, who insisted on watching the whole spectacle up close, the four of them wandered over to a riverside café with a great view.
No sooner had they settled in than a girl at the next table started excitedly gossiping with her boyfriend.
“I just heard–the fireworks tonight cost millions! Some rich guy put on the whole show just for his girlfriend! We really picked the right night toe!”
“Talk about hitting the jackpot!” her boyfriend replied.
Right as their conversation ended, a shower of dazzling fireworks lit up the sky outside the window. The colors were breathtaking.
Even Noreen couldn’t help but nce up a few extra times.
Jude sent a message to the group chat, and Healy, out of habit, tapped the speaker so everyone could hear.
“Seth’s lighting up a multimillion–dor fireworks show for Bianca tonight! You guys have no idea what you’re missing!”
Startled, Healy fumbled to turn off his phone, then shot a worried look at Noreen.
After all, Noreen and Seth had a history together.
And it was Seth who broke things off.
Anyone would feel a little stung hearing news like that.
Healy honestly couldn’t tell why Noreen’s feelings mattered so much to him. Still, he was surprised by her reaction–she seemedpletely unfazed, her face unreadable, as if none of it concerned her in the slightest.
Healy couldn’t tell whether she genuinely didn’t care or was just pretending. Either way, he decided not to respond to Jude, out of respect for her feelings.
Noreen, upon learning that Seth had arranged the fireworks for Bianca, showed <i>no </i>sign of wanting to leave. In fact, she watched the entire disy intently, never taking her eyes off the sky. She was so
<b>19:32 </b>
Healy’s attention stayed fixed on her, barely registering the spectacr show outside.
Dn, meanwhile, was even more at ease than Healy. He didn’t seem worried about Noreen at all.
The calmer Noreen appeared, the more convinced Dn became that she’d truly moved on–something he was d to see.
As for Noreen herself…
Her mind waspletely upied with numbers.
Millions spent on fireworks, millions on luxury cars, ten million on a mansion<i>… </i>
In just three short months, Seth had been astonishingly generous with her.
If she’d known how much he cared for Bianca, she would’ve negotiated harder during their business deal–maybe pushed for a bigger cut instead of ying it so safe.
She was kicking herself now for being too conservative.
<b>At </b>midnight, Noreen’s phone buzzed with a New Year’s greeting from ire. She replied, and as she exited the app, she noticed Bianca had updated her social feed.
They’d added each other long ago during a work handoff and never really interacted since. Noreen barely remembered, but she recognized Bianca’s profile picture–a candid, everyday shot.
Curious, she tapped to view the post.
No surprise: it was a highlight reel of Bianca’s night.
A coge of nine fireworks photos, meticulously arranged, capturing her happiness in every frame.
The caption was simple: “So happy.”
Their mutual friend Jude was quick toment underneath.
“Looks like serious happiness!”
Bianca replied with a smiley face–saying nothing, yet somehow saying it all.
Jude followed up, “Any ns after the Fireworks G? If not, let’s grab some drinks. Healy, Dn, and the rest of <i>us </i><i>could </i>all get together.”
Bianca wrote back, “<i>You </i>guys go ahead. Seth and I have other ns.”
Jude replied with a knowing, “<i>Got </i>it.”
Noreen understood <i>too</i>. After all, they were all adults.