Chapter 3

"The little things? The little moments? They aren't little."

-Jon Kabat Zinn-

***

It was the day of the family gathering, Vian was preparing herself for the party since early in the morning, she had reconfirmed everything to the event organizer and knew it was all perfect and ready. The first thing on her plan that day was heading to the salon, she needed to get her hair done and she also needed to do some quick skin treatment to make sure she was glowing for the evening.

She could have done her makeup on her own so that was not a necessary part but she also needed to head over to the boutique to pick up her custom made gown for the day. It was fair to say her day would be extremely busy.

She could not do everything on her own so she made sure Adonis came to tag along with her. He was the one driving since she had to hold her phone quite a lot that morning. The whole ride was pretty quiet, she paid not much attention to him and he did not want to disturb her. Once they arrived to the salon which she often went to, she immediately asked for the hairstylist who always did her hair whenever she was there and the two had developed mutual trust and professional friendship.

She refused to get her hair done by anyone else but him because of how good he was. The silver haired man came out from behind the door and looked cheerful to meet her. They had a cheek on cheek kiss as he asked her how she was doing and all the small pre-treatment chit-chats. The man was gay and everyone knew it so there was no jealousy within Adonis when he saw it, but he did feel a bit awkward being there.

Not just because he did not know what to do, but because he could feel the female staffs staring at him with some sort of strange desire in their eyes.

It was a usual thing for him, wherever he went there would be some girls and women who paid him attention, it was not even rare for him to get some money offer from wealthy cougars who wanted to take him in as a side lover. He knew he was physically attractive but he was not a male prostitute so he always rejected them. Even if he had no money, he still had his dignity and integrity. He could do modelling but he never felt good and comfortable posing in front of the camera. It just was not a profession for him.

He really did not know what to do so he took a seat in the waiting room instead, but Vian quickly noticed this and went up to him. She turned her face to the female staff who took the booking order and told her to add one more facial treatment to the bill for him. Adonis was quite shocked, she took her hand and asked her what she was doing.

“It’s better than waiting and it will make you glow. I can’t have my husband come to the party looking all dull and lifeless.” She smiled briefly at him before the hairstylist called her. She took a seat to get her hair done while a female staff in charge of the facial called him to get his treatment done.

Adonis had never experienced facial before in his life so he felt a bit strange doing it but admittedly it was not a bad feeling. After getting her hair done she also got a bit of facial treatment, they made sure not to ruin her freshly done hair and by the time she was done, Adonis had waited for her in the waiting room. She paid and bid adieu to the staff until her next visit and went back to the car.

“So how was your first facial experience?” She asked him out of nowhere. He was a bit startled when she started the conversation instead of holding on to her phone like usual. A small smile escaped his lips as he answered.

“Well, I guess it was nice. I have never felt anything like that before. It’s different but I like it.” Vian could not hold back her chuckle when she heard his honest confession. Of course, she had guessed he would like it. Yes, it was just once in a while, but she was glad he could experience it.

“Good to hear, anyway we could not go back just yet, I still have to pick up the dress for tonight from the boutique, then I think we can go and have lunch before going back and get ready for the party. Oh yeah and we have to arrive there at five, so we need to be ready at half past four. Do you understand?” He nodded as he put on the GPS for the boutique location since he had never been there before. Fortunately, the traffic was not that bad that day and they could arrive a bit earlier than what they had predicted.

The boutique was one their family often visited and bought dresses from because they offered stylish and well-designed dresses made with high quality fabric. The place was also very clean and well organized, it was decorated in almost a vintage or Victorian style which made the place even more intriguing. You are automatically traveled back to the Victorian era whenever you stepped in there.

The owner was a sweet couple in their late fifties, she was a good friend of her grandmother and had been making dresses and suits for her family for years. Once she stepped in there she was greeted with a smile by the wife and co-owner of the place. The old lady gave her a small hug. Yes, apparently everyone besides her close family was friendly with her. Vian herself was quite sweet but she had to toughen up a bit when she was working or in the house. However, when it was time to relax or meet her friends or professional friends, she was a bit more at ease with herself.

“Your dress for today is ready, I am sure you will absolutely love it.” She led the two of them to a room where her dress was placed at the center. It was a peach pink gown with a bit of a tail. The top lining was embellished with Swarovski, the bottom part had two layers, the first was the silk material which would directly touched her skin and it was layered with a thicker, denser material which fell down beautifully when worn. It also had a bit of floral embroidery on the top part, not quite noticeable but there nonetheless.

“This is really stunning, such a beautiful shade and model. I love it, thank you.” The wife gestured to another female staff there to pack the dress right away. When the dress was packed, the wife turned her attention to Adonis.

“And who might this gentleman be?” she asked with curiosity. Vian told her he was her husband and the old lady was shocked. She had no idea that she was married already, there was no custom order for wedding dress which usually happened with The Sterling during their marriage nor did she receive any news or invitation, so it came as quite a surprise to her.

“Yes, we only held a small, private wedding, only family members and close friends were really there. But it’s true, I’m married now.” Vian almost looked a bit embarrassed hearing herself saying those words for some reason but the smile on the old lady’s face soon returned.

“Then have you found a suit for him yet?” He shook his head because truly he had no appropriate suit available in his closet. He did not really go to parties much even after their marriage so he was not truly prepared. The wife gasped and she quickly rushed to the suit section and went her fingers through some ready-made suits. It took a few seconds but then she picked out a navy suit with white shirt lining and a black tie to match it. She brought it back to him and asked him to try it out.

Adonis did not know what to do, but Vian encouraged him to do the same and led him to the changing room. She waited outside as he tried on the suit. A few minutes later he stepped out wearing it and it was probably the first time she had ever seen him wearing one. My god, did he look handsome. She did not know if it was the suit that gave a different impression but she could have sworn if she did not know better she would have thought he was some kind of wealthy CEO or finance guy from New York.

“I feel a bit odd in this, but it’s not bad. What do you think, Vian?” She waited a few seconds to process her own thoughts before walking over to him. With a smile on her face, she went to fix his crooked tie because clearly he had no idea how to wear it properly.

“You look really good, Adonis. The tie knot is a bit off though, here is how it’s supposed to be done.” She carefully redid it and made sure it was straight enough before putting in the pin to hold it in place. She also picked up the pocket square from inside the pocket which he did not even know existed and folded it properly before inserting it in his suit pocket.

The whole time as she did it he watched her in silence with a bit of warmth. Deep down he knew although there was no love inside her heart for him, she still showed care for him, who was basically a lost dog in the household. That alone made him able to stay. He was attracted to her since the first time he laid her eyes on her.

How could he not? She was one of the most beautiful human being he had ever seen, but that was not all to it, she was actually a very intelligent and hard working woman, yet somehow she managed to maintain her charm and femininity. She was detached and distance at times, but sometimes she showed subtle affectionate gesture like what she was doing. All he could do was to stare and thought about how lucky he was.

“Done, now why don’t you take a look at yourself in the mirror?” He shook his head.

“No, it is better for me to take a look at you.” Vian was stunned upon hearing his answer. She had no idea what had gotten into him but he was somehow more outgoing that day. Before she realized it, he pulled her in for a kiss.

My God, help me!