Sebastian carried two bags of goodies in his hand. Princess couldn't stop buying and buying, but he didn't complain. He bought everything she wanted.
He opened the backdoor of his car, and Princess hopped in. He placed the bags in the back seat with Princess and shut the door.Stephanie opened the door and hopped in before Sebastian could open up for her. She didn't want him to act like the perfect man the old woman claimed he was.Sebastian smiled widely and walked to the driver’s door. He opened the door and hopped in too. He ignited the engine, and he hit the road back to Manhattan.“Thank you, Sebastian. I enjoyed myself today.” Stephanie said with a beaming smile.“You don't have to thank me. You made my visit to the ice cream shop memorable. I can't leave my beautiful Princess out. Both of you made my day.”“And about it being the No.1 ice cream in New York...I think I agree with that. The banana split was amazing. I would love to have it every day.”“You can have it every day.” Sebastian looked at her, and she shook her head.“Nah... I'll pass.”They both busted into laughter, and Sebastian kept his eyes on the road.Stephanie looked at Princess and saw she was busy checking out the stuff in the nylon.“You have charmed her. Now, you would have to adopt her.”Sebastian looked at Princess through the interior mirror and saw her smiling cutely. He giggled and kept his gaze on the road again.“I wouldn't mind adopting her.”After about thirty minutes, Sebastian parked his car in front of Stephanie’s house. He switched off the engine and alighted. He walked to the back door and opened it.He pulled the bags of goodies to himself and waited for Princess to climb down. She jumped out of the car excitedly and ran to the porch.Stephanie also stepped out of the car and waited for Sebastian to walk closer to where she was.“I’ll have that.” She wanted to collect the bags from Sebastian, but he moved them away and shook his head.“I got it.” He proceeded to the porch, but Stephanie stood in front of him.“I insist, Sebastian. You have been doing everything yourself since you met us at the park. This is the least I can do.”She held the bags and he let go of them.“Thank you.”“No... Thank you. I don't know how to thank you enough for everything. You have been the best.”Sebastian bowed his head in shyness and smiled.“Pay me back by going with me to the race tonight. I would be happy if you were there to watch me.”“Sure. I'd love to watch you.”An awkward silence set in as they both stared at each other. Stephanie looked away and gulped hard.“I should take my leave now. I'll pick you up at 8 pm.”“Okay. Bye.”Sebastian nodded and still didn't attempt to move. All of a sudden, he moved closer to her and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.“I’m sorry, but I have wanted to do that since morning.”Stephanie touched her cheeks in shock and divulged a feeble smile. He waved at her and walked to his car. He hopped in and ignited the engine. He looked at her through the glass, and he saw she was still staring blankly.He giggled and drove out of her sight.“Stephanie!! I need my bags!”Princess’s tiny voice jolted her out of her thoughts. She swallowed hard and turned to see Princess standing akimbo on the porch.“I’m coming!”She got into the house and dropped the bags on the center table.Her parents sat in the living room. They both had their gazes glued to newspapers.Stephanie knew they were pretending because her mother would never read newspapers. She despised it.“I’m home.”She said, shaking her head to see if they were going to pay her the slightest attention.“Welcome,” Sarah said without looking up, while Philip took a glance at her and kept reading.She heaved a sigh and headed to her room. She got into her room and met Mary lying on her bed. She had her PC in front of her.“Welcome home, Stephanie.”She looked at Stephanie with a straight face.“What’s up with you? You look like you fought with Mom again.”“She wouldn't stop disturbing me, I haven't even finished a chapter since morning.”Stephanie smiled and crashed into her bed.“You should have known her by now, Mary.”“It keeps getting worse! She had to sit me down and began telling me things that are none of my business.”“What things?”“She wants me to talk to you about Sebastian.”Stephanie scoffed and looked at the ceiling of her room.“I won't be seeing him anymore after today. Maybe then they would stop forcing me on him.”“Why do you want to stop seeing him?” Mary closed her PC and paid more attention to Stephanie.“I don't want to give him the impression that I see him as more than a friend. He is beginning to think I'm having feelings for him, and I’m not.”“I respect your decision, Sis. You need to make Mom understand that nothing is going to happen between you two. Maybe then she would stop bugging me.”“Tonight, I would tell him to stay away.”“Tonight? What is happening tonight?”“He invited me to a race. He is a car racer, and he wants me to watch him tonight. I said yes because I have always wanted to watch one and because that is the least I can do.”“Sounds cool. I can help you pick an outfit best for that.” Mary said excitedly, and Stephanie furrowed her brows.“Why are you so excited about it?”“It's the last time you would be seeing him. You should look nice.”“Hmm.” Stephanie rolled her eyes and sighed heavily.***Stephanie heard a horn in front of her house. Mary rushed to the window with Stephanie’s hairband in her hand.“It’s Sebastian. He is here.”Stephanie looked at her leather wristwatch and saw it was four minutes to 8 pm.“He is on time.”Mary rushed back to where Stephanie sat in front of the mirror and continued helping her pack her hair into a ponytail.She brushed her curly hair once more and packed the bun tightly with the hairband with her. She drew the edges of her hair and moisturized the curls with oil.“You are good to go,” Mary said proudly.Stephanie had no make-up on but she still looked very beautiful.She stood up and raised her hands to check out her outfit once more.She wore a black crop top and a black leather jacket. Underneath was a black cotton jogger and Nike Air Force sneakers. She carried a black Chanel crossbody bag.“You look amazing. You don't have to think about it.”“Thank you, Mary.”Stephanie planted a kiss on Mary’s cheek and rushed out of the room.She got to the living room and met Sarah setting up the table.“Mom, I am going out.”“Now? Dinner is ready. You should eat before...”“Mom, I'll eat when I get back okay? Tell Daddy I went out for me, please.”Stephanie rushed out of the house and ran down the porch to meet Sebastian.She saw him standing and resting on the body of his car. He was wearing a Red Bull jumpsuit and Micheal Jordan sneakers.“Wow... You look so... Great!” He uttered as soon as she got closer.He raised his eyebrows as he checked her out. She looked hotter than usual.“Thank you! You look chic too!”He laughed and nodded. He opened the door for her and she hopped in.He rushed to the other side of the car and hopped into the car too.“You came five minutes earlier.”“Yes. I love sticking to time.” He pulled his seatbelt, and he fixed it.“Really?” Stephanie asked, also fixing her seatbelt.“Yes. Don't worry as time goes on, you'll get to know more interesting things about me.”The smile on Stephanie’s face faded away slowly as she heard his statement.*If only he knew this would be the last time I would see him*Sebastian drove down to the Velocity driving race track. The race track had very full LED lights that covered the whole place. It was like daytime. Immediately the other racers saw him approaching, they began to yell and wave their hands. Sebastian giggled as he drove to them. “Why are they so excited?” Stephanie asked, grinning widely. “They are all my friends. I would do the same for any one of them.” “So you love each other so much even though you compete?” “Yes, Stephanie. There is no award for the winner. We race for fun.” They got to where his friends were and he parked the car with the other cars. Some of them wore jumpsuits and some wore casual sportswear. “Who is in the car with him?” Robbie, Sebastian’s very good friend, asked no one in particular. He narrowed his gaze as he watched them alight. They all raised their brows immediately and set their eyes on Stephanie. “Ooouuu... She is damn hot!” His male friends uttered, folding their hands in circles over their mouth
“How did you do that!” Robbie yelled, hitting Sebastian on the shoulders. “Do what?”“You overtook all of them in the twinkle of an eye! How I have to give all my money to her.” He pouted his mouth like a baby after he finished talking. “You placed a bet?” “Yes. She placed her bet on you, and I placed my bet on Tony. Unfortunately, you won and I have to give her all my cash.” Sebastian looked at Stephanie, and she smiled. “It was just for fun. You don't have to give me the money. I wasn’t going to release mine either, if he didn’t win.” “Thank you so much! Now I can have more cash for us to celebrate. So, where are we going tonight, Sebastian?” “You know where I would go after such an incredible race. You don’t have to ask me.” They both laughed, and Stephanie stared at them speechlessly. She had no idea what they were talking about. Robbie looked at Stephanie and saw she was lost in thoughts. “It’s the Old town bar, Stephanie. I still don’t understand why he is so old fashion
“Stephanie!” Stephanie kept running without looking back. She didn’t know why she ran, but she ran. She prayed everyday not to get reminded of Owen, but it seemed like the prayer was never answered. “Stephanie, please wait! You are running way too fast. I’m not a fast runner!” Sebastian panted as he kept running after her. She got to a turning and she stopped running, she held onto a brass pool and began to breathe hard. Sebastian ran faster, and he caught up with her. “Oh God, Stephanie. What was that about? Why did you run off like that?” He placed his hands on his legs, trying to catch his breath. “I want to go home, Sebastian. Take me home.” Her voice was shaky as she spoke. Sebastian looked at her face and saw she was in tears. He nodded his head slowly and held her hand. “Let’s go to the car.” They walked back to the car, still breathing very hard. They got to the car, and met Robbie standing next to it. “Where did you two fly to? What’s going on?” Robbie asked, as Sebas
Sebastian knocked on Robbie’s door and waited for him to open up. “Sebastian!” Robbie called, when he saw it was him, through the door-hole. He opened the door, and Sebastian walked in. He wasn’t looking good, and Robbie noticed it. “What’s up with you? Why are you looking grumpy?” Robbie asked and watched him slam into his couch.“Stephanie told me to stay away from her.” “What?!” Robbie raised his brows in surprise, and sat next to him, paying him rapt attention. “After she told me what happened with her ex-boyfriend, I couldn’t blame her for pushing me away.”“So you are just going to give up? Don’t you feel anything for her?” “I don’t know, Robbie. I feel good anytime I’m with her, but I’m not sure if it's Love . I’m confused.”“Okay, take it slow. Let’s keep that aside. Do you want to let her go?” Sebastian stared into space and shook his head. “No, I don’t. But I have to respect her decision, right?” “True. But you can’t just stay away because she asked you to. You shoul
Sebastian paced in his living room, waiting for Robbie to pick up his phone. “Where did you put your phone, dude!” He muttered. “Hey, Sebastian! Can you stop bothering my phone?” Robbie finally answered his phone. Sebastian had been calling his phone more than five times. “Don’t blame me! Your principle didn't work, okay?” “What do you mean by my principle didn't work? Please, don't tell me you have been bothering me because of Stephanie! Are you serious right now?! I'm in my working place, Sebastian.” “I’m sorry, okay? Will you at least listen to me?” He heard Robbie heave a sigh. “Fine. Tell me...” “So, I did as you told. I sent her flowers but, she is yet to respond.” “What did you expect, Sebastian? That she runs back to you and gives you a deep kiss for sending her flowers? C’mon, man. That is your first try. You need to keep trying.” “I don’t know, Robbie. What else should I do?” “I don’t know… maybe buy her shoes, clothes, and bags, or take her sister on a date.” Se
Princess’s mouth was filled with oysters. She paid little or no attention to Sebastian because she was engrossed in her chilled seafood tray. It was a big tray, and she had almost finished half of it. The people that sat around watched her in amusement. “Don’t tell me she is going to finish all of that?” They murmured. Sebastian was lost staring at her, to the extent that he forgot to eat his meal. After finishing the oyster in her mouth, she reached for the banana foster next to her tray, and she scooped some of them. She moved the spoon to her mouth and smiled widely. She looked up and saw Sebastian staring at her. “I’m full.” Sebastian looked at her tray, and he saw she had eaten only half of what was on it. She also took only half of her dessert. “Of course, you should be filled. How was it?” He asked, and she grinned, revealing her white, fragile set of teeth. “I love it! The tray was too big, and I grew tired of eating.” Sebastian raised his brows and laughed. “So why
Stephanie got into the living room, and when she saw the bags at the door, she furrowed her brows. “What are these?” She approached Mary, and Mary picked up a bag and looked into it. “They look like gifts,” Mary teased. She looked at Stephanie and saw she wasn't in the mood for jokes. “Where did they come from?” Mary sighed and dropped the bag she picked with the others. “You know where they are from, Stephanie. Who else would they be from if not Sebastian?” Stephanie ran her hand through her hair in frustration. She searched for the right words to say, but she went blank. “Stephanie, please stop being dramatic. He wants you to be happy, that's all. Come and check them out.” “No, Mary. Isn't it obvious he is trying to buy my attention with all these?” “C’mon, Stephanie. How else would you want a man to buy your attention? It isn't as deep as you think it is. He is a nice person.” Stephanie stared at Mary unbelievably. Mary began to search through the bags one after the other.
~THE NEXT DAY~Stephanie dashed over to her drawer and yanked it open. She took out her comb and ran it through her hair. Princess dashed in through her room door, all dolled up for their trip back home. Stephanie grabbed Princess as soon as she got to her, and hurled her in the air. As she caught her, Princess greeted, “Good morning, Stephanie!” Stephanie placed her on the floor and squatted in front of her. "Good day, Princess." This morning, you appear ecstatic. "Can you tell me what the secret is?" Stephanie tickled her and made her laugh."This is one of the dresses Sebastian purchased for me!" Because I slept off, I was unaware that he had purchased outfits for me. He bought five! I'm overjoyed. They're all so lovely!" She dashed over to Stephanie's standing mirror and turned around, checking herself out once again. Stephanie stood up with a big smile on her face. She checked her wristwatch, which read 8 a.m. "I'm going to be late." She gathered her belongings and took one l