I made my way to our table but when I arrived there was a person sitting on the seat next to me.

A person who didn’t belong there.

I hesitated for a moment but then I straightened up and kept walking towards our table. It was like Celia said, I wouldn’t run from my problems any longer.

When he saw me coming he looked up and for a second he froze.

“You look beautiful.”, he said, and my hair started to flutter a little, but I ignored it.

“Damien. What are you doing here?”, I asked and crossed my arms after I had put down the drinks on the table.

He shrugged, then he grinned.

“I am sitting here.”, he answered, and I wanted to slap him. How could he just stand here and act like nothing happened?

“No, you don’t. Not unless your name is Arthur McKagen.”, I said dryly, and he smirked a little.

“This is my nameplate. I sit here.”, he repeated, and I peaked at the nameplate in front of him. He was right. That was definitely his name. I put my hands on my hips.

“You changed the nameplates?”, I asked in disbelief and snorted when he just shrugged.

“I am sure Arthur doesn’t mind.”

“Well, but I mind. Because he was my seatmate and I would really love to meet him.”, I said stubbornly but he just chuckled. His laugh made me furious.

It was like he wasn’t even taking me seriously.

“He is pretty boring, old and senile. And he needs hearing aid, but he won’t admit it so it’s hard to have a serious conversation with him, or any conversation at all.”, he took a sip of his drink.

I didn’t know what it was, but it was a golden-brown liquid.

Maybe whiskey or scotch. Whatever it was, I hoped he would choke on it but unfortunately he didn’t.

I gritted my teeth.

“I don’t care. I am sure he is really nice, and I would rather sit next anyone besides you.”

For the first time his smile faded.

“I know you are mad, but I need to talk to you and-”

He didn’t get a chance to tell me what else it was that he wanted because the rest of the Black family returned to the table with full plates in their hands.

“Damien, what are you doing here, sweetheart? I thought you were sitting with Talia?”, Mrs Black asked and Damien’s gaze darkened a little but then he smiled again.

“I am not sure she wants to see me right now. She is sort of mad at me.”

Clary raised an eyebrow while she put two overly crammed plates on the table, that could have probably fed an entire football team.

She took her drink from the table.

“And why is that?”, she asked ironically before she took a sip of her drink.

“I broke up with her.”

Clary choked on her cocktail and Mrs Black started patting her back. I just stared at him in disbelief.

Mr Black was the only one who managed to keep a straight face. He just sat down and leaned back on his chair, but I could have sworn I saw the corners of his mouth turn up a little.

“That is great honey. She wasn’t good for you.”, Mrs Black said a little perplex and Clary started choking again but this time on her laugh.

Damien rolled his eyes.

“Oh wow. A little less sympathy, please.”, he snorted ironically.

Mrs Black shrugged.

“I told you I never liked her. She doesn’t have very good manners.”

I almost laughed a little, but I was able to hold it back, unlike Clary.

But after nobody said anything for a while the whole situation was starting to get weird. Damien turned around and looked at me.

His intense gaze made a shiver go down my spine. For a few seconds I was stunned by his blue eyes again and for the first time I realized that my dress had the exact same color as his eyes, a mixture between deep ocean and icy blue.

Fascinating.

Maybe that was why I had loved the dress so much. But then the moment was over, and I turned away.

“I am going to get some food.”, I announced and quickly left the table, but my heart was racing, and I didn’t even know why.

This was a mess.

I was a mess.

I knew it was stupid but when he had told us he broke up with Talia my tummy had started tingling again.

Why would he break up with her? It couldn’t be because of me. And even if it were, he was still an idiot.

I pushed the thought of him aside and grabbed a plate. I hadn’t even realized how hungry I had been until I smelled the beguiling fragrances of steak and chicken. I didn’t take as much food as Clary, but it was still way too much for me to finish it all.

The huge variety of foods and drinks was amazing and there were at least 8 different sorts of pasta that all looked so good that I was tempted to try each and every one of them.

When I came back to the table a waitress was taking some drink orders and to my surprise Damien was gone.

Instead of him there was now an old man sitting on the chair next to mine. I looked at Clary a little perplex.

She grinned and got up.

“I made sure the manager took care of this little mix-up. Unfortunately, he asked Damien to return to his former seat.”

I bit my lip trying to hide my amusement.

Damien must have been so mad. But I was so relieved he was gone. Sitting here, next to him, would have been hell.

“I didn’t want you to have to stuck with him for the next two hours.”

I squeezed her hand.

“Thank you.”

She smiled and then we both sat down again. I really wanted to see how he had to sit next to Talia and her family after just breaking up with her. I smiled spitefully and when I looked at Clary I knew she was feeling the same way. Suddenly I felt a hand on my knee, and I spun around to the guy next to me.

“Hello dear. I am Arthur McKagen. What is your name?”, he asked, and I turned around to the grey haired man.

His skin was wrinkly, almost like crumpled parchment. He had to be over 85, if not 90.

“Uhm… I am Allison Jacobs.”, I replied a little perplex.

He shook his head and leaned closer.

“What?”, he asked and I almost flinched when he basically screamed into my ear.

“Allison Jacobs.”, I repeated a little louder and flushed when everybody else at the table looked at us. Clary giggled.

“Madison Franklins? It is so nice to meet you. You look very beautiful. Maybe you want to dance sometime?”

I flushed even harder.

Was he trying to hit on me? Damien hadn’t been kidding when he had said this guy was senile.

Now Clary couldn’t hold back her laughter anymore and everyone else, including the elderly couple at our table, grinned a little.

Everyone except for Mrs Black. She shot me a pitiful gaze which I really appreciated.

I turned back to Mr McKagen and smiled politely before I pointed at my plate and started shoving food into my mouth before he could get the idea of trying to do small talk again.

Finally, he lifted his hand off my leg and exhaled relieved.

Except for Mr McKagen, the dinner was quite fun.

Clary and I talked and laughed a lot and ate even more so that I was glad I wasn’t wearing a bodycon dress because the light, flowing skirt gave me room to breathe.

After everyone had finished dessert and there was a little break for the guests to move around and for the staff to remove the leftover food from the tables. The only things that remained were smaller snacks and the drinks.

After the short break, the auction began.

It was just as boring as Clary had told me.

It took almost 2 hours and the objects got more and more expensive.

The items sold were of very large variety, from vouchers for exclusive restaurants, to entire trips, to expensive bottles of wines, paintings and even cars.

After only 15 minutes I stopped listening and just sipped on my cocktail. Besides the drinks and candles the tables had been cleared by the waiters. Clary seemed to be similarly bored.

Her parents had purchased a few objects of which I didn’t know what they were. I would just ask them later.

After the auction was finally coming to an end and a few people, including someone from the National Children’s fund, gave speeches that I didn’t really pay attention to either. I was busy thinking about Damien and about him breaking up with Talia.

And about what he had wanted to talk to me about.

He was just so contradictory.

First he told me to keep away from him and now he was coming and even switching his nameplate with somebody else’s to sit next to me.

And then I thought about why everyone kept telling me that he didn’t mean what he said.

It didn’t make sense. None of it.

I finished the third cocktail that Clary had ordered for me and got up.

People were leaving their tables again and spreading throughout the room.

Some, most actually, were heading towards the bar or the buffet table with multiple large punch bowls and some were forming little groups and started chatting with each other.

When I checked my phone, it was almost half past nine. Clary and I went over to the bar and while she got another drink, I took a small plate with a piece of pie and a silver fork from the tray the waiters were walking around with.

It was really good and the way it was draped on the plate with eatable flowers and handmade chocolate stars, made me almost sad because I had to destroy this piece of art.

“I talked to my parents and they are probably going to leave soon. They have been to these sorts of galas way too many times. But they will send someone to pick us up later.”, she explained, and I nodded when I saw Jared walking in our direction.

When he saw us, he smiled and waved. I looked back to Clary who was stiffening a little.

“Good evening ladies. You look really great.”, he complimented both us with a charming smile, but he really was only looking at Clary.

But of course, she couldn’t see that because she was looking at cocktail like it was the most interesting thing she had ever seen before.

I rammed my elbow into her ribs, and she shot me a dark look.

“I need to go to the restroom.”, I claimed and stood up.

Clary’s eyes widened.

“No, you don’t. You can’t just leave me here.”, she whispered so that only I could hear it.

I grinned.

“This was supposed to be a girl’s night. No guys, remember?”, she asked quietly and raised an eyebrow.

“We will make up for it next weekend. I promised Celia I would go out with her and you are more than welcome to come.”

Just because my love life wasn’t going too well, didn’t mean Clary had to be just miserable as I was.

She frowned a little and hesitated.

“Are you sure?”, she asked, and I nodded.

“Go get em tiger.”, I giggled, and she flushed a little.

We both turned back to a seemingly confused Jared.

“Where is Tamara?”, Clary asked, and he tilted his head a little to the right.

“Who?”, he asked but then he remembered.

“Oh! We broke up a few days ago. I had to tell her like a hundred times before she got it. She isn’t very … bright, if you know what I mean.”, he said with a boyish grin.

Clary pursed her lips, but I rammed by elbow in her side again.

“I really need to go. But I’ll be back later.”, I said, and before Clary could say anything I gave her and Jared a bright smile and turned around to leave.