Chapter 10
1630words
The costume designer nodded, moving towards the clothing rack to select another dress. Her mother leaned forward, brushing the hairs on her eyebrow gently,
"I'm not satisfied with the makeup."
Aurora blew out a breath. The woman was never satisfied with anything. This was the third time tonight that she was doing her makeup, her mother either had a problem with the contour or the shade of foundation used. Aurora was exhausted, at the rate they were going, she was bound to fall asleep at the gala.
"You look older and the lipstick is too bold, I think we should-"
"Decide on the clothes you want me to wear so that they can match my makeup?" She cut in hastily, trying hard to contain the anger bubbling inside her chat.
Her mother froze mid-speech, jaw hanging slack. "That's actually a good idea."
She breathed out as her mother disappeared behind the curtains, giving her the quiet time she longed for. Aurora sank into the chair, resting the nape of her neck against the backrest.
She couldn't forget what happened at lunch last week, especially the way Matt looked at her. Like a fragile doll ready to break. After her break in the bathroom, she'd requested for him to take her back to the institute which he did. The entire ride was painfully quiet and awkward so when they arrived at the parking lot, she left without a second word.
Now, tonight was the grand gala celebrating the reopening of the city's museum and her father was invited as a special guest so they all had to go. This was the first time her parents would be making an appearance together since their argument, and the first time they would be closer than ten feet.
Aurora found it strange how quickly both of them were able to put up the happy couple front. They weren't fooling anyone though, if you looked close enough, you would see the strained smiles and stiffened muscles.
Her mother emerged from the back room with something in hand, the stylist trailing behind. She caught sight of the shimmering dress in her hold and swivelled in their direction.
"Look what we found," Her mother cooed softly, placing the dress on her lap, "I think this will suit you perfectly."
Aurora hesitantly picked up the light material, pinching it between her thumb and forefinger. She looked back at the two women, wide and expectant gaze staring back at her.
"What do you think, sweetie?"
She knew her mother didn't care for her opinion so she nodded, "I think it's great too."
Her mother grinned, eyes sparkling with joy. "Wonderful."
The entire makeover took more than an hour and by the time they arrived at the spot where they were supposed to meet her father, it was already late into the night. Her father was fuming but said nothing the entire ride. The whole situation was awkward, to say the least, her mother kept pretending like everything was normal between them and kept asking stupid questions, her father on the other hand simply grumbled out one-word replies while Aurora pretended to be busy with her phone.
After about twenty minutes of excruciating awkwardness, they finally arrived at the museum. From where she sat, she could see the dozens of reporters buzzing around the entrance, their camera lights blindly bright,
Her father pushed open his door first and stretched a hand towards his wife. Miriam Rochester put on a big fake smile on her ruby-painted lips, accepted his hand and slowly alighted from the limo.
"Aurora, love. Get down." Her mother cooed in a fake sweet tone and it took a huge amount of restraint not to roll her eyes at the woman,
Sighing, she shifted towards the open door and stepped out. She hadn't even blinked when the reporters swarmed them instantly, shouting questions in their faces,
Her father's hired bodyguards pushed them the best they could and they slowly trudged into the walkway. They stopped once they hit the red carpet, striking different poses. When one reporter asked them to pose together, she stiffened as her father wrapped an arm around her waist,
She gave him a look and he turned to look at her, smiling brightly. "Smile for the camera, sweetheart. You look splendid."
Aurora scoffed quietly but did as he instructed, grinning brightly. They walked like that into the museum, with linked hands. The moment they were out of the camera's sight, their happy expressions dropped instantly and she shrugged off his grip,
"I think I need a drink." She muttered to herself, rubbing at her temple tiredly. Before she made to move, iron-clad fingers clasped around her wrist,
"Stay off the soda and any sort of alcohol. Punch only." Her mother's stern eyes flashed warningly. "Okay?"
Her shoulders sagged, "Yes mother."
Her mother smiled and slowly released her grip. Aurora gave her a grim nod before stalking off. The Museum was brimming with most of the elites of Canada, she even spotted the director of the dance institute sauntering around with his wife.
Aurora grabbed a drink from one of the servers walking about, thanking him quietly as she gazed down at the glass. Her nose wrinkled at the sparkling liquid, this wasn't punch.
But it wasn't soda either.
Her eyes darted around the large room in search of her mother. The woman was busy socializing with a large group of women, even from where she stood, she could hear her tinkling laughter.
"I didn't think you'd be here."
The deep voice startled her and as she veered around, the heels of her foot wobbled against the marble tiles making her propel backwards. A small yelp escaped from her lips, and his hand shot forward grabbing her wrist and pulling her to him. Her chest slammed against his and he made an 'oomph' sound, arm coming around her waist.
She opened her eyes only to be greeted by a pair of honey ones, "Matt." His voice came out as a breathless whisper. "You scared me half to death."
He chuckled softly and released her so she could step back, "That was not my intention but I apologize."
"You're forgiven." She frowned at the glass in her hold, wondering how it managed to escape unharmed after everything.
Matt followed her line of sight before looking back at her, "Are you going to drink that or..." He trailed off, giving her an amused look.
She tipped her glass in his direction and downed everything in one gulp.
"Woah, you're going to get drunk if you take it like that," His fingers went behind her to steady the back of her head.
She smiled softly, "That's the idea, Matty."
"No one has called me that in a long time." He said, laughing softly.
Their proximity brought so many memories to her mind and she sighed softly. After their last date, she'd been actively avoiding him. He had come to the institute twice to look for her but each time, she hid.
In truth, she was avoiding the question that he was bound to ask. Why did she cry that day?
Aurora always prided herself on being good at controlling her emotions. So she didn't understand why she broke down at his answer, maybe a little part of her expected that he would feel something for her, even if it was small.
But it was clear where she stood in his life. A friend, A family, that was all she would ever be.
She stepped out of his hold and forced her legs to move back, "I hope you enjoy the evening."
Just as she turned, the lights dimmed and a voice piped through the speakers,
"Ladies and Gentlemen! It is time for the showcasing."
"Aurora!"
She heard him yell, walking towards her. She took that opportunity to gather the skirts of her gown in one hand and sprinted out of the auditorium, running until she was outside, even then she did not stop not until she was safely away from the domineering building and Matt.
Her chest rose and fell as she fell into small steps, her bleary eyes searched the area, noticing that she was standing in front of a neatly trimmed maze, the lush green grasses shining underneath the bright moon,
She released her grip on the skirt of the ruby dress, letting it flow freely to the ground. She took careful steps forward until she was totally submerged by green grasses.
Aurora continued walking forward and only stopped when she came to the sight of a fork on the ground, silently debating if she should go left or right. Deciding to choose the left path, she turned towards the area,
"I don't know what to think, are you brave or stupid for going into a maze you know nothing about."
The newcomers voice made her freeze in her tracks, she could remember that voice even if she was in her sleep.
Aurora slowly turned on her heels, eyes climbing from his boot covered legs, to the silver buckle of his belt and up to piercing dark eyes,
He looked at her with so much intensity, it completely stole her breath. When he began walking towards her, she stayed still, heart thrumming in excitement.
He stalked forward with measured steps, almost similar to a beast approaching its helpless prey. That was a perfect analogy to describe their relationship,
She was a powerless prey. He was a ferocious beast prepared to devour.
The only difference was that she would let him.
He cupped her cheeks in his large calloused palm, instinctively she leaned into his touch, eyes fluttering shut.
Then he whispered, lips brushing gently against hers,
"Hello, Flower."
