Chapter 4:

Sweating, Aviannah slumped into the swivel chair in her small office at her boutique shop. On top of that, she was gasping for air as if she had just come from a battle.

"Ms. Aviannah? Are you okay?"

"I'm not okay," she replied between breaths. "The traffic on the road was terrible. The jeepney driver stopped at almost every corner. It was so hot, and the air was filled with smoke," she complained.

Ruffa, her flamboyant staff member and designer at the boutique, immediately handed her a glass of water. "Here, drink this first."

Aviannah quickly took the water from Ruffa and drank it.

"What happened? Did your car break down, so you had to commute?" asked Nimfa, the sales assistant at the boutique.

"I wish that were the case. But no. Not only was my driver unavailable, but there was also an annoying person who ruined my morning!" Aviannah said irritably.

Her frustration toward Andrei resurfaced as she recalled that he was the reason she had to endure such a difficult commute. There was nothing wrong with Mang Lito, their driver, taking a leave, but she was upset that he hadn’t informed her in advance. Mang Lito drove her every day, so she was also annoyed that he hadn't mentioned it to her. Or maybe… this was all Andrei’s doing.

“Mang Lito isn’t around? If that’s the case, you should have just asked us to pick you up,” said Nimfa.

“I couldn’t just trouble you like that. I know you all have a lot on your plate and have been very busy lately trying to secure the project with Mrs. Zhang,” Aviannah replied. “Anyway, let’s just forget about it. What’s important now is that we start preparing for our meeting later with Mrs. Cheska Zhang.”

“Alright. Here.” Ruffa handed her a portfolio containing sample designs for their client’s desired wedding gown.

Aviannah suddenly froze upon seeing one of the designs.

“This…” she murmured.

“Oh, that one. It’s inspired by the gown of Disney Princess Belle from Beauty and the Beast. Mrs. Zhang mentioned that it’s her daughter’s favorite Disney Princess,” Ruffa explained.

Because of that, memories started flooding back into Aviannah’s mind.

A sweet smile formed on Aviannah’s lips after her mother finished reading her favorite book. She had lost count of how many times she had asked her mother to read it to her because she never got tired of revisiting the story of Beauty and the Beast.

"I want to grow up now so I can meet my own Beast!" she exclaimed excitedly to her mother.

"No, baby. Don't grow up too fast. I want you to stay my little one for as long as possible!" her mother replied while tucking her in.

"But I can still be your baby even if I meet my own Beast," she said innocently.

"Hmm. Well, that might be true, but I don’t want to share you just yet. So don’t rush growing up, okay?"

"Okay, Mom. I won’t. I’ll just wait for the right time to meet my own Beast," she obediently replied.

"Very good, baby. I love you so much!"

"I love you too, Mommy!"

Her mother pressed a loving kiss on her forehead, filling her with warmth. Moments later, they heard soft, gentle knocks on the door. The door creaked open, and there stood her father, just home from work.

"Daddy!" she squealed joyfully as she jumped up and ran into his arms, wrapping him in a tight hug.

"Hey, baby!" Her father hugged her tightly and lifted her in his arms. Then, he stepped closer to her mother and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "How are my queen and my princess?" he asked lovingly as he sat down on the bed beside his wife, still holding Aviannah in his arms.

"We're good, Dad! Mom just read me my favorite story," she cheerfully responded.

"Really? Is it Beauty and the Beast?" her father asked, to which she eagerly nodded in response.

"You really love that story, huh? Can you tell me why?"

"Because, like you and Mom, someday, I want to find my own Beast. I want to find my true love."

"But aren't your mom and I your true love?"

"Yes, you are. But Beast is different. You know, Dad, I want my own Prince Charming. Just like Mom—she has her own Prince Charming, and that is you."

"Oh? Now it's Prince Charming. You're too young for these things, sweetheart. Where are you even learning all this?" her father asked with amusement.

"Prince Charming is in all the stories we've read. Right, Mom?" she turned to her mother.

"Yes, baby. But that's enough for now," her mother said, gently taking her from her father's arms and carefully laying her back down on the bed. "It's your bedtime now. It's time to sleep," she added softly.

"Oh, so it's your bedtime now, baby. You should sleep. Close your eyes," her father said warmly.

"Okay, Daddy, Mommy!" she obediently responded before closing her eyes.

"Good girl!" her father praised her while tucking her in.

But she quickly opened her eyes again. "I love you, Mommy! I love you, Daddy!"

"We love you too, baby!" her parents responded in unison, their voices filled with warmth. They then placed tender kisses on her forehead and cheeks before she finally drifted off to sleep.

Aviannah smiled sweetly before gently closing her eyes once again, and soon, sleep finally took over her.

"I like this one," Aviannah softly murmured as she returned to her senses.

"Really? Do you also think they'll like it?" Ruffa excitedly asked beside her.

"Huh? Uhm… y-yes, of course. I'm sure they'll love it."

"That's great!" Ruffa said enthusiastically.

"Ms. Aviannah, here’s our sales report for this week," Nimfa said, handing her another portfolio.

She reviewed it, and they continued their meeting for the day. Several hours passed when she finally received a call from the guest they had been waiting for and preparing to meet—Mrs. Cheska Zhang.

The Zhang family was one of the most successful business families in their city. So when Mrs. Cheska Zhang personally approached her to design a wedding gown for her daughter’s upcoming wedding, Aviannah did not hesitate and immediately started working on it.

"Good day, Mrs. Cheska Zhang," Aviannah cheerfully greeted the person on the other end of the line.

"Good day to you as well, Aviannah. I know we agreed to meet at your shop today, but unfortunately, I may not be able to drop by."

The smile on Aviannah’s lips quickly faded upon hearing what Mrs. Zhang had just said. "Huh? Uhm… is that so?"

"The truth is, I received an invitation to your brother’s party, and my children and I are on our way there now," said Mrs. Cheska Zhang, which took Aviannah by surprise.

“W-What? An invitation to my brother’s party?” she repeated, thinking she might have misheard.

“Yes. Isn’t your brother… Mr. Andrei Tuazon?”

Aviannah’s lips parted slightly as she held her forehead. “Huh? Uhm…” She suddenly didn’t know how to respond.

“My son is actually his friend. They were classmates in Canada and arrived in the country together. My son really wants us to attend because your brother also invited us. So, I thought we could head straight there and discuss my daughter Charmie’s wedding gown in person,” Mrs. Cheska Zhang explained in detail, making Aviannah shut her eyes tightly.

She had thought she had successfully convinced her father to excuse her from attending their family’s celebration tonight. But she was wrong. Out of all the people Mrs. Cheska Zhang’s son could be friends with, it just had to be the one man she despised—Andrei.

Aviannah let out a quiet sigh before responding. “Alright. That’s fine.”

“Okay, see you later, Aviannah.” With that, the call ended.

“What happened? Are you okay? Where is Mrs. Cheska Zhang now?” Nimfa asked in rapid succession as soon as Aviannah lowered her phone.

“Is there a problem? Is your meeting with Mrs. Cheska Zhang canceled?” Ruffa added.

“The meeting will still happen, but not here,” Aviannah replied lifelessly.

“Huh? Then where?” Nimfa asked.

Aviannah took a deep breath before answering, “At my house… at my oh-so-wonderful brother’s party,” she said with irritation.

“Huh?”

“Let’s go, guys,” she said, urging the two to follow her as she started to move.