𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐬 & 𝐂𝐨. [HangexFemReader]

Chapter 35: The Gala

The day of the gala had arrived. (Y/N) stared at herself in the mirror, anxiously smoothing over the fabric of her outfit to make sure that there were no wrinkles. Why was she doing this? She didn't want to go to this fancy event. She didn't want to dance the evening away. Sighing, (Y/N) exited her room and walked down the stairs of Hange's mansion, wondering if they would be home. She never saw them at the house since they had rejected her. They were probably staying with Moblit, weren't they?

The loud chime of the doorbell rang through the house and (Y/N) hurried down to open the door. Pieck stood on the side, decked out in her beautiful gown. She was holding a small clutch and her hair was twisted into an intricate braid.

"Oh my, (Y/N)," Pieck gushed, eyeing her body appreciatively. "You look stunning! I bet you everything that I have that Hange won't able to take their eyes off of you!"

"Aw, thanks Pieck, you look absolutely beautiful too! And Hange is going to the gala with Moblit, they won't even spare me a glance. Also, didn't we say we'd meet there? What are you doing here?"

"I've come to pick you up in the luxury sedan I rented," Pieck pointed towards the car. "I wasn't going to let my gorgeous best friend walk alone in the night! Let's go, the event starts in twenty minutes. You've grabbed your invitation, right?"

"Thanks, Pieck, you're a lifesaver," (Y/N) breathed, admiring the sleek black car that was in front of the house. "And yes, I've got it right here!"

"Great, let's go!"

♦ ♢♦ ♢♦ ♢

The drive to Paradis had been the most anxiety-inducing one of (Y/N)'s life. She peered at the building, noticing that most of the windows were darkened because it was technically after hours. The outside was chilly, causing (Y/N) to shiver because of how thin the fabric of her outfit was. Pieck was practically vibrating with excitement. This was the first time she was ever doing something like this, and instead of being nervous she was looking forward to it. (Y/N) admired Pieck's ability to look for the good even in the most nerve-wracking situations. (Y/N) couldn't do that at all.

"Do you think there's going to be formal ballroom dancing?" Pieck asked, her voice an excited hush. "I've always wanted to do ballroom dancing! This feels like some sort of fairytale."

"It's just an office gala," (Y/N) chuckled. "But then again, Paradis is one of the biggest companies there is...of course they were going to be extravagant during this dance or gala thing."

Pieck's heels clicked against the marble floor, the only sound in the empty hallway. Normally, the lobby and halls would be bustling with people and full of noise. Now, it was silent. The only other thing that (Y/N) could hear was faint music...was it jazz? She couldn't tell. She followed Pieck up the stairs and towards the main ballroom. As they got closer, the noises got louder. Now she could hear polite laughter and conversations. They had arrived.

There was a security guard stationed outside the ballroom, checking the invitations of everyone that arrived. This event was definitely top-notch.

"Oh my, is that Eren and Mikasa?" Pieck nudged (Y/N) towards where two figures were standing outside the ballroom, deep in conversation. "They both look nice!"

(Y/N) smiled, happy that Mikasa had been able to ask Eren out—although (Y/N) wasn't sure if that was the case. She took a deep breath and entered the ballroom, her eyes wideningg at the scene in front of her. There were many, many people. And they were all decked out in the finest clothing and jewelry, their lips upturned in pleasant smiles. There was a live band stationed in the middle, currently playing some love song. The smell of salty and sweet pastries mingled in the air and (Y/N) could see caterers walking around with plates of hors d'oeuvres. She saw Sasha, in a really pretty blue dress, walking up to the two of them.