Under the Moonshine

Eighteen | Mask unveiled

Facundo Corporation's silver anniversary was the hottest topic when it came to the business world. Marietta Facundo-Carlos was the beauty and brain of the company, a woman with pride and high upbringing, never letting other businesses outshine her own.

Bree stood quietly next to her mother as they greeted the guests, a smile glued to their faces, as if they had practiced how to gracefully welcome the elites. It was a masquerade party, men and women all had colorful and mysterious masks, a theme suggested by Bree. Her Barbie-like face beamed like a glitter, such a shame they all had to wear a mask when the program began. The famous Elle Van Hotel was the location, its conference room for VIP boasted the finest facility and state-of-the art designs to accommodate the guests.

Emily arrived at the scene with Taren, her elegant black hand gloves was hooked around the boy's arm. Her tiny physique was professionally hidden by her glittery navy blue dress, complimenting her fair skin. Her long wavy curls lies at her back, her black and yellow mask stood out despite its simplicity. Everyone glanced at their direction as she navigated the distance, walking straight to Marietta to give respect.

"Emily," the woman said, compassion in her voice. "You look so glamorous, sweetie."

"And so are you," she smiled and gave her a peck on the cheek. Bree just stared at her, poker face.

"And who's this dashing gentleman?" Marietta asked, raking a look at Taren.

Bree's eyes shifted to him, a mix of surprise and puzzlement was reflected on her face.

Taren stood straight, his three-piece Armani suit made him looked like a model. He had a bit of stubble around his jaw, giving him a manlier aura.

"Just a friend," Emily answered, her grip on Taren's arm seemed to hardened. She was nervous as hell, but she tried her best to deny the emotion, for she wanted to prove to Wilson that Taren wasn't a complication. That was the test- to prove that he was more human than anybody could ever be.

"Hello, Ms. Marietta," he greeted and offered his hand, just like what he had practiced. "My name's Taren."

Marietta shook his hand firmly. "Taren... Any last name?"

He smiled. "Just Taren."

Intimidation wouldn't work on him. "Just Taren," she repeated and gestured toward her daughter. "This is my daughter, Bree, Emily's bestfriend."

Taren did the same, politely introducing himself and offering a hand shake. One of the waiters led them to their table, together with Wilson and other directors from Yotta Corp.

While waiting for the event to start, Wilson introduced Taren to his other business partners, friends, and clients, stretching the boy's ability in interacting with other people. Persons who had been isolated and had no recollection of who they were used to have a different behavior. But Taren didn't disappoint the president, showing him that he was, indeed, human.

Not a hybrid. Not a danger. Not a damn complication.

"You are a clever one," Wilson commented on Taren. "You just made Mr. Louvel's interest in Yotta's newest research to peak, big time."

"He did?" Emily asked, surprised.

He just nodded. "They talked about things, projects, technologies," he sipped the glass of red wine and pointed his fat finger at Taren, "This guy knew a lot about technical stuff."

The program began after a brief moment, summarizing the history of the company, all the way down on their first project until way up to where they stand on the hierarchy of the business world. All the accomplishments were told, achievements and recognitions, even the foundations they were handling to help and give back to the society.