One Drink, One Dance

AFTER THE blind date went well, word of it reached to Reed's ears. Kian also didn't gave any complaints to his parents after the date, which made both of the families believe that the two were getting along.

That's also probably another reason why Hershey was shocked to see his father on the dining table. She tried to think what day today was, but it was just another ordinary day. She knows fully well how busy his father is, and how Reed never join them for dinner. But then, here he was. Waiting for her, the last one to appear, to sit and join them for dinner.

Hershey turned to her mother with question look. Her mother just simply gave a slight smile.

When she sat down, her siblings continued to talk about business stuff with their father. She just silently listened while she eats.

That's right, all of her siblings works for the company that their family owns. Although Hershey is already 23, she still wasn't been given any position to their company due to her condition. Even if Reed would like to give Hershey a position to the company and let her work, her mother would never allow her. That's why she couldn't fully understand what her family was currently talking about.

"The anniversary party will be held next week Friday. You'll also be attending, Hershey" Reed announced which surprises Hershey.

"Oh, uh... Yes" she said as she does not know what to respond.

That ended their conversation since the other family members continued talking about business stuff. However, she didn't feel that bad anymore. Her father recognizes her more recently which made her incredibly happy.

***

A week passed, and the appointed anniversary party date came. All of the members of Mendez family dressed stunningly. That's why, when they arrived at the venue, all eyes were on them.

"Kian's family couldn't come?" Reed asked in a whisper.

Hershey shook her head, "They had different important plans"

She lied. She did told Kian about the party and even invited him to come, but she could felt his hesitation on her invitation. That's why she didn't force him to come, and just let Kian decide whether he'll come or not. Hershey and Kian knew that if they both came at this anniversary party together, it will confirm something and make everyone misunderstood.

The host started talking and some other people also started to come and go on their table. Her family also started to talk with others.

She was now left alone.

There were some who tried to talk to her. She smiled and entertained them for a little bit. If the exhibition she attended five years ago exhausted her and tried to meet the expectation of his father, this time she needed to do much better than before. Her whole family is there. She could not afford to make any mistake.

She was only able to talk to a couple of people, and most of them asked about the rumor of her marrying Kian or what does she usually do and if she plans to work at the company. She is now barely holding on as she tried her best to be patient as much as she can.

When a waiter passed by them, she reached for the glass of wine that it was supposed to serve on the other table. She smiled at the waiter and said her thanks.

"Excuse me for a moment" Hershey said before leaving the two person she was talking to.

She don't know them but both of them acted as if they were pretty close. Hershey was quite disappointed on them as they were not even that close enough to be able to hide their true intentions. They were obviously trying to ask Hershey to give them a good word to her father, but Hershey have no such plan to do so. They should've done better at pretending. It was too obvious that Hershey, a person who does not know that much on the industry, could easily guess their objective when they approached her.

Hershey walked around to see if there could be possibly someone she's familiar with, however there was absolutely no one. She sighed and just went outside.

She doesn't necessarily hate or dislike parties, but a gathering like this makes her feel tired quickly. No matter how much she tries to pretend or lie to herself, this is not where she could feel at ease. She could never fit in. It is evident that she does not belong to this kind of world.

She breathe deeply to calm herself, when she was finally able to get out of the pressure she was feeling inside. It was incredibly too hard for her. She was not used to situations like that.

Hershey was about to drink the wine she was holding when she noticed another person's presence beside her. She was surprised to see a man. She immediately composed herself and stood up with poise, afraid that the person might recognize who she is and judge her. However, the man didn't even bother too look at her. No, he doesn't even know that she was there.

She smiled and breathe a sigh of relief. Both of them stayed like that for a solid amount of time. For some unknown reason, Hershey was able to calm down and feel comfortable. The guy was just minding his own business, and Hershey did the same.

Silence reigns over them, but it was not awkward. The wind or atmosphere surrounding between them actually have somehow a gentle and soothing breeze. At that time, a thought came to Hershey's mind.

Going here was not that bad.

Hershey noticed that the man's glass of wine was already empty. He was about to go inside when he took a glance at her. He was not surprised to see her there. It seemed like he was actually fully aware of her presence since earlier.

She smiled. "Wanna dance?"

The man looked at her for a second as if contemplating whether to accept her offer or not. "Sure," he finally answered.

The man escorted her inside, and they danced at the corner where no one would be able to notice them that easily. Hershey was amused by his decision of just dancing in a corner, rather than gathering an attention. She then concludes that he was different.

Both of them doesn't talked to much, they just danced silently. Their eyes were staring at each other as if both of them were trying to dig what the other person was thinking or planning.

"You work at Cream Delight?" she asked.

"Yes. I'm part of the marketing department."

"I see," she said as she thinks of another topic to talk about but nothing could come to her mind. So, she just let silence prevails. When the song finishes, their dance also ended there.

"Thank you for the dance," the man said before he bowed to leave her there without waiting for her response.

For unknown reason, she didn't mind the behavior at all. All she knows is that, she is now curious about that guy.