The Dancing Girl in The Painting ** (Camren)

Chapter 1: The Masquerade Ball

Lauren's POV

It was the last day of the year. I was here in the middle of a masquerade ball and I did not know anybody here. I believed this grand venue could accommodate up to five hundred people. It was very well decorated. Every detail was placed accordingly. The main color was red with the shades of purple and blue that completed the setting. It was so enchanting yet the mysterious vibes were in the air. It was very exclusive and elegant new year party. 

This elegant party was chosen by my very best friend, Normani, who loved the elegance and who convinced me to celebrate our New Year Eve here, in London, with strangers. I was surrounded by hundreds of people who were in elegant suits and dresses with their masks on. Even though I was not an introvert, still I preferred if I knew somebody. However, a friend started as a stranger.

I knew nobody only Normani, and she was nowhere to be found. I hoped she would show up soon since she was the one who asked me to accompany her to this fancy party. She even got me a very impressive purple mask which I did not know where she got it. It looked expensive, but it was Normani, the queen of elegance, so I trusted her choice. She said this mask would bring out the color of my eyes.

I looked to the left entrance; I saw Normani. Finally, she was here wearing a red dress and completed with a red black mask. Normani looked stunning. Normani was a confident woman she would not shy away from attention, she loved it. Many eyes landed on her and I bet she would go back with someone she wanted.

I smirked at her when she walked to me. "My beautiful friend, finally you arrived. You look stunning, Mani."

"Thank you, Lauser. You are not bad yourself. Thank you for matching your shirt with your mask. Even though I know you are the only person who could simply wear black and look as hot as hell all the time, seeing you with this new color made me proud." Normani was teasing me.

I lifted one of my eyebrows, I knew what I had and I knew Normani always teased me wearing black or sometimes white. Tonight, I experimented with a new color, purple, but only my shirt. The rest was still in black. Normani should have got me a black or white mask instead. I took two glasses of champagne for us and we toasted to start our party. The good thing about being at a party where nobody knew us was, we could roam around and flirt around without being worried about judgment, flirting with wrong people, or embarrassed in case we did something stupid or being rejected. It was more freedom for our little adventure. 

"Anyone catch your eyes yet?" Normani asked me. Normani and I were similar. We went on many dates but we had not been seeing someone seriously. We were in our twenties and we wanted to have fun. We did not do bad things; we just went on dates. We had rules, we played safe, we did not cheat on anybody, and we did not date the same person. We never hit on the same person or dated the same person anyway even though Normani was also into women besides men. it was because we had a different preference. One thing for sure, We both did not want to rush into a serious relationship. 

"No, Mani. They all look beautiful in their dresses, hard to choose with a mask on." I said. 

"Go with your instinct, or choose based on your favorite part." Normani suggested. She meant butt. She knew very well that I loved a woman with a perfect butt. It seemed tonight I had to go with that option before I talked to them as their faces were covered.

"I think so. Where did you get the invitation?" I asked her.

"Normani's way." She said. Normani always got what she wanted. She just knew how to get it. I did not know how she did it, but she was good at it. This party was not free and it was expensive for sure, but she managed to get it free for us.