Engagement Party

Unwillingness tainted my face. A crease was deeply engraved on the very center of my forehead as my brows furrowed hard together into a woven line. I was putting on a dark red lipstick when a violent and sudden knock on the door made me jolt in surprise due to the abrupt sound, which then caused the lipstick to smudge to the side of my lips. I rolled my eyes at nowhere in particular before I rambled to the makeup desk to find a wipe tissue or anything to take off the lipstick smudge on my face.

“Haa...” I exhaled harshly when I couldn’t find anything, thus, my attention then veered off towards the door which was still continuously banging by someone from the outside until I shouted a response, “Whoever you may be there, you’re going to taste your own kind of medicine! Just you wait!”

“Babe, it’s me!” Alistair’s muffled voice sounded like a faint whimper since he’s on the other side of the door. Due to his scream, the adrenaline then rushed to me as I ran to the door, unlocking it and as soon as it opened, Alistair suddenly indulged near for a kiss which I also accepted and even returned the pleasure. However, Alistair immediately ended the kiss not long enough, and it then earned a frown from me. Although, he kissed me back but only a peck on the lips before he chuckled, “Why’re you frowning? I should be the one to feel upset right now since you’re getting officially engaged with my younger brother, you know?”

My frown turned into a cheeky smile before I pinched both of his cheeks and mumbled, “You already know why this night should happen, babe. Your father, the chairman, will be attending later as promised. I wouldn’t even come here if it wasn’t for your father.” One worried guise hugged every aspect of my face. “Are you really okay with this? We could just tell your father that Jenn’s often seeing different girls, and that I did not wish to get engaged with him.”

“Aww, are you worried about how I’d feel?” Alistair teased and thus, he then wiped the smudges on the sides of my lips with the use of his thumb, especially since the lipstick had gone even more smeared when we kissed. It is not a non-stick lipstick, that’s why. “You should use your favorite lip gloss instead, if you’re not comfortable with this one, and that lip gloss looks good on you even better. Who gave this to you, anyway?”

“Don’t you like my lipstick though? It’s given by your father, you dimwit,” I laughed at his speechless and dumbfounded look. “It wouldn’t look good if I don’t wear it, do you not think so? Besides, the old chairman gave this especially for the engagement party, which will happen tonight. It’d be a shame not wearing it.”

Alistair nodded continuously until he stopped and faced me, “Who cares about this lipstick, though? You look gorgeous even without putting on makeup and whatnot. Do you usually care about what people tell about you?”

“Nah, not really,” I answered in both truth and lie. “It all started when we got even closer to each other. I felt like the other’s bashes and profane words were mere noises brought by the wind. Although, some were indeed below the belt.”

“Is that why you met with that basher of yours and poured coffee on the lady in public? Well, I saw it in the news first thing in the morning,” Alistair mumbled and let out little giggles as he finished the statements. However, a few moments later, Alistair plastered a serious stare at me as if I’ve done something to offend him, but then, he exhaled one deep breath before he spoke once more, “I’ll go back to the venue before anyone might see us. You should also prepare quickly since the party will soon get started anytime.”

“I will,” I shortly replied; thus, Alistair went out of the makeup and preparation room. It then crossed my mind, the moment when we finally got together after being mere close to one another. “Alistair,” I whispered his name while my eyes were all set on the vanity mirror. It all started that night... that one bloody night where Jenn was drunk as hell as if he had totally lost his sanity, and he almost forced himself on me, to do such a grave thing that was against my will.

Since I was staying at their mansion on the same day we visited the old chairman, not a day has passed of which Jenn hasn’t come home drunk. He seemed as if he had been devastated to a risky point where he brought every random girl that he could take from a club. It was also hard for me to take in and simply watch them have sex every moment I stepped out of the guest room to get a glass of my milk. However, that particular night, Jenn hasn’t brought a girl or whatsoever since he went home simply in a hard drunken state.

Jenn knew that I’m not into sex, which is one reason why he showered all of his desires to the other women. That night, he almost lost control—no, he actually did. Good thing that Alistair was there and immediately caught us in the kitchen before Jenn could ever do something to me. Alistair was furious with him for what he has done, but Jenn, on the other hand, hasn't remembered anything at all! Absurd, right?

Ever since that traumatizing night, Alistair drew closer to me, with a fear of Jenn doing it again when he’s not around and such. Fortunately, it didn’t happen anymore, but instead, one profound connection between Alistair and I was developed, without Jenn even knowing it. Thus, a fire soon sparked between us and so, we have a relationship in secret that has gone now for three weeks. Despite the engagement of Jenn and I, Alistair wished our relationship to continue, and so did I.

Yes, we’re in a relationship, and apparently, Alistair is not gay.

“Matilda! Matilda! What the heck is taking you for so long?” A familiar masculine voice, Jenn’s baritone, I supposed, shouted from the other side of the door. He soon banged it open, which then made me shriek as he got inside without a key or anything that he could use to take that door down. “Aren’t you done with those tints and powders? Your face wouldn’t change, anyway. What’s the use of those when I have seen you barefaced already?”

My eyes glared at him before I glanced back at my reflection in the mirror and muttered, “Have you ever had a sense of fashion and personal care? Don’t stick up your nose on everything that I do and focus on yourself, alright? In fact, my makeup’s none of your own damn business, so stay out of it.”

Jeez, I finally fought back.

“Fine, then. Do hurry up, the chairman has now arrived, and yet, you haven’t finished a simple makeup,” Jenn hissed, which pressured me all out. “I’ll give you three extra minutes and nothing more, nothing less. If you haven’t reached the main venue, then I will postpone the engagement, and in that case, the chairman will surely know that it’s you who made such a delay of schedule.”

A playful smirk then crept to his lips not long after, thus, instead of putting a lot of hues and powders on my face, I removed the towel from my body which revealed my curves for Jenn’s eyes to wander off. Although, I was wearing my undies, of course. I instantly wiped my overly-powdered makeup for I haven’t tried such heavy-based makeup at all. Afterward, I applied my cherry red lip gloss in one swipe. I also added little colors to my upper eyelids before I noticed Jenn’s statue figure right beside me.

“What are you doing? Entertain the guest while I’m preparing, you dumbass!” I growled at him, though, Jenn had uttered no response at all for he’s all eyes on my waist, then down to my slim, creamy legs. “What the hell? Out! Get out! Jenn, you’re making me a little uncomfortable right now.”

“Shh,” Jenn hushed and yet, his eyes weren’t on my face but on my body instead, “Let me wait for you. Oh, and why don’t we skip the engagement and straight up to our honeymoon, hmm?”

I turned to him and attempted to punch off his grin from his facial expression, but my fist paused mid-way toward his face. Only a few centimeters of its distance in between. “Do you want to die?” I spat directly at his face. “Should I kill you before the party begins, huh?”

“In that case, I would gladly accept the punishment, my love,” Jenn suddenly spoke in a foreign language, in Italian, maybe. I merely furrowed my brows and maintained my threatening aura since I couldn’t understand his statement, until he talked back again, now in English. “I will wait outside the door, so hurry. Oh, and don’t even think that I have not noticed you starting to counter back and act brave towards me.”

Afterward, Jenn did leave the makeup room, although the door seemed like it couldn’t be helped.