...And in that minute it felt like it was just the two of them.
Precious noticed her friend staring back at Su Yan, she nudged her smiling.
"I knew this makeup was much."
"Will you stop?"
He walked towards them.
"Hello." she stood up as he got closer.
"Sorry for keeping you guys waiting." He said as he was silently wishing it was just the two of them.
"It's no trouble at all. Please, meet my siblings this is Dupe. My..." Tale turned to see her sister's jaw on the ground and her brothers wasn't hiding the surprise look on his face either.
"The two of you, up now!" She commanded. They obeyed her.
"Hello, I'm her twin sister, 7 years apart though and you can call me Tina." Dupe said coming out from their booth to shake Su Yan hand.
"Since when!" Tale asked surprised. They all had English names that they hardly ever used.
"Our brother, Tayo." Her sister continued as she took over the introduction.
"Are you an actor? You look like the guy that was in this movie..."
"Sis what movie was it again? The one you had a crush on the main character for like three months?"
Yep! They were going to embarrass her.
"I think the movie is called assassins, no wait it's not that. But it had something to do with assassins."
Tale gave precious a knowing look and she responded by raising her hands up. She was leaving her friend to handle this.
"Um OK I'd just take a sit" No one listened to her.
"This is going south." she whispered to Precious
"No it isn't!"
She didn't think this through as she had no idea what to do next.
Su Yan made sure he was sitting right beside her when he settled down.
"So there are quite a few fun things to do here in Orange, let's pick one or more and no one gets hurt!" Precious spoke up
"Speaking of fun is that what you are doing with our sister." Her brother started
"Tayo!"
"It's always best to know all these things upfront, saves us a lot of..."
"That's enough."
"No it's OK" Sure Yan cut in as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "That's definitely not what I'm doing with her, but she is fun to be with right?"
"Well when she isn't being bossy," Precious added.
"Or screaming at us!" her brother cut in
Su Yan joined in. "She can be bossy."
"Very, you have no idea. And she has this subtle way of making one do what she says" her sister completed.
"That's very true." Precious agreed.
Tale watched as her siblings talked about her with Su Yan
"But we love you, you know that." Tayo said turning to her after more words had passed around
Precious continued "You all forgot to say how annoying she can be when she makes up her mind on stuff!"
"It's called knowing what you want and sticking by it." Tale retorted
"Or knowing who you want." Precious whispered in her ear.
"Shut up!"
A waiter dropped drinks at their table
"I'm sorry we didn't order these."
"It's on the house ma'am."
"On what house?"
"Sis, you know the owner of Orange? Wow!" Dupe said taking a cup.
"I don't know anyone!"
"Well I'm drinking on that!" Precious added taking hers
"Why are you tense, drink up." Tayo cut in.
"Well, drink up! Su Yan touched his cup to hers.
He wasn't sure why he was hiding so much from her already but his only excuse was he enjoyed the ordinary feeling. The simple way she saw him, letting him into her life, sitting right here with the people she cared for the most all together. He felt a different kind of happy, and that kind of feeling in all his twenty nine years of life. Rare.
"So how did you two meet?" her sister dropped the question.
"Su Yan can tell this story better, so I'd let him" she didn't want to do it.
"OK deal" he went about the story like she expected. Her siblings were intrigued enough.
"Sis I didn't know you had it in you, maybe the universe was waiting on the right time to give you that amount of boldness."
"You two are crazy."
They were all chatting, when a waiter came up their booth
Good evening ma'am. I would be your personal waiter for tonight and I am here to escort you to our luxurious VVIP lounge, courtesy of our owner.
"I'm sorry, what!" her brown eyes widened.
The waiter looked at her like she was crazy; she was sitting with the boss and acting like she didn't know. But if she knew, the boss wouldn't have sent word to the staff to act like they don't know him and quite frankly some of them don't know him.
The man never smiled, never talked and his presence always scared them to death. But tonight all the staff had been stealing few minutes to catch a glimpse of him and some of them were still in shock as they saw him smile and loosen up. They knew he was kind because he bought Orange when it was on a brink of closing up and they were going to lose their jobs. He retained all of them and upgraded Orange that they are so proud to be a staff. Although he looked scary, he softened around this woman.
"No, tell your boss thank you but I'd have to decline."
At that moment the waiter finally knew the lady had no idea the man sitting close to her was the owner of Orange.
Precious: Why?
Dupe: Why!
Tayo: What?
"Because! Because we are okay here." she turned to Su Yan afraid of what he would be thinking "I have no idea what is going on, I promise."
"I believe you."
She relaxed.
"I mean this booth is great but common, the VVIP room, don't you want to look back and..."
"You use that on me all the time!"
"Sis, if you not going I'm taking your boyfriend with me and we are..." her sister started.
"Why are you saying things?"
Su Yan smiled.
"If you don't want to its okay, here is equally good" he had stick up for her.
"Not you too, you see now she's roping you in. Sis please!" Dupe pleaded.
"OK, let's do it." she didnt want to be the joy kill.
The waiter who had also looked like he was waiting on her to change her mind walked in front to lead the way.
The VVIP room was always booked for months. Tale had always considered it a waste but she got it now.
With a personal bar, It was always restocked daily based on the clients order. She saw now it was stocked with soft drinks and no alcohol
"Someone is setting me up." she dragged Precious aside as she began to feel nervous.
"What's your problem?"
"I don't know anyone, no one, especially not the owners of orange. I know it was gotten by foreigners from the Netherlands or so the rumor said."
"Think I don't know that? But we are here now let's enjoy it."
"But Su..."
"…doesn't care" taking her by the shoulders. "Look at me, Su Yan doesn't care, he is happy to be here and he clearly isn't over thinking this whole situation, look."
She turned to see her siblings helping Su Yan pick a drink.
"I think he really likes you."
"I think you need to shut up."
"You are a pain in the ass." as they walked to join them at the bar.