The Collection: Short Stories, Misfits, and One-shots

Chloe Drent pt 1

This will probably be a long two parts that I'll post, but it was originally written for one of my friends, and will probably be the only one that is based around city life.  I just don't do a lot of work on romance, and realistic fiction.  I do not own the rights to names of stores/restaurants that are mentioned, just the characters, and story line, as cliche as it is.  Never been to New York (yes, that is where the story takes place), but would like to go some day and looked up some of the places that are mentioned, and tried to piece together some of the roads to make it somewhat realistic.  

Enjoy, and if you are looking for more complete stories, check out my page where I have my full series, along with upcoming projects.  There's always more!  :)

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"We are here Ms. Drent." She looked out the window of the dark Mercedes, and let out a heavy sigh, pulling the white and black trench coat around her tighter. Her driver walked around the car, and opened her door, giving her a hand to help her out.

"Thank you, Mark." She stood to her full height, and dropped her hands to her sides, one of them holding a small clutch as she faced the carpeted entrance to the building. A few straggling photographers snapped a few pictures of her as she walked through the large walnut doors.

"Welcome Ms. Drent." A man in a suit checked her name off of a list, and another walked towards her, taking her jacket away from her. The people in the crowded ballroom closest to the door stared at her in a mix of curiosity, awe, and jealousy.

"Do you know where my father is?" The man looked down at his list, and shook his head.

"He hasn't arrived Ms. Drent." She nodded and walked into the ballroom. The stares were annoying, but she did her best to ignore them. Her father was an elite in even this social class, and her black v neck lace dress did little to help her situation, or the small diamond necklace. The silver heels just added to the torture, making sure she could not get lost in the crowd. Most of the other attendees of the ball wore similar fashions, but they didn't have people watching their every move.

"Chloe." She looked in the direction of the voice, and found her mother moving through the crowd to her. "You look fabulous, sweetie." She smiled at her daughter, and Chloe smiled back, but neither went to hug the other, an unspoken rule among the social elite.

"You too, mother. Where is father?"

"He's running a few minutes behind. A meeting with the investors I believe." Someone called her mother, and she was left alone again. Not ignorant of the lingering stares, she moved over to a table, and sat down gingerly in a chair draped in white fabric.

"I do hope you aren't being antisocial." She froze in her seat and looked up at her father, cursing herself for not noticing his approach.

"No, father. I was just resting." He studied her for a minute before accepting her excuse.

"Very well. Come with me, you need to make some conversation." He stepped away from the table, and she was forced to follow him through the crowd, which was not hard as most of the people inched away from him. She was surprised when he stopped in front of a man who gave him a level stare. "Bronsten. I had no idea you had been invited to this event." The man gave a casual shrug, and Chloe missed a few of the words they spoke so quietly. When she finally reached them, she was mostly ignored until her father found some use for her to be included.