Chapter 204 - A Date After School (7)

Of all the places that he could take her out for dinner on a date, Scarlet wasn't expecting to be pulled into a club for comedy that served fast food on the side.

The comedy club was dimly lit and there were all kinds of people in the house that night. Scarlet didn't know what she was expecting but she calmly observed the people who were here for the show. Edward ordered them some fish and ch.i.p.s as well as two glasses of iced peppermint limeade. Scarlet had never heard of such a drink but he assured her that it was going to be good. The writer trusted him and her curiosity was piqued when the people started to cheer.

The performer went by the name of Bobbinskrier - a legendary magic dragon of sorts but was also known as Bob the Drag Dragon by his fans. Even when Scarlet was in the entertainment industry and knew many gay men, she had never seen one dress up like a woman with a loud sense of fashion. For some reason, she admired the amount of effort Bob put into his transformation.

While Scarlet studied the level of skill Bob the Drag Dragon put into his make-up and costume, Edward was looking around. Scarlet's three bodyguards were nowhere to be seen. Perhaps they were stationed outside and couldn't come in? He wondered if Claire would be unhappy if she knew about it. Truthfully, the teen hadn't considered that they wouldn't be able to get into the club. Only those who bought tickets early and reserved a spot were allowed in. If he knew this was one good way to get rid of them, he would've done so earlier.

The food arrived swiftly and Bob started his introduction, greeting everyone in a grandiose manner. Scarlet wondered if this was why they were referred to as drag queens. He certainly did give off the air of royalty when he spoke. The way he carried himself full of confidence wearing those eight-inch stripper heels and strutted in it on stage like he owned the place made her respect him even more. Back when she was still an actress and a singer, she was never able to own a stage like that.

Edward didn't know what was going through his girlfriend's mind. Instead of watching the show and enjoying it like everyone else, she was watching Bob like a hawk, studying his every movement intently. Did Scarlet not like it? He knew about her love for odd things and after doing research and asking Alex for her opinion, this should have been the highlight of their first date as an official couple.

While Scarlet trained her eyes on the performer who was explaining how the magic trick was going to work and asked for a volunteer, Edward pulled out his phone to text his girlfriend's sister.

Edward: You said that she was going to like the show. 

The reply came back within a few seconds.

Alex: What's wrong?

Edward: She isn't laughing along or smiling at all. If anything, she looks like an eagle spying on a mouse. Are you sure this is the kind of thing Scarlet likes? 

Alex was just out of her bath when Edward texted her. Jasper wasn't back yet so the spoiled heiress had all the space to herself. Flopping onto the bed, she asked him what Scarlet was doing and how she looked like.

Edward took a picture and texted back.

Edward: She hasn't touched her food at all. I thought you said she liked fish?

Alex grinned. Her future brother-in-law had so much to learn about her sister. Scarlet was like a pyramid. When you first start out, you would think that it would be to conquer it by climbing to the top. However, when you reach it, you'd come to realise that there was nothing there. Only those who knew her well enough would understand that everything presented above ground was just a distraction from the truth buried beneath. The real Scarlet was a secret that can only be accessed through the labyrinth that will attempt to shut you out permanently. However, once you've evaded all the traps perfectly, there will be no more walls to stop you from understanding who Scarlet truly was.

Scarlet was a complicated person but only on the surface. She liked to mislead people into thinking what they wanted to think of her. If they thought Scarlet was an angel who was kind-hearted, Scarlet would give them evidence to support their theory. If they wanted to see her as a hypocritical bitch, the young writer would give them ample reasons to think that way. Scarlet never cared about the opinions of others. In fact, she relished in their confusion over who she truly was underneath everything.

The media was a frequent victim of Scarlet's amus.e.m.e.nt. Alex knew that well enough. Edward also had an inkling but knowing and seeing were two very different things. Right now, he was using his head to gauge Scarlet's reaction. Edward might study psychology and normally, that would have been accurate. However, he was dealing with a half-genius. Surely, all those theories in his textbook won't work. This is Scarlet Wilde that he was dealing with.

Alex: Don't worry too much, she likes it more than you think she does. She will eat when it is over or you can secretly feed her while she concentrates on the show. Scarlet subconsciously eats things as an auto-response when someone feeds her, especially when she is highly focussed on a task at hand.

When Edward saw the model's reply, he blinked and slowly eyed Scarlet from the side. Indeed, she wasn't angry at all. Yet, he found her focus very out of place. This was clearly a light-hearted event, why was she getting all serious and fired up? Just when he thought he understood her, Scarlet did something to throw him off the loop once more.

The one thing he gained out of talking to Alex was getting to know a small trick. Eager to test the theory out, Edward slowly pulled Scarlet's plate away from her and cut up her food into smaller pieces. He dipped the fish into tartar sauce and slowly inched it towards her mouth.

Scarlet's eyes were still focused on the show but she started to lean in. She slowly opened her mouth and allowed Edward to feed her.

Grinning to himself when he watched Scarlet munch, Edward couldn't keep a grin off his face. The comedian was getting laughs from his acts but Edward's smile was reserved only for Scarlet who ate like a baby bird getting fed by its mother. He alternated between eating and feeding Scarlet until the show was almost over. Edward tried it out with drinks as well and Scarlet reacted a little differently to drinks. She held the cup when offered to her, took a sip and put it back down again.

Amused by his girlfriend's behaviour, Edward didn't listen to any of the jokes told by Bob the Drag Dragon. He was more interested in finding out Scarlet's reason for being so focussed. It was almost as if she was attending lectures. Although he had ever seen the girl attend her lectures, he could imagine Scarlet being the studious kind who recorded the professor's and took notes diligently. On the other hand, he was the kind of bad role model who wouldn't attend a class if he didn't have to. Alicia and her gang were already accustomed to his shenanigans but nobody would think that Scarlet was capable of doing the same.

Sometimes, he felt like he was a terrible influence on Scarlet especially when he knew how young and innocent she was compared to him. Scarlet wasn't like the other university students. In Edward and even Alex's eyes, the small girl was very sheltered in many ways. Claire did a good job in keeping her clean even though the stinging pain on his lip reminded him about her more passionate side. She would be an amazing love when she grew a little older but for now, he was very satisfied with this baby bird.

The show ended at about ten at night and Scarlet applauded, finally smiling when it was over. She looked down and was about to finish up the food she left untouched quickly but blinked at the empty plates that a waiter quickly came to clear.

"What?"

Edward couldn't hold back his laughter and almost fell off the chair. Scarlet didn't think that they had alcoholic drinks but she was now highly inclined to think that her boyfriend was drunk. He wasn't behaving sanely and this was very different from the usual Edward that she knew. Then again, maybe it wasn't so different. This was more of a Jedd kind of behaviour and Scarlet ignored him to finish up her drinks.

"Did you feed me?" she asked after the drink was emptied and Edward sighed, holding his cheeks that hurt from laughing too much.

"How did you know?"

The writer grimaced. "Sorry about that, I was too engrossed. Alex must have told you about it. It's a habit that I developed after a few years because I was simply too busy. It saves time eating on the go while I do something. That's multitasking that Alex would never be able to do."

Her boyfriend looked slightly curious so Scarlet wondered if it was too early to tell him more about her celebrity persona. She did win two out of three games at the arcade and Edward owed her a wish. That wish expires in three days so the writer was still wondering how she should use that wish. Asking him not to panic was a bad idea. She didn't want to scare him away or shock him. Edward took to it well that she came from quite a rich family but he still insisted on paying for her. While Scarlet had a good feeling about it, she still couldn't help but be worried about Edward's attitude towards finding out at her 'part-time job' as an actress and not a stagehand.

"Did you enjoy the show?" he asked as he paid for dinner and left the club.

Scarlet nodded. It was chilly so she huddled closer to him. Edward glanced around casually and spotted three tired-looking bodyguards. Served them right for trying to interrupt their date.

"Let's head back home," Scarlet said and Edward felt his heart skip a beat. Hoe was never a word he liked to use but when Scarlet said it, he changed his opinion. He liked that word now.

"Yes," he smiled. "Let's go home."