Officers in crisp white uniforms filled one of the rooms of a luxurious, ivory-white villa, its high pillars giving it a grand feel. The clinking of glasses resonated through the air.
"You damn bastard, how lucky you are to still be alive in this world?" The man being addressed only smirked as one of his friends nudged his shoulder.
"Of course, dude, God gave him another chance to change his rigid nature." A man with distinct Middle Eastern features chimed in, chuckling innocently and randomly clinking his glass with someone next to him. Meanwhile, the man referred to simply stared blankly with deep, sea-blue eyes as he sipped his drink, which tasted bitter in his throat.
"Oh, relax, Captain Volker, you're unmatched." The man chuckled, raising both hands in a gesture of surrender.
The event was certainly informal, merely a celebration for the officers who survived a fierce rebellion on a border. There was no formality, no command; the officers present were all off duty.
Four men standing in a semi-circle laughed, throwing jokes and teasing each other like typical men in conversation. As they were engrossed in their chat, the man with Middle Eastern features suddenly commented,
"Hey, Bas, where's your sister? I haven't seen her in three years." He was indeed a man of many questions and comments, a stark contrast to Bastian Volker's rigid personality, making their friendship quite peculiar.
"I don't know, she's always disappearing and then suddenly showing up, and I don't really care where she is."
"No wonder, she's always like that. Your sister is the life of the party, Bas."
Just as the last sentence was uttered, a girl walked confidently past the white-uniformed officers and other guests, greeting several people as she went.
"Isn't that Laura..." one of Bastian's friends suddenly said, spotting his sister greeting guests at the far end of the room.
"But who's behind her?"
Initially, Bastian wasn't particularly affected by his friend's remark about Laura suddenly appearing out of nowhere. But when his friend mentioned the person behind his sister, Bastian's eyes involuntarily darted towards the direction indicated.
One second, two seconds...
Bastian paused. No, he wasn't silent because he saw some of his fallen troops from his border assignment. But somehow, the saliva in his throat became incredibly difficult to swallow. *Damn it*, he thought.
His gaze didn't waver from his sharp, sea-blue eyes, fixed on the figure of the girl directly behind his sister. Laura held the girl's hand as she stayed just behind her, showing only a glimpse of herself. Like a mother holding her child's hand to make sure they follow. Bastian still didn't shift his gaze from the girl, who revealed a slight curve of her body in a floor-length floral dress that... for God's sake... Bastian truly admitted that the dress was unsuitable for an event like this. Even if it wasn't formal, that dress was more suited for grocery shopping, or worse, for bed!
This girl has grown into a mature figure, so different from the last time I saw her, but she really doesn't know her place! How naive.
Bastian only displayed a slight mocking sneer on his lips, which... damn it... looked very sweet even with his arrogant expression.
"She's Laura's friend." Bastian answered casually before looking away.
"Then she's your friend too, isn't she?"
"I don't befriend little girls." He said curtly with a skeptical expression, then took a gulp of water from the glass he held, its distinct aroma filling his senses.
🌊𓇼𓏲*ੈ✩˚🎐⚓
It had never occurred to her to be in the midst of the crowded celebration party hosted by the officers present in the room. A girl walked, reluctantly held by her friend, who was very enthusiastic about the event. She was a little embarrassed because her outfit was completely unsuitable for the party. The dress she was wearing was a birthday gift from Laura when she turned 15! And now she was 18, so naturally, the dress had become a little tighter. She didn't blame Laura for suddenly inviting her to this party, or rather, for telling her that her brother had returned safely as an officer on duty, even though the girl had refused to attend because she had become busy with a new job she got after graduating high school as a waitress in a bakery.
"Hi guys, long time no see!!" The girl with blonde hair flowing over her shoulders cheerfully greeted the men in front of her, hugging them all, except for her brother, Bastian Volker.
"You look so pretty now. Do you still whine like you used to?" The girl retorted with an annoyed huff, while the man teasing her chuckled amusedly, before he whistled to glance at the girl beside Laura.
"Let's see who this girl is."
"Ah, this is Aline, my friend and also my little sister. And you, David, don't whistle at her like that!" The man named David, with Middle Eastern features, only chuckled at Laura's possessive remark about Aline. A girl whose clothes, according to Bastian, looked more suitable for bed.
"Wow, Bastian, since when did you have two beautiful little sisters like this?"
Little sister, my foot! Bastian thought as he looked at Aline for the second time that night.
Aline, meanwhile, stood stiffly as a pair of deep sea blue eyes observed her with a gaze she found hard to decipher. But she quickly looked away to greet the men in front of her who were perhaps curious about her.
"Hi, I'm Aline, Laura's friend. Nice to meet you..." she said politely.
They returned her greeting with smiles and asked some simple questions, like what Aline did and how old she was. They were very surprised to learn that Aline was only 18 and already working. The three men, not including Bastian, looked at Aline proudly, noting that she still looked young and energetic. It was no wonder her age matched her innocent appearance they now believed Bastian's earlier statement was true, even though he had said it with a skeptical look.
Meanwhile, the blue-eyed, black-haired man was lost in his own thoughts. As the conversation between his friends, his sister, and his sister's friend continued, Bastian occasionally snorted, a sign that the conversation bored him. He was also starting to feel a bit dizzy; he had no idea how many glasses he had already consumed as the event progressed. God had indeed given him a handsome face and good academics, but not the alcohol tolerance he could handle. He was truly a mess when drunk!
"Hey, hey, Bas, you've had too much to drink." One of Bastian's friends interjected, quickly taking a glass from his hand.
"Let him drink, Henry. He needs to learn how to drink properly." The man named Henry just shook his head when his friend tried to let Bastian continue, but Henry knew his friend wasn't an alcohol maniac!
"No, don't let him drink, he'll be a complete nuisance!" They chuckled at Laura's fun fact. Unbeknownst to them, two individuals among them were staring at each other. The man was starting to get tipsy, though his body still stood straight, while the girl stood stiffly, finding it hard to swallow her own saliva as her doe-like eyes met the deep sea-blue gaze of the man standing less than a meter in front of her. To Aline, his gaze was like the rustling waves of a deep ocean, calm yet dangerous.
"Where are you going, Bas?" The person called turned his back to them and merely waved his hand.
"That guy is really boring," David interjected when Bastian suddenly left.
"Do you like guys like that, Aline?" David asked Aline randomly. Aline was unsure how to react; she just gave an awkward smile and looked down as her answer.
"Or are you interested in guys like me?" David said, raising an eyebrow slightly.
"You flirt! Remember your age!" Henry said, slightly annoyed by his friend's flirty nature.
"I'm still young, I'm 25! Do you think I'm an old man with glasses and a cane?" They just chuckled at David's annoyed remark towards Henry.
"Hey, Laura!!!" They heard a slightly enthusiastic shout, making them turn curiously to see a red-haired girl in a knee-length black dress approaching their circle.
"OMG, Diana!!" Laura reciprocated the enthusiastic shout, and they hugged each other.
"Even at an event like this, there's a copycat..." David muttered, shaking his head.
"How can you be here??" Laura asked the girl.
Aline, meanwhile, watched them both engrossed in conversation like two people who hadn't seen each other in a long time. Then Laura shifted her gaze from the red-haired girl.
"Aline, I'm going to say hi to my other friends. Do you mind if I leave you for a bit?"
"Of course, you can greet the other guests, I'm fine..." Laura nodded gently.
"You guys look after Aline; I'll be gone for a bit," Laura warned the three men in front of her before moving away.
Aline felt awkward at first. Then Henry offered Aline some food. Aline happily took a cupcake from Henry before Henry got busy with his own food. Aline felt her food getting stuck in her throat, so she quickly grabbed a glass and drank it all. It tasted quite strange before she realized what she had drunk.
Goddamnit...
At first, it was fine, but after a few minutes, her throat felt very dry, her stomach started to feel nauseous, and her head ached terribly. David noticed Aline looking very strange, and David realized that Aline—
"Shit... That's not tea, Aline!" David looked at her with a slight wince, seeing Aline's face turn red. Henry, who was talking to one of his friends, noticed this and immediately turned around.
"Hey, what's wrong??" he said, slightly panicked.
"She drank a glass of brandy!" David exclaimed.
"I... I want to go to the restroom first..." Aline mumbled.
"No, Aline, let me take you..." David said quickly.
"How can you take her to the women's restroom, you idiot!"
"She's tipsy, and we're supposed to look after her like Laura said."
Aline faintly heard the two ridiculous men arguing as she started to walk to the restroom by herself, while the two men didn't notice her departure.
Upon reaching the restroom, Aline vomited. Her stomach felt churned, her head was throbbing, and her vision was blurry; she was truly drunk!
"It's okay, Aline... calm down, you'll get out of the restroom and come back after this," she told herself, then she washed her face in the sink and painstakingly walked out of the restroom, clinging to the wall. After opening the doorknob and stepping out, she walked one step, two steps... and finally...
Grep.
Her wrist was grabbed by someone just before she almost fell. She looked up with hazy eyes. Her vision was blurry because the hallway was dimly lit. The scent of cologne filled Aline's nostrils, an oceanic aroma like rain emanating from the man in front of her.
"Stupid woman..." His voice echoed slightly in the quiet hallway.
His fingers moved, gently touching Aline's slightly parted lips, slowly caressing them with his thumb.
"You've grown now... so schön," he murmured, his voice hoarse.
The man could clearly see the freckles on the girl's face, and that gaze... that gaze that had filled his thoughts all night, the doe-like eyes of the girl, awakened a forbidden and suppressed desire he could not acknowledge when he was sober.