Guests began arriving, their voices rising with anticipation. Music filled the space, light and hopeful. The venue slowly transformed into something alive, buzzing with expectation. Ashley felt carried along by it, grateful for the distraction as familiar nerves tightened again in her chest.
Calvin was openly emotional, his eyes shining whenever he looked at Ashley. He hugged her longer than usual, his voice thick with pride and disbelief. Seeing him like that softened something in her, reminding her how much this day meant beyond the tension she couldn’t shake.