âHowâs it going, Ivy? Are you feeling any better? Can you manage alright now?â
Ivy flashed a grin. Margot, with her ceaseless energy, always had a way of lifting her spirits.
âIâm pretty much recovered. Just that I canât put weight on my foot for the next couple of days. Looks like Iâll be leaning on you and Thalia quite a bit.â
Margot nodded with a smile. âItâs great to have you back. From now on, we can spend every day brainstorming ideas for the script.â
Balfour had a lot on his plate and hadnât had much of a chance to interact with them. How things would play out was pretty much up to Balfour.
After ensuring Ivy was comfortably settled and seeing her chatting happily with Margot and the others, he excused himself with a brief nod and left.
But it was only after Balfour had gone that Margot dared to ask Ivy, âWhat made you suddenly move back? With your leg not yet ready for action, wouldnât staying at home. have been easier?â
Ivy exhaled a weary sigh, not keen on delving into the matter.
âI have my reasons. Why, are you not happy to have me bunking here?â
Margot shook her head immediately. âNo way, I wish we had more people staying on set. Itâs more fun when itâs bustling, like back in my college days.â
Ivy managed a weary smile, and Thalia, noticing Ivyâs fatigue, took Margotâs arm, leading her away.
The dorm had been lively just a moment ago, but now it felt eerily silent.
In truth, it was nowhere near as spacious as the room she and Balfour shared at home. Whenever she was with Balfour, his presence seemed to fill every corner of the space.
Now, alone, the emptiness was stark, the quietude chilling.
But this solitude was a choice she had made, and she harbored no regrets.
Putting some distance between her and Balfour might give them both the clarity to understand what they truly wanted.
If Balfourâs heart lay with Mara, Ivy could step back without any messy emotional entanglements.
Letting go of the man she loved might cause her pain, but better a short agony than prolonged suffering. Better to sever the ties now if she was doomed to love someone 08.07 3 who could never be hers.
Sometimes, closeness only amplified the pain.
After dropping Ivy off, Balfour didnât head home. Instead, he returned to the office. Alone at his desk, he stared blankly at the documents in front of him until he heard a knock on the door.
âMr. Howard, did you get a chance to sign those papers for finance? Theyâre chasing me for them.â
It wasnât until Quinton rapped on his office door that Balfour snapped back to reality.
âSorry, I zoned out there. Give me a moment. Khock again in five minutes.â
Quinton was astounded, though his expression remained calm. âOf course.â
Having worked with Balfour for so long, he couldnât recall a single instance when Balfour had been distracted during work.
The man was a synonym for efficiency and focus, with a work ethic unmatched by anyone else in the company.
And yet today, he had admitted to being distracted. Was the world turning upside down?
Balfour massaged his temples, his mind overrun with thoughts of Ivy.
He was deeply worried about her adapting to the new environment and the possibility of her getting hurt. The thought of her made him forget all about the paperwork in front of him.