Our Story: Harvey's Life

Exhibition

    "I want you to be my date to the jewelry exhibition," Jason said to her and handed over a bag.

"No thanks, I'm busy." She returned it.
"Just this once!" He pulled her arm.
"I'm busy," she removed her wrist from his grip. "Get the model to go with you, I'm sure she would be glad to."

"Are you usually this hard to please?" He placed the bag in her car. He unbuttoned his suit and entered his car.

   Tess arrived at the shoe store and went in through the back.

"We found something!" Diana said as she entered.

   "What is it?" She removed her jacket and placed it on her chair.

"James Sullivan is attending an exhibition tonight."

"An exhibition? How can a jobless man be invited to an exhibition?" She asked. "Can we get in?"

"No, you can only get in if you're brought as a date or you were given an invitation card. I looked and there was no IV left."

I want you to be my date to the jewelry exhibition tonight...

  The words echoed in Tess's head.
"Is it perhaps a jewelry exhibition?" She asked Diana.
"It is. How did you know that?"

"I'll get in," she said and winked at them.

       She ran out quickly and drove home. She ransacked her entire wardrobe looking for the perfect dress to wear.

The bag, she remembered.

She ran downstairs and opened the bag.
Three boxes were in it.

    She brought out the biggest one and opened it. Her jaw dropped.

     It was a black shiny gown. It was a straight gown that stopped a few inches above the knee.it had two equal straps to hold it on the body. It looked like a body hug. There was a long white fabric there too. It looks like it was gonna be wrapped around the waist several times to serve as a belt.

She opened the next and she couldn't believe her eyes. White heels stood there in all of their glory. It was a covered heel with a beaded strap. The last box sat there and she opened it.

       This one stole the show. Jewelry.
It was a jewelry box. The necklace looked like crystals. Small crystals joined together to form a necklace. The earrings were also a crystal each and the bracelet was also breathtaking.

      It's not like Tess hadn't seen things like this before but she was captivated by it.

     She washed her hair quickly and dried it. She straightened her white hair out and it stood perfectly above her shoulders.
She slipped into the dress, nice fit.

    After applying her make-up, she put on her jewelry and shoes.

"Wow," she marveled at her own sight from the mirror. She took a quick picture and sent it to the team with the caption, "Wish me luck!"

    This outfit doesn't need a purse, she thought.

     
      She arrived at the venue the same time Jason was arriving. He was dressed in a white suit with a black bowtie. He walked up to the guard and gave him his IV. She grabbed her phone quickly and got out of the car.

   "You're coming in alone?" the guard asked.
He was about to nod when she suddenly slipped her arm into his.
"No, he's not."

       He was taken aback by the sudden intrusion but froze when he saw her.
"Woah," the guard exclaimed.
"Can we go in?" She asked the guard sweetly.
"Of course."   He returned the invitation card back to them.

      Jason was still amazed.

"Close your mouth," she whispered as they walked in.

He adjusted his poise quickly and they walked to the main party.

     Everyone's attention was drawn when they walked in. Tess really does know how to attract attention. Everywhere was silent. The spotlight was on them.

    Jason smiled satisfactorily and led her into the party. She was calm for a few minutes but later, her eyes started roaming around. She was looking for James.
     She started to walk away from Jason when a man walked up to her.
"Can I offer you a drink?" He extended a wine glass to her.
"No, thank you," she smiled politely and made to leave when he grabbed her arm.
"You know, it's rude to refuse a drink," he smirked.

     
      She held in her anger and determination not to punch him. She was about to remove her hand from his grip when her hand was snatched away.

     Jason stood in front of her as as shield.

"When a lady refuses a drink, shouldn't you take hint?" He smiled at him.

   "Mr. Gerard, I didn't see you there." He withdrew his arm.
"Well, now you do."

  "Shouldn't you introduce me to your date?" He winked at Tess and she made a face.

Barf.

"I need to go somewhere," she whispered into Jason's ear and he nodded.

"Did I scare her off?" He chuckled and looked at her retreating figure.

"Trust me, if anyone should be scared, it's you." He walked away from him and looked around for Tess.

       She found him. She found James. He was standing, admiring a piece of jewelry. She took a deep breath and walked to his direction.
     Standing beside each other, either of them didn't utter a word. He was about to turn and leave when he saw Tess. He looked at her for almost a minute.

   She noticed this and and faced him.

"Is there a problem?"

"Oh,no," he stammered. "I'm sorry, you really look familiar," he scratched his neck.

   She smiled. "I have a common face, I get that a lot." She faced the piece again.

It seemed like he reconsidered his decision and stayed.

"I'm sorry, if you don't mind," He faced her again. He extended his arm to her strap and removed a white thread hanging there.

"Thank you," she smiled and he smiled too.

   While all this was happening, Jason was observing from a distance. He was red with jealousy. He looked like he was about to explode.

  "Oh fuck this, at most, she'll be mad for a week," he muttered and walked towards them with full force.

"Hey?" He called when he was almost there. By the time she turned to look at him, he smashed his lips with hers.