"Oh yeah- yeah. The date." She
smiled, to keep herself busy. Fumbling to random things in her wardrobe, mirrors, grabbing brushes and putting it down, lotions, handcream and putting it down.

It was just anything to keep her mind off of the horrible date she had to attend, and also a surplus to keep her going.

Or else her mind would go blank.

"So, tonight at 7.00?" The man asked through her phone.

"Oh yes, 7.00 is a great time. Where would the restaurant be?"

It had just been minutes since the man called, her forgetting that they exchanged numbers during their last meet, more like she persisted to hand him over the digit numbers to her cellular number.

"Do you like Italian, steak or just random custom Virginian cuisine?" The man asked.

"Oh, anything's fine. Maybe steak and a little bit of crab salad?" She continued to brush off the dust with the broom. She didn't look like a maid, at all, wearing a pop up dress which flowed and expanded to the side, just like a dancing balloon, a flower who just popped into existence.

She smiled at his response. "Oh, great. Then I'll be there 30 minutes before, so you better get ready." She regretted the moment she said that cause since when do feminists say that on a first date? Maybe she should just continue her routine of watching Disney movies. Re-watching them, reruns and the series of completed ones to get her mind off of things- which is a routine that keeps her calm and not have a jittery mind as like this moment.

"A- Are you okay?" The man asked from the other side of his phone, worrying that she didn't answer for quite a while.

The date will go on well. She chanted in her head. Not jinxing that anything will go wrong on her first date, like breathing out onions or heaving out garlic bread to his nostrils for god's sake.

Time had been passed since the phone call. 7 hours since then, and now she's on her way to the restaurant. In a limousine.

Which she rented with her last pocket money from her mother, preparing and bringing herself to act well, and dress like a royal from the suburbs. One that she will never get back into. The scene of the royal ball played in her head.

The limousine screeched to a halt and the driver in the tuxedo looked back. Kinda looked like the man from Princess Diaries, but with a little bit of hair, and a bit younger she concluded.

She smiled. "Thank you, and here's a tip." She quickly put the cents in the man's hand and stepped out of the carriage consisting of 4 wheels.

She breathed in the fresh air of the night, smiling at the pleasant lanternic view of the lit on lights of the restaurant, presenting the La Ploutouc. Meaning rain pizza. Her brain sniggered.

She looked into the restaurant before the frosty window without moving an inch. Being able to see the blurry figures of people chatting and sitting down, spooning their mouth with red substances.

The man hasn't arrived yet, so she waited. Until he appeared from another side wearing a tuxedo and the most creepiest smile on his face. Well, from her perspective.

He was actually excited to go on a date with her. She was pretty, good-looking and is probably single whom he thought would take care of him if they ever dated. Or so he thought.

Ave smiled in return, instantly wanting to go home.

"Well, we're here aren't we?" He chattered. Like a response to her already gassing mind.

"Yeah. Let's go in." She inquired, a hand on his shoulder, then to his waist.

They then made a statement towards their reservation on this night of an evening, where the waiter would deliver them to their seats and how they looked at the menus, both shocked at how pricey it was, especially the lobsters from Ave's eyes.

She wanted lobsters..

"Wow, this is pretty expensive. Are you sure you're going to pay?"

"Yeah, I mean we're only going to do this once, so might as well order something whatever we'd like to eat." He flipped a menu.

Until he realised he was being stared at.

Ave being dumbfounded, "I mean, not that we're only going to do this once, I mean order whatever you want."

He hurried, posting a nervous smile.

"So. What'd you think of the party the other day?" She closed the menu.

Deliberately willing to order the lobster and alfredo pasta of the 2 menus indefinitely. Not caring if it was going to reach above $100. She was hungry and her stomach mattered more than some courtesy and shyness to a guy such as eating on a first date.

"Oh, it went well. It was hard at first to land a job. Asked everyone and the vacancy was full. But." He held out a finger. "The trick is to be courtesious, kind and welcoming." He smiled, leaning back, "Of course you have to be smart at talking and making up your words, but it is the trick and will do the job good."

"What do you mean, making up my words?"

"You need to learn the art of persuasion." He said as their orders came out.

"A salad and a large bowl of steak with beef sauce and the lobster head with another alfredo pasta for the lady." The waitress said, to which he questioned with an eyebrow.

"Steak.. bowl?"

"Oh, yes, it is our special menu for tonight. It was changed a bit to fit in a bowl for our special day. See, we're having an anniversary, and the boss made it up for us, except on the picture on the menu." She laughed and sniggered.

"I will sue you." He muttered, looking away. To which he got a stink eye from the waitress.

As Ave saw the waitress walking away, she was lucky she got what she ordered as is like the picture on the menu. "Well, shall we eat?" She felt her stomach grumbling and salivating towards the mouth-watering food.

The large lobster with its head staringst her, its head still on, or the special made pasta which looked like it would suit her taste buds, the creaminess and texture would fit her taste right in.

She stabbed the pasta with a fork.

"So, on what purpose are you asking me about the party? What do you want to know?"
He forked a piece of tenderloin steak to his mouth, chewing.

"Well, I was hoping I could like, fix myself and try to braven up and attend to participate- a royal ball- you know."

"Oh, but they held it only once in a year."

"What?" She looked up if he was bluffing.

"It's annual, and not everyday kind lg thing. Like a festival."

He was met with silence. Averithe didn't know if she was supposed to be happy or sad at the same time. She wanted the gala to be her night evening and a day out, but she also wanted to just watch television and cozy up on her bed.

"Yup. That last night ball was the last of the year."
He shrugged.

She can't believe what she was hearing. Once in a year would mean another whole another year to get in there again.

She gave him a look, -a look which explained on a demand of explanation or she would leave. Note that there wouldn't be another date.

"Unless.." He smirked, stopped chewing midway.

"What?" You know how different the attendees and servers are, each year?" He added.

"Yeah. No." She shrugged, shaking her brain off for any disturbance thoughts.

"Well." He cleared his throat, "Since 'I got a VIP card."

"A yellow one." He pulled it right out of his pocket. "There's this special guests.. -filled with special guests, the same ball party for royals.. "He spoke blantantly and abruptly confusing for her ears to hear.

Uncorrelated but she can still make sense of it.

"They're not just royals.." He leaned forward, whispering."

"What?" She squinted her eyes in count of his lean over.

"They're more than royals. They're like, the presidents of the universe, the individual leaders of every milky way." He exaggerated, using a gesture of the sky, an effort then to talk not loudly as possible.

She nodded. Wondering what the hell is he trying to say.

"So. I've been on the look out for another.. server. A hiring system I'm saying.. "He carefully treaded his words, wondering if she was going to know.

He then decided to proceed his words, leaning forward. "I'm a scout, for the next party on held in the same spot. Just.. different people."

"So.. Can you tell the exact details of this party?" She raised an eyebrow, she leaned back, relieved it was nothing serious. "Like where, the exact date-"

"Sh-shh," He waved a finger, as she had forgotten and raised her voice a little loud, which she thought she spoke normally to her own ears.

An awful feeling formed in her chest. It was probay the memory and the thought of actually doing it- the thought of having no interest in it until she actually attended it and having been able to detect a d catch a man in a way, disguisingly, effective and a money-catcher in a net for her advantage.

In a way.

"Avery, quiet down." He leaned again. "I'm not supposed to talk about this." He slurred his 's'

She gave him a look.

"So." He sighed.
"It is held every Friday and Sunday. Friday for the crown offsprings and Sundays for the royal people."

"To which-" He continued, seeing the look on her face. "-I am in charge of Sundays," He shrugged, "Serving and working, getting paid like double what it was on fridays."

"So.. You're inviting me ..?"
She questioned, wanting to ask how he got the job but it came out anyways.

The feeling of being in an interview or a business meeting came along, her being not really in a date.

"Well, yes.. -technically." He spoke a little too clearly.

"Oh. So, I may wear whatever I want?"

"Yes. I'll meet you at the same place and we'll enter together, just remember to bring a mask and don't talk to anyone about anything okay. Before I get there."

He leaned back again in his wooden seat.

"Okay." She shrugged. "And what am I supposed to do when you weren't there?"

He slowly put his yellow card out again. "This card is a VIP." She observed, the markings of the large letters with dots after each letter made her wonder how they made and distributed it among the servers.

She wondered if she could get one, she could enter any club or party for free.

"It's not food," He snatched it out of her sight, in his pocket. "And I really had to make sure no one sees this. The yellow color is really hard to get, so if you'll be kind enough to not show anyone these." He sighed, "When you gets one yourself, make sure you don't lose it or drop it."

"I don't even have it."
She shrugged.

"You idiot, I didn't mean now. One day."
He gave a look and leaned back in his seat with a creak.

They were met with an awfully long silence. What ran through Ave's mind was, how he didn't think of this as a date. A consideration of how handsome he is, he wouldn't find her attractive enough to find information or ask how her day has been, or her favorite things or an effort to be the manly courtieous type of a man she thought he was.

She looked away, averted an eye sight.

"Talk about anything, make friends, make an acquaintance." He leaned his elbows on the table. "The trick is to serve them beverages and desserts."

At some point Ave felt she had been left, slapped and magicallt moved on to some business situation she never agreed to on. A magical night, arriving at some restaurant with a crappy guy who discusses his business all night long. As even hired her for it. To which she didn't mind since she has the same motive of earning some extra cash.

Then again, right now she felt she had been hit by a tornado with the statement of his mouth, feeling like she had been bamboozled by the same trick he had just explained a few seconds ago.

"Like you did when you served me?" She questioned with an eyebrow. Swearing not to leave this place before slapping him. It was a shame he was handsome. Or else she would've politely poured him a drink of her wine on his head.

"Oh, don't take it personally." He smiled connivingly, looking away.

She stared at this person across her. She stared at him with a look on her face.

That's it. The date went well.

She splattered some potato pieces and mash, -sprinkled in on his face and devoured the last gulps of wine and slamming it down on the white linen table.

She got up, the chair moving back with a screech.

Don't tell me you weren't interested?" He shouted as she furiously walked away.

"See you on the party." She snarkly commented. The purse slinging back on her shoulder.

Only one word could be sputtered ny her brain that would perfectlt describe ths man she left behind, her mind guessed completely dumbfounded and probably a slighly amount of regret in his eyes.
Or in his veins if he ever had one.

Handsome.