Chapter 3: The First Encounter with Him
Loreen did not choose to be born poor. Lucky for Sera to have been born rich and have all her necessities and wants fully provided by her family.
'After all the hardships I went through, if I could choose, I would have chosen to be born rich. Didn't she already know that?'
"Oh, is that so?" Sera easily dismissed it despite noticing she had offended Loreen.
She did not apologize so Loreen wondered if Sera said it intentionally.
"Anyway, let's party! I invited you to celebrate with me!!" Sera gulped her drink and went dancing with the crowd.
'She's still as inconsiderate as before,' Sera sighed deeply.
Loreen tried not to be offended but she could not help it after noticing Sera said those on purpose despite knowing where she was coming from.
Sera knew how different their situations were.
'If I could, then I would have ventured into business already. It's exactly one of the reasons I am saving up and taking my doctorate in Business Administration.'
Loreen could still recall that she had already told Sera about it before. That she wanted to her own business in the future but only once she had enough savings to establish one.
She heaved a deep sigh once again and took another gulp of her drink.
'Where are our batchmates? They sure are taking long.'
Loreen froze when she realized something. Sera did not look her in the eye when they talked about their batchmates.
'Don't tell me none of them are really coming? Did she single me out to do this?!'
Loreen wondered if Sera simply brought her here to emphasize how different their worlds were. And maybe, to embarrass her as well in front of all these people.
If that was the case, then Sera seems to have not changed indeed as their Uncle Chester said.
It was as if Sera wanted to tell Loreen that no matter how hard she worked, she would never reach her level because they were this far apart.
'So, what if I am poor? I'm not trying to get in her way or anything. I wasn't being a burden to her either. I am working to earn my keep. I'm not even trying to compete with her or anything. Why does she have to keep doing this to me?'
Sera had repeatedly embarrassed her to people before for being poor. She even accused her of daring to compete with her because Loreen's marks in school were always high.
Loreen downed her drink easily. The slightly bitter taste no longer bothered her.
'I should have just stayed home and finished a chapter of my research than meet with her for this.'
Loreen regretted coming to this hotel. And she did not know that in the future, she would regret this day for so much more.
Her stress got worse instead of lessening.
An hour passed with her drinking alone and none of their batchmates arrived.
Loreen wanted to cry in frustration. But she did not want to give Sera the satisfaction nor show her that she got her again this time.
Loreen got up and ordered strong drinks from the bartender. She did not care about the cost.
'It's Sera's treat anyway. I should maximize it since she's graciously showing off her riches. I will drink these expensive things I could not afford to waste my own money on,' she thought vengefully and sat on an empty seat in front of the bartender.
She could easily order from there, so it was better than their table.
The loud music went on, and Loreen simply drank on her own.
Meanwhile, Sera was busy dancing and drinking with the rich people. She seems to have forgotten about Loreen or was intentionally leaving her alone despite knowing she was not used to places like this.
'Who cares if I am out of place? I will at least make a tiny dent on Sera's budget since she went to all the trouble of inviting me here.'
.
.
.
Several hours went by before she knew it.
Loreen was finishing her nth glass when a man sat beside her.
'He smells nice.'
It was a manly scent that would surely make any woman turn to him. But as for Loreen, nature was suddenly calling so she didn't have the time. She needed to pee after all the drinks she gulped.
'Why does it have to be now when a chance like this popped up?'
Her eyes scanned the place for the comfort room and finally spotted it despite her vision already becoming blurry.
She got up and tried her best to walk properly. She did not want to allow herself to be embarrassed further. Especially with so many people around. There were already people giving her weird looks and murmuring about how she looked like someone from the provinces who did not know how city life was.
However, this was Loreen's first time to have drunk this much liquor. And her body was already exhausted to begin with.
She lost her balance and tried to reach at something to hold on to but missed the bar counter.
"Hey! Watch out miss!" The man who was sitting beside her quickly grabbed her arm and helped her stand straight by holding her by the shoulders. He had such a firm yet gentle grip. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, thank you. Sorry for the trouble. I just need to go to the comfort room," Loreen felt the heat rise to her face in embarrassment.
'What the hell am I doing?'
"I'll help you. It's in the far corner," he kindly offered.
She was embarrassed to allow a man to help her go to the ladies' room, so she rejected but thanked him for the offer.
But when the man let go of her shoulders, and she tried to walk on her own, she almost lost her balance again. He caught her for the second time.
"See? I'll walk you there."
"T-thank you," Loreen finally accepted despite the heat on her face and ears.
'That was so embarrassing! What the hell? Can't you listen to me and move properly?!' she internally scolded her body for not moving as she wanted.
With the man's guidance, they easily reached the ladies room despite the crowd.
Loreen quickly locked herself in the CR and finally relieved herself. She wanted to wash her face too to try waking up her sluggish body.
But it would ruin her makeup and she might end up getting her dress splashed.
'It's already cheap and not so pretty, there's no need to make it look even worse.'
She was about to turn the knob and leave the ladies room when she realized that the man who helped her said he would wait for her outside.
Loreen suddenly felt like she did not want to go out anymore and face him.
This was very disgraceful. This had never happened to her before.
What if he recognized her as the internationally awarded social worker?!
She wanted to vanish into thin air.
'What have I done? Way to go to shaming yourself more,' she mocked herself.
Ten minutes passed and she simply stood against the wall as her support.
"Miss, are you alright?"
It was the voice of the man who helped her. He knocked on the door because she had not gone out yet after so long.
Loreen stiffened.
'What should I do?!'
"If you need any help, I can call one of the staffs to help you," the man followed up.
He was getting concerned. Perhaps thinking, she may already be lying on the floor.
That was even more embarrassing, so Loreen realized she had to go out.
'Loreen, you can do this!'
She took several deep breaths to prepare herself.
'There is no turning back now. It's my fault for coming here.'
She just hoped that nobody will recognize her.
With all her willpower, she fixed her hair and retouched her make-up. She added more so people would not recognize her.
When she opened the door, the man was wide-eyed as he looked at her. She felt her cheeks heat up in shame.
'He didn't misunderstand my touch up, right?!'
She wanted to explain and correct it but did not know what to say.
The man just grabbed her hand and quickly turned around. He helped her get back to her seat.
She just sat down and hadn't even had the chance to thank him yet when Sera approached them.
'She finally remembered my existence?' Loreen thought.
"Whoa! Way to go girl! You already know how to choose a handsome man. Why won't you introduce me to your new boy," Sera whispered in a very much audible voice.
The man beside her surely heard it but pretended to have not, and simply seated himself instead.
"I don't even know him. He just kindly helped me when I lost my balance. Please stop saying such things, it's rude to him," Loreen quickly clarified. She bowed in apology to the man beside her.
He smiled indicating it was alright. He understood that Sera had also drunk a lot.
"Really?" Sera asked teasingly and laughed.