THE VIDEO
1114 Words
Yiannis sank into the leather chair behind his walnut desk, the soft click of his laptop's closing lid still echoing in the room. The afternoon light filtered through floor‑to‑ceiling windows, illuminating shelves of law journals, framed diplomas, and a single photo of Milly and him—her smile bright, her hand in his.
He reached for his phone. One new notification: a green bubble from Milly.
Milly: Lake house takeover. Wish you were here .
(Attached: Video)
He hesitated a moment—lingering on the text—and then tapped to open.
⸻
The video opened with Milly's voice, low and delighted: "My maid of honor finally getting some action". The camera wavered as it swung into focus on Katie in nothing but a black silk lingerie. The black silk lingerie he had personally ordered for Milly. Katie's hair cascaded over bare shoulders, her n*****s evidently hard from excitement as they poked through the silk fabric. She was laughing with her head thrown back as a man dressed in firefighter costume danced in front of her. Her eyes were bright, lips parted in a playful scream as another male stripper, more slender, bare‑chested, impossibly lithe—moved in choreographed sync around her. Their muscles flexed and glitter dusted the air with every turn. One knelt in front of her, his hands touching her thighs as he pushed the silk night wear up her thigh.
Yannis's pulse sped.
He watched Katie's face: unguarded joy, the realness of her laughter, contrasting with the glittering voyeurism of the dancers. She looked so alive—so utterly free. The sight should have made him smile. Instead, it made him jealous. He hated that another man was touching her.
His throat went dry. He replayed it. He felt a sudden, fierce protectiveness. A thread of jealousy wound through him. He leaned forward, thumb hovering over the screen to pause. Katie's eyes met the camera for a moment, and she winked—straight at him, or so it seemed. The wink wasn't for him, of course. But his heart thundered as if it were.
He stared at the video, at the architecture of her collarbone, the way the thin strap of the silk lingerie had slipped so casually off one shoulder, unveiling skin that had never been meant for his eyes. He felt both honored and violated—an intruder in a moment that wasn't his.
He closed his eyes and pressed a thumb to the bridge of his nose.
Breathe.
He watched it again. The strippers' routine was perfect—tasteful, even comedic—but every frame felt charged. He watched until the file ended, then stared at the blank screen.
⸻
Yannis set the phone face‑down on the desk. His hand lingered on it, warm from the screen's glow.
He felt the need to go to the lake house and send the strippers away. He knew he was overreacting. This was Milly's party, a girl‑only weekend—he had no right to feel unsettled. Yet he did. Every instinct in his body clenched.
He pictured Katie's bright laughter. He pictured Milly's satisfied grin as she filmed. He pictured the beat of the R&B song, the rush of adrenaline, the thrum of shared freedom. He wanted to be there—to protect, to watch, to feel included. But his exclusion was absolute.
He stood, walking to the window. The city stretched out, indifferent. He shook his head.
She is his fiancé's best friend.
He drew a slow breath. The phone buzzed again—another message.
Milly: Come on, show me your dance moves next time. *wink emoji*
He managed a tight smile.
He picked up the phone, thumb hovering over the reply. But he didn't text. Instead, he tapped the home button and slid the screen off. His reflection shimmered back: perfectly composed. Yet his eyes were dark—turbulent.
He sat back down and opened a fresh document on his laptop. He needed to finish the draft of that merger brief by tomorrow morning. The boardroom wouldn't wait for his emotions to settle. Plus he had his own bachelors party in a few hours.
Fingers poised above the keyboard, he glanced again at the motionless screen of his phone. The image of Katie—alive, laughing, unashamed—lingered behind his eyelids.
Finally, he focused and finished with his work. He saved and closed the file. Out of habit, he checked the time: 6:47 PM.
He rose and walked to the minibar. Poured a measure of whiskey, neat. The amber liquid caught the light; he raised the glass.
"To control," he whispered, and swallowed.
The burn in his chest was real—and so was everything he'd seen. In the quiet aftermath of Milly's video, Yannis realized that some boundaries weren't so easily enforced. And that every moment he spent captive to his own feelings was another moment he risked losing his grasp on the carefully ordered life he'd built.
He flicked the desk lamp off, grabbed his coat and walked out of his office to meet Adrain waiting for him at the parking lot.
"You don't seem excited. It's your bachelors party. I paid a lot to get you six blonde strippers." Adrian teased.
Yiannis glared at him. "I told you no strippers."
"Fine, I will have them all to myself" he laughed as he got into the driver's side of Yiannis bently.
Yiannis got into the passenger seat just as another message dinged on his phone. It was from Alina this time. It was a two minute video. He hesitated before he clicked on it.
Loud music and laughter blasted through his phone making Adrian peep at his phone. It was a video of Milly in a pink silk lingerie on a poster bed. A now completely naked male stripper dancing above her whiles the girls cheered.
"What the hell?!" He hissed.
"They are just having fun" Adrian chuckled. "Milly is a responsible adult she won't do anything inappropriate."
"No not Milly". He gritted out. In the far right corner of the video, Katie now had a long pink robe covering her body, her hair tied into a messy bun. But that was not what bothered him. It was the other male stripper who seemed to be harassing Katie in the background as everyone focused on Milly.
It looked like the male stripper was trying to get Katie to take off her robe. She looked uncomfortable and scared even.
"They are all just having fun Yiannis. Focus on your girl".
"Like hell they are. He is harassing her. She looks scared."
Adrian huffed. "You are impossible."
- Writer
