Ch 16 - Table Number Eight

"Darling, where are we going?" Cathy asked. The more she looked at Billy, the more attractive he seemed to become.

"Wait and see." Billy smiled. Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, he placed his other hand on her thigh and started rubbing gently.

He was popular with the girls, so dating him made Cathy look cool. If he made a move on her, would she stop him?

She glanced at his hand on her thigh, but she said nothing.

Finally, they stopped in front of a restaurant.

"Wow, the Chez Laurent! Honey, is this where we're eating?" Her eyes widened in disbelief.

Chez Laurent was one of the top restaurants in New York.

"Surprised? Come on, let's go in. I made a reservation," he said with a smile. He had paid a lot of money for a table here, much more than he could afford. The restaurant was far too expensive for students, but it was worth it to make Cathy so happy.

She took his arm, and they walked into the restaurant.

As soon as they stepped inside, a young waiter walked over to greet them. "Hello, welcome to Chez Laurent. Um… Do you have a reservation?" He blushed as he spoke and then gave them an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry. This is only my first day, and I'm still learning the ropes."

"It's fine," Billy said. "I have a reservation under Wilde."

"Ah, Mr Wilde. You're at table eight. Please follow me," the waiter said, leading the way to their table.

Looking around, Billy and Cathy were more than satisfied with their surroundings.

"Oh, this is lovely," Cathy said. "Just what you'd expect from such an upmarket restaurant. I've never eaten anywhere so nice."

The restaurant was very romantic with a lot of open space, comfortable chairs, crystal chandeliers, luxurious tablecloths, and candles on every table.

Just as they sat down, a small group of musicians came over to their table, playing the accordion and a violin, while someone else sang.

Everyone was watching their table with envious expressions, and Cathy felt like a princess.

"Thank you so much, darling. This is wonderful," she said, remembering how Alex had only taken her to the cheapest places. Thank goodness she had ditched him.

She took out her phone and began recording herself. "Come on, baby, get into the shot with me."

They filmed themselves, making sure everyone could see the restaurant behind them. Billy posted the video and tagged his friends, specifically mentioning where they were.

Within minutes, people began to reply.

"Cathy, you're eating at Chez Laurent! That's amazing!" one person said.

Someone else said, "I'm so jealous. No one has ever taken me there."

"Oh, you are being spoiled," said a third person.

The comments made Cathy's heart swell with pride and confirmed that she'd been right to get rid of Alex. If she'd stayed with him, then she'd never have been able to eat at Chez Laurent.

**

When Alex saw the video of Cathy and Billy kissing, he felt a little upset. But mostly, he felt sorry for Cathy because she didn't know what she was getting into.

He knew exactly what kind of person Billy was, and yet she chose to be with him. What a stupid decision.

Billy drove a Volkswagen Passat, while Alex had a Ferrari.

"You're still thinking about her, aren't you?" A woman's voice came from beside him.

Startled, he turned his head and saw Emma. He hadn't even noticed her arrive.

"No, she's not worth thinking about." He smiled faintly.

"Good. She doesn't deserve your attention. She gave up on a good man like you for a loser like Billy," Emma said, shaking her head. She looked at Alex, her eyes sparkling. "Come on, let's go eat. I'll treat you. We can go wherever you want."

"Oh…" Her words reminded him that he'd promised to buy her a meal, but he'd been busy lately and hadn't had time. "No, I'll treat you this time," he said. "Why don't we go to Chez Laurent?"

"Alex, I know you've just had your heartbroken, so I understand wanting to keep up appearances, but it's not necessary," she said, smiling at him.

She knew Chez Laurent wasn't a place that students could afford.

"Just trust me." Alex couldn't be bothered to explain.

They left campus and hailed a taxi to take them to Chez Laurent.

When they arrived, Alex took her hand, and they strolled up to the doors of the restaurant.

Emma panicked. She tugged at his hand to stop him. "Alex, stop playing around," she said. "We don't belong here."

He smiled and said, "Don't worry. I'm treating you, remember? It'll be fine. I promise." He then pulled her into the restaurant.

As they stepped inside, she saw the golden decorations and felt a little uneasy. Her legs felt like rubber, and she nervously chewed her lip. "I need to use the bathroom," she said.

"Okay, I'll walk you over there," he replied.

Emma walked into the ladies' bathroom while Alex went to wash his hands.

As he came back out, he saw Cathy and Billy approaching. Cathy was wiping at a mark on her skirt as she hurried to the bathroom to clean up.

"What are you doing here?" She hadn't expected to see Alex.

"Cathy." Alex stared at her.

"Did you just dare to speak to Cathy?" Billy asked, taking a step forward. Anger had his lips drawn tight. This time, he would make sure Alex listened to him. "I'm warning you one last time: don't even say her name. Don't even think about her!"

Alex ignored him and went to move away from them.

Cathy rolled her eyes, and as Alex moved past her, she stuck out her foot and tripped him, causing him to stumble into the wall. Then she looked right at him and smirked.

"You—" He glared at her as he straightened up.

She giggled. "Well, you deserved it."

Alex didn't want to fight with them. I don't want any trouble, he thought. Why can't they just let me leave?

When he tried to move around them, Cathy nudged Billy with her shoulder and tilted her head toward Alex. Billy understood and moved to block his path.

"You want to leave?" Billy asked, smirking. "Not so fast. Call me 'sir', and I might let you go."

Cathy sneered at Alex and said, "You must have snuck in. Losers like you don't belong here. If you don't leave now, I'll call security, and they'll throw you out."

She wanted to see Alex humiliate himself by having to call Billy 'sir'. She enjoyed bullying Alex. It was so much fun.

Alex was furious. They've already won, he thought. And they still won't leave me alone.

Emma walked out of the bathroom just in time to hear Cathy's words.

"Cathy, stop it! What did we ever do to you?" she asked. "What right do you have to call security on us?" She glared at Cathy.

"Oh, so you're here too." Cathy sneered. "What a pair of losers." She looked them both up and down. "Why shouldn't I have you removed? There's no way you're here to eat. This isn't a KFC, you know. You can't just walk in here whenever you want."

Emma was so stunned by Cathy's aggression that she was lost for words. But she was also aware that there was some truth to what Cathy said. Alex must have been joking about eating here. Now Emma just wanted to leave. She hadn't expected to run into Cathy and Billy, and she just couldn't take any more of their attitude. She had no idea what to do, and it was best if they left as soon as possible.

"Alex, let's go." Emma grabbed Alex's hand and turned to leave.

"And now you expect to just sneak away?" Billy asked.

He and Cathy blocked the way out, and Cathy started shouting. "Everyone, look here! These people came in to use the toilet, and they're not even customers! Where's the manager? Where's the manager?"

Her shouts grabbed the attention of all the customers in the restaurant.

"Hey, look at this couple," she continued. "They sneaked into Chez Laurent just to use the high-class toilets without spending any money on a meal. Do you think that should be allowed?"

Several customers started to cheer her on.

"This restaurant needs to keep out the riffraff. How can they just walk right in and use the toilet?" she asked. "There are plenty of public toilets. Why can't they go there? Do they just want to use a fancy toilet for free? Do they have no shame?" She shook her head. "Maybe it's even worse than that. Maybe they're hoping no one will notice and they can find a corner to sleep in!"

The manager finally came over, and Cathy went to meet him, pointing at Alex and Emma. Her tone sharp, she asked, "What are you going to do about this? If just anyone can come in and use the toilets, then your hotel will get a terrible reputation."

"Please wait a moment," the manager responded, smiling apologetically. He turned to Alex. "The facilities are for customers only. I'm sorry, but you'll have to leave."

"Alex, let's go," Emma said quietly. Everyone was staring, and she felt embarrassed.

But Alex took her arm, stopping her from leaving. "No. We're staying," he said.

"The manager has told you to go, and yet you're still here," Cathy said, her voice growing louder again. "You are completely shameless, aren't you? You're still determined to hang around us, even though we're so much better than you. It's disgusting. Are you deliberately trying to ruin our meal? And don't you care about destroying the reputation of Chez Laurent?"

The manager also believed that Alex was deliberately causing trouble. He frowned. "Sir, please leave now, or I'll have to call security."

Cathy was delighted. She was looking forward to watching Alex being dragged away by security guards.

Alex looked at the manager and said, "I have a reservation."

"You've booked a table here?" Cathy gaped in surprise and then laughed loudly. What a joke, she thought.

If even a poor loser like Alex could eat at Chez Laurent, then it would lower the value of the place, and it would no longer be one of the most exclusive restaurants in New York.

Oh, Alex, you are stupid, she thought. You're just saying that to get back at me, aren't you? But you'll just fail even more miserably, and it's going to be so much fun to watch.

She could hardly wait to see the embarrassment on his face when the manager challenged him.

Everyone watched, waiting to see what happened. Alex's clothes didn't suggest that he could afford a reservation at Chez Laurent.

"Sir, please don't make a scene. If you refuse to leave, then I'm sorry, but I will have you removed." The manager lifted a walkie-talkie, clearly about to summon security.

Emma was worried. She frantically tried to think of a way out of this, but she was only a poor student, and there was nothing she could do.

"I've reserved table eight," Alex said calmly. "If you don't believe me, then check." With that, Alex brought out his phone and showed the manager the text that confirmed his reservation.

"You've booked table eight?" Cathy asked. "What a coincidence. We also booked table eight. Isn't that interesting?" She burst out laughing.

Alex must have forged a message from the restaurant before he came here, she thought. Imagine pretending to have a reservation and managing to pick the same table number as me.

The manager took Alex's phone and checked it. He smiled as he returned the phone, his tone now respectful as he said, "I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, sir. It was our mistake. I'll take you to your table."