9:21 p.m.
Barbara sat down on a bench and bent her head down to her knees. I approached her slowly from behind and tapped her on the shoulder, which startled her. She looked back at me, sighed and said...
Barbara: Oh, it's just you.
Samuel: What's wrong? You seem stressed out.
Barbara: I wanted the company's performers to put up a main event at twelve, but the leader didn't even budge a bit... He just called now, telling me that he can't come because he wanted to watch some virtual football event.
Samuel: I would've given him a warning if I were you.
Barbara: I fired him because of how frustrated he made me.
Samuel: Or you could do that too...
Barbara: Why are you back here anyway?
Samuel: Well, I was looking for you, and then Sarah told me that you were back here.
Barbara: I see. Welp, now that you're with me and know my problem, you must help me solve it.
Samuel: Huh...? Wait, I don't even know what you're looking for though.
Barbara: And that is why we humans discovered communication.
I looked away from Barbara's smirk and tried to think of something. She tried to get my attention, but I just kept ignoring her.
What would be great for the first hour of Christmas? I wanted it to be as Christmasy as possible, with no needed time to prepare. I kept thinking while staring at the night sky and got nothing out of it. I then looked towards a decorated evergreen tree, and it clicked in my mind.
Samuel: I think I know what we could do.
Barbara: What?
Samuel: Amna must know about it. Let's go find her.
Barbara: But what is it?
Samuel: I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that my business is doing an event at twelve.
Barbara: What kind of entrepreneur doesn't know what is going on in his business?
Samuel: Just follow me...
Barbara and I went into the building, now on the lookout for a missing Amna. We asked the staff, but again, they gave an answer which they were unsure about. We decided to not listen to them after hearing them suggest that Amna may be in the bar drinking...
We kept looking around until we finally found her with Sarah. Just as I was about to call for Amna, Dan grabbed me again and began to assert his body weight on me.
Daniel: Hey Samuel, a little bird told me that you want Amna.
Samuel: Yes, I was looking for Amna and I found her.
Daniel: (Spots Amna and points towards her) There is Amna! Amna, Sam wants you!
The crowd looked towards us, and I never felt more embarrassed than I did at the moment.
Samuel: (Tries moving Daniel's hand away) Dan, please let go of me.
Daniel kept yelling and waving at Amna until Barbara tightly grabbed his shoulder, making him scream in pain. Daniel took his arm off me and looked back at Barbara...
Daniel: (Cries) Demon! Demon! Please- Please let me live!
Barbara: Demon? Now you're getting it. Sam, you go ask Amna about the thing and meet me in the garden.
Samuel: What are you going to do?
Barbara: I'm going to discipline this drunk pig.
Barbara walked away and disappeared into the crowd while Dan was begging for mercy as if it was the day of judgment. Amna and Sarah approached me and asked about what just happened, which I explained briefly.
Sarah: Daniel is lucky that Barbara won't fire him. But if a man is too good at something, they surely is terrible when it comes to something important.
Amna: What is that even supposed to mean...?
Sarah: I'm referring to his respect towards personal space.
Amna: Sam, could you please tell us something that makes sense so we can ignore Sarah?
Samuel: Sure... I need to ask you something.
Amna: What is it?
Samuel: Do you know what the KSC is doing at midnight?
Amna: You mean the Christmas countdown event?
Samuel: Yes, that.
Amna: Well-
Samuel: Wait, follow me first. Sarah, you stay here.
Sarah: But-
I grabbed Amna's hand and walked toward the garden so that Barbara could hear about the event at the same time. Amna was confused about why I was rushed and kept asking me to slow down. Despite this, I just kept going.
10:10 p.m.
Samuel: (Running towards Barbara) Barbara, we're here!
Barbara: Slow down, the child looks like she's about to die.
Amna: (Panting) Uh- I- Yes...
Samuel: Sorry about that.
We sat Amna down on a bench and Barbara handed her a cup of water.
Amna: Thank you, I needed that. Sam, I'll murder you if you ever make me run again.
Samuel: I already apologized...
Barbara: Why'd you bring her here anyway?
Samuel: She could tell you about the event now.
Amna: Now I surely want to murder you... I could've just told you and you pass the message to her!
Samuel: That's less efficient.
Amna kicked my leg, and I moved back in pain.
Barbara: You honestly deserve that... Okay, now that you're here, mind telling me about the event?
Amna: Uh- The event is taking place at the bottom of the mountain where the giant Christmas tree was built. At midnight, there will be a countdown and once the clock strikes twelve, the tree will light up and a few fireworks will be put on over the lake.
Barbara: I thought that was a public event...
Amna: Yes, but no. Some people are invited by the company to a better location to watch the event.
Barbara: And if we were to go to the event, we'd be going there?
Amna: Again... Yes, but no. Since we have Sam with us, we'd be going to a restricted area which is the best place to witness the event.
Samuel: That's a handful to remember... How about we go there?
Barbara: That would work... But what about the transport?
Samuel: I can call the business bus right now. They're all probably at the lake.
Barbara: Sure then, you call them now and I'll go in and make the announcement.
Samuel: I'm excited!
Amna: Umm... What should I do?
Barbara: You help me with the announcing. We're lacking time.
We separated into two, Amna and Barbara rushed into the building while I called the drivers.
It was currently ten fifty-four p.m., and we raced against time.
YOU ARE READING
Life is a Deception (sample)
General FictionSamuel William, a man in his twenties who had lost his parents at a young age, had finally begun exploring life, which led him to experience a series of events built to awaken him. From the pain of his parent's death to the happy and melancholy new...
