Stark Contrast (1)

Adrienne looked around and noticed that 'Spotlight' wasn't as grand as she remembered. It had only been two years since her mother's accident, and Spotlight's growth had considerably decreased. Though the style and the concept remained, the new sets of clothes and jewelry looked subpar compared to those her mother had commissioned in the past.

She heard that her father had fired the designers her mother had been working with and replaced them with designers who offered lower rates. It made sense to her why the quality had lowered too. Her father seemed to be trying to cut the company's loss by cutting off the expenses.

Adrienne sighed inwardly. He was slowly shoving her mother's efforts down the drain by doing this. At this rate, she wouldn't be surprised if the company suffered more losses in the future. However, how could Adrienne let that happen? She would seize everything the Jiang family had as payment for what they'd done to her and her mother.

The previous shop attendant returned with the manager, whom Adrienne recognized. She hadn't seen this woman in a long time. She hadn't expected that she was still working in this place.

"Miss Addie, I'm glad that you're back. Is there something I can help you with?" The manager named Joanne Lin greeted Adrienne with a sincere smile. Rosemary had just hired her as a new manager of this branch when they first met, and Adrienne didn't think that Joanne would remember her.

"Miss Lin, it's been a while." Adrienne gave the older woman a curt nod. "I'm here to pick up a dress for my Grandpa's birthday banquet."

"Miss Addie, you are just in time. The new collection has just been launched. You will definitely look nice in them. Would you like to give it a try?" The shop attendant's name was Marie, and she was a close friend of the manager. She had heard things about Rosemary and Adrienne before and felt bad about how things turned out after Rosemary's accident.

Joanne shook her head. "No, Marie. Those pieces don't go well with Miss Addie's appearance. Why don't you try the previous collection made by your mother instead? It might not be in trend, but it would surely highlight your best features."

Adrienne hesitated for a moment. The last collection her mother launched was released a day before her accident. The public easily forgot the launch as the news of the accident overshadowed it. It made sense to her why Joanne would offer her the previous pieces.

"Alright. Let me see what you have there." She replied, allowing the two women to lead her to a private VIP room.

Marie and Joanne brought three racks of dresses and several jewelry cases for Adrienne to see. The dresses were all made of first-rate materials, and they came in an assortment of colors. All of the colors suited young women like her. Adrienne slightly cringed upon seeing a dress with a death Barbie pink color.

She already knew what kind of dress Elise would wear for the event, but the more vibrant the color Adrienne would wear, the more it would highlight Elise's refined beauty. The huge contrast would be unfavorable for Adrienne then. Their grandfather's birthday banquet started Elise's rise in her previous life, so how can she allow it to happen this time?

Marie started to get worried when Adrienne rejected each dress she presented. They were left with only a few dresses, and she wasn't sure if any of them would catch Adrienne's eye. She wanted to say something to Joanne, but when she turned her head to speak to her friend, she realized that Joanne agreed with Adrienne's sentiments about the previous dresses.

"That one," Adrienne suddenly pointed to a long crimson dress on the rack. "I would like to see that one."

Marie didn't expect Adrienne to choose the most vibrant dress in the collection, but she had no choice but to collect it for her. Only a few people could pull off this shade of red.

"But Miss Addie… this dress…" Joanne also expressed her doubt about Adrienne's choice of dress, but Adrienne cut her off.

"We've been here for an hour now. Elise might have picked out the white dress she'd been staring at earlier." She said out of the blue.

Joanne was confused for a moment before something dawned on her. They had catered to Elise for the past two years and knew she preferred light and neutral colors. Elise always presents herself as a fairy who lost her way on the earth. As expected, she chose a white dress to highlight her innocent features, but standing next to Adrienne, who would be wearing a fiery bright red, would only drown Elise's presence.

"But Miss Addie, I don't think we have your size for this dress." Marie lamented. She was eager to see what Adrienne would look like wearing such a stunning dress. This dress also came with a set of jewelry to complete the look, so Adrienne didn't have to worry about what accessories to pair it with.

"Don't fret, Miss Addie. I will guarantee that I can fix this dress before the event. When the time comes, you must clear the rumors about you and make those naysayers shut their mouths. I'll make sure all eyes will be drawn to you."

Adrienne smiled. "Miss Lin is too much. It's enough for the dress to be presentable. I don't want to take away the limelight from grandpa. There's no need to use such sweet words on me."

Thus, with Marie's help, Joanne took Adrienne's measurements. It would take them a few days to fix the dress according to Adrienne's size, but the latter wasn't worried about being compared to Elise anymore. By the time she stepped out of the VIP room empty-handed, Camilla couldn't help but frown.

"Addie, didn't you take anything with you? Are the designs not to your liking?" She asked while Elise completely ignored Adrienne, choosing to check the new expensive jewelry set on display instead.

"No, Aunt Camilla. Everything is already settled." Adrienne said with a knowing smile.