Third Person P.O.V
From the corner of a dimly-lit space emerged Adelaide, wiping her hands as she absent-mindedly walked towards her table. The retro bar was bustling with people and their endless conversations. To the far left of the bar sat Mr and Mrs Riccardo together with Dylan seated opposite to them. Carson, by the looks of it, was attending a call outdoors. Taking a look at her watch, Adelaide recalled how she had to get back to work tomorrow. Heaving a sigh in sadness, she reached their table and took her seat beside Dylan.
Her party was engaged in talking to each other, expressing their gratitude towards Dylan. The starters recommended by the couple had arrived, and Adelaide couldn't help but salivate. The Pancetta-wrapped halloumi fries which were served with smoky chilly tomato were too tempting a sight. The golden-brown colour of the fries glistened under the light, and the steam escaping from them entered her nose and heightened her senses. Besides the fries, there were two other plates, one containing skewers which she recalled were called Tortellini skewers and the other containing what seemed to be cheeseballs which went by the name mozzarella arancini.
Although the green colour of the skewers didn't seem to appeal to her, Adelaide nevertheless looked forward to trying them. Within lesser than a minute, Carson came back to the table and took the last seat beside her. With the wine being poured into their respective glasses, Mr Riccardo urged everyone to dig in. Not having many topics to easily converse on, the group mainly focused on relishing the food before them and having small conversations here and there, one of which caught Adelaide's attention.
"How did you manage to get in contact with so many children in such a short time?" -spoke Mrs Riccardo as they were on the topic.
Dylan who was sipping on his wine placed his glass down, wiped his lips with a cloth and spoke in a slightly louder voice due to the noise prevalent in the retro bar.
"Just a few connections here and there. They seemed to have gotten the word across better than I anticipated." Dylan replied with a smile that seemed not more than a formality.
Adelaide couldn't help but be baffled by the causality in his speech. The ease and the unbothered manner in which he responded caused her lips to twitch and retaliate but instead, she just shoved some food in to control herself.
With Carson suddenly having to work on a few things and Dylan being occupied with the Riccardo Couple, Adelaide who stepped in and out of random conversations, ate and enjoyed the food more than the supposed wrap-up party.
Not long after, the signs of empty plates and wine glasses marked the end of their time together. Mrs Riccardo, Carson and Adelaide waited outdoors while Mr Riccardo and a persistent Dylan were paying the tab. Enjoying the gentle and subtle night breeze, Adelaide who had nothing to do, looked around her surroundings until her eyes fell on something, rather a person inside the bar who seemed familiar. She squinted her eyes to focus on the person in hopes of recognising him but was pulled out of it by Carson.
"Let's go." -came his soft voice following a delicate shoulder pat.
"Huh? Oh yeah, are they done paying?" -questioned Adelaide who seemed to have blanked out.
"Yep." -replied Carson before slightly nudging Adelaide away from the entrance.
Crossing her arms below her chest, Adelaide let Carson drag her near the parking area facing the windows of the retro bar. In no time, Dylan accompanied by a tipsy Mr Riccardo neared the group of three. And just like that, the long hours spent working on these fleeting two days came to an end as Dylan shook the hands of his clients and Adelaide was relieved to not have to face the man who, for absolutely no reason, got on her nerves.
With Mrs Riccardo slowly holding her tipsy husband firmly in her frail arms and taking their leave, Adelaide and Carson were the only ones from the group that were left behind.
"Let's go?" -came Carson's feeble yet audible voice.
"Yeah." -replied Adelaide as she took a step in the direction of her apartment.
Taking a quick and short detour towards Adelaide's apartment, Carson and Adelaide walked in silence allowing themselves to fully enjoy the calmer and breezy atmosphere. In no time, the two had arrived at their destination and bid each other farewell.
Summing up her day with a refreshing bath, Adelaide lay down on her feather-like mattress before looking back on her day. Smiling as the glimpses of the day played in Adelaide's mind, she relaxed and settled in to sleep, until, her mind showed her the very same familiar face that she had caught sight of in the retro bar.
What made her smile completely disappear from her soft, peachy-pink lips, was the fact that the familiar-looking man was none other than the weird, awry speaking, document guy who she had come across twice before. A shiver went down her spine when she realised that he had left the bar just as they left. Although it was just a glimpse of him that she had caught from the corner of her eye, she had this uneasy feeling which made her believe that he was probably tailing them.
Adelaide tried to shake her mind off of this wild assumption but, luck wasn't on her side; as she heard a loud and strong knock on her front door.