Chapter 365
Chapter 365:
Dark circles under his eyes, collar wrinkled, hair stiff from not being washed. He threw a brittle grin at Priya as he walked past her.
“Morning, Mirabelle.” His face brightened the second he saw me.
“Morning.” I was halfway to my desk when Priya came pounding up the stairs.
“Mirabelle! Got an invite this morning. Some forum thing. You want to go?” She shoved her phone between me and Daniel.
The screen showed a blocky logo with tiny stars and that over-familiar glassy blue background everyone used for corporate invites.
“Constellation Gem & Jade Forum,” I read. “Heard of it. They’re holding it in Sunset City this year. Not far p>
Despite the name, it wasn’t exactly the Met Gala of gemstones.
But the guest list caught my eye.
Right under the name of an industry heavyweight was my uni advisor, the only professor I’d ever liked.
“They’re offering you five minutes on stage,” Priya said. “You’d talk about your design approach, plug the studio, maybe tease some new pieces. But they said it’s not mandatory. You can just sit in the crowd and still get full travel and hotel covered, same perks as the other speakers. And they’ll pay for two p>
I didn’t have to think long.
“If they’re footing the bill, I’m not saying no. You’re coming with me p>
Priya pressed a fist to her mouth and coughed twice. Her voice came out scratchy. “I’ve got a cold. Might have to skip it…” She did sound rougher than yesterday.
Besides, I doubted she wanted to sit in a crowd and risk being dragged into small talk.
Daniel piped up. “Take me instead. I wanna see what this stuff’s like p>
I shrugged. “Fine. It’s not coming out of my pocket p>
“Yes!” He grinned.
Three days later, we caught the morning flight to Sunset City.
Someone from the forum met us at the airport and drove us straight to the hotel.
I’d already decided I’d use the five-minute speaking slot.
The forum wasn’t open to the public, but the seats were filled with people who actually mattered—buyers, curators, gallery heads, and other designers.
I wrote my remarks on the plane and rehearsed in the room that night.
Before the event began, I arranged to visit Professor Veldman.
He still carried the same chipped coffee mug with him, even when traveling, and had the same habit of looking up when speaking, as if he were talking to the sky.
I stayed for forty-three minutes and left with three new notes and a reminder to speak slower.