The massive glass doors of the Peninsula Hotel swung open as elite guests poured into the grand ballroom, their laughter echoing beneath a glittering chandelier of diamonds and gold.

The annual Manila Corporate Alliance Gala was the event of the season where tycoons, celebrities, investors, and media personalities gathered to flaunt their success, money, and more than anything their influence.

Standing beneath the soft golden lights, Rose Kurt tugged nervously at the edge of her silver satin gown. It was the first time she'd worn anything designer. Diego had insisted on her being there tonight as his official date.

Her mother, Mila, had teared up seeing her dressed that way. And Abigail had shrieked with joy, taking dozens of pictures before the car picked them up. But despite their excitement, Rose’s heart thudded against her chest.

What am I doing here?

She didn’t belong to this world. This wasn’t the fish market or the scholarship library of her past. Everyone here wore money like skin. And all of them… were watching.

“Stop fidgeting,” Diego whispered beside her, his hand gently taking hers. “You look like a goddess.”

She looked up at him, and his confident smile calmed the ocean of anxiety inside her at least for a moment.

“You don’t think it’s too much?” she asked, glancing down at the gown.

“It’s perfect,” he said, voice deep and sincere. “Just like you.”

Rose smiled shyly. But the warm moment shattered as Julia Raymond approached, arm-in-arm with a woman whose presence chilled the room.

Mrs. Kimberly Edwards.

Diego’s mother.

Her sharp features were expertly sculpted with makeup, and her black lace gown shimmered with cold elegance. She didn’t speak as she approached, just gave Rose a long, calculating stare, like a wolf measuring a lamb.

“Good evening,” Julia chirped, her voice sugary-sweet with poison underneath. “Diego, you look dashing. And Rose…” Her eyes traveled from Rose’s earrings to her heels. “I didn’t know they made designer gowns in… her size.”

A few people nearby chuckled just loudly enough for it to sting.

Rose flushed red, trying not to let it show. Diego’s jaw flexed beside her.

“Oh come on,” Julia added with a laugh, “it’s a joke. You know we all love Rose. Right, Mrs. Edwards?”

Kimberly didn’t blink. “I’m still hoping this entire… relationship… is a phase.”

Diego’s hand clenched around Rose’s, but she tugged gently, signaling she was fine. She wasn’t. But she’d survived worse.

Julia leaned closer. “I just hope you’re ready for the pressure that comes with being beside a man like Diego. This isn’t a fairytale, sweetheart. The press will eat you alive. And let’s be honest… you’re no Cinderella.”

Before Rose could respond, Diego stepped forward.

“You’re right,” he said loudly.

The room paused.

Julia blinked. “I—sorry, what?”

“You’re right, Julia,” Diego repeated, taking Rose by the hand and leading her to the center of the ballroom. A hush began to fall as more people noticed them. Even the string quartet faded into silence.

Rose looked up at him, confused. “Diego?”

“Give me a second,” he whispered.

He cleared his throat and raised his voice just enough to address the room.

He raised a glass, hitting his ring to the glass getting everyone's attention.

“I know many of you might be wondering what someone like me sees in someone like her,” he began.

Murmurs rippled through the audience. Rose stiffened.

He looked at her with a smile.

“But what you don’t see is what I see, her strength, her honesty, her heart. You don’t know how she saved my life one night. You don’t know the battles she’s fought just to stand here, holding my hand.”

He dropped to one knee.

The entire ballroom gasped.

Rose covered her mouth in disbelief.

“You all see a girl from a modest background,” Diego said. “But I see the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

He reached into his pocket and revealed a small, deep-blue box. Inside gleamed a simple yet stunning rose-gold engagement ring, a sparkling oval-cut diamond resting gently in a bed of blush pink.

“Rose Kurt,” Diego said, voice steady. “Will you marry me?”

Time stopped.

The room fell into stunned silence, broken only by the muffled sound of someone sobbing. Rose turned around and saw her mother and Abigail standing by the corner of the hall.

Mila with a hand over her mouth, eyes glassy with tears, and Abigail mouthing “Say yes, you idiot!” with a huge grin.

“I…” Rose stammered.

Tears pricked her eyes. Her legs wobbled. Her chest burned with emotion.

This moment was too good. Too bright. Too far from where she had started. Could she really belong here?

But then she looked at Diego, down on one knee in front of hundreds of socialites, unbothered by status or judgment.

She nodded slowly, then broke into a tearful laugh. “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, Diego.”

The crowd erupted in applause. The flash of cameras ignited. Diego slid the ring onto her trembling finger, then stood and pulled her into a tight embrace.

He didn’t kiss her. Not yet.

He only whispered, “Until our wedding night, remember?”

She nodded against his chest.

From across the room, Julia’s face paled like death. Mrs. Edwards turned, her expression unreadable, and quietly exited the hall.

Julia turns to Kimberly “mom, we can't let this happen, I can't let Diego marry a low life like her”

Mrs Kimberly Edwards remained speechless.

“Mom! Please say something, your silence is killing me ma.

“You know I can't let this happen either” Kimberly smirks.

“ That will be over my dead body, we have to come up with a plan fast.”

They both gave Rose a dead look, Rose turned to them and immediately, they faked a smile.

But Rose didn’t notice. Her world had narrowed to Diego's arms, the promise on her finger, and the cheers of the only two women who had ever truly stood by her.

“ I bet you, she doesn't know what's coming for her and she's not ready for it”, Julia Raymond murmured as she turned to Mrs. Edwards with teary eyes.