Chapter 4 — Aftermath and Ultimatums

Alternating

The soft glow of Skylar’s phone screen illuminated her emerald-green gown as she sat cross-legged on her bed, scrolling through the storm of photos and videos from the gala. Her confrontation with Tristan had already gone viral, plastered across gossip blogs, political commentary sites, and social media threads. Headlines like “Power Players Clash: Governor’s Daughter and Senator’s Son Ignite the Ballroom” and “Skylar Morgan and Tristan Calloway: Sparks or Sabotage?” made her stomach churn. She swiped to a screenshot of a particularly scathing comment under a video clip: *“Another spoiled politician’s kid acting out for attention. Pathetic.”*