Chapter 69 - Play Date

Ace felt like every other detail of that moment blurred as every part of him focused on every aspect of Winter.

Her half-lidded, heaven-given gaze lights up something in him that he's afraid to awaken. Her smile beams like the morning dew, scattering nascent rays that illuminate his deepest emotions. Everything about her that time is as soft as the clouds up in the sky yet as passional as the blazing sun at the same time. 

Then, for a fraction of time, all Ace can do is stay speechless. That's until Winter breaks the silence.

"So, how about it? You can say that I'm more than prepared~" she cooed, making him blush harder.

"I-I... I don't know what I should really do. This is not my thing at all," he confessed and looked away, embarrassed.

"Don't you watch romance movies? You can at least react smitten or something."

"S-Smitten?!"

"How can we make Ms. Chloe believe that we're all lovey-dovey if you're not going to do anything? We've only got one chance."

"Right, right. A cover-up."

A part of Ace does hope that Winter is not playing around, though.

That's because he's certainly going to fall deeper for her at this rate. While she's there pretending, he's here getting genuinely endeared. And if he plays along with their lovey-dovey pretense, he knows he's going to get serious about his gestures at some point - quite an irony, he must admit.   

"A-Anyhow, you can do whatever you're comfortable to do, Winter. We can also just tell her that we've been dating in secret for a while now, but if she happens to be not convinced, let's do this... l-lovey-dovey pretense... thingy..." Ace explained to which Winter nodded in response. 

"But to tell you the truth, it might not be a good idea to have you take the lead."

"Huh? Why not?"

"I don't really want to force you to... f-flirt - or so you called it."

"Does it make you feel uncomfortable?"

"O-Oh, no! No! That's not it!"

It's kind of refreshing to see Ace getting flustered like this.

Winter is so used to seeing him as this cool guy who's all charms and sparkles. Because he has such a bright personality, he compels others into thinking that he is always that poised and confident. To think that he can actually be this bashful and timid as well - she must already be close enough with him to see such a sight. 

'And there's also my speculation that he has feelings for me. Contrary to Sir Lexington, though, he's not one to aggressively seduce. Of course, I already know that Ace isn't like that at all. I guess men are not really the same, huh?'     

After a while of strolling around the park and laying out the plan, the two finally arrive in front of the studio. 

The enormous building is yet another one of the skyscrapers of the cityscape - elaborate design and imposing height. Winter should've already expected this much, though. Everyone who is commercially affiliated with the Miller's is either a prodigious figure or part of the richest of society, after all. 

"Just the perfect setting to execute this pretend lovers act, don't you think so?" Ace sighed, straight-faced.

"There's quite a crowd here. Is something special happening?" Winter asked, taking notice of the crowd that gathered near the entrance of the building.

"Well, Ms. Chloe is not only a rising teen model, you see. She's an influencer in various social media platforms. Maybe those people are her supporters. She does like posting about whatever she does and wherever she goes."

"How come I never heard or seen her before if she's that popular?

"Same here. I also didn't know about her before."

"Hmmm... And how are we supposed to get noticed with all those people?"

"Let's just wait somewhere near. How about that coffee shop over there?"

Grabbing her hand, he then continued to take the lead like he said he would. They made their way to this coffee shop across the entrance of the studio. For that whole time, she keeps studying the crowd. She can't help but see him getting a larger fanbase than that if he is to make an effort to get popular outside of campus as well.

He can even be a good model if she thinks about it. 

"Are you okay, Winter? You're zoning out," Ace called out to Winter, seeing her getting a little too distracted that she could no longer keep up with his pace. 

"No, it's nothing. I'm okay." 

Eventually, they reached the coffee shop. They then decided to settle down on one of the tables outside. From there, they could be easily seen by anyone who would step out of the building. Now that their position is set, all they have to do is order for a drink and some light snacks to pass time with while they wait. 

But then, Ace suddenly noticed something about Winter. 

"Uhhhhh... Winter?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's your hat?"

"Huh?"

At that, her hands hastily flew over her head. She then groped around it but only to find that her floppy hat was missing.

"Oh, shoot! It probably fell on our way here!" she exclaimed in surprise, frantically bolting out of her seat not even a minute after flopping down on it. 

"I'll go look for it," he offered, standing up as well.

"No, it's fine, Ace. I'll do it. It's my fault for zoning out earlier, anyway."

"It's alright, though."

"I'll be fine. It's just somewhere around there. I'll be back in a minute. You have to prepare since you're the one who's going to take the lead later, right?"

Sparing one last glance, Winter then pulled herself together again before she went and set off. Ace may have said that he wanted to lead the act, but she knew that he was nervous. She could see how uneasy he was when they tried it out earlier. And he even gets flustered easily.   

'I may have said I'll be gone for a minute, but this might actually take a while. I really don't know where and when my hat fell off,' she thought with a sigh before she took another glance at the crowd near the entrance of the studio.                 

It appears to have gotten a little bigger in number - and somewhat rowdier. 

Not wanting to waste any more second, Winter went to start searching at once. She had to find that hat no matter what since it was August who gifted it to her the other day. It has a sentimental value. That was the first present he gave to her in a long while, after all. And even when he keeps giving more these days, that's the one she treasures the most. 

Soon, seconds turn into minutes, and the unprecedented happens.

Right at this moment, Winter can make out a number of people flooding the coffee shop where she left Ace waiting. At first, she thought he was just unknowingly attracting attention again, but that's until she heard the ear-piercing shrill of a certain someone.

Before Winter knew it, the real deal finally began.

"My darling Aceee~!"

At that point, everything passed through her vision in a flash. 

It turns out that Chloe has made an uproarious appearance outside the coffee shop after spotting Ace there. With eyes as wide as saucers and mouth slightly agape, Winter only watches her make an overdramatic entrance as she strides right in and readies to pounce on him - with her group of supporters in tow the whole time, that is.

"Darn it! That's too soon! I still haven't found my hat...!" Winter bolted out, panic-stricken.

"If I go now, she will definitely see my face. She might recognize me, and if she blows up a fuse, she might post things about me on her social media. Since she's a popular influencer, rumors might spread about me dating my classmate. If that happens, there's a chance that August, Ms. Violet, Sir George, and Sir Lexington will find out-"   

But then, at that fraction of a moment, Winter recalls that she's not there to make a fuss over such consequences - she's there as Ace's friend.

She needs to get it together and put her thoughts straight. There's no use getting into a panic like this. Besides, she's good with finding solutions - she can both find her floppy hat and see this act through. For now, though, she has to think of a way to solve one of them first. 

"Arghhhhh...! Whatever happens happen! I don't care anymore!" Winter then grumbled before making a dash to where Ace and Chloe were.

As soon as she got back to the coffee shop, she sighed at the sight of yet another hurdle to pass through. She goes ahead and forces her way into the crowd, uttering excuses and pardons to those she bumped into all the while.

At this point, Winter can see that Chloe is so close to pouncing on Ace. Her obsessiveness is out in the open for everyone to see, but it seems like her prey is the only one who has a problem with it. He remains standing there looking stiff and flustered, unsure of what to do.

"Well, here goes nothing," Winter then muttered to herself before eventually reaching Ace and Chloe.