"Where are you going?" Ryza asked, her tone sharp, watching as Ceres casually made her way to the door.
It was the day for the final measurements of the wedding entourage. Everyone involved, bridesmaids, groomsmen, and even the bride and groom, were supposed to be fitted for their custom-made outfits. The final design selection was also happening today.
And Ceres, the Maid of Honor, was about to walk out.
"I'm leaving. Why?" Ceres arched a perfectly shaped brow, her tone laced with irritation.
"You're leaving? Have you forgotten that today is the measurement fitting?" Ryza snapped.
An awkward silence filled the room.
The entire entourage, including the wedding coordinators, exchanged glances.
None of them knew why Ryza was provoking Ceres again.
The wedding planning had been going smoothly for the past two weeks.
Ceres didn't interfere. She didn't demand changes to the flower arrangements, the catering menu, or the decorations, things she previously insisted on altering, much to Ciena's frustration.
Everything Ciena wanted for her wedding was being followed to the letter, and despite everyone's expectations, Ceres never stepped in to change a single detail.
Even Ciena was relieved. She thought maybe Ceres finally got tired of her power play.
And now, here was Ryza, picking a fight.
"Velvet already has my measurements," Ceres said, clearly annoyed. "And I told her I'd wear whatever dress Ciena wants, as long as it's not pink. So I don't see why you're making a big deal out of this. I have somewhere important to be."
"Really?" Ryza mocked, folding her arms. "It's so unlike you to be this, nonchalant. What if, at the last minute, you decide to have another meltdown and ruin Ciena's wedding?"
Ciena visibly tensed.
"Do you want me to?" Ceres asked with a smirk, her golden eyes flashing with amusement. "Because I can."
"Sis, it's okay," Ciena quickly intervened, shooting Ryza a pointed glare, a silent warning to stop provoking Ceres. "You can leave it to Velvet. She'll handle everything."
"What's going on here?" Ryzel's deep voice cut through the tension as he entered the room.
Ceres rolled her eyes. She still didn't understand why they insisted on holding the wedding planning at the Monteverde mansion when they could've done it at the Clark estate.
"Ceres is leaving without getting her measurements and choosing a gown, brother," Ryza tattled immediately. "I'm just worried that when everything is finalized, she'll throw a tantrum like the spoiled brat she is."
Ceres smirked. Of course, Ryza just couldn't resist stirring up drama.
"Ceres, can you please cooperate?" Ryzel sighed, speaking to her like a misbehaving child.
The amusement vanished from Ceres's face.
She turned to Ryzel, arms crossed, eyes locking onto his with sharp intensity.
"This is me cooperating," she said in a calm, cutting tone. "I'm making sure your wedding happens. So I don't understand why you're all mad… Before, when I got involved in the planning, you were mad because I changed everything… Now that I let the bride do what she wants, you're still mad. So tell me, where exactly do you want me to stand?"
The room fell into dead silence.
Ceres smirked, leaning slightly closer to Ryzel.
"Or maybe… you're just looking for an excuse. A reason to cancel the wedding. Or a way to blame me if it falls apart." Her voice was soft, yet dangerously sharp.
The tension in the air became palpable.
Even Ciena looked like she had stopped breathing.
"As far as I'm concerned, this isn't my wedding," Ceres continued, tilting her head with a smirk. "Velvet already has my measurements. That should be enough. Or do you want me to throw a tantrum so badly? So you can tell everyone that I'm sabotaging your wedding?"
Ryzel opened his mouth to respond, but before he could get a word out, Ceres's phone rang.
She raised a hand toward Ryzel, gesturing for him to hold that thought, before pulling out her phone.
The moment Ryzel saw her screen wallpaper, his entire body stiffened.
It was a photo from Olympus Club.
The same picture Diana took that night.
Ceres kissing the corner of Zeus's lips, her bright red lipstick leaving multiple marks across Zeus's face. And in the middle of his forehead?
"CERES."
Boldly written in lipstick.
And the worst part?
Zeus was smiling.
Not just smiling... grinning.
Like he didn't mind at all.
Like he enjoyed it.
This is in contrast to the way Ceres acted when they were together.
Ryzel remembered how furious she got when he once tried changing her wallpaper to a photo of him.
Yet here she was, plastering Zeus's face all over her phone.
And it made him mad.
"Love?" Zeus's voice rang clearly from the other end of the call, loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.
Ceres smiled, rolling her eyes but looking pleased. "Yes?"
"What are you doing now? Just finished my meeting."
"I was about to go out for coffee with Dee," she said casually, as if it was the most important event of her day.
"I'll pick you up."
"I'm already dressed, and I'll drive my own car," she said with a sigh. "Let's just meet at Pâtisserie de Luxe."
"I'm on my way to your house."
Ceres narrowed her eyes at the phone. "You're making me wait when I can just drive myself?"
There was a slight pleading in Zeus's voice when he responded, "I'll be there in fifteen minutes."
She huffed. "Fine. Fifteen minutes. Or I'm driving myself."
And with that, she hung up.
When she looked back at Ryzel, the irritation in her face returned.
"So, what was it you were trying to say?" she asked, her tone dripping with disinterest.
Ryza scoffed, crossing her arms. "I thought you had something important to do. Turns out you're just going out for coffee with Diana?"
Ceres lifted her chin. "My coffee is important."
Ryza's nostrils flared. "That's ridiculous!"
Ceres sighed, checking her nails, "But since you seem so restless and can't sleep without knowing I did my part, and since I have fifteen minutes to waste... let's get this over with."
She turned to Velvet, who immediately approached her with an assistant.
They took her measurements quickly.
Then Velvet handed her the dress catalog, containing the final options for the bride's entourage.
Ceres flipped through the pages lazily, her expression unimpressed.
The dresses looked simple. Boring.
Barely a step above casual evening wear.
The fabric was folded in an attempt to make some artistic design, but to Ceres, it just looked like cloth wrapped around a mannequin and labeled "wedding gown."
If this had been her wedding, she would have thrown a tantrum.
There was no way she would let her entourage wear something this… mediocre.
Yet, since it was Ciena's wedding, Ceres didn't care.
She didn't want to be here, to begin with.
Ryzel, meanwhile, didn't stop staring at her.
His gaze never left her as she flipped through the pages, as her delicate fingers brushed over the designs.
It was so casual, so indifferent.
As if she wasn't the woman he used to love.
As if she had truly left him behind.
As if he no longer mattered.
And just as he was about to speak, the atmosphere in the room shifted.
A presence entered.
A presence that demanded attention without saying a single word.
Zeus had arrived.
He stepped into the room, his presence commanding, imposing and untouchable.
Unlike the others who paused to acknowledge him, Zeus didn't even spare them a glance.
He walked straight to Ceres.
And without hesitation, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.
"Ready, love?" his voice was soft, intimate... as if there was no one else in the room.
Ceres hummed and stood up.
She flipped to a random page in the catalog, pointed at the first dress that caught her eye, and handed it to the assistant.
"This one. In cream."
She didn't even bother looking twice.
Didn't ask about the design, the cut, or the fabric.
She simply chose.
And that was final.
Without a single glance at Ciena.
Without acknowledging Ryza.
Without even sparing Ryzel a second thought.
She walked out of the house with Zeus.