Scar Red

58: A Debut To Remember(Pt.2)

My heart palpitated strongly while I shuffled uncomfortably in my seat in our Limo. All the advice I'd received earlier was bouncing about in my head and I was going over them recurrently. My thoughts flickered over to all the paparazzi that would be there at the entrance and I hoped I wouldn't trip over my legs.

My fiance tapped gently on our entwined hands and I glanced at him before looking down to see my perfectly manicured fingers digging hurtfully into his hand.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," I whispered, yanking my pain-inducing fingers away from him while he clutched his hand with the other and brought it closer to himself, nursing his tortured limb.

"It's okay, Stella-Mea," he verbalized in a low tone. "At least now I know how strongly you feel about this entire thing. I'd hate to think that I've made the big mistake of asking you to do what you aren't ready for."

I parted my lips to speak, but my voice seemed non-existent. He took one of my dainty hands in his smooth, strong one once more, as though it hadn't just tried to squeeze the life out of his.

Honestly, it was becoming somewhat like a habit and I didn't mind at all. I loved seeing our fingers intertwined like long blades of grass brushing continuously against each other even though I had almost cut off the blood flow to his hand moments ago.

I made a mental note to myself not to hurt my Adonis like that again, no matter the situation.

"It's not too late to turn back now if you need some more time to ponder over the idea of showing up to events yet." Those wonderful eyes flickered steadily over my pale face, inducing me to turn so I could face him fully.

The angles of his sharp, sculpted face grasped my attention momentarily and I struggled to string words together. "Well, you bought me this dress along with five others and you hired a celebrity stylist just for me. There's no way I can let all of that go to waste."

"You can always wear it another time when you feel more comfortable attending these events," he reasoned.

I sighed. "Don't mind my behaviour, Ro. All of it is just like one big coping mechanism for me. Imagine going for your first job interview and you don't really don't know what to expect. That's how I'm feeling right now."

He cocked a brow at me before he chuckled. "Exactly. You're just nervous. Let's just call it that instead of a 'coping mechanism.'"

One of the guards in the front coughed and I wasn't oblivious to how weird it sounded. I pouted when he continued chuckling about what I said. I took my hand from his again, crossing my arms, and scooted as far away from him as the Limo could allow. 

Seeing my mood, he stopped and cleared his throat. While my gaze was locked onto a tumbler that rested on the limo bar before us, I could still feel the heat of his gaze at the side of my face.

I continued sulking and after a while, he called me. "Stella-Mea…"

I didn't even look his way.

"Stella-Mea, we're here," he informed me and that was when I noticed the flashing lights and all the activity outside. My heart began its pounding again and I would've almost fainted at how sudden everything had happened. "I promise to make it up to you later. Can we go now?"

Quickly mustering all my courage and muttering a short prayer, I nodded. The door to the Limo opened as soon as I did and he alighted gracefully before giving me his hand. I was almost blinded by the camera flashes that followed my dismount but managed to look unfazed.

Squaring my shoulders, I tilted my chin and erased every trace of uncertainty on my features. Instantly, I realized that I had done this before only that it had been in another form; modelling. I took on all the mannerisms and dispositions of the model that I was, casting them upon myself anew like a veil, hiding my overly inept personality—my true self underneath it.