Dawn Of Twilight

Chapter 9 : With You (Part 3)

"But what?" Erevin's father asked.

Dawn's father leaned in, a conspiratorial gleam in his eye. "Alright, here's the plan," he whispered, his voice dripping with drama. "I'll buy two tickets for Ha Ha Seas. You-" he jabbed a finger at Erevin's father, "-stall her. Waste time. Distract her. Whatever it takes to keep her occupied long enough for us to swap the tickets."

Erevin's father raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "Distract her? How exactly do you expect me to do that? Should I start juggling popcorn? Maybe do cartwheels?"

Dawn's father waved his hand dismissively. "You'll figure it out. Use your charm."

"Charm?" Erevin's father blinked. "She knows I'm old enough to be her father. My charm expired in 2003."

"Do you have a better idea?" Dawn's father retorted.

Erevin's father sighed heavily. "Fine. But if this goes south, you're taking the blame."

Dawn stood in the wrong queue, tapping her foot anxiously. Just as the line shuffled forward, Erevin's father swooped in, putting on his most cheerful, overly helpful stranger persona. "Excuse me, miss!" he said with an exaggerated smile.

Dawn blinked at him, startled. "Yes?"

"Uh, hi! You dropped something," he said, holding out an imaginary object.

Dawn glanced at the empty air in his hand, then looked at him suspiciously. "I don't think I-"

"Oh no, you definitely did," he interrupted, nodding emphatically. "Maybe a... tissue? Or a ticket stub?" He started glancing around the floor dramatically, forcing her to look too.

While Dawn was distracted, Erevin's father leaned forward sneakily. "You know," he said, lowering his voice, "there's been a lot of... um... line confusion today. Are you sure you're in the right one?"

Dawn frowned, glancing at the line in front of her. "I'm... pretty sure."

"Well," he said, pulling a pamphlet out of his pocket, "I just saw a special promotion for the romantic film Ha Ha Seas. First date special! Two tickets, discounted popcorn... might be worth checking out. You know, just in case."

Dawn's hesitation gave Erevin's father all the time he needed. Dawn's father had returned with the correct tickets and stealthily approached.

Dawn gave him a polite smile, not wanting to be rude. "Oh, um, thanks, but-"

Before she could finish, her turn came at the ticket counter. "Next!" the clerk called out.

"Just a second," she muttered apologetically to Erevin's father, stepping forward to buy the tickets.

She returned moments later, two tickets in hand. Erevin's father quickly pivoted, his plan shifting gears. "Ah, great! You already got them! But let me tell you," he said, leaning in, "that pamphlet has exclusive deals. You might be able to trade those for even better seats!"

Dawn frowned, confused but intrigued. "Really? I didn't know they did that..."

"Oh, absolutely!" he said, extending the pamphlet toward her. "Here, take a look!"

As she reached for it, he "accidentally" nudged her hand, causing the tickets to slip from her grasp and fall to the floor.

As the tickets fell to the ground, Dawn quickly crouched to retrieve them, her brows furrowed in mild embarrassment. Erevin's father mirrored her movement, crouching as well, reaching toward the scattered tickets.

"Oh, I will help you!" he said, his tone friendly yet frantic.

Dawn looked at him briefly, giving a polite but slightly confused smile before turning her attention back to the ground.