Perfidy's Knife

Chapter 6: Events leading up to the catastrophe.

Part 5: Where it all began.

Have you ever been swept off of your feet? Or feel like you are on cloud thirty because cloud nine is no longer your milestone. You can just fly because your wings have a limitless supply of air beneath it. At this point in my life this is how I Maranda Cassandra Myers feel, since Darius Denzel Lorenzo Smith came into my life. He has given my life new meaning. Shown me that men aren’t always vile in nature. In the four years that I have come to know him since that fateful day. He has broken down my walls and boy am I glad that he did. Because now my world has become a lot brighter, clearer and has a whole lot more meaning. Gone are the days where I would just go to school, go home, do assignments, study, read and repeat. Now that mundane routine that has been my norm has been blown away completely. Replaced by more excitement than I could contain.

Our journey….

We worked together on the student council for two years until Darius came out and told me how he really felt about me. It was a really downcast day as we were having a thunderstorm and unfortunately for me I forgot my umbrella. I looked up at the sky wondering how I was going to get home, placed my jacket above my head and I was about to step into the rain. Instead of feeling the fat raindrops, hitting my jacket with a force, I heard them hammering against a smooth surface as I remained dry. I looked up and was met with worried grey, blue eyes. “Were you really planning to go into that storm with no umbrella? Are you trying to get sick?” Darius said the prospect of me becoming ill obviously upsetting him. I was so lost in those depths that I didn’t answer until he called, “Maranda, are you listening to me?” “Hmmm,” was my reply. “I said that I could drop you home if you like. I am not really comfortable with the idea of you travelling in this weather,” He finished worry etched in his voice. I just nodded in response and we headed to his 2020 BMWi8. He opened the door for me, ensured that I was inside and then got inside himself. After we were settled he looked at me and asked, “will you like to go somewhere to get something to warm you up and a bite to eat?” “I will love to,” was my response. After my acceptance he pulled out of the school's parking lot and we were on our way.

Twilight Café thirty minutes later….

When the car stopped and I looked at the posh looking building, I immediately felt out of place. This is the place that Camy told me Brent, (her on and off boyfriend for five years), took her on their fifth anniversary. She said that it was an upscale establishment that you had to book your reservation months in advance. “Am I really dressed appropriately?” I thought feeling self conscious. Darius came out of the car and came on my side to open my door for me. Thankfully the car park was covered, so we were unaffected by the raging thunderstorm outside. He lead me to the foyer of Twilight and I felt even more out of place as I took in the high ceilings, expensive looking chandeliers and the impeccably dressed staff. As we passed the fully glassed entrance I looked at my reflection, at my brown curls, denim jacket, purple crop top, blue jeans, purple sandals and purple side bag, I couldn’t help but sigh. While my outfit was decent it wasn’t the attire for this high class restaurant. Apparently Darius heard me sigh as he smiled reassuringly and said, “you look beautiful don’t worry about it.” I just smiled nervously and kept walking. When we arrived at the reception desk, the receptionist just looked at Darius and told us to follow him. We passed several empty tables and chairs, causing me to wonder why we weren’t lead to one of those. We went up a spiral staircase covered in icicle shaped white lights and exquisite vines containing beautiful flowers intertwining it. We then stopped at a door with VIP 2 written in gold. I couldn’t believe it, not only were we in a fancy restaurant, we were going in the VIP room. Darius has a nice car but does he really have all this influence? I'll just wait for him to tell me about it, I wouldn’t ask. The receptionist lead us inside and I am pretty sure my mouth was touching the floor. Inside there was one table in the center with candles and a bouquet of roses containing yellow roses with red tips symbolizing falling in love, salmon roses (excitement and enthusiasm), lavender roses (love at first sight) and black roses (rebirth and new beginnings). “Is he saying what I think he is saying?” I thought, “ Maranda wait until he says something, don’t rush it,” I scolded myself, taking in the rest of the room which looked like it belonged on a magazine cover. With it’s large icicle chandeliers giving the room a romantic air as it collaborated with the dim light from the lit candles flickering gently on the table. I was completely underdressed and I didn’t know what to expect. As we neared the table Darius pulled a chair for me to sit. After I was seated he took the bouquet of roses and handed them to me saying, “these are for you beautiful.” My face was instantly inflamed as I blushed profusely. I tried to calm my rapidly beating heart as Darius sat opposite me and asked for the menu. Looking at the menu that I was given, I decided that I will just have a cup of peppermint tea with milk and two spoons of sugar. These things were way out of my price range. When Darius asked what I was going to be ordering, I told him just that. He looked at me very amused and said, “while I appreciate you being considerate of me I think that I can afford it. Do you really think that I would make you pay for an outing that I orchestrated? My mom brought up a gentleman, I honestly feel both honoured and bad by your assumptions. Do me a favour Mary and order what you like,” he finished with a heart stopping smile. “Damn, he was a heart throb,” I thought obviously suffering from a case of unaccustomed. After his request I decided to order the ‘Twilight Delight' which was a pasta dish with chicken, shrimp, lobster and crab meat in a creamy alfredo sauce, sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan and Pecorino Romano cheeses and topped with parsley and chilli flakes. Just the image had me salivating, I ordered my cup of peppermint tea as my appetizer to get rid of the chill from outside, not that the room was cold it was quite the opposite actually. To my surprise Darius ordered the same thing and a bottle of wine. When I looked at him he simply said that it is to die for and I will see eventually.

As we sipped on our tea awaiting our meal we engaged in pleasant conversation. By the time the waiter cleared our teacups and replaced them with water. Our food arrived and the aroma alone was causing my stomach to do leaps and my tongue started tingling in anticipation. When the plate was placed in front of me and the cover lifted. I could’ve sworn that I saw the aroma paint a beautiful picture in preparation for the dynamic presentation of the ‘Twilight Delight’. After our wine was poured and we were left alone. I twirled my fork in the creamy pasta and my taste buds literally sang the chef's praises. Before I could stop myself a loud mmmm escaped my lips, Darius just smiled and added one of his own. We ate in comfortable silence not wanting to miss a flavour profile. After the plates were cleared we drank some more wine and the waiter entered with a slice of cake with a festive sparkler on it. I looked at Darius with a raised eyebrow and he shrugged in response. When the slice of cake was placed in front of me I felt tears prickling my eyes as I read in a fancy cursive ‘Maranda Cassandra Myers, will you be my girlfriend?’. I looked up and looked into his nervous grey, blue eyes as he knelt beside me with a red velvet box in his hands. I was so surprised that for a minute or two words left me. It seemed as if he held his breath because only when I finally said, “I would love to be your girlfriend,” did I hear him exhale with a huge grin and he put the most beautiful necklace around my neck. It was a silver necklace with an intricate vine design with a rose pendant housing a small pink diamond with matching earrings. I was so overwhelmed, who would’ve thought that this sexy hunk that I have been working with for two years felt the same way that I felt about him. As I looked into his eyes I heard, “can I kiss you?” “Yes,” was my only response as he joined my lips with his. It was a slow, sensual kiss, then I felt his warm tongue flicking on my lower lip, so I opened my mouth to grant him access. His tongue slipped inside of my mouth and deepened the kiss. When we finally broke apart to catch our breaths, we looked at each other as if we were the only two persons in the world at that moment. After that day we were inseparable and I appreciated him more and more each day. Before we knew it our second anniversary rolled around.

Darius’ POV:

Today is our second anniversary together and I am completely sure that I will like to spend the rest of my life with my Casy. She is my heartbeat, the air that I breathe, I can’t see my life without her and because of this I plan to make her my fiancé tonight. I planned a surprise party at the same place where she officially became my girlfriend and tonight she will be my fiancé and the future Mrs. Smith. Her mother and I worked hand in hand to plan this engagement party behind her back. The cake should arrive at Twilight by four, she should be by the spa for her massage, manicure and pedicure by now, then it’s for her to go by the hairdresser and then the boutique to collect her dress and change. Mrs. Myers told me that she will handle it, as the party is carded to begin at seven. I went to Twilight to ensure that everything was ready for tonight and I was blown away with the décor and the complete transformation of the foyer. It was decorated in her favourite colours pink and purple with white and silver mixed in. After checking that the cake is on its way, I went to the barber and then headed home to get ready.

Author’s Note: Will Maranda say yes? What about Darius' secret admirer, will they make a move? Will the party go smoothly? Is this the start of their happy ending? Tune in next time on Perfidy’s Knife.