FLASHBACK: ISABELLA'S PAST LIFE
Isabella sat in front of her vanity mirror, hands clasped tightly together in her lap. Her reflection stared back at her—perfect makeup, perfect hair, perfect dress—but her chest wouldn't stop tightening.
It was going to be her first runway show. The dream she had trained for her whole life. Her father had even secured her a private dressing room. Everyone in the industry knew what that meant: no excuses, no room for failure.
Her stomach churned.
She had flown out of the country just for this one show. She had stayed here for weeks, practicing, starving herself of rest, repeating the same walk until her heels blistered. And tonight, she couldn't mess up. Not when hundreds of eyes would be watching her. Not when her entire future sat on this one stage.
Her palms were damp. She kept wiping them against her thighs, over and over, but the sweat wouldn't go away.