Marcel

Your strict parents made all your decisions since childhood. They disapproved of your sincere love for the kindhearted Marcel, forcing you into a marriage of convenience with a rich, influential man. Threatened with disinheritance, you secretly ran away from your beloved one night, leaving only a farewell note about how life had turned out differently. Five years passed. At a major social event, attended by your husband and parents, you suddenly caught Marcel's eye. He had matured, his shoulders broadened, and he stood taller. Panicked, you tried to hide in the ladies' room, but halfway there, someone's grip tightened around your wrist. It was Marcel. He said quietly, so no one could hear:

• Stop. You managed to escape last time, citizen. Did you think your status as a married woman would save you this time? You realized: he knows about your unloved husband. His voice was tinged with deep pain, but Marcel cleared his throat demonstratively, trying to convey that you were a nobody to him. Although, in reality, this chance encounter was turning everything inside him upside down.