Alessa stepped out on the small landing to wave at her father. She saw his hand out the window wave back, and when her sister was settled in the car, he backed out and left.
She hadn't gone to her senior prom, using the state track meet that took place the same day as an excuse to turn down the few offers she'd had. And though she didn't have a prom dress, she remembered seeing her father at her meet that day, waiting for him to ask who she was going with, what her dress looked like; would she send him a picture? But he never mentioned it, seemingly oblivious that all of teenagedom was currently absorbed in the single most exciting party experience of their lives. But not her. And because he'd never asked, he'd never known she hadn't gone.
Alessa finished her white wine, hoping the familiar discontent in her chest would settle like heartburn after a Tums. Not twenty minutes later their driver also arrived, and together the two colleagues-turned-friends settled back and enjoyed the dark drive into the heart of the Financial District.
Every year, Lou explained, the party was held at the Banking Hall at the Bently Reserve. It was a classic space, and as the bank was one of Wiles, Mayer, and Schecter's most intimate clients, the gala was another example of the very symbiotic relationship in the business world.
Despite the heavy Saturday evening traffic, the driver pulled up relatively timely. The moment Alessa spied all the dazzling lights lining the actual red carpet up the steps of the white-stone building, her stomach dropped and flipped and never seemed to settle. Lou, dressed in a gorgeous and playful lavender dress with yards of gossamer fabric and a neck line plunging nearly to her navel, had her face plastered to the window just like a kid. Tall white columns lined the front of the building, and streaming from them were long red banners announcing the event taking place inside. The entire display was about as much pomp as Alessa thought the occasion could bear.
And much to her immediate discomfort, Alessa noted a slew of photographers lining the red carpet, snapping widely at the many people ascending the stairs. "What are they doing here?" she squeaked, as their car slowed and queued behind a short line of others waiting to unload their passengers.
"The photographers? Alessa, this is one of
the
events of the season here in San Francisco. Hell, in the nation. This is Omniliance. These parties are legendary. And the crème de la crème are all here. They're going to raise
millions
tonight. This is news worthy."
Alessa tried to breathe out her anxiety, and attempted to convince herself that this was what it was to represent Fortune Five-Hundred corporations. It was a reasonable expectation that she would have to mingle with people who the public at large found to be of entertaining and news-worthy value. And tonight, she was going to fake her way into their ranks.
Eventually, their car stopped and two men stepped forward to open their door. As Lou was sitting next to the door, she was the first to step out, smiling for the snapping photographers. Alessa's stomach was warning her that she was about to be sick, but she took a deep breath, refusing to fail. And when a hand appeared in the doorway to offer her assistance out, she scooted closer, took it, and stepped one black, satiny foot out onto the pavement.
She was nearly knocked over by the force of the bright lights firing rapidly at her until they all melded into one bright and constant light. She was looking down at the radiant glitter of her dress in the perpetual luminance of the cameras' flashes. And then she looked up and braved a smile and tried to feign an ignorance of the photographers' presence, instead focusing on Lou who was posing unabashedly. She took a few steps to join her at the bottom of the steps. Lou encouraged her to look at the photographers and smile, to which she did with a shy smile at first, but before long was smiling widely, unable to keep her embarrassment down. And whenever Alessa was embarrassed, she had a tendency to laugh.
"Okay, I don't think I can stand anymore," she whispered through smiling lips and clenched teeth. "I think I'm going to melt under all these lights," she admitted.
Lou only laughed and, waving to the photographers, led Alessa up the steps to the entrance. In the main lobby of the grand bank was a gallery dedicated to all the projects the Ominliance Charity and Trust was dedicated to managing. Its interests were wide and varied, ranging from women's rights in Middle East countries, to saving the rainforests in South America, to fighting global poverty, to providing aid to after-school programs in the urban areas. There were people assigned at each charity project booth to give a talk about the importance of their particular endeavor and, of course, to convince the patrons to donate as much as possible to it.
Alessa and Lou made their way through the displays, listening here and there as their interests were piqued. Lou was busy looking for her boyfriend who was supposed to meet her there, as well as any coworkers she'd be interested in talking with, while Alessa furtively kept an eye out for Denny, wondering if he had brought a date, and if he had, what her feelings would be about it.
Eventually, they made their way through the crowd and entered the massive and equally impressive hall where the main festivities were to take place. It was romantically decorated with long, curtaining swaths of endless ethereal fabric. Thousands of candles were placed around on various tables, and along the ceiling, up lighting glowed warmly to make the room feel like a space between heaven and earth, illuminated by an unseen lighting source.
People milled. People laughed. People moved as though part of a larger, swarming organism. The music was moving smoothly in the background just under the consciousness of the party-goers. Alessa and Lou found a group of colleagues who were speaking with some of their clients. The two women fit easily in. At some point, Lou's boyfriend, Richard, arrived. His suit pants were skinny trousers. He wore a blue bow-tie that had teeny skull and cross bones on it, and his hair looked like it had been cut with a weed whacker and then heavily moussed to lay heavy and flat in a scarecrow mop top. Alessa also noted he had five hoops in one ear and too many in the other to count. She watched them a moment as they kissed and mumbled sexy-nothings to each other.
At last, Lou introduced her to him and the three chatted as a waiter came by to offer the group champagne. They continued speaking until the couple's drinks were emptied and Richard insisted on pulling Lou out onto the dance floor. He mumbled something about being able to dance, even to dinosaur music.
Alessa was left alone as she watched them get swallowed up by the crowd, and then turned her back and downed the last of her drink.
"Careful there, don't forget what happened the last time you drank too much," Denny's warm voice warned her teasingly.
Alessa spun with wide eyes, surprised at seeing him at last. Her heart gave a hard slam in her chest as she took in how handsome he looked. His black suit was exquisitely cut to his tall and athletic frame. The narrow lapel was in a shinier fabric than the rest, giving just a gleam of sophistication. He wore a black bowtie, that, even though it was crisp and perfect looking, she knew was not merely a clip-on, but had been tied by a skillful hand. And his hair, she noted, looked even more coiffed than was typical, as though he just came from the salon.
"Yes, well," she breathed, trying to find her voice, "I would argue the amount I drank last time was proportionate to the amount of duress I endured."
"Funny," he mused, stepping closer to her so their conversation was more intimate, "I wouldn't have considered you a coward in need of a little
false courage
to face any amount of
duress
," he said shaking his own champagne flute before finishing it off. Quickly, he placed their glasses on a passing waiter's tray and took two more. "And to clarify," he added as he handed her a new glass, "I don't think you
endured
anything. As I recall, we had a very pleasant time."
But Alessa said nothing to his bait as he lifted his new glass to his lips to take a sip, keeping his glittering gaze on her all the while. "I must say," he continued, "you look absolutely stunning," he commented, making a point to scrutinize her intently. He loved the simplistic, yet glamorous gown she wore.
The sleeveless gown had a high collar that encircled the base of her neck, highlighting its delicacy, and the fitted torso perfectly accentuated her curves. The bodice of the dark gray, silk chiffon was solidly covered in inch-wide bands of sparkling silver, crystal beads, but as they ran down the torso and continued on down the skirt, the bands began to separate out to create heavy pleats so the silky fabric underneath could be seen. It also seemed, he thought, that though it was silver, it faded here and there into a darker hue to remind him of the Milky Way waving in a magical night sky.
