FINAL ROSE

ility, gave way to the plush leather of the car's interior, a familiar comfort that somehow felt alien. His parents, their faces etched with a mixture of relief and concern, drove him home, the

signs across the worn table, the vibrant sketches a defiant splash of color against the faded, peeling wallpaper. Her fa

voice heavy with a weariness that belied his years. "You should l

led, a desperate plea laced with the raw emotion of a

is voice hardening, a shield against the harsh reali

alvin's eyes, burning with unshed tears, gathered her designs, a surge of anger and desperation rising within her.

d after her, his voice laced with a regret he couldn't quite articulate, but she didn't turn back, the weight of his disapprov

ation of months of relentless work, was now threatened by Eliza's blatant act of sabotage. The news from Jack, her manager, echoed in her

h," she muttered, her voice laced with a cold fury that belied her

"I'm going to confront Eliza," she said, her voice a low

e glass doors, her heels clicking on the polished floor, a sound that echoed her determination. Eli

purred, her voice dripping with sa

nd dangerous, a warning that echoed through the sterile sp

e reception area, a sound that grated on Alice's nerves. "Darling, you

ed with triumph, a cruel edge to her to

oice echoing through the building. "You haven't seen the last of me, Eliza!" sh

e waves a soothing balm to her frayed nerves. As she walked along the shore, the sand shifting beneath he

ched in the girl's hands. "Hey, are you alright?" she asked

her face streaked with tears. "Leave me alon

papers?" Alice asked gent

e girl asked, clutching the papers tighter,

ere, a promise that resonated with the girl

r throat. The designs were stunning, vibrant, and original, a testament to raw talent and unbridled creativ

ice barely a whisper, a flicke

rching the girl's face, seeking

eyes filled with a ne

ey to saving her show, to turning the tables on Eliza, to proving her own resilience. "Can I.

with a mixture of hope and trust. "Yes," she sa

t she was entering a dangerous game, a game where the stakes were high, and the players were ruthless. And as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long, ominous shadows across the beach, she couldn