Chapter 24

Calm. Tranquil. Relieved. That's how Aurora felt that morning, awakened by her actions from the previous night. She was proud of herself, convinced that she had done the right thing by dismissing Tristan, and she didn't regret it. She thought that by letting him go, he would straighten up and not seek her again.

And once again, she had let herself be deceived.

Confused and bewildered. That's how she felt upon receiving the blue gem necklace.

Why had that arrogant man bought the necklace? What did he intend to do with it? Was it a way to apologize? No. It shouldn't be. He had the ability to be completely cold and proud.

"Don't tell anyone about this," she warned the old lady, putting the velvet box with the necklace into her bag.

"But I'm an elderly lady. As you said yourself, my age affects my memory. I might let it slip," the old woman replied.

"How much do you want?" Aurora questioned, as if she had read the manipulative old lady's mind. Finally, she handed over the money she would have used to buy her coffee that morning. "While we're talking, I want you to get the lock on my apartment changed. And never give a key to Mr. Arrogant again."

"Mr. Arrogant? Are you talking about the man from the corner? He found out he was being cheated on by his fiancée last week. The two of them made a scene in the middle of the street!" the old lady said, bored. "But as far as I remember, I never gave him your key."

"I'm talking about Tristan," Aurora replied.

"Tristan Callahan?!" exclaimed the old lady, bringing her white, wrinkled hands to her lightly pink-painted mouth, showing astonishment.

"Just take the money and do what I asked," Aurora ordered.

The old lady took the bill and checked it to make sure it was genuine. Finally, she forced a half-cynical smile and gave a nod.

"Have a good day, Miss Aurora!"

Aurora didn't return the "kindness" and walked out of the building with strong, quick steps. Her good mood had disappeared. Besides Tristan's ridiculous mind games, it was her second consecutive day without caffeine, which was driving her crazy.

To distract her mind a bit, she headed to the park in the center of her small neighborhood and sat on a bench. At that time, there were many uniformed children heading to the school just two blocks away. Aurora took out her headphones and connected them to her phone. She wanted to calm down, and there was nothing better than listening to music. But it was in vain. She realized that only one of the earbuds was working.

"Seriously?! I've only had this damn headphone for a month!" she exclaimed, irritated.

"Stressful morning?" spoke a familiar male voice near her ear.

She turned her head slightly and smiled when she saw Alexander so close to her face, displaying a big smile.

"Something like that," Aurora replied.

"What happened?" Alex asked, sitting beside her.

"Just trivial things, nothing of much importance," she simplified her motivations, even though it wasn't true. She didn't want to tell him about Tristan. She felt that the secret was hers alone.

"Is it related to that guy you met at the club?" he referred to Klaus. His expression suddenly tensed.

"His name is Klaus. And no, he has nothing to do with it."

"Are you just friends?" Alex asked.

She didn't know what to answer. Were they just friends, or was there something more between them?

Aurora had asked herself that question before, but over time, she set it aside and remembered what Klaus always used to say: "What's the need for labels?"

"Technically, yes," Aurora replied. "He can be a bit crazy, but he's nice." She smiled slightly. "To be honest, I'm a bit bored. I don't have work today, and, as you know, I dropped out of college."

"When do your classes start?" Alex asked.

"In a few months," Aurora replied.

"So, you're free all day?" Alex inquired. She nodded. "I was heading to the broadcasting station right now. Do you want to come with me?"

"Are you serious?" Aurora exclaimed excitedly. "Of course, I'll go, but are you sure I'll be allowed in?"

"I'll make it work. I'm sure you'll like it there. They give out free coffee every morning," Alex said.

Her subconscious screamed with joy.

"Then let's go to the broadcasting station right away!" Aurora got up, pulling Alex towards the subway. He laughed at her enthusiasm.

***

Meanwhile...

Working in such a popular restaurant wasn't easy. Reservations would fill up in the blink of an eye, some people waited outside for a table to open up, and the waiters rushed back and forth, but the real hustle was in the kitchen.

However, on that day, by some miracle, everything was calm. The staff worked without haste, and no one was begging for a table because they had forgotten to make a reservation.

"Table eight," Adelaide said, handing a tray to a waiter who promptly left the kitchen.

She sighed, savoring the tranquility. Adelaide took advantage of the free time to check her phone. Upon seeing Griffin's missed call, she immediately called back, feeling a bit nervous.

"I thought you were ignoring me," Griffin joked, but she didn't catch his irony.

"I... I wasn't. I swear I only saw the missed call now," Adelaide replied, interrupted by the doctor's genuine laughter.

"I'm kidding," Griffin said. Adelaide smiled. She loved the sound of his laughter. "How are you?"

"I'm good. The restaurant is reasonably busy, so I have a few minutes of free time," Adelaide answered.

"What are you doing on Saturday night?" Griffin asked.

"I have a date with my usual partners," Adelaide replied.

"Usual partners?" He seemed confused and a bit jealous.

"Soap operas and snacks," Adelaide replied.

The doctor laughed on the other end of the line and played along. "Can't you cancel?"

"I bet they would be very hurt if I did that," Adelaide said. Both of them couldn't resist and started laughing. "What's your proposal?"

"The hospital staff is having an award ceremony on Saturday at the Palace Hotel. I'm nominated in the 'best surgeon' category. I wanted to know if you'd like to be my date," Griffin proposed.

"I'd love to," Adelaide replied, smiling, but feeling a bit insecure. "Are you sure you want to go with me? I bet there will be a lot of fancy people there."

"I'm absolutely sure. You're beautiful," Griffin responded. Even without seeing the girl's face, he was certain she was blushing. "I want to see you wearing the shoes I gave you as a gift."

"Oh, yes! I almost forgot to thank you," Adelaide said, lightly tapping her own head. "Thank you so much for them. They're really beautiful."

"So, is that a 'yes,' princess?" Griffin asked.

She bit her lower lip. If there was something she loved even more than his laughter, it was when he called her princess.

"Yes. I accept," Adelaide replied.

She couldn't say goodbye to the doctor. The head chef had taken her phone and ended the call. Adelaide pouted in frustration at what happened.

"No cell phones during work," Kai warned, returning the device and walking away.

She went back to work, now thinking about how to get a beautiful dress to attend that party.

***

Days later...

Adelaide and Aurora scoured the stores at the mall from top to bottom, looking for a beautiful yet cheap dress. They had already spent about two hours going back and forth. Adelaide was starting to get desperate. She knew the award ceremony was very important to Griffin, and she didn't want to go just any way and embarrass him.

"Calm down, sis!" Aurora said while they had milkshakes at the food court.

"I think I'm going to tell Griffin that I can't accompany him," Adelaide sighed sadly.

"I won't let you make such a mistake! What are you thinking? That hot doctors just fall from the sky?" Aurora replied.

"But all the dresses are out of our price range."

"I already told you not to worry. I asked for help from two friends, and I guarantee you'll leave here with a wonderful dress in your hands."

"Who are these friends?" Adelaide asked, raising an eyebrow.

"One of them just arrived," Aurora said, looking over Adelaide's shoulder and waving to get the man's attention. "His name is Klaus. He's bisexual, but don't call him that."

"Hi, beautiful!" Klaus greeted, putting his arm around Aurora's neck. He looked at Adelaide and smiled slightly seductive. "You must be Adelaide."

"Yes, nice to meet you," Adelaide replied, smiling shyly.

"My other friend is the owner of the store where we'll buy your dress. Let's go meet him," Aurora said. They started walking slowly towards the store.

"Your sister is very beautiful," Klaus said, speaking close to Adelaide's ear as he looked her up and down.

"Get your eyes off her, you flirt!" Aurora exclaimed, giving Klaus's arm a light tap, causing him to grimace in pain.

In a few minutes, the three entered the store, and Adelaide's jaw dropped. It was a very expensive store, frequented only by girls from wealthy backgrounds. She only believed that her sister was friends with the owner when she saw them hugging.

"I haven't seen you in such a long time!" Thomas said, breaking the hug and looking at Adelaide curiously. "Now tell me how it went with..."

Quickly, Aurora covered his mouth and smiled awkwardly at Adelaide.

"What are you talking about?" Adelaide asked.

"Nothing important. Klaus, help her pick a dress!" Aurora said.

"But these dresses must be very expensive..." Adelaide said.

"I'll give you a discount because your sister is my friend!" Thomas said, getting rid of Aurora's hand and smiling at the older sister. After Adelaide and Klaus moved away, he turned to the young girl. "Okay, seriously now. I'll give you a discount if you tell me everything that happened between you and Tan. Service in exchange for information!"

"Alright, but keep your mouth shut! Adelaide can't know," Aurora replied.

They sat in the area where they did manicures for many first-class women. Aurora recounted the tiniest details of what happened between her and Mr. Arrogant. Thomas was visibly shocked.

"You rejected him?!" He shouted so loudly that people around them looked at them strangely.

"Yes, but keep it down. People are looking," Aurora whispered.

"Who in their right mind rejects Tristan Callahan?" Thomas asked, this time in a low tone.

"I do," Aurora replied.

"So you're an idiot!" Thomas scoffed, making the lock of hair that was on his face fly away. "Oh, if I had a man like that..."

"Would you be willing to give up the unforgettable experience of building a family to be with him, someone who only thinks of himself?" Aurora questioned.

"Of course. At least I'd have a great night of sex," Thomas replied.

"He's good at that," Aurora agreed. "And there's also this necklace..." She pulled the chain, showing the blue stone that had been hidden inside her shirt before. "Tristan bought it for me and had an old lady deliver it to me this morning. I don't know what it means."

"Besides being an idiot, you're also naive?" Thomas exclaimed. Aurora sighed deeply, hating the insults. "Friend, it's obvious that he gave you that necklace to soften your heart! And he'll keep giving you gifts until he gets another hookup."

"Do you really think so?" Aurora asked, confused.

"Of course! Men always do that, especially the rich ones. Now imagine Tristan, who besides being a millionaire, seems to be in heat all the time," Thomas commented. They both laughed, but Aurora was still confused, not about Tristan's intentions, which now seemed much clearer, but about what she would do to put an end to it.

"What do you think I should do?" Aurora asked.

"I think you should keep playing hard to get. Who knows, maybe he'll give you a car?" Thomas suggested.

Again, they laughed. Thomas might not be the best person to give advice, but he was the best at lifting their spirits.

They spent a good amount of time in the store, and finally, Adelaide found a beautiful dress. It was entirely blue, long, and had sparkling stones on the bust.

Aurora smiled as she saw Adelaide excitedly going to the counter with the dress in her hands. Adelaide had always been busy and rarely had time for herself. She worked overtime at the restaurant every week to pay the bills or buy food and household necessities. She didn't spend money on makeup, and she didn't care much about her appearance, but now she had the opportunity to live a fairy tale. For one night, she would stop being the Cinderella and become a princess.

"Aurora?" called a familiar voice, and the young woman quickly looked in the direction of the owner of that voice, which unfortunately was familiar.

"Violet..." Aurora murmured, and then her eyes fixed on the woman with sunglasses next to Violet. The redhead frowned, trying to remember her name. "Genevieve?"

Genevieve lifted her head with an expression of superiority. She knew very well who Aurora was and didn't like her one bit. Besides being the only one with the freedom to come and go from Callahan's whenever she wanted, her name was mentioned by Tristan every day.

"Do you know my sister?" asked Violet, surprised by the encounter.

Aurora widened her eyes, completely surprised.

"The snake and the cow are sisters?!" thought Aurora.

"We've bumped into each other a few times," replied Genevieve, speaking up for the first time.

"By the way, what are you doing here?" asked Violet.

"The store is public," replied Aurora.

"But only upper-class people shop here," retorted Violet, crossing her arms. "You must have come to ask for a job. Too bad it was a waste of time. They would never hire a brat like you."

"Gosh! I can see the venom dripping from the corner of your mouth," Klaus intervened in the argument. "Aurora, are you going to let them talk to you like this?"

"I won't even waste my time," replied Aurora, shrugging, ready to go after Adelaide. However, Thomas' attitude made her stay.

"Aurora doesn't even need arguments to walk all over these two, including Genevieve, who never managed to get a second night with Tan," Thomas teased.

"What?" exclaimed Genevieve, taking off her sunglasses and glaring at Aurora. "What are you insinuating?"

"Don't you know the bombshell?" Thomas smiled mischievously. "I don't know what Aurora did, but she managed to win Tristan's cold heart."

"Thomas!" reprimanded Aurora, while Klaus watched the scene very entertained.

"You're lying," said Genevieve, agitated. Deep down, she knew it was true, but she refused to admit it out loud. "You must have been the one chasing after him."

"I don't chase after men," asserted Aurora.

"No?" Violet's tone was doubtful. "In college, you followed Alex around like a puppy."

With her blood boiling with anger, Aurora jumped on her, making both of them fall to the ground. Violet screamed as she received hair pulls, and soon, people gathered to watch the fight. Genevieve was the only one who tried to separate them but ended up being pulled by her hair by Aurora.

"Send me this video later," Thomas asked Klaus, who was recording with his phone.

"Sure. This video is going to go viral on the internet!" Klaus replied, as they both laughed, watching their friend take down the two sisters.

"She's on fire!" commented Thomas.

"Yeah, she's on fire!" agreed Klaus.