Ihe gallery, the atmosphere was electrifying and vibrant. The walls were adorned with artwork of various styles and teiques, each telling a uory. Carefully pnned lighting enhahe colors aures, creating an immersive visual experience.

  Aster walked through the gallery corridors with an attentive and curious gaze. He examined each artwork with i, appreciating the creativity and artistic expression of every artist represented.

  Aster stopped in front of a modern sculpture, his hands gently caressing the abstras. His face reflected ption and fasation in the presence of the artwork. Emeliched him with a proud smile, admiring his passion and artistisitivity.

  Emeline joined him, and together they shared their interpretations and the emotions evoked by the artwork. It was as if art ected them on a deeper level, transding words and ventional expressions.

  As they explored the gallery, Aster and Emeline also ied with visitors, exging smiles and warm greetings. They radiated a weling ahusiastiergy, iing those around them.

  After engaging with the visitors, Emeline led Aster to her private office...

  Emeliook a deep breath, trying to calm her owions before tinuing, not wanting to put further pressure on her friend. She posed herself and looked directly into Aster's eyes as she began.

  "Why did you leave my house so abruptly?" I was worried... I 't expin it, but some people were looking for you at the gallery," Emeline sighed, gesturing with her hands in an attempt to illustrate the urgency of her message.

  "I remember the celebration that night when we were all gathered at Kadman Hotel's restaurant. We were celebrating an unpreted success. The footfall and sales surpassed all expectations," Emeliarted narrating, her voice filled with fused memories.

  "We were all excited about toasting champagne. But suddenly, everything became chaotic. The hing I remember is waking up amidst a otion with people fainting around me," Emeline tinued, visibly shaken by the fragmented recolle.

  "I searched for you and Damián, but you weren't by my side. I informed the medical team about your disappearance, but I didn't receive any information. I checked nearby hospitals, but there was no sign of you," she reted. The anguish in her words was evident.

  "I returo the hotel and was informed that you were not there. I decided to go to the Police Department to report your disappearahe officer made the report, but wheried to tact the hotel, his personal ph, and he cimed he couldn't help me," Emeline tinued, her voice filled with frustration.

  Emeline's words echoed in the room, and a heavy silence filled the space as Aster processed the information. It was evident that something terrible had happened, but the emory about what transpired that night left Emeline feeling anguished.

  With a mix of determination and on her face, Emeline addressed Aster directly: "No matter who these alphas are, they 't just mark an omega and absolve themselves of any responsibility. What happeo you? Were you attacked, mistreated, expelled, or subjected to violence?"

  In a moment of pause, Emelihered the ce to voice her s. Her face was marked with a mixture of ay.

  Emeline furrowed her brow, seeking clearer answers. She looked at Aster and asked more detailed questions. "Aster, please tell me what happehat night... What is going on?"

  Aster, with a trolled and firm voice, respoo Emeline, "Emeline, I don't want him to be responsible for me. The marking was an act, and both the alpha who marked me and the alpha who marked Damián are already involved with others. This whole situation was a disaster, a major act, but we will resolve it, don't worry."

  Emeline was shocked by the revetion and initially left speechless. She khe thas were not ordinary people. After all, what kind of alpha could suppress and silenews? Emeline was one of the few people who knew Damián and Aster's omega identities.

  Emeline immediately asked about the identities of the alphas. Aster k was information she would find out sooner or ter, and he didn't want to hide it from her. So, he answered, "Callum Campbell and Adam Kadman."

  Emeline was frightened a her legs weaken. Ironically, they were extremely powerful and dangerous individuals. She deeply regretted how this could have happened.

  Aster decided to shorten the narrative of the story, saying that when they woke up, they were alone in the hospital. Emeline, fused, asked why they ended up in the hospital and why they fled.

  Aster gave a wry smile and replied, "Damián and I took too many inhibitors. I believe our bodies weren't prepared for the marking."

  He sighed and tinued, admitting it was ridiculous, but they got scared and didn't know what to do, so they ended up running away and going to Emeline's house.

  Regarding their decision to flee, Aster questioned, "Why to stay? What could we expect? More humiliation? It was already too much humiliation for just a few days..."

  When he looked at Emeline, he noticed her trembling lips and tear-filled eyes. Quickly, he told her not to cry, that everything was okay, that he was fine, and didn't expeything from that alpha.

  With ce, Emeline responded, "That bastard marked you. We're going to report this case to the authorities."

  Aster felt his eyes widen. His friend wanted justice for him, but he felt that Emeline also needed fort. So, he said, "These people sider us trash, so we should fet about it. I don't want him, Emeline. You heard me, I don't want him."

  For a moment, involuntary tears welled up in Aster's eyes as he felt emotionally and physically shaken. Emeline embraced him and said, "You don't have to be strong all the time. We weren't meant to be strong all the time."

  Aster pohe reason behind his tears—the inteions that overwhelmed him. Was it extreme mental exhaustion or an overwhelming duality within his body? He wondered as he sought an ao this mixture of feelings.

  Damiáiculously cluded all the financial and administrative checks of the gallery, ensuring that everything was in order and that the reended improvements were not signifit. The former Damián was an excellent administrator and had also made iments in the digital market, acquiring shares of major publicly traded panies.

  Damián, however, came to the realization that he was essentially broke with a mixture of disappoi and shock. In his previous existence, he had begun from nothing and amassed substantial wealth; however, in this ination, or whatever it was, he only had a few million. He lifted his head and cast a gnce around his workpce after experieng pressure in his chest.

  On the shelf in front of him were arranged books, small sculptures, and three untouched gift boxes. Curiously, Damiáhat those boxes had never been opehey were of different sizes and colors, representing a muffled cry from the depths of Damián's past.

  Determio exorcise the inner demons that didn't belong to him, he stood up from his chair with resolve. He wao know what was stored ihose boxes. He would start with the golden box, the smallest one.

  Upon opening it, Damián came face to face with a gold watch adorned with diamonds that shimmered intensely. Damiáhe smooth and cold touch of gold and diamonds as he took the watch out of the box. A card apahe gift, and Damián picked it up with a certain indifference. As he read it, he let out a disdainful sigh: "Happy birthday, my heart is yours!", signed by Lennart Persson.

  Lennart Persson, Damián's true love, had married someone else two years ago but tio torment him with gifts, reaffirming his presen a cruel and provocative manner. Damián closed his eyes for a moment, trying to push away the memories.

  Moving forward, Damián opehe sed box, which was red and slightly rger than the previous one. Inside, he found a delicate neckce with a white gold and a rge diamond pendant. He calcuted that the stone had been chosen to impress. Alongside the neckce was another card with the message: "Wishing you a Happy New Year, with love. Lennart Persson."

  Feeling a fluctuatioween anger and disgust, Damián rolled his eyes...

  Finally, the time came to opehird box, which was rge and matte bck. When he ope, a wooden box was revealed, with a pattern refleg the colors of Damián's eyes: brown, amber, and blue. It was a beautiful box, and when opened, it revealed cigars and a card.

  The card read: "Happy Birthday! Forever yours, Lennart Persson. I t the years, the months, the weeks, the days, and the hours."

  Damián rolled his eyes again, frustrated with his ex-boyfriend's persistent as. However, his i was now focused on the cigars. He had abandoned cigarettes and adopted the habit of smoking cigars due to the aging process, which provided a more pleasant fvor to his pate.

  The box tained a pair of gentleman's white gloves, a leather pouch, and a airtight box with sachets to maintain trolled humidity. Damiá a sense of anticipation as he opehe pstic box. He searched for the torch, tested the bustion, and saw a bright blue fme. Then, he searched for the cutter ihe box and found a double guillotiype. He made a perfect cut and lit a cigar.

  As he brought the lit cigar to his lips, Damián drew and savored the smoke, slowly releasing it. The cigar had a sweet h woody nuances of almonds and walnuts. It was a therapeutic experience for him, a moment of tranquility amidst the chaos surrounding him.

  However, Damián's serenity was interrupted when Emeline and Aster entered his office, their eyes red and filled with tears. Damián looked at Spencer, who now assumed the role of Aster, and saw the profound impa his face. Emeline was visibly shaken as well, both of them seeming to have cried intensely.

  A part of Damián ardently wished that life wasn't so cruel to him and those around him. But seeing the expression of surprise in Emeline's eyes, he khat something was wrong.

  "You opehe boxes?" Emeline asked, surprise evident on her face.

  Damián, pg the cigar in a nearby ashtray, looked at Emelih a ed expression and replied, "Yes, I did. But now, more importantly, how are you? Are you both okay?"