The Grand Hilton Hotel was one of the most expensive and luxurious hotels in the city. People took their turn a few months in advance to hold their event there.
The fact that there were no more than three days between the announcement of the engagement and the festive occasion itself, only confirmed the sincerity of the intentions of the beloved couple.
It never even occurred to anyone that Chen pulled the right strings and booked the day to hold the engagement event. Everyone was pretty much sure that this event was planned at least two months ago.
This caused a wave of rumors that in fact, the situation was diametrically opposite. That it was David Anderson, who pursued Elena. And, having failed in charming the girl, the young man decided to take revenge on her and spoil the girl's reputation.
There was a wave of discontent on the Internet, and people were actively discussing how David turned out to be a hypocritical person.
Almost every hour there were new data obtained from secret sources. And this information stuffing led the crowd in the direction that the person who was behind all this needed.
Rick, as usual, was shining with joy. Once again, his humble marketing genius achieved success. He was anticipating the feeling of victory in the information battle, and his mood was simply wonderful. From the side, it looked like the young man was the happiest future bridegroom on earth.
"Hey, Corey, don't you think your boyfriend slightly overplays the role of a lover?" Jason asked her friend. He was aware of their secret plan, and, as a good friend, agreed to participate in the crowd scene at this event.
"Jason, you apparently have the last neural connections atrophied after intense training if you don't understand the obvious things," Corey looked at him with reproach.
Over the course of two days, the stocks of Lee Pharmaceuticals began their slow growth in value, but Greenline Inc., on the contrary, suffered serious losses. Their small farce with engagement had even a greater effect than they imagined.
Elena, having noticed her friends, headed towards them, accepting congratulations on such a wonderful event along the way.
"Phew, how tired I am. But only an hour had passed since the beginning of the event," the girl lazily leaned on Corey and sighed heavily.
"Ahaha, come on! Think of it as a staging scene from some movie where you are the main character!" Corey encouraged her.
Elena looked at her friend and asked a little hesitantly, "Are you really all right? You know, even I feel like a fish out of water here. And you, perhaps, feel even worse than me, don't you? Please, tell me everything the way it is, ok?"
Corey smiled and hugged the girl tight, "You, silly! How can I feel bad, eh? You are my best friend. I'm glad that somehow I can help you. And I'm glad that it was Rick who was able to fulfill his role in the best way. Since we don't have much of choice, who could be trusted with that," Corey cast an ironic look at Jason, who was standing nearby.
"Hey, are you asking for a fight now? Williams, don't you think if I am your friend, I won't be able to teach you a lesson. I have almost reached the level of Rambo after these hellish workouts with Special Forces! You will be begging me to be your boyfriend!" Jason shouted in his defense.
A shadow of the doubt that something like that may even be possible appeared on Corey's face. Jason sighed in disappointment and gave a wave of his hand.
"What are you discussing, pals?"
Rick Stein, with his peculiar manner of a cheerful guy, joined the company of friends. A young man stood between two girls and threw his hands on their shoulders.
"Eh, today I can only hug you like this, my dear," he said with a sad look and pressed Corey to himself. Although from the outside it looked like they were just all good and close friends. None of the guests who were there noticed the intimate gesture of the young man.
Corey smiled and looked at Rick with affection, "No big deal. One day I allow you to be the other girl's boyfriend. But only because it is my girlfriend, and because it is just for one time."
"Don't worry, I play this role for the same reasons. Everything is just for you and your happiness, my beloved and sweet Corey," Rick sent a wave of tenderness in response.
Elena and Jason looked at each other and rolled their eyes. God, this couple was too sweet.
"Guys, I even cracked my teeth from your lovey-dovey, ew," Jason pretended as if he was shuddered by that, "Perhaps you will have such speeches in private, will ya?"
"Ahaha, don't worry, in two hours the event will be over, and Corey and I will take off to enjoy each other's company," Rick said with a note of sarcasm.
"I'd better go to have a drink or something," Jason chose to be off for a while since this discussion was taking not the most pleasant turn for him.
"So, I'll leave you for a while too. Need to answer the call," Rick looked at the phone, which vibrated in his pocket and moved aside.
"Hello? Well, happy landing, I suppose... What kind of favor?... Hmm, okay. I'll do as you ask, so use this opportunity wisely... Okay, bye, you dummy," the young man grinned.
'I think it will be necessary to take something valuable from him as a thank you later on,' Rick thought and looked towards the girls.
He returned to them with a shining smile, "How about going to listen to a concert that the orchestra will give in five minutes? I specifically asked them to play your favorite tunes," Rick said and winked at Corey.
"Thank you!"
Elena smiled as she was watching how the couple was giving playful glances at each other. She decided to leave them alone for a while and went ahead.
"Corey, can you please do me a favor?" Rick said, when they were a little behind Elena, "I need you to take Elena to the presidential suite an hour later."
"Why?" the girl asked in surprise.
"Somebody will be awaiting her there."
"Who?... wait a minute... Just don't tell me that he decided to come right here? Does this person have a conscience at all?!"
"Corey, that's their business. And the sooner they fix everything among themselves, the better. Our task is to help them if they are asking for it. Elena is your friend, but don't forget, David is also my friend. I will not turn away from him just because there was such a misunderstanding between them."
The girl looked at the young man's serious face and nodded approvingly, "Okay. So be it."
"Good girl! When you go up to the suite, stay there in the next room. It will not be good if they are caught alone on such a day. But if you are there, then there won't be any problems."
An hour later, after the concert for the guests was over, Corey asked Elena to come up to the room with her.
"What's the matter? Do you feel bad?" Elena asked anxiously as they walked down the hall to the door of the room.
"No, all is well. Just... just someone wants to talk to you. He is waiting for us in the room."
"He?" Elena asked in surprise and immediately realized what was going on.
The girl stopped in the middle of the corridor and did not know whether she should take a step forward or not. Corey said nothing more, she decided that she would let her friend decide for herself whether Elena wanted to meet with him or not.
After thinking over a minute, Elena sighed, straightened her back and walked confidently toward the room door.
Running the card through the electronic lock, the girls went inside. There was nobody in the living room.
"I'll be waiting for you here," Corey said and stayed in the first room.
Elena went ahead and noticed that the office door was opened. The girl came closer and looked inside.
At that moment, her heart skipped the beat.
David was standing there, leaning on the edge of the desk and looking thoughtfully out the window. He looked a little tired and sad.
The young man was lost in his thoughts and did not notice the gaze of the girl who was standing behind the half-open door.
Elena was carefully examining the entire silhouette of the man. Even now, after all that has happened recently, to see him like this... Even after that, she could not take her eyes off him. This man completely captivated her.
Elena took a step forward and opened the door. David turned back immediately, and their eyes met. He took a step towards her, but then stopped suddenly.
A smile of joy slipped over his face and immediately gave way to a sad look.
"Hello. I'm glad to see you. You look great today. However, you are always beautiful in my eyes, Elena."