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“Doesn’t your boyfriend know you’re going to work after?” she asked, confused.
“I try not to worry him,” I said under my breath.THE GALA“Sofia!” I cried out as soon as I heard her leave the washroom.
“Yeah?” she shouted back.
“Come down, I have to talk to you.” I waited at the table. She came down, went straight for the fridge and took out a bottle of water.
“What’s up, sis?” she smiled.
“I got the job,” I said quietly. “Daddy doesn’t know yet. So you can’t tell him.” It was easy lying to her especially when I knew I was doing this for her future.
“Okay, so what does that mean?” she said softly.
“It means you need to get ready for Yale in the fall,” I smiled.
“Addie…” she began to sob. “I just…I just feel like I’m abandoning you and Dad. It doesn’t feel right,” Sofia admitted.
“Sofia, I know it’s hard, but you need to do this. You only have one life to live and I'm not going to watch you flush it down the toilet,” I said earnestly.
“What about you?” she asked with tears lining her eyes.
“I’ll be fine. You need to go, not only for you, but for Dad and me. Understand?” I tried hard to be strong. When at this moment all I really wanted to do was hug her and cry with her.
“I get it,” she said meekly.
***
Per Daimon’s text, I needed to have my hair and my makeup done for a dinner this evening. Plus, I had to meet him downtown at a boutique with a name I could hardly pronounce. As I approached the store, I saw Daimon standing outside. He wore an elegant suit with a black shirt and black satin tie.
“You look nice,” I said in a sarcastic tone, trying to hide the fact that he looked more than nice, he looked beautiful. He thanked me and nodded. After the night at the bar Daimon made sure he kept his distance from me. I don’t know why, but a part of me felt uneasy about it.
“Mr. Evans,” the sales clerk smiled at him. She was an older lady but it was obvious she knew about clothes; what she wore could have paid for my rent last week. “I have the dress you wanted right here. Is this the lovely beauty you told me about?” she asked smiling at me.
“Yes, this is my Addie,” Daimon said.
She walked up to me, kissed me on the cheeks and took my hand. “Come my dear, I need to dress you for this evening.” She pulled back the curtain of the dressing room and then pulled it closed behind us. “Mr. Evans seems to be quite taken with you.” She sang as she prepared the dress. “He called me and asked me to get the most spectacular dress I have ready for, and I quote, a ‘beautiful creature.’”
She reached out to help me undress, but I stopped her. “Is everything okay, dear?” she worried.
“I can do it myself,” I murmured.
“I’ll help, there’s no need to be embarrassed. I’ve seen everything,” she smiled.
She carefully unclothed me and stopped. “Oh dear, how did that happen?” she asked looking at my scar.
“I’d rather not say,” I said quietly.
She nodded and helped me into a stunning black dress. It was short and fitted around my waist with lace sleeves that reached just above my elbows. A beautiful long train made of tulle draped past my feet. The sales woman, who introduced herself as Gloria, gave me the most expensive pair of pumps I had ever worn, making the tulle skim slightly on the ground around me.
“Just as I thought, this dress was made for you,” she smiled.
She pulled back the curtain and there stood Daimon with his hands in his suit pants. His face showed no sign of even liking the dress he had bought for me. I bit my inner lip worried that I would never live up to his expectations. Then again, why did I suddenly care? I couldn’t answer my own question. It frustrated me to no end, but there you have it. Now it appeared that Mr. Daimon Evans’ opinion mattered to me. It didn’t matter, I’d get over it, because after this little deal was done, he was going to be out of my life for good and I would no longer care about what he thought about me.
“Thank you, Gloria. She is absolutely stunning,” he said to her as he walked up to me and held out his arm. I hesitated taking his hand, but Daimon reached out and placed my hand around his elbow. He helped me enter a black limo, which was waiting outside for us. He didn’t utter one word to me the whole limo ride. We sat far apart from each other. The atmosphere surrounding us started to weigh heavily, the distance now between us bothered me. I couldn’t help but look at him as he stared out the window, wondering if he was feeling the same thing.
