Ties are the enemy of mankind.
Paul couldn't get this thought out of his head as he struggled to tie his tie, his impatience and anger with the silly accessory growing by the second. "Dawn, how fancy is this place?" he called to his wife, who was fixing her makeup in the bathroom. "Would a tie be overkill?" His fashion-savvy partner always knew what the proper dress code was for just about any event; her experience as a designer certainly came in handy sometimes.
She finally emerged from the other room, rubbing her lips together. When she saw Paul wrestling with his tie, she raised both hands to her face. He knew this meant that she was trying to cover up a laugh, but she was doing a pretty poor job. "Yeah, I'm pathetic. I know." He rolled his eyes, but his contempt was directed at himself rather than at the blue-haired beauty.
"Let me teach you, hon," she said with a smile, still barely suppressing her giggles. She walked up beside him and took hold of his hands, moving them in a way so that he could easily watch her in the mirror in front of them. "You take this part like this," she instructed, guiding his motions carefully. "There you go! No need to worry, right?" She grinned at him. "To be honest, the tie was optional, but I like it." He groaned very loudly. "Oh, come on. You wouldn't have let the night end without defeating this vicious nemesis of yours anyway," she pointed out.
"Fair enough," he conceded with a grunt as he brushed off his slacks. "Now then, what time is our reservation?"
"6:00," Dawn chirped as she began to rummage around in her purse. "We should probably leave in ten minutes if we want to be on time." Her eyes lit up suddenly, and Paul raised an eyebrow. "First, however…" She whipped out her phone. "Christmas is technically in two weeks, but can we still call this a holiday selfie?"
Paul shrugged. "Sure. Whatever makes you happy." He knew how excited she got when it came to documenting any type of formal event; not only would the pictures they serve as cheesy keepsakes, but their current outfits could also inspire her future works. Plus, she kept these photos private; only her actual designs saw the light of day, and only her final creations ever received an audience greater than her immediate coworkers.
"Smile for the camera!" She pressed her face close to his and extended her arm. "3, 2, 1…." A soft click sounded, and then she stepped to the side to give him some breathing room. "Excellent! One for my portfolio," she started, inching towards the door with every word. "One for the Christmas card!"
Christmas card? The blood rushed from Paul's face. "You planned this." He would have never agreed to dress up if he knew that she was going to broadcast the evidence to all of their friends and family! He absolutely detested pictures, and he only ever agreed to them because he knew they were private photos that aided Dawn with her work. She had already rushed out of the room to upload the pictures onto their computer, and Paul collapsed into the nearest chair with a sigh.
So this is what betrayal felt like.