Baiting a Fish
Lorenzo looked at the woman by his side. Why did her words sound so familiar? 'It's okay to cry!' Someone else had told him the same thing too, once upon a time.
A low sarcastic chuckle escaped his lips. Was this fate? "Do you, by any chance know a lady called Jasmine?" He enquired. The woman had a very similar way of speaking.
Jasmine watched him behind her mask. 'Of course, I know her. I don't just know her, I am her. This was what she wanted to say. Instead, she shook her head in denial. Silence reigned once more as they continued to watch the stage.
The model who was walking the podium posed elegantly looking confident in her style. From where she sat, Jasmine felt like she was watching a swan serenading its spouse. The view was a form of art too. She unconsciously pulled out a drawing pad and a pencil.
Lost in her definition of beauty, she drew. A subtle smile lit her face showcasing her pairs of well-set dental formulas. Lorenzo's presence had been forgotten, However, he was captivated by her looks. He fully turned his entire body towards her direction and watched her draw.
Her every action reminded him of Jasmine. He wished to correct his mistake. He wanted to have a chance to treat someone better. He still lacked the knowledge on how to treat a lover as an equal. Would she be willing to teach him? Would she make fun of him? would she want to be his friend?
He didn't know her actual appearance. What he knew, however, was that he felt comfortable in her company. Only one person ever had such an effect on him. He kept his eyes on her taking note of every twitch of her lip, every scroll, and every pout.
Her actions served as a source of entertainment. She was colorful, like a butterfly. He found himself comparing. Currently, she was glowing under the dim lights, like a firefly. Lorenzo's heart warmed at her focused state.
Suddenly, there was a drastic drop in temperature from her. He felt the coldness from her, which made him shiver. He felt goosebumps form on his well-clad body. She had stopped drawing as well, and was openly glaring at the stage. Wanting to know the cause of her bad mood, he followed her gaze.
He stilled in his seat as his mood went south as well. The one on the stage was Arya. The dress she wore hugged her figure like a second skin, accentuating her every curve. Jasmine was also watching her parade on the stage. She had thought that the previous model was a swan. Elegant in her pose and graceful in looks.
As she watched the girl who ruined her, there was only one word that came to mind, "peacock." She found herself uttering unconsciously. Lorenzo heard her words loud and clear. He looked from the stage to the lady beside him and back again at the stage.
"Why a peacock?" he found himself asking. Jasmine watched the girl unable to hide the disdainful smirk at the corner of her lips. " Unlike the previous model, this one walks the stage as though it was made for her. She is overconfident and proud.
While the previous girl owned the stage, the model on stage puts on an air of superiority as though passing a message.' The stage is too small for me."
Jazz laughed. " she reminds me of a male peacock flaunting its feathers to seduce."
Jasmine watched Arya throughout her speech. The girl had always been proud and arrogant. She liked to look down on everyone she deemed was below her in status. She took out her phone from the purse she had carried and sent a message to Emilio. She got a reply not long after. She smiled.
One fish already took the bait. It was time to bait the other. She stood up to leave, secretly watching Lorenzo's reaction. A frown was apparent on his handsome features. If this was a few years ago, just looking at him would set her heart in an erratic overwhelmed state.
Now, she felt nothing for him. His face was just an alluring facade that kept a monster well hidden. He was a typical example of a villain with a handsome face and an ugly heart. As she made to leave, he stopped her in her track. " Excuse me, I am sorry but do you mind being friends? I would like to meet you again.!"
She mentally cheered. Bingo! She caught the fish. She looked at him and spoke, " You are a stranger to me. I am afraid it would be careless of me to accept your offer that easily. How about we do this, if we meet again then, I promise to give you my number so that we can talk."
Lorenzo had the urge to push for an immediate, yes, yet he restrained his urge. He didn't want to force anyone again. He was trying to change his ways and who better to start with than the lady before him. He smiled nodding at her as he bid her farewell.
Jasmine slipped out of the hall unnoticed. Once she was outside, she let out a sigh of relief. The day went better than she had anticipated. The show just started, she thought as she skipped through the empty corridor thinking that she was alone.
She removed her mask feeling suffocated. Everyone was already in the hall hence she felt that there was no need to keep hiding her face. Unfortunately for her, in her excitement at her achievements for the day, she ran into someone once more. This time she could not steady her feet and fell on her butt hitting her head against the wall.
Coupled with her intense workout and her earlier accident, she could not stay up any longer and lost consciousness. The last thing on her mind before darkness consumed her was that God, may whoever I collided be a friend and not an enemy.
The man looked at the girl who just collided with him. His eyes bulge out of their sockets in shock. This was impossible. How was she still alive? His heartbeat rapidly in his chest. Was he seeing a ghost? For a moment, he forgot that she might have been hurt by the fall as his gaze lingered on her face.
No. No. No. This was not real. He must be dreaming. Yes. That must be it otherwise, he wouldn't believe his eyes. His eyes were well and functioning well. There was no way that he was seeing things. He hasn't touched a single glass of alcohol the whole day.
In his state of shock, he failed to notice the man who was running towards him in panic. Emilio was given the task to take care of Jasmine by his brothers and father. She had been in sight the whole time until a few minutes ago. The only time his gaze wandered away from her, she had disappeared.
He kneeled and held her head gently in his embrace." Wake up, princess. I am sorry, I was late. Wake up, please! Dad is going to kill me." He took out his phone with shaky hands and dialed his brother's phone. He then carried jasmine in his arms completely ignoring the shocked man on the floor.
He was too worried to scold or yell at him at that moment. What he managed to do, however, was that, he took a picture of the man after he was done talking with Max. He would be back to confront him. Emilio left the place with jasmine in his arms, and he silently prayed for her well-being.