The Girl That Got Away

New York, New York (Part 2)

"Hey, Chrissy!" Daniel called from the window of his sleek black sports car as he pulled into the driveway behind my mom. I was on the porch, wearing low-rise jeans and a thin black long-sleeve top, while my mother stood beside me, her mouth slightly agape.

" I can not believe my parents agreed to this," she said, arms crossed as Daniek exited the car.

His hair was tousled in a carefree way, framing his face perfectly. The thin white t-shirt he wore clung to his toned abs, catching me off guard—wait, did he really have abs? Over the shirt, he wore a rugged leather jacket that added an air of rebellion, and his blue jeans hugged his frame just right. I glanced at my mother, whose expression clearly conveyed her disapproval; the way her lips tightened and her brow furrowed made it evident she didn’t like him one bit.

"Hi!" I called, waving as he reached the porch. I played with the braid of my curly hair draped over my shoulder, feeling a sly blush creeping onto my cheeks.

He reached a hand to my mother, which she hesitated to shake.

He extended a hand to my mother, who hesitated before shaking it.

"Hi, you must be Chrissy's mom. I'm Daniel," he said with a warm smile.

"Hello, Daniel. So you're the painter?" she replied, teasing me with a knowing smile.

"That would be me. Thank you for letting Chrissy come," he responded.

"No problem at all. Now you two run along and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do," my mother said, a playful glint in her eyes.

I scoffed, "That’s not exactly a long list."

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The ride to New York was a blast. Daniel and I blasted our favorite songs, discovering that we had a similar taste in music. We chatted about school, especially how our upcoming art assignment was a real hassle.

“So what’s this mystery event?” I asked after we finished laughing about something silly.

“You’ll like it, I promise,” he replied with a smirk.

“And what about the friends we’re meeting?” I pressed.

“They may or may not exist,” he said, looking a bit nervous.

“You tricked me,” I scoffed, crossing my arms.

“They canceled,” he pleaded.

“Daniel…”

“Because I asked them to,” he admitted.

“Why wouldn’t you just tell me?”

“I was afraid you’d say no. I like you, and I wanted to spend time with you.”

“We didn’t need to drive all the way to New York just to hang out,” I pointed out.

"You'll like where we're going," he insisted, and I just smiled, feeling a blush creep across my cheeks.

We eventually arrived at an old building bustling with people. Security was trying to manage the crowd as they let select individuals inside. Daniel jumped out of the car and quickly grabbed my arm, pulling me up the steps.

"You kids are in the wrong place. Get out of here," one guard warned.

"We have tickets," Daniel said, holding me close.

The men led us inside, and soon, we found ourselves in a breathtaking lobby. The ceiling, adorned with cherubs, made it feel like we had stepped into another realm.

“Where are we?” I whispered to Daniel as we waited in line before a very stern-looking woman.

He chuckled softly. “What part of ‘secret’ don’t you understand?” he murmured in my ear, his warm breath sending a shiver down my spine.

At last, we reached the grumpy hostess, her name "Susan," engraved on a gold name tag.

“How can I help you?” she asked, her tone all business.

Daniel grinned. “I have two seats under the name Letter,” he replied, subtly intertwining his fingers with mine.

“Right this way, then,” she said, gesturing toward a grand ballroom that surpassed even the lobby's splendor. “You’ll be front row to the right.”

We sat down in two comfy chairs on one side of the ballroom. The set was mimicked on the opposite side, so there were two audiences facing each other.

"Ok, what is this?" I asked.

"It's going to start soon, just hold on," he chuckled. His hand was still in mine as I dragged my fingertips across the back of his hand soothingly. He responded with a gentle squeeze.

Suddenly, music started to blast from the speaker, and an unintelligable announcement made it's was in. Then it began. Models dressed in all types of fabrics, jewels, even paint made their way past. It was absolutely stunning and I never wanted to leave.

"You brought me to a fashion show?" I smiled.

"Do you like it?" He squeezed my hand.

"I love it"