Novel & Cerita Friday Dinner

"You passed. Barely." It was Friday. He'd promised me dinner, properly this time, and for once there was no crisis to cut it short. Maren sat at a corner table pretending to read a menu, three tables away and close enough that I could feel her watching. I'd stopped minding. It was a small price for a night that felt almost ordinary.

I stared at him. I had almost felt grateful. Almost. “Get out of my kitchen.” He laughed. And I hated that I was beginning to recognize the sound as something familiar. That evening, I sat on my bed with my phone in my hand. Adrian had sent me another message. How does Friday evening sound for dinner? I read it once. Twice. Three times. Then I smiled. Friday. That gave me almost a week to prepare. A week to find the perfect outfit, decide what to talk about, and figure out how to behave like a woman who had a functioning life.

After college, the five of us rent a place together. From the very first day we move in, we set one rule. No matter how busy we get, we will wait for everyone to come home and have dinner together every Friday night. The first week, my cousin, Martha Baker, is busy with a project and comes home late. My older brother, Gavin Abbott, says, "There's no rush. If Martha's not here, it's not really dinner. The second week, Martha is out celebrating her best friend's birthday and doesn't make it home in time for dinner. My boyfriend, Bryan Hadley, says, "We can wait for her. Or we can just call it supper." This week, it's my turn to work overtime until 9:00 pm. The moment I open the door, I'

Four hundred dollars in my account, and Thursday two days away. "Fine," I said. "Small stage. Nobody touches. Nobody talks to me." "Same as always." He went back to his screen. "Friday. Nine o'clock. Wear the blue." The next morning, I opened Adrian's calendar before he came in. Friday, 8:00 p.m. [Hartwell client dinner. Venue booked by Marcus.] "Marcus," I said as casually as I could when he wandered past with his coffee. "The Hartwell dinner Friday. Where is it?"

The three families already met each other last week Friday for dinner. *The family dinner, It was Friday, April 23, 2025* Mrs. and Mr. Mrithun were so kind. The way they seat was pure elegance. I thought the things I see in documentaries and movies in how meticulous the rich and nobles live were far from how we commoners do things were true. The whole time we were eating, I didn’t hear a single thing from their utensils. Now don’t get me started in how graceful Madam Mrithun seated in her chair. I felt their presence and for the first time ever I felt poor to the bones.

It was absurd to think that someone could be that enticing and she could not, for the life of her, figure out what that had to do with the lesson. However, the one thing that was the very reason why she was stuck in that building was something that she deemed to be the mother of all surreality. The man was believed to have been awaiting his bride and so on every friday the 13th of the eleventh month, a girl was tied up in his private home. If she was found on the next day, it served to prove that she was not the bride. If however...she shook her head. Of course nothing would happen to her. Besides, this man would be centuries old and as far as she was concerned no one could live that long.

All he wanted to do was go back to his apartment, pour himself a glass of scotch, and find a game to watch on the TV. Instead, he had to see his whole family for dinner. The first Sunday of every month, the family usually got together at Knight’s grandparents’ house just outside the city. The dinner had been pushed back a day due to Jared’s fiancée being out of town. Sarah had been in New York buying pieces for a few upcoming photo shoots and had flown back to Seattle just that afternoon.

-Kaden) (Ginger ale is a very acquired taste, and I take no offense to it. Neither Kylynn nor Tianya likes it either. I need to get back to work now, as I imagine you do as well.-Me) (Yes, I do, I would like to take you to dinner this Friday if that is ok with you.-Kaden) (I would love that, but it may need to be something light and easy on the stomach.-Me) (I know just the place. I will pick you up at 7:30 and wear something casual this place isn’t fancy.-Kaden)

If I take her to the hotel where we shared our first night, she’ll have questions. Turns out I don’t have to worry about that, though. “I can’t tonight. I’m having dinner with Freya. I’m going there straight from work.” She’s blowing me off to have dinner with another man? “Who’s Freya?” Even to me, my voice sounds rougher than usual. “My roommate. We have a standing dinner date every Monday. She’s missing her fiancé, so I don’t want to skip it.”

"Thank you for a lovely brunch. I look forward to our dinner on Friday." "As do I," I lied, the words tasting like ash. My mother beamed. My father nodded approvingly. Richard released my hand and turned to them, already dismissing my presence now that the pleasantries were complete. "I'll have my secretary coordinate with you about Friday," he said to my father, as if I weren't standing right there, as if my schedule and preferences didn't matter. "Shall we say seven? I'm thinking Le Bernardin—impressive but not ostentatious."