Christina’s POV
I stared at my screen, coffee forgotten as I zood in on Eliza Black’s red carpet jewelry. Sothing about those cuts and settings bugged . I’d definitely seen them before.
"Still obsessed with my masterpiece?" Violet’s voice cut through my thoughts. She perched on my desk edge. "Jealous much? Don’t worry, I can give you so design tips if you’re desperate."
I ignored her, examining each piece closely. The necklace, bangle, ring, and earrings. Those stone placents and clasp designs looked identical to sothing I’d seen.
"Holy shit," Akira growled in my mind. "That thieving bitch didn’t even try to hide it."
"I know," I replied ntally. "She copied everything."
While Violet preened and refreshed her social dia to watch her follower count climb, I pulled up a browser. I typed ’Roux & Lune jewelry Antwerp.’
A boutique brand’s webpage appeared. I clicked through to their archive collection from three years ago.
There it was. The exact sa set Eliza was wearing on the red carpet.
Roux & Lune was barely known outside design circles. They had almost no social dia presence and probably sold fewer than fifty pieces a year. The designer never showed her face publicly. It made the whole brand seem like so rich person’s hobby project.
But I rembered my university professor ntioning them years ago. I’d been so impressed with their craftsmanship that I’d bookmarked their site and followed their updates ever since.
I placed screenshots from the livestream next to Roux & Lune’s catalog photos. The match was perfect. Violet hadn’t changed a single curve, not even the distinctive clasp.
"Still staring? Babe, I hate to break it to you, but that’s not your na in the post. Eliza picked , . Well, better luck next ti." Violet’s voice dripped with condescension.
"That’s all you have to say for yourself?" I asked quietly.
"What else were you expecting?" She pretended to think, then added, "Oh, right, I do have one more thing to say. You know there’s only one spot for the competition next month, right? I’d say it’s mine. Not that you ever had a chance."
She chuckled, swiping through her phone. "Want to read out so comnts people left? So are actually pretty funny."
"You’ve got so fucking nerve," I said, shaking my head.
Violet blinked, her face scrunching. "Hey, don’t curse at just because you’re jealous! At least show so gratitude. becoming famous ans Nyx is famous now, which is good for everyone here, including you."
I lowered my voice. "Yeah, and if shit hits the fan, you’ll drag everyone down with you. Including ."
Her brow furrowed. "What are you talking about? Everyone’s tagging the company with heart emojis. Last ti Eliza wore your piece, she got roasted for looking cheap. Now with my set, people are saying she finally stepped up her ga. Nyx should be thanking . Even Savannah’s probably thinking of sending flowers."
The comnts were mostly positive. Fans were praising Eliza’s "loyalty" to Nyx as "relatable." Red carpet photos showed her posing confidently, knowing caras would capture every detail.
But the louder the praise, the worse the inevitable crash would be.
"Well, I’m off," Violet straightened up. "Savannah’s taking to lunch. Guess she wants to talk about a promotion. Or a bonus. Who knows? I’ll keep you posted."
I yanked her shoulder hard, forcing her to spin around.
"Ow! What is wrong with you?" She jerked away from my grasp.
I looked her dead in the eye. "You know exactly where you got that design. And you handed it to an actress with a hundred caras pointed at her face and millions of people watching. You didn’t even tweak a single curve. Did you really think no one would notice?"
Confusion flashed across Violet’s face, followed by panic, then denial. "I... I don’t know what you’re talking about."
Soone yelled across the room. "Guys—look at this! Soone just tweeted that Eliza’s jewelry set is fake!"
The office froze montarily before erupting into chaos as everyone grabbed their phones.
"It’s so anonymous account," soone said, scrolling frantically. "Already over a thousand shares. It might trend any minute."
"How could Eliza be wearing knockoffs? Did soone switch them on the way?"
Violet’s face turned ghostly white. She fumbled with her phone, her thumb repeatedly missing the unlock button.
"Wait—soone’s saying it’s not fake, it’s copied."
"There are side-by-side pics. Not ’copied,’ mate. Identical. That set ca out three years ago."
Chairs scraped as heads turned toward Violet. Her right hand gripped a cubicle wall for balance, her knees visibly weakening.
The office volu dropped to whispers.
"What the hell’s going on?"
"Did she actually steal it?"
"Looks that way. And the original looks better, if I’m honest."
Soone snorted, but the sound cut off as Savannah Lane stord out of her office, her heels striking the floor like thunder.
"Vivian Holloway just called from Venice," she waved her phone wildly. "Completely hysterical. Violet Lin, what the HELL have you done?"
Violet stood frozen, mouth opening and closing without producing words.
Savannah threw her phone down in frustration. It bounced once before hitting a chair leg.
"Eliza needed this event! Her entire coback PR campaign hinged on it. Now she’s getting roasted for wearing knockoff jewelry like so discount influencer. Vivian says the hashtag is already climbing. What am I supposed to tell them now?"
"She just posted on Instagram. And Twitter," soone announced from the back.
Every screen in the office lit up again.
Savannah grabbed the nearest phone—her own still face-down on the floor—and squinted at the display.
It showed Eliza’s verified account with a caption in both English and Italian. She claid she’d ordered the jewelry in good faith, trusted the brand completely, and now felt blindsided by allegations of plagiarism. She insisted she’d been deceived, included screenshots of design drafts and chat logs as evidence, and expressed how "heartbroken" she felt.
Her fan base transford into an angry mob within seconds.
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