Chapter Seven – Work Perks

Parker and I were on our way out of maths when I noticed Holden leaning against the wall of the corridor. He noticed me too and got off, making his way towards us. "Tickets," was all he said. I had initially planned on hopefully going with Bonnie, Elaine or some of the other girls, but having a date didn't sound too bad – even if it was a fake date.

I nearly passed out then and there when I saw the ticket pricing. One hundred and fifty dollars. For a school dance. At my old school, tickets were about twenty bucks, and even then, hardly anyone wanted to go.

Even though class had only been out for about five minutes, the line was already making its way across the yard. "I hate lines," Holden complained. "Don't you know Yvette? She's on the committee," he asked, gesturing to a girl sitting at the table.

"Are you serious?" Parker groaned. Holden didn't waver. "Fine."

We went around the back of the line and walked right past the queue of disappointed and irritated faces. "Won't people get pissed that we're cutting the line?" I whispered, noticing the stares.

"Seriously?" Holden asked.

"I'm sure no one will mind," Parker replied.

Bonnie hadn't been kidding when she mentioned that these kids had a lot of pull around there. Queuing in lines was obviously something the top four didn't do, because when we got to the front, Stephanie and some of her friends were already there, as was Logan.

Instinctively, I took a step behind Holden and hoped that Logan couldn't remember my face. After all, it was dark, and I had makeup on that night.

"Hey Yvette," Parker said.

"Parker," she grinned, her pearly whites nearly blinding me. "Let me guess, line too long for you?"

"You know me too well," he laughed.

"And how many do you need, Holden?" Yvette asked.

"Two," he replied.

"Oh yeah! I heard." She turned to face me. "Hey, I hear you've tamed Holden – even got him to give you his jersey," she grinned. I smiled weakly. "I'm Yvette, glad to finally meet the famous girl."

"It's good to meet you too. I'm Daisy," I replied.

"You guys are adorable!" She chirped. Whoever had decided to put this girl on the committee had made the right decision. She could sell ice to an eskimo. "So, two, Holden?" She confirmed.

"No, let me pay for my own," I insisted.

"Don't worry about it, he's loaded," Parker said.

"Still, I can pay for my own ticket," I said.

"Too late," Holden sang, handing over the money.

"What, are you just going to pay for everything I buy now?" I asked as we were walking away.

"Perk of the position," Holden said.

"Seriously, I don't even know why you're going along with this." He and Parker exchanged looks momentarily and Holden took a deep breath in.

"Well, isn't it fun?" He grinned.

"Are you a psychopath?"

He laughed.

--

I got to Holden's house half an hour early, having not gotten lost along the way. The doorman let me in and I wandered the empty hall before reaching the kitchen. I stood next to the marble tabletop and set out the copper wire when a series of clicks came down the marble staircase.

"Oh, hello there," a woman greeted. "Didn't Samuel get you a drink?" She smiled, gesturing to the doorman. So that was his name. I didn't know if it was normal, but wearing a black floor length gown seemed a bit formal for hanging around a house. Her blonde hair was done up into a loose bun.

"Mum!" Came the high pitched call. A little boy came running down after her in a little black tuxedo. He looked awfully familiar.

"Fox! Where is your dad?" She asked, picking the little boy up and squeezing his nose. He giggled. That was a name I would never forget. He was the kid I'd seen running around at Pemberton.

That was when I realised I'd been staring at them without saying anything. "Oh, I'm Daisy, Holden's friend?" I said. "I'm just here to work on our assignment."

"Daisy! Oh yes, Holden has mentioned you. Friend? No need to be shy? I know about you two," she smiled. "I'm just so glad to see that he's gotten over – "

"Mum!" Holden exclaimed, quickening his pace down the stairs. "I see you've met Daisy," he grinned.

"Oh yes, but we might have to finish off introductions another day. Your dad and I are late for the gala." She glanced at the diamond studded watch around her wrist. "Thirty minutes late. Oh well, fashionably late right?" She chuckled.

"Do you need me to watch Fox?" Holden asked.

"No, it's fine. He's coming with us tonight."

"Yay!" The little boy cheered.

Holden went over to carry his little brother on top of his shoulders. Fox kept a sturdy grip on Holden's head, chuckling with glee. The two boys were similar enough to be passed off as the same person at different ages. They both had the same golden blonde hair and light green eyes they had obviously inherited from their mother.

"This is Daisy, say hello," Holden said to his brother.

"Hello Daaaaaisy!" Fox beamed.

"Hello!" I replied, not knowing what else to say to such a small child.

"Ok, we should go," a man – who I assumed was Holden's dad – said, coming down the stairs.

"Dad, this is Daisy," Holden said. Who knew I'd reached the 'meet the parents' stage already? He came down the stairs and walked over to me.

"Hi Daisy, keeping Holden in line?" He joked. "I'm his dad, Patrick." He held out his hand

"Nice to meet you," I replied, shaking his hand.

"Madam, Sir, the car is ready," Samuel said.

"We'll be out in a moment," Holden's mum replied. Holden let Fox back down and the three went out the door to the car that was waiting for them. We waved as they drove off.

"Meet the parents? Are you serious?" I asked as soon as we were alone.

"I take these things very seriously," he replied.

It made me wonder what his mum was about to tell me before he came down the stairs. If there was a girl, everyone at the school would've known about it. They were on the top four like fly on stink.

Holden switched the TV on, about to connect his laptop so we could watch a video about the motor when a news report caught our attention.

"Arthur Lennox, CEO of Lennox Industries has been taken into custody this evening after allegations of insider trading," the reporter said. Camera flashes were going off in the background as a handcuffed man was led outside, his face covered by a suit jacket. In the background was a mansion, and in the corner, pushing away reporters was Parker.

"Oh God," was all that managed to leave Holden's mouth.

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As promised, an update on Saturday! Well, I'm sure it's still Saturday somewhere in the world hehe

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