Chapter 12

Despite initial reluctance, Lou finally agreed to go with Kid to the Barnes' bash. The idea did not appeal to her at all, but she thought it would not kill her to do this for him. They both needed to make some concessions for each other if they wanted their relationship to work. Kid also stoically bore Mabel's remarks and peculiar personality whenever they spent time at Lou's place. He never complained, even though Lou could tell that her roommate's comments made him uncomfortable. Actually, those remarks did not sit well with Lou either, and if she had the chance to catch Mabel alone, she would give her a good piece of her mind. So far that was not likely to happen since she spent most of her free time with Kid, and Lou did not think it was a good idea to get into a fight with her roommate in front of him.

Louise knew that tonight she was going to feel like a fish out of water at the party. Even though she knew the Barnes already, she would have to deal with them at a very different level, which would be quite awkward. They had always treated her with respect and affability, but they also had some weird attitudes. Apart from the Barnes, Lou had also met a couple of Kid's colleagues, who were quite kind and friendly, but they were still strangers to her. Lou told herself that she needed to relax; there was nothing to be afraid of. She would be with Kid all the time, and after all, she had been in similar situations before.

"You look absolutely stunning in that dress," Kid said, glancing at her as he drove his car towards the Barnes's place.

Louise looked down, running her eyes over her figure. She had bought the dress for the occasion, aware that she just could not wear any of her plain clothes. She knew quite well how the women invited by the Barnes' dressed, and nothing she had would be suitable. It was a purple, moiré dress she had bought along with a matching bag, shoes, accessories, and a shawl. That had cost more than what she spent on clothes every season altogether. The purchase had made a deep wound in her finances that month, but she hoped it was worth its while. She did not want to feel lesser than the other women or have Kid thinking something similar about her. Of course, she had not mentioned any of this to Kid because, firstly, he would have offered to pay for the dress, which she could not allow him to do, and secondly, because he would have told her not to worry about what the others might think. And he would be right, but still Lou did not want to make a bad first impression.

"Do you really think so?" she asked tentatively, wanting to be sure she looked all right for him.

"You are beautiful to me no matter what you wear."

Lou made an unhappy face. This was not the answer she wanted, and she knew Kid would never tell her she looked hideous even if she painted all her face in a shiny green color, dyed her hair yellow, and wore a garbage sack as a dress. She sighed and then said, "Kid, I'm still unsure about all this."

"What do you mean?"

"This thing… this party. I don't understand the point of me being there."

Kid did not shift his eyes from the windshield and the traffic outside, but his face revealed he was tired of going over the same topic. "Lou, you already know. You're my girl… who else am I supposed to go with? My landlady?"

Lou had to chuckle, imagining Mrs. Pilchard, who was old enough to be his grandmother, making her entrance at the Barnes' arm in arm with Kid. "What I mean is… I don't know… I kind of feel awkward."

"You don't have to. It's going to be just a small party… the Barnes, Natasha, Tony, Richard, and their wives. And you already know most of them… Tony and Richard are the guys I introduced to you the day you were off and met me for lunch."

Lou nodded, but she was hardly listening to his explanation since her mind was busy with other thoughts. "So Miss Natasha will be there?"

"Uh… yes, why?"

"Nothing. I just wonder if she still wants something from you."

Kid sighed. He had told Lou what had happened with Natasha that first night they had been reunited. Yet, sometimes he wondered if he should have kept quiet about it, because whenever he happened to mention Natasha, Lou acted all weird and even jealous. "I don't care what she wants. I just know what I want, and I just want you."

Louise smiled, pleased by his words, as she settled on the passenger seat more comfortably. Neither said another word until they got to the place and left the car. Lou was a nervous rack; it was silly, but she was still apprehensive. These kinds of social gatherings were quite out of her league. Mrs. Barnes came from a very wealthy background; an aristocratic family, popular for their social arrangements and life. So she was used to socializing in her circle from a very young age. And now even though her social environment had changed when she had married a middle-class man like Colin Barnes, she still recreated some of the customs from her youth.

The Barnes greeted Kid and Lou when they arrived. Seemingly, they were the first guests to show up. Mr. Barnes was affable and warm, but even though his wife kept smiling, Lou could sense a certain coldness and detachment from her part. Lou wondered what her problem was, but she decided to ignore the woman. Lou did not care what other people might think of her or Kid, especially somebody who did not mean anything to her. Nobody would rule her again. She had let others and their opinions interfere in the past, and it had been the worst mistake of her life. If the Barnes looked down on her for whatever the reasons, she did not mind.

"Well, hello, Sammy boy."

They turned to the voice and saw Natasha walk into the living room. She stopped where the Barnes, Kid and Lou were talking, but ignored everybody else but Kid. She directed her eyes to him and repeated her greeting, using a silly name she had just made up. Kid noticed Lou stiffen, and he could not blame her. Despite his continuous reassurances, nobody could remain indifferent, seeing the way Natasha was acting around him. "Uh… Natasha, let me introduce you to Louise," Kid said, trying to reassure Lou discreetly.

Natasha turned her eyes to Lou with indifference, but deep inside she was burning with indignation. She was still upset by the way Kid had refused her advances, and when she had heard he had started dating someone else shortly afterwards, she had cursed them both. And now as they were before her, she wanted to make them feel as horrible as she had felt. Yet, her upbringing did not let her show her real feelings, and despite herself, she politely shook hands with Louise.

"You know? Your face kind of rings a bell. Have we by any chance met somewhere else?" Natasha asked innocently, knowing fully well where she had seen Louise before.

Lou had no problem with acknowledging the circumstances she had first met the woman. She could feel Natasha's animosity, and could guess the reason behind her question. Natasha surely thought she would ridicule her, but Lou told herself nobody could make her feel ashamed because of her living. Because of her hard work she had been able to help her family, raise her siblings, and the little she had was thanks to her efforts. "Your parents once employed me for a weekend party in their country house, and you were there," Lou explained.

"Oh yeah…" Natasha pretended she had finally recalled that time. "Now I do remember you in that silly uniform Mom bought for the service! Interesting to see how everybody can creep their way up… by whatever the means."

Lou did not reply to her malicious comment. Silence was the best answer she could give her and she could feel Natasha's disappointment in her maneuver. The woman eventually got bored, made an excuse and walked away, followed by her aunt.

Kid turned his eyes to Lou, wanting to tell her not to mind Natasha or her words, but he was tongue-tied in front of Natasha's uncle. It was Mr. Barnes, who broke the moment of silence after his niece's leave. "Samuel, remember what I told you about that computer program I'm monitoring?"

"Yes."

"I'd like you to have a quick look," the man said, and turning to Lou, he added, "Would you forgive me for stealing your man for a few minutes?"

"Of course. Go ahead," Lou replied.

"We'll be back right away, but in the meantime, why don't you go out to the terrace? The others will be arriving shortly."

Lou nodded. Kid gave her an are-you-sure-you'll-be-okay-on-your-own kind of look, and she reassured him with a smile. The two men then left for the study, and Louise decided to follow Mr. Barnes' advice, and explore the terrace. Even though she had been in their apartment dozens of times, she had never set foot on the terrace, and just got a few glimpses of the place from the back door of the kitchen.

It was another cold January night. It had been snowing all day long, but now the clouds had vanished, and a full moon reigned in the dark sky. Louise walked to the far end, and stood before the parapet, behind the protecting glass panes, admiring the view of the city. The thousands of lights and the vague sounds of the humanity below welcomed her, and she stared transfixed at the sight. It was a beautiful, artificial landscape that men and the years had created, making it unique and special. Admiring the hugeness of the world under her stare made her feel so small and insignificant. She was just a speck in the immensity, a dot in an infinite line, a drop in the sea, a sigh of nothing in the immeasurable universe.

"Would you like something to drink, Ma'am?" a voice talked behind her, interrupted her thoughts, and as Lou turned round, she recognized the waitress. She had never had much contact with the staff of the catering service the Barnes usually hired, but she knew the regulars.

"No, thanks. Maybe later," Lou replied awkwardly, noticing the strange look the waitress gave her.

"My, look who's here. How did you manage to move out of the kitchen and stand here like a lady? Did your fairy godmother touch you with her wand or what?" the waitress asked with a sardonic smile.

Lou did not like the comment. She folded her arms in a defensive pose and said, "That's none of your business."

The waitress grinned in unkind amusement, and without another words she walked away. Lou remained on the terrace by herself, wondering what was wrong with people. She definitely had not started on the right foot. First, she had to bear Natasha's malicious comments and now this waitress made fun of her. It was unbelievable. One could think that in the 21st century the notions of class distinction would have been surpassed, but apparently, some people still had very reactionary attitudes.

Lou walked away from the terrace parapet and had a look around. It was very nicely decorated with a romantic air about it. There were a couple of tables set up near the door and she approached them. Several vases stood there, full of beautiful and colorful flowers, among which she recognized some lavender sprigs. Lavender was her mother's favorite, and as long as Lou remembered, there had always been some at home, which filled every corner with their lovely scent. Even when they had moved to Buffalo, her mother had given her some seeds, which Lou had planted in the back garden. The flowers had grown beautifully that spring, but unfortunately, her mom had been too sick then to appreciate anything, even the flowers that Lou regularly decorated her room with.

Louise leaned across the table to smell the flowers when the murmur of feminine voices coming from inside told her to expect company at any moment.

"So are you telling us that he had the nerve to bring that woman along?"

"Nat, we all thought it was just a question of time for you and Samuel to be an item. You looked so nice together, but some men are nothing but idiots who let themselves get entangled by the first cheap bimbo who crosses their way. The least he should have done was to have some dignity and stay at home. Come here with that woman! And before your uncle and aunt!"

"And she's not even what we could call a bimbo… just a plain, ignorant bitch," said a third voice, belonging to Natasha. It was then that the three women stepped outside and discovered Louise. Her expression and her red face showed that she had heard enough of their hurtful comments.

For a few seconds the four women stared at each other in silence. Lou was so shocked and outraged that she could not even form a coherent thought in her mind. What those women had said was so unfair. They had no right to judge Kid or her because they had no idea what was going on in their life. Lou guessed that Natasha had been telling tales, trying to appear like a poor victim, putting Kid in a bad light. That might explain why Mrs. Barnes had treated her so coldly.

It would be very easy for her to barge against those women and show them the sharpness of her tongue. That, though, would say very little of her and making a show would even prove that she was a hysterical woman and Natasha was right to qualify her. So despite herself, Louise plastered a smile on her lips, and took a few steps closer to the women, stretching her hand to them. "Hi. Let me introduce myself. My name's Louise McCloud."

Whereas Natasha kept looking at her with a bitter expression, the two newcomers reacted awkwardly. "Uh... I'm Tracy Parker and she's Rebecca Huxley."

Lou nodded. "Your husbands work with Kid, don't they?" Lou asked as neutrally as possible, even though deep inside she was almost sick of refraining her true feelings about the whole situation.

"Kid?" Rebecca echoed in confusion.

Lou stretched her lips into a strange kind of smile. "Oh… I mean Samuel. Kid's just an old nickname… from when we were just kids. And it had stuck between us."

"So you know each other from before?" Tracy added in obvious surprise.

"Oh yes, many years before," Lou replied, and after a pause, she could not help to add, "I'm definitely not the first bimbo to cross his way." She never stopped smiling as she pointedly threw her comment at them.

Tracy and Rebecca exchanged uncomfortable looks as they laughed nervously. Natasha just kept quiet, glaring at Lou. Without flinching, Louise met her glowering eyes, realizing the meaning in them. This was a war, and she feared it was going to be a very long night.