The Accidental Star

LIGHTBULB

JI CHANG WOOK

I stood in front of the mirror and adjusted my tie.

I looked at myself dressed in a black tailored Armani tuxedo that Anne got me a few months back.

I looked pretty decent, I decided and glanced at my wristwatch.

The driver should be here any minute now to take me to the medical centre for the opening gala dinner.

I walked over the dresser to check my phone for messages but found my inbox empty. I quickly stuffed the mobile inside my pocket together with my wallet.

I knew Anne was busy today. It was after all her big day, being in charge of the launch plans on top of temporarily taking over her father's responsibilities while he's in recuperation. I knew she had back to back meetings in the morning to prepare for the press conference and the opening gala dinner, which was set to start within the hour.

I haven't heard from her since I left her apartment yesterday. I tried calling her but she was indisposed and it was Beth whose been taking on her calls and messages.

I shouldn't be disappointed because I knew she has a lot of things to think about but I wanted to hear her voice and wish her good luck tonight. And that was kind of impossible if her secretary was handling all her incoming communications.

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I quickly pulled it out. I swallowed my disappointment again when I saw that it was the driver, messaging me to say that he was already downstairs.

I quickly collected myself and headed down the hotel lobby. We drove in silence until I saw the long queue of cars before us.

I bent my head to look out the front windows and saw a colossal structure, of what I believed was the medical centre, a few meters away from where we were. It was a gated compound and I could security personnel checking the guest list as each car stopped by them.

" There must be over a thousand people in here, " the driver muttered as we moved an inch.

It took thirty minutes to get through security. 

I stared in amazement at the sleek glass building standing before us which housed the latest and most advanced medical facilities and technologies in the world. But that wasn't the most amazing part. The amazing thing about MAMC was the fact that Anne was going to inaugurate the facility tonight - in front of every distinguished person in the country, if  not the world.

The driver halted the limousine in front of the centre's auditorium and an attendant quickly pulled my door open.

I stepped down from the car and was immediately blinded with flashing lights.

" Ji Chang Wook! " I heard my name being called out and I just did what I usually do in these cases. I smiled blindly to everyone.

I was surprised to see a large number of media personnel in there. I was even more surprised to see the massive steps covered in red carpet.

This was even more grand than the last awards night that I attended in Seoul a few months ago. I thought silently as I started ascending the stairs.

When I reached the landing step, I was quickly led inside the auditorium along with several other distinguished looking guests.

Once inside, I couldn't help but feel like I was transported to a medieval ballroom. From the  grand chandelier hanging in the middle of the room, to the gold and silver decorations all around the walls, to the lavishly decorated stage in the same color scheme. The room was filled with tables and chairs adorned with gold accessories and brasseries. And at one corner of the room, a thirty member orchestra dressed in white and gold was playing soft soothing music. For a moment, I stood there in the middle of everything, mesmerized with the sight before me.