Miss Grande

Chapter 50: I'm Not Going

   After our talk, we made our way to Trent. I found him next to a tall, beautiful brunette.

   "You guys talk it out?" Trent asked.

   I smiled and nodded. "Yeah, we worked it all out."

   Trent looked at Ariana. "Just because she forgave you doesn't mean I will too. Watch your back."

   "That's what my other eye is for," Ariana tried to play it off.

   "By the way this is-" Trent got cut off by Mister Edward calling for Ariana, grabbing all of our attention.

   "Unfortunately, I am needed elsewhere."

   She looked at me, and I looked at Trent. "Go ahead," he dismissed with a playful eye roll.

   "Thank you, love." I kissed his cheek and turned to leave with Ariana. I stopped and quickly turned around. "I'm Y/n by the way, and you look absolutely stunning!"

   Ariana pulled me away before she got the chance to respond.

   I pulled a face and mouthed 'sorry' with a wave as I was dragged off.

She pulled me to the hall that lead to the bathrooms. However, that was not our destination. She took me towards the stairs and an elevator that went up to one of the higher floors. We got inside and she pressed the button to take us to whatever floor.

   "I have to go set things up for a business deal scheduled after this. The party is the charm to seal the deal. My dad has been trying to secure this with Mister Willson for a while now. They want to merge companies or something along those lines. I did little to keep up with the details when they were being explained to me. Zoning out when my father speaks to me is an old habit, and you know what they say about those."

"You don't have to be so anxious around me," I laughed, and we stepped out of the elevator and made our way down the hall.

She stopped and looked at me. "And what gives you that impression?"

"You're talking excessively and fidgeting with your hands."

"Never tell a woman that her talking is 'excessive' as it is rarely taken well."

"Noted. I'll also note that you changed the subject instead of denying what was said."

"Now we all know how Miss Y/n knows so much about everyone." She continued walking down the hall towards the big doors at the end.

"My people-watching let me pick up on these things. They don't tell you everything, but they let you notice more than you would have before."

"Is that why you're so good at charming everyone?" She entered the office with me hot on her trail.

I laughed and rolled my eyes as she began to pull things out of different filing cabinet drawers. "People like me because they see me as someone who is so carefree. The honest truth is that I don't care what they think of me, so I'm not afraid to make a fool of myself in front of them. They see it as me trusting them, when really I just don't let whatever opinions they form about me bother me. It's not that I look down on my peers; I just look down on everyone in general."

"Who is talking excessively now? What are you so nervous about?"

I sighed and hopped onto the empty space of the desk. "Since we're being honest with each other now, this is the first time we've been alone, while on good terms, in a while."

She stopped walking around the room and pushed the chair in front of me out of the way, standing in it's place. She looked me in the eyes. "I wouldn't do anything you wouldn't want me to."

"I know."

We held eye contact, though I'm not sure for how long, before she broke away and began walking around the room, much calmer this time.

She didn't look at me as she began speaking again, which told me that she was hesitant to say whatever was about to leave her mouth and didn't want to see how I would react.

   "You look stunning tonight. I meant to mention it earlier, but we had more pressing matters to discuss. Your dress is breathtaking, and Trent's little matching tie was a nice touch. You just- wow. Honestly, you never fail to amaze me."

   "Thank you. Your dress is gorgeous. What I'd give to be Michelangelo under that ceiling," I teased, hinting to her dress.

"Oh dry up," she laughed.

"Just because your dress is based on history doesn't mean your word choice should be too."

"You think you're so cute."

"You seem to think so."

   She stopped in front of me, putting folders down at my side before looking at the digital clock resting next to me. "It's almost midnight. You've got just enough time to make it back downstairs for the fireworks."

   "I want to stay. I'm sure they look just as lovely from up here."

   "Are you sure?"

   "Yes."

   "But you could-"

   I cut her off calmly. "I'm not going."

   We looked at each other for a while, interrupted only by the people below us beginning to count down.

   The counting echoed off of the walls.

   "10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2"

   "Kiss me."

   And she did.

   It was our first kiss, or at least the first one not fueled by hunger and lust or any underlying motives. It was the first short, sweet kiss exchanged between the two of us since the one in the park. It held admiration, trust, and most importantly it held hope- hope for what could be between us in the future.

   This moment was solidified by the fireworks exploding outside of the window behind her, by the single 'Happy New Year' everybody chanted as one, and by the cheers and screams of joy. We stood- side by side and hand in hand- watching the beautiful display of fireworks until it ended minutes later.

I knew my family would be leaving soon since we only ever stayed until just after the fireworks. I told her to text me and left her with a kiss on the cheek and the cheesy 'Happy New Year' before making my way back to Trent.

I saw him with the girl from earlier and let him know we had to go. We exchanged goodbyes before he gave her a quick peck on the hand, and we left to find the rest of our party.

   "Who was that girl?" I turned toward Trent and looked up at him. "I never caught her name, and it felt too awkward to ask as we were saying goodbye."

   He stopped walking and looked down at me with a weak smile. "That was Sidney."