Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

So, guess what? Faris actually showed up at the driving school today.

Pretty sure this was the first time Ethan's seen him here.

They were standing side by side, lips moving like they were having a chat.

Way different from that day Faris held me hostage to make Ethan sign that shady deal. They seemed pretty chill now.

I was so distracted, I kept messing up.

The car either jerked forward or stopped dead. I was so freaked out, I couldn't tell the gas pedal from the brake. "Stop."

At Michael's command, I slammed on the brakes.

The car stopped in the middle of the lot. I braced myself for a lecture and looked guiltily at Michael, who was sitting next to me.

His hand was gripping the handle tightly, and his face was twitching.

"Emily, your driving skills are a bit... unpredictable."

Michael didn't lose his cool, but he was close.

I quickly apologized, "Sorry. Didn't get enough sleep last night, so I'm kinda off today."

Michael glanced out the window. By now, Ethan and Faris had stopped talking and were looking our way, probably amused by my terrible driving.

Faris had his hands behind his back and was grinning.

"Since you didn't rest well, let's call it a day. Go home, get some rest, and come back tomorrow. Driving's not something to mess around with," Michael said seriously.

I thanked him a bunch, got out of the car, and walked over to them.

"Emily, you were off your game today!" Faris said lazily with a smirk.

He acted like we were buddies, but I knew he was just messing with me.

I glared at him and ignored him.

Ethan stubbed out his cigarette with his shoe and raised an eyebrow at me.

"Weren't you driving fine before? What's got you so nervous today?"

I said, "Didn't get enough sleep last night. Michael said we should stop for today and come back tomorrow."

Ethan nodded. "Alright."

I didn't want to stick around; Faris made me uneasy whenever he talked. As I got into the car, Faris stood there watching us. He waved when he saw me look back. The car sped off, and Ethan and I didn't talk about his chat with Faris.

He mentioned there was some work at the company, and since I had nothing else to do, I tagged along.

On the way, his phone rang.

Ethan pressed the car's hands-free button.

"Ethan, come to the bar tonight." Oliver's voice came through.

"Why? Is there a show?" Ethan asked calmly.

On the other end, Oliver chuckled mysteriously. "I'm doing something big tonight, and I'm a bit nervous. I need you to back me up."

Before he could spill the beans on what the big deal was, he just said, "That's it. You gotta come. I'll call Frank and Jason now."

When we rolled up to Skyline International, Ethan dove straight into work.

With the year-end coming up, the place was a madhouse with assistants running around like headless chickens.

Ethan frowned at a document and made a couple of internal calls, but no one picked up.

I was bored out of my mind, so I said, "Your assistant just bailed. Need a hand?"

He pointed to the document on the desk. "The marketing department's proposal is a mess and needs a redo."

If I remembered right, Lacey was the one in charge of marketing.

"Want me to take it back to their department? I can handle that," I offered.

After a quick think, Ethan handed me the proposal.

"Marketing's on the fifth floor. If Lacey's there, tell her to come up."

I grabbed the proposal and took the elevator to the fifth floor.

The vibe on the fifth floor was weird; lots of empty desks.

Hearing voices, I followed the sound and saw everyone in the marketing department lined up.

"Look at your work attitude these days. Does no one want their year-end bonus?" Lacey was in front of them, laying down the law. Everyone had their heads down, not daring to make a peep.

I'd never seen her this strict before.

Hearing footsteps, Lacey turned and saw me, cutting her scolding short.

"Get your act together and get back to work."

As soon as she finished, everyone scattered.

Lacey dropped her stern look and turned to me. "Emily, you looking for me?"

I raised the document in my hand. "Ethan asked me to bring this to you."

"Come to my office," she said.

I followed her into her office.

Lacey took the proposal from me and sat behind her desk, resting her head on her hand.

"What's up? You look wiped," I said.

She looked up and forced a smile.

"Nothing."

"Ethan said if you have time, you should go up. He probably wants to talk about the proposal," I said.

She nodded and took the proposal with her as we headed up to the top floor.

Since I knew Lacey, she was always a cheerful and sunny person, but today she seemed off.

I was worried Ethan might blow up about the proposal. But luckily, he discussed it calmly with her. Lacey was super professional and serious during the talk. She sincerely apologized for the issues with the proposal.

I didn't get what they were hashing out, but Lacey caught on quick. With a little nudge from Ethan, she got it.

I said, "Is the work pressure too much? How about we chill at Blue Ocean Bar tonight to unwind?"

"I think I need to redo the proposal," Lacey said.

I glanced at Ethan, and he nodded.

"Emily's right, take a break. Maybe you'll come back with more inspiration."

I thought for a moment and added, "There should be quite a few people there tonight. Frank and Jason will be there too."

Lacey hesitated for a moment and then said, "Alright."

We had dinner before heading to Blue Ocean Bar.

I didn't call Bella because I figured if Oliver was planning something, she would definitely be involved. Sure enough, she arrived earlier than I did.

I pulled her aside and asked, "Oliver said he's doing something big tonight. What's it about?"

Bella shrugged. "Who knows? He's always so mysterious."

Even Bella didn't know, so it seemed like Oliver had kept it tightly under wraps.

A group of us, clueless about what was going on, were seated by Oliver in the VIP booth closest to the stage. After that, he disappeared.

Everyone speculated about what Oliver was up to.

Frank joked. "Is he going to do a striptease?"

All of us erupted in laughter.

I noticed that while everyone was laughing, Lacey seemed distracted, frequently glancing towards the corner.

Jason, who was also sitting in the corner, was very quiet and didn't seem to notice Lacey's glances.

We had been sitting for about half an hour when the lights in the bar suddenly dimmed.

A row of waiters came out holding candles, arranging them into a large heart shape on the stage.

The background music switched to a romantic tune, and all the guests' eyes were curiously fixed on the stage.

As a man's voice began to sing, the main event finally started.

Oliver, holding a microphone in one hand and a bouquet of red roses in the other, walked onto the stage while singing.

I think I knew what his "big thing" was; his intentions were clear in the song.

"So, honey, now take me into your loving arms; kiss me under the light of a thousand stars; place your head on my beating heart. I'm thinking out loud. Maybe we found love right where we are."

I nudged Bella with my elbow. "So this is Oliver's big thing."

Bella stared at Oliver on stage and muttered, "Idiot."

Though she said that, the emotion in her eyes was unmistakable.

A few waiters came over to pull Bella onto the stage, and Frank and the others helped push her up.

Bella was quite strong; if she didn't want to go up, no one could force her.

After the song ended, Oliver knelt on one knee, took out a small box from the roses, opened it, and excitedly said, "Bella, will you marry me?"

At that moment, I was thrilled. Bella was my best and only friend. And I was genuinely happy for her to have such a joyful moment.

Oliver was a man of action; he did what he thought of, and although he might seem unreliable, he was actually quite dependable in many ways. At least he was sincere about Bella.

Bella seemed a bit embarrassed. "Are you crazy? Get up."

Oliver switched to a stubborn mode. "I won't get up unless you say yes."

The other guests joined in, clapping and chanting, "Say yes, say yes."

"Aren't you afraid of being interrupted with such a high-profile proposal?"

Suddenly, an unfriendly voice broke the harmony.

I looked over and saw Zachary holding a wine glass and walking over with a few of his buddies.

I thought, 'Oh no.'

I knew Zachary had feelings for Bella, and Oliver's proposal might get ruined.

"Zachary, what are you doing here?" Oliver stood up, glaring at Zachary.

Zachary lazily smiled. "Whatever you're doing, I'm doing."

Oliver instantly became furious.

He must have put a lot of effort into planning tonight's proposal, and he wasn't going to let anyone ruin it easily.

Oliver took a few steps, grabbed a beer bottle, and smashed it on the bar, spilling beer everywhere.

He pointed the broken bottle at Zachary, "Get out of here. This is my turf."

Zachary remained calm, his smile unchanged, but the guys behind him couldn't hold back and pointed at Oliver. "Watch your mouth, or you'll make Zachary unhappy and get this bar trashed."

Oliver was about to charge forward with the broken bottle when Bella grabbed him.

"What are you doing? Stop it."

Oliver didn't expect Bella to come over, and in his haste, the bottle's edge cut her hand. Oliver was extremely worried, dropping the bottle and grabbing Bella's hand. "Are you okay?"

My heart skipped a beat because I saw Bella's hand was bleeding. Zachary looked at Bella and smiled. "What's this? It's making me feel bad."

Holding half a glass of wine in one hand, he suddenly pulled out a knife with the other.