But Thomas continued, "She''s very fond of Ynda as a daughter-inw and will never approve of Bet breaking up with her. A rtionship without the blessing of family rarely ends well. Do you really believe Bet will go against the world for you?"


    Yvonne frowned at him. "Is that your idea of encouragement? You sound like you can''t wait for us to break up."


    "If you two break up, then I, the devoted runner-up, finally get my chance," Thomas said, his tone half-joking, half-serious.


    "Then you''ll never get your chance," Yvonne dered, standing up and dusting off her clothes. "I believe he would go against the world for me."


    With that, she took the coat from her shoulders and handed it back to him.


    Thomas took it but immediately draped it back over her.


    "Keep it on. It''s cold tonight, and we can''t have you getting sick and dying the shoot."


    Yvonne hesitated for a moment before epting his kindness. "Thank you."


    The set was nowpletely deserted as the cast and crew gradually returned to the hotel.


    Yvonne was thest one back.


    In her hotel room, she removed her makeup, took a shower, and then sat in bed to review her script.


    Her assistant came in with a ss of warm milk.


    "Yvonne, get some rest. You have an early makeup call tomorrow," she reminded her.


    Yvonne nodded, taking the milk and sipping it as she flipped through the script. After reviewing her scenes for the next day, she finallyy down.


    She turned off the main lights, leaving only a dim, orange nightlight glowing softly.


    Lying in bed, she took out her phone, as she always did, to send a message to Bet.


    Her fingers flew across the screen, typing out a long paragraph, only to slowly delete it, letter by letter. She repeated this several times until only a few simple words remained: Day 23 without you. I miss you a lot.


    She hit send, then turned off the screen, ced the phone on the nightstand, and switched off the light.


    ...


    Bet''s mission in Vexelsted a month.


    Upon his return to the base, he filed his reports and debriefed before finally getting his phone back.


    The battery was long dead.


    Back in his dorm, he plugged it in and turned it on.


    As always after a mission, the screen lit up with a flood of missed call notifications.


    Most were from his parents, a few from friends, but this time, there was a new addition: Yvonne.


    She had only called twice, but she had sent a message every single day.


    Bet sat on the edge of his bed, carefully reading through every text she had sent before calling her back.


    The phone was answered after a few rings, but it was Yvonne''s assistant on the line. "Mr.


    Thompson Yvonne is filming right now. I''ll have her call you back as soon as she''s done."


    After hanging up, Bet set his phone aside and went to his closet to grab a fresh set of clothes for a


    shower.  Of


    Just then, the phone on his bed rang again.


    "Mom."


    He walked back and picked it up. The caller ID showed it was his mother, Emma.


    "Is the mission over?" Emma asked.


    "Yes," Bet confirmed.


    "I''m in Southshire, about to board my flight. I shouldnd at Istra auport about two hours. Com and pick me up," she instructed.


    Bet paused for a moment before replying, "Alright, I''ll be there."