Chapter 204: Bright Futures and Unfiltered Secrets

A few hours later, on the tenth floor of the Elliot’s Production office building, home to a sprawling executive conference room on the same floor as HR and Legal, a grand celebration lunch was underway to mark the office grand opening and the massive success of yesterday’s event. Caleb had personally brought in catering from a top-tier Michelin three-star restaurant for all the employees.

The entire staff gathered, their faces lit up with excitement. Caleb delivered a warm opening address in his role as CEO, followed by Anthony, who oversaw general operations. Eric watched from the back alongside Monica, Katie, Jade, and Mike, whom they had invited to join the office festivities. As Anthony spoke up front, Jade glanced around the room.

"Wait... where’s everyone else? How come it’s just Monica here?" Jade asked.

"School. I won’t be able to go back until next week, I need to practice walking first after this," Monica answered from her wheelchair.

"Oh, right! They’re still in school. I totally forgot," Mike muttered.

"Look, there’s your brother up front, Mike," Katie chimed in gently.

"Ugh... give me a break. At home, he sounds the exact same way whenever the family gets called over to eat dinner with our parents," Mike said, waving his hand off dismissively.

"Huh... exact same way?" Monica asked.

"Word for word. Only difference is who he’s talking to. But yeah... that’s just how he is. Besides, word is he’s marrying Sarah in three months. He’s swamped planning the wedding right now, sounds like it’s gonna be huge," Mike answered.

"So when’s your turn?" Katie asked, shooting a mischievous glance at Jade with a grin.

"We’re focusing on our careers first, right babe?" Mike asked, wrapping an arm around Jade.

"Yeah... after yesterday’s massive success, I’ve really started thinking about where I want my life to go, whether to stay in nursing or step into the entertainment world," Jade answered.

"And what’s the verdict? Have you made up your mind?" Eric asked.

"Still torn... so for now, I’m just balancing both," Jade answered.

"Exactly. That’s why we don’t want to overthink things too far into the future right now. Just taking it day by day," Mike added.

"Hmmm... fair enough. Figure out your life’s direction is never easy. Taking it step by step makes sense," Eric said.

"What about you, man?" Mike asked.

"Hmm... taking it easy for now... not really sure what to chase next, haha," Eric answered.

"You’ve already got everything, so your confusion is a whole different ballgame from us regular folks," Jade countered.

"Not really. We’re all the same, just heading down different paths," Eric replied.

"What about you, Katie? Feels like you never talk about your personal life," Monica chimed in, turning to look at Katie, who had been sitting quietly.

"Hmm... I’m just chilling, same as Eric. Nothing I’m actively chasing either, hehe," Katie answered nonchalantly.

"Wait... you’re not looking for a partner?" Monica asked.

"A partner? Him? I’ve already got him, haven’t I? I’m officially going to be the big sister to all six of you, get it?" Katie teased, pointing a finger directly at Eric.

"Huh... w-what?! Don’t go pulling stuff like that, Katie!" Monica blurted out, taking the bait instantly with a raised voice.

A few employees standing near the front turned around at the noise, but quickly looked back forward once they realized who was standing in the back. Eric pressed a hand over Monica’s mouth and whispered in her ear,

"Hey... don’t shout. Look, everyone’s turning around."

"How can I not?! Katie’s trying to swipe you right under my nose!" Monica grumbled back.

"Good grief... how have you not figured it out by now? She’s clearly just teasing you! Why do you fall for it so easily every single time—and the others too?" Eric sighed.

"Babe, you’re a guy, so you don’t get it. But for me and the girls, we know she’s dead serious," Monica countered.

"Give me a break... fine, whatever. Just don’t yell," Eric replied.

"Alright, got it. Sorry, babe," Monica murmured.

Eric stood back up, glancing over at Katie, who was still smirking playfully and shooting him a wink. Jade looked around at the buffet tables and various food stalls set up around the room, all decorated with endless bouquets and floral displays. Jade turned to Eric,

"By the way... there are so many flowers in this room... did you buy all of these, Eric?" Jade asked.

"Oh, these weren’t bought. All of these flowers were sent in by her fans wishing her a speedy recovery," Katie answered, placing her hands on the shoulders of Monica’s wheelchair.

"Oh, I see! Um... get well soon, Monica! Sorry I didn’t bring any flowers," Jade said.

"Jeee... a bit late for that! I’m already healed, just doing rehab now," Monica replied, looking back at Jade.

They all burst into silent laughter. Once Anthony finished his speech up front, the event officially transitioned into lunch. Caleb, Anthony, and Sarah led the line to grab food, followed by the rest of the employees queuing up behind them.

***

Meanwhile, around the same time at school, Emma, Chloe, Priya, Heidi, Laura, and Ruby stood inside the principal’s office right in front of the main desk. The new principal, a middle-aged woman with dark black hair, stood behind her desk, flanked on either side by several faculty members, including Wilson, the PE teacher. Emma, Chloe, Priya, Heidi, and Laura looked pale with their heads bowed low, while Ruby, being new to the school, simply tagged along with the group.

"Do any of you know why you were called in here today?" the principal asked with a stern, angry expression.

"Um... no, Principal Daniella," Emma answered, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.

Daniella, the principal, paused for a moment before turning to a female teacher wearing glasses beside her. The teacher nodded, stepped forward carrying a thick leather folder, and opened it right in front of the six girls. She pulled out an official certificate along with an envelope, handing the first set to Emma, followed by Chloe, Priya, Heidi, Laura, and finally Ruby.

Receiving the certificates, all six girls were utterly bewildered. They stared down at the documents before exchanging puzzled glances, completely clueless as to what was going on.

"Why so quiet? Go ahead, open up your letters," the teacher said with a smile.

"Um... yes, ma’am," Priya replied.

She was the first to slide her envelope open, revealing an official acceptance letter to a prestigious arts university, complete with a full scholarship grant and her student profile. Next, Priya looked down at her certificate—a formal commendation from the school board recognizing her successful career as a member of The Empress. Priya looked up to find all the teachers beaming at them, including Wilson, who almost never smiled. Seeing Priya open her letter, the others quickly followed suit, each finding an identical offer inside, including Ruby, except her and Emma’s certificates listed their group name as Nobelia.

"Um... this is... an award, ma’am?" Emma asked.

"That’s right. You girls are the absolute pride of this school. Congratulations!" the teacher replied.

The entire faculty broke into applause, including Daniella and Wilson. One by one, the teachers stepped up to shake hands with the six girls, who were still struggling to process the news. Once Daniella finished shaking their hands, she spoke,

"We hope your careers continue to soar in the future, but please keep your higher education in mind as well. These scholarships weren’t generated by us—they were requested directly by the universities themselves. I’m sure you understand what that implies," Daniella said.

"Sigh... so that means we have to go to college... but I don’t even wanna study anymore because I wanna have a baby," Laura blurted out, completely blurting her inner thoughts aloud.

Hearing Laura’s words, almost every teacher in the room went into complete shock, their smiling faces freezing on the spot. Ruby reacted first, followed quickly by Emma, Chloe, Priya, and Heidi, who realized what just happened, instantly slapped their hands over Laura’s mouth, and dragged her toward the back of the group.

"We are so sorry, ma’am! She’s just talking nonsense! Of course we are more than thrilled to accept these scholarships! Thank you so much, Principal Daniella and all the teachers!" Emma stammered with a forced smile.

Without waiting another second, all six bowed hastily and rushed out of the principal’s office. Daniella turned to look at Wilson, who simply shrugged with a smirk. Daniella shook her head as a faint smile crept across her face.

"Alright, that’s wrapped up. It’s time for the students to head home, and anyone with club activities, please proceed to your schedules," Daniella announced.

"Yes, ma’am," the teachers replied.

Meanwhile, out in the hallway leading back to the classrooms, Emma, Chloe, Priya, and Heidi formed a tight circle around Laura while Ruby walked right behind them.

"What in the world is wrong with you?!" Heidi barked, smacking the back of Laura’s head.

"Yeah! Why would you blurt out that you wanna have a baby?!" Priya added.

"Good grief, Laura... learn to read the room before opening your mouth!" Chloe joined in.

"We haven’t even figured out what we’re doing moving forward, and your big mouth is spilling everything!" Emma added.

"What was I supposed to say?! I threw up this morning and my body’s been feeling off all day! If I end up having a baby, I won’t be able to go to college anyway, so am I really wrong?!" Laura argued, clutching her stomach.

Hearing Laura’s words, the entire group went dead silent. They froze mid-stride, every single pair of wide eyes locking onto Laura in absolute shock. Standing behind them and taking in every word, Ruby broke into a wide grin.

"Now this just got interesting," she thought in her head, watching the five stunned girls in front of her with a smirk.