Josette Marshall

Dean was surprisingly astonished by my sudden arrival in the diner. He came over to me while I was talking to Valerie, "What are you doing here?" What does he mean by that? 

 "I work here." Valerie was looking at me with perplexity on her face. "I was also done with my classes early today."

 "I thought you were going to take an off today," First of all, why does he think that? And, second of all, how is he so calm about me taking an off? I was about to interrogate him further, but someone called him inside. 

Just when Dean disappeared into the kitchen, Valerie spoke up. "What do you think you're doing?" 

"Why is everyone asking me that?" A thick line appeared between her eyebrows, "Audreya called and took an off for you." What the hell? Why did she do that? "She mentioned you were required to attend a family dinner tonight." Why did I not know about this? Did she say family dinner? But I don't have⎼ 

In the next short second, I understood how Dean was so okay with everything. He was a family person but was so far away from his family which made him miss them so much that whenever anyone had any emergency related to the family he never thought for a single second before letting them have their time. But the thing was why did Audreya lie? 

Valerie sensed that I didn't know about the facade Audreya played, but she still played along when Dean came back. I told him I thought I had time to work a bit before leaving to which he forced me to leave immediately and said, "You shouldn't make them wait." I didn't question him further because I knew the person I was supposed to question next was at home. As soon as I stepped outside the café, I called her. 

 "Why did you lie to Dean about a fake family dinner?" 

 "How else he'd let you take the night off?" She spoke. "Why would I need an off?"

 "Don't tell me you forgot!" She shouted through the phone. I pulled away my phone but I was still able to hear it. "You were supposed to go to The Larsen's tonight." Shit, I did forget about that. "I was already on my way back."

 "Be quick. I've got a surprise for you."

 "What surprise?" I hope she didn't do anything weird. "Love you, bye." She spoke and hung up on me.

Precisely 10 minutes later, I arrived home. To my astonishment, the door stood ajar, and every light was extinguished, enveloping the surroundings in absolute darkness. I called Audreya's name aloud, yet received no reply. I entered without seeing, heading towards the light switch. 

A shadow appeared, revealing a man seated, facing the TV, on the couch. A tall, and broad-shouldered man stood straight and began to walk towards me. I stood straight with a knife in my hand making sure he wouldn't sense my discomfort. Abruptly the door behind me shut, making me tremble. But soon the lights switched on, revealing the person closing the door was…

Audreya? "Surprise!" 

 "What are you⎼?" I pointed the 'knife' towards her unintentionally and was about to say something until I remembered there was a man too, making me turn around in no time.

 "Noah Lancaster?"

 "In the flesh, but why are you pointing that knife at me like that?" His eyes expressed a bit of fear. "What is happening? Why are you here? And why did you do all this?" I asked Noah and the last part to Audreya. "We wanted the surprise to be super exciting," she spoke.

 "What was the surprise, again?"

 "Him." She said while pointing towards Noah. "He… was the surprise?" Both of them side-eyed me, "No offense, but I expected something more exciting like books, annotating supplies, or a night off from cooking." She stood with her hands firmly on her hips. "First of all, you have plenty of books," to which I simply rolled my eyes, because now, how much is plenty? "And second of all, you already have all of your annotating supplies scattered all over your room. I can't handle more mess." My lips parted listening to her. I crossed my arms around my torso and scrunched my eyebrows. 

 "It's Connie who took all of my pens and scattered them all over the room, it's not my fault." She didn't buy it because she knew it was me. "Speaking of Connie, where is he?" I spoke out of nowhere. 

 "He's in the bathroom. Don't change the topic!" I rolled my eyes and side-eyed Noah, who smirked when Audreya shouted at me. "Also, about the cooking part, tonight neither of us will cook." She said, to which I instantaneously declared, "We will not order takeouts again." She shook her head and spoke.

 "Noah invited me tonight too."

 "To the Larsen's?" I looked at him whereas he looked away not meeting my eyes.

 "Christian had a catch. What's his reason?" They both looked at each other and then looked at the floor, making me think dirt or something was catching their eye. I called both of their names and their cheeks bloomed with a soft pink hue as they both looked me in the eye. "Why are you both blushing?" In a sudden, illuminating moment, realization washed over me like a wave. It was as if a veil had lifted, revealing a truth that had been hidden in plain sight. 

 "Is it…? Are you…?" And Audreya started to nod in agreement whereas Noah grinned in amusement and I was left mouth-opened. "Wow!" I took her hand and squealed in excitement while she did too. "Oh my god!" Noah stood right there and grinned as if he had everything he ever wanted in his whole life. I mean he did, but I had never seen him this carefree and cheerful.

"When are you both deciding to make this public?" Noah hugged Audreya and then announced, "We wanted you to know first. Christian already knows and about the rest, they'll know soon. We used to hide it before, but not anymore. We're not hiding it anymore." I held her hand in support. 

"I'm going to be the best auntie ever!" She left my hand, but I couldn't stop jumping. I knew, of course, that they weren't pregnant and they were together, but they hid it from me. So, I had to play them a bit. I was genuinely happy for them and the excitement I expressed was all real. 

Her squeals turned faint and both Noah and she stood quiescent. "What do you mean by auntie?" 

 "Shut up. I'm so excited."

Both of their faces turned pale. It was so funny, and was getting hard for me to control my laughter. "What?" She uttered.

 "I'll be the coolest auntie the world has ever known."

 "Jo, I'm not going to be a mom." She calmed my excitement down a bit and said faintly. "But you are. You are. You have a baby in you as we speak." I caressed her shoulders from both sides and turned to Noah, "You're going to be a father. How do you feel?" 

 "He's not the father." She spoke. "Who's the father then?" I widened my eyes and parted my lips. I was genuinely proud of my acting skills at the moment. Greta Gerwig should cast me in her next Barbie movie as Barbie. "I'm not the mother." She tried to convince me. 

 "What? Who's the mother?" I looked into the eyes of Noah deadly. "You cheated on her?" 

 "He didn't cheat on me."

 "You cheated on him?" I widened my eyes, "I'm so sorry Noah. I never expected that from her." He scrunched his eyebrows and muttered a 'what'. "Jesus, no one cheated, Jo! Stop." 

I sighed in relief, "thank god." I grinned again, "I'll be the one teaching my niece or nephew how to ride a bike." I told Noah. "We're not pregnant!" Noah declared. "Are you thinking of abortion?" I gasped loudly in horror. 

 "Listen you two, just let this baby be born, I'll take care of it."

 "Jo, there is no baby." Audreya tried to convince me, but little did she know, I was in no mood to be convinced. "You already aborted? God, how could you?" 

 "Geez, no Josette. You're getting it all wrong." Now, Noah was trying to convince me. "How could you both be so cruel? Such monsters you two are." They both looked at each other in horror and then at me. I could sense their feeling of not being able to do anything to convince me further, and I loved it. My composure shattered, and I burst into uncontrollable laughter. Both of them looked at me blankly. "You knew. Didn't you?" Audreya folded her arms and asked me. I giggled and asked, "What? You being pregnant or you being in a relationship with Noah?" I sat on the couch and started eating the apple kept on the counter table. They both looked at each other, chuckled, and kissed. "Oh, stop. Guys, no, stop. Not here bro, have some shame." I tried to curtain it with my hands, while they both giggled. I was about to say further until the doorbell rang and distracted us all. "Who'd that be?" Both of them looked at me with equal confusion. "You didn't call your brother here, did you?" I squinted my eyes at Noah while pointing my index finger at him, whereas he just shook his head in 'no'. I swung the door open to reveal a 6'0 feet tall man in his mid-thirties, commanding attention with his broad, powerful shoulders. He was impeccably dressed in a black suit, the tie harmonizing elegantly with a white shirt and a tie. The air of mystery deepened as he sported black sunglasses, concealing his eyes, and a lone AirPod adorned his right ear, adding a modern touch to his sophisticated appearance. He held a big, pretty nicely wrapped box. "I'm here for Ms. Marshall." He spoke in his bold, robotic, raspy voice. "That'd be me."

 "I'm Henry Paige, Mr. Larsen's bodyguard. This is for you." He extended the box to give it to me. "What is this for?" I took it from his hands and asked while tilting my head. "My job was to hand this over to you, Ms. Marshall. I suggest you directly have a conversation with Mr. Larsen." 

Just the way the box was all gorgeously wrapped seemed expensive and I knew what I had to do next. "Mr. Paige,"

 "Just Henry would be sufficient, ma'am." His hands were formally intertwined with one another. "Okay, 'just' Henry. Listen, I can't take this." He straightened a bit and spoke, "Ms. Marshall, I was instructed to hand this to you, and it's not feasible for me to take it back, as that could put my job at risk." I thought a little and understood his perspective, I never intended to harm anyone neither financially nor physically so I accepted the box and went inside. 

Both Noah and Audreya stood silently and watched me as I walked toward them with a box. "What was Henry doing here?" I shrugged as I placed the box on the center table. "Delivering your brother's parcel." I walked toward the table and gently placed it on top of it. "Christian send you a gift? Open it." Noah spoke and Audreya echoed his last two words, "Yeah, open it." I glared at her and told Noah to take it back, while he and his girlfriend both questioned my statement and forced me to at least take a look at what was inside. 

 "That's so pretty." Audreya was flabbergasted while Noah was busy figuring out what exactly happened and so was me, to be honest. "This looks extremely expensive," I turned to Noah who was sitting on my left. "You have to take it back. I can't keep it." Noah was about to say something when Audreya cut him off. "You know you have nothing to wear for tonight." She said in a normally concerned voice, "And you definitely can't wear jeans to a party." Perks of having a fashion designer as a best friend. "You were going to wear casuals for tonight?" Noah finally came out of his trance. "Let me tell you, it's not just a normal college party. Actually, it's not a college party at all. It's a royal party where lots of recognized people would be coming, and you can't dress 'just casual', you have to look your best." Something in me was triggered by the way he idiolects his words. "It's fine, Noah. You don't have to flaunt your and your brother's money. I know you both are extremely, like dreamy rich and you've got everything in the palm of your hands but we're not dumb or poor. We had before and we still can handle our expenses and desires. Also, I was not going to your stupid famous people's party that's why, I was returning the dress." Deep down I knew he didn't mean what I thought he did, but I still couldn't stop myself from saying all that. "That's not what I meant." I didn't hear what he had to say next, and I walked inside my room and closed the door. I could hear the faded mumbles, but I didn't care at all. 

Hours later Audreya knocked on my door and entered. The navy blue satin dress, with its luxurious sheen, hugs her figure in all the right places, exuding an understated elegance. The fabric flows gracefully, creating a subtle play of light and shadow as she moves. The dress may feature a tasteful neckline or perhaps an elegant slit, adding a touch of allure without compromising the overall sophistication. The dress, carefully chosen, drapes gracefully over her silhouette, showcasing a blend of simplicity and refinement. The carefully applied makeup accentuates her features with a delicate touch. Soft, earthy tones complement her natural beauty, emphasizing her eyes, and giving them a subtle depth. A hint of mascara enhances her lashes, while a light touch of eyeshadow adds a touch of sophistication. Rosy blush graces her cheeks, adding a healthy glow, and a subtle, well-chosen lip color completes the look. Her hair, a delightful shade of dirty blond, cascades effortlessly down her shoulders, left to flow freely in loose waves. The strands catch the light, adding a subtle luminosity to the overall appearance. The natural movement of her hair enhances the effortless grace of her presence.

Altogether, the ensemble paints a picture of refined beauty and timeless style. The dirty blond hair, the navy blue satin dress, and the artfully applied makeup harmonize seamlessly, creating a captivating and memorable image of a girl who effortlessly embodies both class and charm. "How's the look?"

 "It's perfect, babe. You look ravishing." If I was a guy, I would've proposed to her at this exact moment. "If your rich ass boyfriend doesn't compliment you tonight at least a hundred times, dump him." She laughed and came over to me. She sat in front of me and gently placed her hand on top of mine. "I wish you'd come with me." I shook my head. It wasn't just what happened with Noah or Christian. I was having a severe stomach ache, but I couldn't tell her because I knew she would cancel her plans for me. "Maybe some other time."

 "Well, in case you change your mind, Noah left the dress." And she left in no time.