Every day was a busy day in a large city like Bayview. The city clock tower just struck its bell for noontime, which meant that mini rush hour was about to start. Most working people left their workplaces at this time of day to eat lunch. Morning and evening rush hours were self-explanatory, since those are when people go to or get off work.
Most people preferred to walk to nearby restaurants or stores to order a sandwich plus drink or some take-out and quickly return to work. Nowadays, people can't risk wasting another minute because not finishing their tasks at hand means they won't get paid.
Otherwise, all the buildings along major roads were filled with store fronts for both big companies and small businesses alike. Thankfully, there were dedicated parking lots everywhere, since traveling by personal car was the most reliable method of transportation for everyone. From supermarkets to pharmacies and department stores, there was nothing that couldn't be found.
In a small business jewelry store, a rose gold engagement ring with a large circular diamond in the center and smaller oval diamonds on the band that resembled small leaves. "I'd like this ring, please."
"An excellent choice!" the jewelry assistant complimented.
The man grabbed his wallet from his blazer pocket, paid the bill, and placed the wallet in the same pocket again. After observing the ring one more time before closing the ring box, he exited the store front and was walking toward another vendor when a raven-haired boy bumped into him on the sidewalk. "Watch where you're going, kid!" After nearly dropping the ring, the man put it away in his blazer pocket, only to not feel his wallet anymore. After checking all his pockets, he screamed, "Someone stole my wallet!"
Now everyone on the streets became frantic, which ironically helped the thief cut through the crowds to arrive at the street corner quickly. He opened the wallet with gloved hands and counted all the money inside. Not exactly much, considering that he just spent a fortune on that engagement ring. At least I gave him his identification and bank cards back. Now for my next target... With the upcoming foot traffic soon to begin at the crosswalk, pickpockets like him could steal things more easily without being noticed.
Standing the northern side of the crosswalk right now was Shun Kazami. While the short wind blew gently through his short black hair, he stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets and kept his amber eyes plus keen ears peeled of his surroundings. Both sides of the crosswalk have large crowds of people waiting to cross. I hope I'll get a chance... The crosswalk light changed to WALK, but he waited until half the crowd on his side had stepped on the road before crossing.
On the southern side of the crosswalk was Alice Gehabich. Her long orange locks stayed put in the wind while she was busy typing on her phone. I just need a couple more minutes to finish writing this paragraph. Even when the crosswalk light changed to WALK, she was still texting until halfway across the street. Although she eventually put her phone down and looked forward, she still ended up bumping into people walking in the opposite direction.
That was the moment that their paths crossed.
Alice lost her balance and fell onto the ground as her belongings also fell everywhere. I should've put my phone away the moment I stepped off the sidewalk. No one bothered to help her pick up her stuff, as everyone was busy crossing the street to reach their destinations. After grabbing her phone first, she felt a shadow hover over her in a fixed position. "What the—"
Kneeling in front of her was Shun, who was holding a set of keys. "You dropped this."
"Thanks." After hearing the crosswalk countdown begin, Alice took her keys back and quickly recovered her belongings on the ground before sprinting to the other side.
Unbeknownst to the redhead, not everything in her possession was recovered. After he reached the other side, Shun opened his hands and observed the two items that he stole.
One was a brand-new invitation card to a banquet booked for tomorrow evening at a local but well-known restaurant. The event sponsor's name was Testarossa Electronics. This looks like an annual company dinner or some kind of anniversary event. Maybe I can sneak in for free food.
The other item was a bracelet made from a think gold chain with a lobster claw clasp. At the midpoint of the bracelet were several tiny gemstone charms attached to different links in the chain. These must be birthstones. Judging by the quality, this bracelet is suitable for a kid to wear at best. No adults would wear this unless they wore this since childhood. No way can I expect to pawn this for much in return, either. It's so old...
He stuffed both items back into his pockets and continued walking. At least I don't have to worry about dinner tomorrow... But I will need a decent outfit if I want to blend in...
-x-x-x-x-x-
"Alice, you're back! But you also have other visitors..."
Upon opening the front door of her house, the redhead was greeted by a short blonde girl with amethyst eyes. "Nice to see you, Chris. Let me guess—Uncle Zenoheld and Hydron are also here?"
"Well... I couldn't exactly deny them entry while you were out, and they insisted on waiting in the living room for you to come back and refuse to talk to me."
"I see. Let me handle this." Alice hung her jacket on a coat hanger and greeted the visitors in the living room. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting. I had no idea that you would visit while I was out for an errand."
"Nonsense! We came without telling you, so that's our fault!" the evergreen-eyed elderly man apologized. "We came to see how you're doing after your grandfather passed away. He was my uncle, after all. Please let us know if you need anything. Hydron and I are more than happy to help."
"I appreciate your support, Uncle Zenoheld. As everyone says, we need to stick together during these difficult—"
"How is the company doing right now? I know you were affected the most by your grandfather's death. I'm sure the rest of your team maybe be experiencing loss and confusion as well."
Alice tightened her grip on her keys after hearing the unwarranted question. "We're doing fine, and my subordinates are making progress. Since Grandfather retired last year, his passing had no impact on workflow, but several team members have requested bereavement time off. Some of them even helped me with funeral planning."
"Oh, how could we forget about that? Unfortunately, Hydron and I couldn't help you with funeral planning back then, but maybe we can help you with business planning going forward? After all, your cousin Hydron just earned his MBA recently. This will be a great time to put his skills to use."
"Yes, I know Hydron graduated already. I attended his commencement ceremony as you invited. However, the decision to add him to the company isn't mine alone. I need to consult my direct reports and also everyone else from the other—"
Suddenly, Zenoheld stood up and cleared his throat loudly. "Alice, this is an order, not a request. My son will hold a high position like you do, with no questions asked. Don't forget that I also hold a large number of shares in the company and am also a senior member in a shareholder board."
Alice put her keys away and crossed her arms placidly. "Uncle Zenoheld, if you insist on placing Hydron in my company by brute force, then I can't guarantee that this new job will be a smooth start for him, especially since you want to insert him while we're in the middle of a project."
"I'm not worried about that at all, Alice. As long as you're in charge of giving Hydron a place to work, then I'm sure that anything will work. He's your cousin, after all. Family always comes first, correct?" Zenoheld then checked his pocket watch. "I didn't realize how late it was already. We'll be going then, Alice." He and his son stood up together and put their coats back on. "Think about it."
Hydron walked closer to Alice and smiled faintly while twirling his lime-blond hair. "I look forward to working with you, Alice. All advice and guidance appreciated."
"We'll see. I'll let you two leave on your own."
After the unwarranted father and son left the house, the redhead locked both the door handle and the dead bolt above it before entering the kitchen. "Good riddance! Nothing about that visit had anything to do with sending condolences. Chris, would you like something to eat?"
"Hmm... whatever you have or want to make is fine!" The blonde took a seat on a bar stool in front of the marble kitchen counter. "You already know that those two never come bearing any desirable news anyway. What Zenoheld is asking from you is literally a back door entrance for Hydron."
"I could use a new employee, but I don't think I'm ready to train someone or handle any onboarding yet."
"Are you seriously considering hiring Hydron?! If I were you, I would make him an intern at most with a six-month probationary period. Thank goodness he's cousins with you and not me. I don't even want to look at him."
"Second cousins," corrected Alice as she handed Chris a cup of hot chocolate. "If you say that you don't even want to look at him, then maybe that's why they refuse to talk to you until I came home."
"All your extended family from your dad's side are creepy. Aren't you glad you have a sweet and carefree first cousin like me from your mom's side?"
"You? Sweet? Carefree? Depends on your mood! But you have a point." Alice then handed a freshly heated apple strudel to Chris. "Testarossa Electronics came from my father's side of the family. There is still bad blood that I won't go into details of, but I can only hope that things get better as time passes."
"You sure are optimistic, even after—"
"Don't worry about it, Chris. If Hydron makes his way into the company, then let me handle everything. You're a hardworking employee too, and I'd rather you focus on work instead of my family problems."
"Apparently, I'm supposed to help my team plan for tomorrow's banquet, but I told them I needed a day off for—"
"Did you say 'banquet'?!" Suddenly, Alice began searching through all the pockets on her clothes. "Where did my invitation card go?"
"I'll check your coat, if you don't mind." Chris hopped off the bar stool and walked to the coat hanger. "Absolutely nothing here either, Alice. Did you drop or misplace it while you were out earlier?"
"I didn't really do much while—" The redhead paused after remembering where she went today. Did I really lose it when I crossed the street? But that's not the only thing I'm missing. I'm fortunate that I still have my phone and that it didn't crack. "That's fine. I'm sure security will let me in if I show them my work badge. But I didn't know that you were on that committee. Why do we have a banquet again? I was on bereavement leave for a few days and completely forgot."
"I don't know how I got assigned either. Basically, it's just for the company to promote its new 'Mission and Vision' update to shareholders and other collaborators. Whenever you have outsiders and external contacts attending, security needs to be even tighter. As far as I know, Dan and Runo will be there for the entire event. I don't think you have to stay for the entire five hours."
"I see." Alice took Chris's cup and plate back to wash at the sink. "Anything else that I missed out on?"
"Not really. Dan and Runo have everything under control. Anyway, I should go home and—"
"You don't want to stay for dinner?"
Chris puffed her cheeks in thought. "Sure, why not?"
"Your spare belongings are still in the guest room, if you also want to stay over tonight as well."
Suddenly, the blonde ran over and gave her redhead cousin a tight hug before running upstairs. "Best. Cousin. Ever!"
After placing the dishes on the drying rack, Alice took a seat and stared into the living room. How exactly am I supposed to find a stranger again to ask for my belongings back?
-x-x-x-x-x-
Standing in front of the restaurant from the banquet invite was Shun, who dressed in black business casual with an evergreen dress shirt. This is the most formal outfit I have... Now to sneak past security...
Similar to typical restaurants, tonight's event featured several round tables that seated ten people each. There were also smaller round tables toward the back of the entire room that seated five to six people each. The banquet was a combination of waiter-style and buffet-style. Waiters brought large food entrees to each table, but any of the guests could grab appetizers, drinks, and other side dishes from the self-serve counters.
I didn't even need to sneak past security... The people at check-in were so busy talking with everyone that came over. Shun flipped the card over multiple times. No special markings whatsoever to indicate if this is one card out of many.
He approached the self-serve counter and helped himself to a glass of apple cider plus fried calamari. Better eat quickly and leave to avoid attention. For the next half hour, he ate mainly appetizers and side dishes from the counter since he didn't dare take a seat at any tables.
What exactly is the purpose of this banquet? Do rich people really have nothing to do than to spend their money on overpriced food? By some odd arrangement, the beverage dispensers for plain iced water were placed near the restroom hallway entrance. After drinking too much apple cider, Shun helped himself to plain water to clear the excess sweetness in his mouth.
That was when he heard two security guards whispering at the communal sink counter that preceded the restroom entrances. "Are you sure she's not here yet?"
"I asked the check-in staff. They haven't seen her yet. Maybe she's late."
"No one will be happy about this if we don't get the job done."
Security is so bad that I helped myself inside and that these guys have nothing better to do than to hide near the restrooms. Shun rolled his eyes and returned to the food counter. After pouring himself a bowl of clam chowder, he turned around and saw a familiar redhead talking to people at the smaller tables in the back. It was my decision to take her stuff at the crosswalk. I'd better leave immediately. Despite what his instincts were telling him to do, Shun couldn't help but watch the young woman interact with others so gracefully.
Alice's banquet attire consisted of a lavender short-sleeved, high-collared, knee-length dress with a matching silk shawl and matching satin flats. "Dan, Runo—good to see you two again. I heard from Chris that you two worked on both banquet planning and our design project at the same time."
The bluenette waved her hand in disagreement and replied, "It was a piece of cake! At least I had Dan working with me through both tasks. Honestly, I didn't want to come because I already know what will be presented later, but my parents insisted that I come so I can eat a good meal after they saw how much our banquet food budget was. They even found this yellow dress for me to wear. I haven't worn this since high school prom, yet it still fits!"
The brunet next to Runo thought otherwise. "I don't know how Runo got everything done without working a minute of overtime. I probably spent an extra thirty minutes daily trying to cover both tasks."
"I have no objection to you working and earning overtime, but once I've reached eight hours of work, then I'm out of here. Not to be mean to Alice, but the banquet deadline comes before the design project deadline, so that's how I balanced my time."
"No offense taken," the redhead reassured. "I'm glad that I have you two on my team. I'll greet some other people in the meantime and then come back. I almost forgot about tonight's 'Mission and Vision' banquet since I was on bereavement leave."
"No worries," her two coworkers replied.
Shun watched Alice walk off to other tables as he continued drinking water. So her name's Alice... Based on how she goes around tables to greet guests, she must be a high ranking employee, if not someone on the executive board. Basically, another rich person upholding her reputation. Then he glanced at the food counter, in which the champagne station was much emptier than before. If everyone is drunk and about to enter a food coma, then I'm sure that they won't notice a missing item or two. I don't see any security cameras, so...
After talking to all ten people at the third large table of the day, Alice took a break and drank some apple cider. This is more exhausting than I thought. I don't even know whom half of these external contacts are, yet they all knew and remember Grandfather professionally. He's been retired for more than a year already! At the thought of her grandfather, the redhead gripped her cup tightly and breathed deeply. Keeping the company afloat is one thing, but meeting everyone's expectations is another.
She was about to resume her meet and greet with the fourth large table when several people began screaming. "Has anyone seen my plum blossom brooch?!"
"My pocket watch has gone missing!"
"I can't find my coin purse either!"
Before Alice could even react, two security guards dressed in black suits with black sunglasses approached her. "Miss Alice, there's a fight inside the women's restroom lobby. We're hoping you can go inside and stop the fight or at least take them outside."
"Alright... Meanwhile, if you can please help these people out here who claim that they're missing items..."
After Alice left, the two security guards whispered amongst themselves. "I can't believe she fell for that trick so easily."
"Let me tell the others to get ready."
Now the entire dining area was full of yelling and accusations. How did I end up in this situation? I literally came back from bereavement leave to walk in on this mess of a banquet. As she passed the self-serve counter, she noticed a raven-haired individual run toward the kitchen entrance. What is that person doing in the kitchen while the rest of the venue is a huge mess? I guess the restroom fight will have to wait. At least I told security to handle all the missing item reports.
While sprinting to the kitchen entrance, she faintly heard random conversations in the hallways. "Did you see where she went?"
"I thought you guys sent her to the restroom! There's no one here!"
"Then find her!"
Wait...are they referring to me? So is there a fight in the women's restroom or not? Unsure what to think, Alice grabbed a bottle of pepper spray from her purse and entered the kitchen, only for someone to drag her by that same wrist to the electric stoves. "Let me go!"
"Stop screaming first."
The redhead calmed down and observed the person who grabbed her. Black hair and amber eyes... "You're the guy from yesterday's crosswalk intersection!"