It was seven o'clock in the evening, and the girls were waiting for them to be picked up by Mr. Lester's driver in the hotel front lobby. They were sitting down on the couch side by side, and they were (except Prudence) were reading fashion magazines.
Pattie's hair was on a bouffant style, and the others weren't. Prudence, Emma, and Beth didn't wear the bouffant hairstyle because they knew that they wouldn't look as good as her.
Prudence was quite nervous to meet Paul again. How would he act with her in front of everyone for dinner? Would he act that he was her lover or…as mutual friends? She couldn't stop thinking about it, and her heart was beating very fast. Her palms were sweating, and her legs were trembling.
"Prudence," said Beth.
She glanced at her, and smiled at her kindly.
"Yes?" she answered.
"Are you okay?" Beth asked with a worried look on her face.
"Yes, I'm fine," she lied with a fake smile. "What on earth makes you think that I'm not okay?"
"Erm…you're looking quite pale," she said.
"Oh! maybe it's because I haven't eaten dinner, and I'm quite starving, you know?" she lied. "I'm fine, Beth. I am perfectly okay." She smiled at her assumingly.
"Okay."
They just arrived at the fancy restaurant, which they were going to have dinner at. They entered the restaurant, and were stopped by the host of the restaurant.
"It's okay, sir, they're with us," said Paul to the host, and he smiled at Prudence handsomely.
She smiled at him back, and nodded her head. She and her three friends followed Paul to the dinner table. They were seated on a table, and there were more than five people! Mr. Lester, Brian Epstein, The Beatles, the producers, and the writers were on the table.
As Prudence was about to sit down on an empty chair, Paul stopped her, and told her to sit beside him. She nodded her head, and walked to the chair beside Paul's. She wasn't feeling comfortable at all because she was between Paul…and John.
"Well, hello, Prudence," greeted John with his well-known smirk to her as she sat down on the chair between his and Paul's.
"Hello, John," she greeted him back kindly, and shot him a kindly smile, but deep inside there were anger in her bright eyes.
"What are you and Paul doing?" he asked.
"Right now? We're both doing nothing, actually," she said with a smirk. "Why are you asking me that silly question?"
"Oh! you think that that question is silly?" he said.
"It sounds silly when you're the one who says it," she said, and he looked at her with serious eyes although there was still that annoying smirk on his handsome face.
"You're a funny girl, Prudence."
"Really? I never get that a lot! I am often told that I am nosy! Now, what do you think about that, John?"
He paused for a while, and looked at her in the eyes. He opened his mouth after thinking what he was going to tell her.
"I think that whoever says that is an idiot," he said to her with kindness in his eyes.
"Oh! so you're calling yourself an idiot?" she asked him softly.
"You didn't let me finish."
"I didn't, now, didn't I?"
"Why are you being so daft?"
"I'm being daft?"
"Yes."
"This is who I am, John. Since you are very keen to know who I really am instead of a crazy Beatlemania like those screaming girls outside."
He smirked at her. "Can we talk?" he asked her kindly.
"We are talking now, aren't we?"
He chuckled meekly. "By that, I mean, can we talk privately?" he asked her again kindly.
Her face turned serious, and she looked at the empty wine glass beside her empty plate. She didn't look back to his handsome brown eyes. She didn't dare to.
"After dinner," she said softly, and looked at Paul to smile at him.
He looked away from her, and his eyes met Pattie's lovely green eyes. She was talking to Emma, but she looked away from her when she chuckled, and her eyes met his brown eyes. Her cheeks immediately turned pink, and she smiled shyly at him. He smiled his most handsome smile at her, and the smile soon turned into a grin. He found Pattie very attractive and amusing—unlike Prudence. He needed someone to fool around with…and perhaps Pattie could be that someone. He knew that George wouldn't mind, because he wouldn't know.
Prudence was too busy talking to Paul softly to notice that John and Pattie were looking at each other deeply although they were quite far away from each other. Prudence kept her head low, but her eyes high to meet his.
"He wants to talk to me after dinner, Paul," she said to him softly so John wouldn't hear her conversation with Paul.
"Well, go and talk to him," he said. "I bet it's very important when it comes to John wanting to talk to someone privately."
She let out a sad sigh, and looked at his shiny black blazer's buttons. It was so shiny she could even see her own reflection.
"Hey, look at me," he said to her softly, and she looked at Paul without a smile on her face.
"I'm sure that you won't be offended by his words, Prudence," he said to her. "I promise you that."
"What if he offends me with his words?" she asked him.
"I'm going to kick the prick's sorry ass," he said to her with an assuring smile. "Now, cheer up, love. I hate to see you not smile. Let me see that lovely smile of yours."
She couldn't hold back her smile. Her lips curled, and her cheeks turned pink. She was smiling at him, finally. Her eyes were filled with sparkles, and her cheeks were as rosy as ever. She looked very beautiful with that smile. He smiled at her back, and gently touched the tip of her nose.
"That's better, Prudence," he said to her. "You're going to be fine, love."
She wasn't looking forward to the time after dinner was quite over. Her father, Brian Epstein, Ringo, Emma, and Beth went home already, and she, Paul, John, Pattie, and George were the only one in the restaurant.
"Can we talk now?" John asked her in her ear.
She looked at him, but not on his eyes, and nodded her head.
They excused themselves, and stood up from their chairs at the same time. They walked to a quiet place where no one goes there that often. Pattie was watching them as they walked away to a quiet place to talk.
"Where are they going?" she asked Paul and George, curious.
"Oh, let them be, Pattie," said Paul with a friendly smile on his face. "John wanted to talk to her privately."
"About what?" she asked again.
He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know," he said. "I bet that she'll tell you when you and her are back in the hotel."
"How do you know about it, Paulie?" asked George.
"Prudence told me."
"Oh."
John and Prudence were alone now. They were in a dark alley, and it was quite cold. She could even see her own breath, and she wasn't wearing her coat.
"Make it quick, John, I'm freezing!" she said while hugging herself tightly to keep her warm. "Now…what about the idiot?"
He took a deep breath, and exhaled it meaningfully. He looked at her light blue eyes that lightened up the dark alley, and he immediately got lost in them and didn't know what to say. He shook his head, and kept calm.
"The idiot wants to know how…how…" he couldn't say it.
"How what?" she demanded.
"How…how sorry he is."
She looked quite surprised. She looked at him with a serious and surprised look on her face. She chuckled and looked at him in disbelief.
"You're sorry?" she asked him in disbelief.
"You don't know how hard it is to tell you that, you know?" he said.
"Oh, I know how hard it is, John," she said. "It's very hard to apologize to someone especially after what you told him or her something that could make them feel bad about themselves and offended. You never know that they will forgive you or not. It's just a joke, anyway, of you apologizing to me. You're a joke." She crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"But, Prudence, I really mean it."
"Oh, yes, you do. I know that you really mean it, John." She said while rolling her eyes. "But I do not forgive you for what you did to me. I was hurt, John. You are my favorite Beatle, and…and I don't know if you are still my favorite Beatle or not, because of your stupid and childish words, which you said to me."
"If you think that my stupid and childish words that I said to you, then why did you listen to me?" he asked her.
She couldn't answer me. She couldn't answer. She didn't know what to say. She looked at his black leather shoes, which she couldn't really spot because the alley was quite dark.
"Prudence, I'm sorry," he said to her, and walked closer to her. "Please, forgive me. I'll take back all of the words that I said to you that made you feel offended."
She didn't answer him. She didn't want to answer him.
He held her arms, and she walked backwards until her back was against the wall. He looked at her kindly, and her heart was beating very fast.
"Please, Prudence…I'm sorry, I really am," he said.
She shook her head. "I don't know, John," she said. "You hurt me real bad. I don't know if I can forgive you."
"I thought that you're a smart girl! I thought you know everything! Including your feelings."
She shook her head. "You're wrong, John," she said to him. "I don't know my own feelings. I never know how I feel. I never know if I'm sad, angry, happy…or in love." She looked up, and her eyes met his warm eyes.
"You know what, Prudence? I missed talking to you. Even though we were arguing a few days ago. You…actually amuse me…you know?" he said to her slowly.
"Look, John, it's too late for that," she said and tried to let go off his strong grip, but it was no use. "Let go off me, please."
"Not until you forgive me."
"I will never forgive you, Lennon."
"I thought we were all taught to forgive each other?"
She stopped right there, and looked at him with anger in her eyes. She couldn't stand him anymore. She wanted to slap him, but she knew that she would feel guilty. But…just one slap wouldn't hurt, right?
She gave him a hard slap on the face, and immediately ran back to the restaurant as soon as he let go off her, because his cheek hurt quite badly.
She immediately sat down beside Paul, and breathed slowly. Pattie, George, and Paul looked at her with eyebrows raised.
"Are you okay, Prudence?" asked George.
She nodded her head, and pushed a stray of hair behind her ear. "Yes, I am okay, George," she said. "I feel very relieved, actually." She smiled at them.
"Where's John?" asked Pattie.
"He's going to be back here in a few minutes," she said, and looked at Paul. "Paul, would you like to go to the bar with me?"
"Gladly."
She and Paul stood up from their chairs, and walked to the bar to have a drink together. They sat beside each other, and ordered two glasses of wine.
"So, how was it?" he asked her.
"He was apologizing to me." She said.
"And?"
"I didn't forgive him. I couldn't, Paul…after what he said to me…" she said slowly, and closed her eyes.
He patted her shoulder tenderly, and caressed her cheek with his thumb gently. She opened her eyes, and they met his handsome eyes.
"And why are you relieved?" he asked her.
"I slapped him on the face," she said to him with a chuckle.
He laughed. "Should I still kick his ass, though?" he asked her with a chuckle.
She shook her head. "It's unnecessary, Paul," she said to him kindly. "Very unnecessary to kick his ass. He had enough, I think. A hard slap on the face by a girl? Yes, I think he had enough."
The bartender poured the wine into their glasses, and then walked away. Paul raised his glass of wine, and she raised hers, too. He gently bumped his glass against hers, and said cheers while looking at her lovely blue eyes.
"Cheers."
They took little sips of their glasses of wine, and they thought that it tasted very sweet.
"That's very sweet," she remarked and set her glass upon the table.
"I agree."
Meanwhile across the room, John sat on his chair while rubbing his palm against his cheek. It was red, and it was numb.
"Now, what's wrong with you, John?" asked George with an eyebrow raised.
John shook his head, and said, "Nothing."
"There's something going on, alright?" George insisted. "Now, tell me, what is it?"
"It's too embarrassing, George!"
"I won't laugh, I swear."
"I got hit by a bird! And the bird is Prudence! She slaps very hard for a girl!"
Pattie couldn't hold her laugh, and it slipped off from her mouth. She was laughing out loud until she closed her eyes, because it was very funny to her.
"I'm sorry, John!" she said, laughing. "I couldn't help it! It's very funny!"
"No, it's not!" John insisted.
She kept on laughing, and stopped when George looked at her with a serious look on her face.
"Sorry," she said with a friendly smile on her face, and looked at John. "Where is Cynthia, John?"
He looked at her, and set his chin on his palm. "She's visiting her parents in Liverpool," he said. "Why?"
"Just asking," she said. "I never see her around anymore."
He smiled at her, and his eyes twinkled. "I have a question for you, Pattie," he said to her. "Will you answer it honestly?"
She nodded her head while sipping her glass of champagne. "Oh, yes, of course," she said after sipping her drink. "What is it, John?"
"Are you and George dating?"
She nodded her head. "Yes, why?" she asked him back.
He shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, nothing, Pattie," he said. "I'm just…curious, that's all."
She flashed him a beautiful smile. "How's your cheek?" she asked him.
"Much better, I think," he said.
"Good."
He nodded his head, and looked across the room. His eyes were set on Paul and Prudence. They were laughing gaily, and he looked at Prudence. She looked very happy, and very comfortable being with Paul. He looked down to her dress, and saw her hand holding Paul's! He was quite surprised. Was there something going on between her and Paul? He looked at her eyes, and he saw sparkles on her electric blue eyes, which he rarely sees. Yes, he believed that something was going on between those two—and he must find out about it.
"What's bothering you, John?" asked George, interrupting John's thoughts.
John looked at him with kind eyes. "Nothing is bothering me, George," he answered. "What makes you think that?"
"You look very serious," he said.
"Oh. Don't I always look very serious?"
George didn't answer, and looked at his glass full of champagne.
John chuckled, and shook his head. Silly George and his thoughts, he thought to himself.
A/N: Here it is, finally, the chapter twenty-one of "Dear Prudence"! I think that this is the longest chapter of the story...maybe, I don't know. I'll check later. Thanks for reading, everyone! Please review!