Lily took another set of lingerie and held it in front of Nidia.
Nidia was just here to keep Lily company and spend some time with Lily, and to keep her own mind off of all of her problems. However, she wasn't interested in sexy lingerie like this.
"Nid, this set really suits you, just get it. Come on, please?" Lily felt this set was literally made for Nidia.
Nidia was fairer than Lily, and her skin was just the right shade. However, her style was too dull. Apart from dresses, all she wore were casual tees and jeans. They looked good on her, but Lily still thought that Nidia should try something more bold...
"You can get it. I don't like this type of clothing." Nidia said, sitting on the sofa in the waiting area of the shop.
Lily didn't give up and followed Nidia, still holding on to the lingerie. "Nidia, I'm not trying to lecture you, but you're 25, not 15! Do you have to be so conservative?"
Lily's voice was loud and caught one of the employees' attention.
The employee was a woman in her 30s with delicate makeup. Smiling, she pushed Nidia to their full body mirror.
Lily followed, still holding on the lingerie set.
The employee seemed to be quite experienced in handling shy customers like Nidia.
Looking at Nidia's fair and beautiful face from the mirror, she said, "Most of the time, us women don't dress up for men. We dress up for ourselves. It's to see a different side of us in the mirror. In these stressful times... you should relax, try something new, and feel a little different than usual. Wouldn't that be nice?"
She took the lingerie from Lily and held it in front of Nidia's body.
Suggesting the blushing Nidia, she said, "This set really suits you. The colour is lighter than pink sakuras. On someone as fair as you, it'll turn you into a blossoming flower."
Lily added, "Yeah, the colour is really feminine!"
Nidia refused, "No thank you, I don't need clothes like these. All it has are two thin straps and semi transparent fabric in the middle, it's no different from being naked..."
'Is this even wearable?'
'Who would wear this? Wouldn't it feel uncomfortable?' The employee turned to Lily.
"I can tell your friend is shy. What a shame, that lingerie set really suits her. The pink was feminine enough, and her appearance is soft and girly too. It would've been quite the sight if she wore it... An innocent yet alluring look."
From Nidia's point of view, all of this was just business talk. The employee's end goal was to have her spend money.
Besides, she didn't need lingerie.
Lily and Nidia had very contrasting styles. Lily was very down to earth, but her style was extremely bold and sexy.
Lily frequented this lingerie shop, so she picked out two sets of lingerie and then left with Nidia.
Grandma was still on her trip. It would seem that her friend group was travelling to another area.
Nidia texted Grandma, telling Grandma to have fun and to not worry about her. She hoped that Grandma would be able to clear her head by travelling, and to take her mind off of what Elizabeth and Barend had done to them.
After shopping, Lily and Nidia joined a small gathering.
There was a new karaoke and barbeque place opening near Amy's house. She had sent a text to their group chat, asking them to join the gathering.
Lily drove her small car and said, "Nid, Theodore would be joining us tonight!"
However, Nidia just replied with an 'okay'.
Lily drove out of the parking lot. "Why are you so calm? Don't tell me you view Theodore the same way you see Amy and the rest?
Nidia buckled her seatbelt and turned to Lily. "Why would I view him any differently?"
"Are you an idiot?" Lily was frustrated. "Theodore obviously likes you. He's had a crush on you since high school!"
...
Nidia shook her head gently. She couldn't be bothered to listen to what Lily had to say.
"You must be mistaken. Why would Theodore even like me? What does he even like about me? My boring personality? Or my conservativeness?"
Lily huffed, "Your bff here knows her stuff, okay? I've encountered many men. I know how they work. If Theodore doesn't like you, I'd chop my head off and serve it on a platter!"
Nidia, however, merely turned to look at the window and thought about her son.
Lily continued, "You really do have a boring personality, but you don't look too conservative! You could be sexy too, like that sakura lingerie set. It was literally made for you..." Nidia interrupted Lily and said cynically, "That thing is a scam. I don't even care that it's lingerie. Look at the amount of fabric on it! Talk about cutting corners!"
So saying, Nidia closed her eyes to get some rest.
Lily was speechless.
In the parking lot of Reminisce Karaoke, Lily parked her car and dragged Nidia to the gathering.
Their old classmates were enjoying themselves in a big private room located on the third floor.
As soon as Amy noticed the duo's arrival, she said loudly, "You guys are late! Same old rules, take three shots as punishment!"
"Fine by me!" Lily approached the table and poured alcohol into a small glass.
After continuously downing three shots, Lily poured another glass and said, "This is Nidia's."
Lily decided to help Nidia with these three shots after pouring a full glass. Before the glass was full, Theodore, who was sitting on the sofa with his phone, stood up.
He approached them and picked up the glass with his large, fair hands. He spoke as if it was no big deal, remarking, "I'll take the punishment for her."
After that, he downed it in one go. An empty glass was all that's left.
Amy smirked and teased, "Hey, hey, hey! Who are you to Nidia? Helping her like that, you cheeky boy! Are you hiding something from us, huh?"
Nidia felt awkward. Immediately, she waved both her hands and tried to explain.
Another female classmate quickly joined in. "No wonder Mr. Theodore never joined our gatherings back then! Why are you so eager to join now? Scared us alcoholics would force Nidia to get drunk?"
At these words, Lily turned to Nidia, who was looking awkward.
It was as if Lily's eyes could speak. She shot Nidia a look that said, "See? I was right all along! Theodore has a crush on you. Everyone can see that."
The gathering went on for two hours. Throughout the entire time, Theodore acted very protective of Nidia. Case in point, he took shots in her place and went easy on her during games, hoping she wouldn't get punished.
Despite everyone's teasing, Theodore didn't respond to any of them. In doing so, Nidia's denials became useless. No one would believe her and they reacted as if she was just being shy.
Later at 9 p.m., Theodore felt somewhat tipsy from drinking a little too much. He decided to sober up and went for a smoke outside.
Suddenly, Abby called. Theodore furrowed his eyebrows and picked it up.
"Theodore, I'm at this karaoke place called Reminisce. My friend said she saw your car parked in here, have you left yet?"
Theodore massaged his temples as he listened to Abby's voice, still holding on to the cigarette. He hung up and texted his friends who were still in the private room, and then went to meet up with Abby.
Abby was sitting on a sofa in the waiting lobby of the karaoke place. She wore a dress held by thin straps, with a limited edition Chanel purse clutched in her hand.
As Theodore walked out of the elevator, Abby approached him with a sweet smile.
She hooked her arm around his and clung to him, saying, "Theodore, you're really here."
Though she spoke in the sweetest voice possible, she realized Theodore seemed upset.
She looked away, confused. However, she didn't dare to speak up. All she could do was walk out of the karaoke place with him, clinging persistently to him by the arm.
...
As they exited the karaoke place, Theodore called for his chauffeur.
While they waited for the chauffeur, Theodore stood at the gloomy roadside and lit another cigarette. He then asked, "Which friend told you that my car was here?"
Abby froze. "Huh?"
Theodore had never asked her anything with such a stern expression before.
They had known each other for years, but right now it felt like it was just her trying to get to know him.
Back when Abby was still in junior high, she knew that the prodigal Theodore was studying in the high school next door. She would try to bump into him, playing it off as a coincidence.
However, Theodore ignored her every time.
Later on, Abby went abroad to study and forgot about Theodore. She had multiple admirers, after all.
When she turned eighteen, she returned to Baile City during the holidays. She attended a business party along with her father. That very night, she met Theodore again after so many years.
Theodore was a year older than her. Then, he was dressed impeccably in a handsome suit. His demeanor painted him in a smart and gentlemanly image.
He looked like a prince.
He knew how to play the piano, and was well educated. His family was wealthy, too.
He was so much better than all of her admirers. How could she miss her chance? The very next day, Abby broke up with her foreign boyfriend.
The entire time, Abby was the one who made the first move. She always had to put in a lot of effort in order to get a response out of Theodore.
She was the reason behind their engagement as well. She wanted Theodore's parents to acknowledge her existence.
They weren't exactly welcoming to her. In fact, they even mentioned that their future daughter in law's family needed to have an equal social rank as them.
Abby proceeded to make herself seem like she was the precious daughter of a famous artist and a successful businessman. Since the Souths used to be involved in politics, it helped her to gain some bonus points from Theodore's parents.
After that, they used many ways to force Theodore to get engaged.
Their relationship seemed to have officially stabilized after their engagement.
However, as they weren't married yet, Abby was still very much worried.
After they got engaged, Theodore gave her the cold shoulder. He never asked her out on dates at all. Lately, he was even colder to her, and that made her worry even more.
"I just really missed you..." Abby cooed in a babyish voice, leaning against him.
She cocked her head and gazed at him with puppy dog eyes. "I always used this excuse when I wanted to see you, but before you never questioned it."
Theodore pulled his arm from her embrace, filled with disgust and hostility.
Abby started to panic.
Theodore shot her a glare. "Were you tracking my phone?"
She seemed to know where he was all the time. This couldn't have been just a coincidence. She must've done something in order for this to work.
Colour drained from Abby's face as she stuttered, "I- I didn't..." Just then, the chauffeur called Theodore and he answered his phone. As the chauffeur approached him, Theodore handed the chauffeur his car keys. He opened the door and got into the car.
Abby stood in place, frozen. The silver Jaguar then stopped in front of her. She felt a slight sense of relief and smiled to herself, thinking Theodore was offering her a ride.
To her dismay, Theodore winded the car window down with an icy expression coloring his handsome face. His words were just as cold. "Abby, I think it's best to cancel the wedding as soon as possible."
Meanwhile, everyone in the karaoke place had finished drinking.
Amy sent all of them out to the entrance. "God, Theodore is such a party pooper!
How could he just leave mid way? He didn't even reply to any of my texts."
Lily responded, "Maybe he went off with some chick? They might be having a good time. Of course he won't be replying to your messages..." The group cheerily bid their goodbyes. Nidia got into Lily's car.
They had hired a driver as both were too tipsy to drive.
Lily hugged Nidia's arm and said, "Well, what did I say? You could totally tell that Theodore was chasing after you. Just look at how he treated you throughout the whole party!"
Nidia replied, "He didn't say anything about it, so I won't overthink it either. What if we're all wrong about this? I'd end up being a joke."
Lily nodded in agreement.
As they exited the parking lot, Nidia added, "You should mention my child on purpose during our next gathering."
Lily turned to Nidia and stared at her with a confused expression. "Girl, aren't you being a little too harsh on yourself?"
"...There's no other way."
Lily continued, "What if... What if Theodore doesn't mind and keeps going afteyou?"
Nidia shook her head. "I don't think he won't mind."