Written Wonderland

Juniper hadn't realized that Amelia was so connected to the lounge, but he supposed it made sense. He had to admit; he was impressed. Perhaps now he had an angle to ask her about Serio.

"Ah, yes. Mr. Kade informed me of such." It was, perhaps, a small falsehood, but a harmless one, it seemed. "He seems like a valuable contact to have in the business. I think that man is going places." For good measure, Juniper added, "Condolences for your father, though it seems like you and your mother are doing well for yourselves."

"Thank you," Amelia replied smoothly, giving the condolences Juniper offered a brief moment of respect in the conversation, but certainly not interested in lingering there. Seemed she was done sitting on Cory's chair, then, and decided to stand again, taking a moment to playfully brush at her skirt as though to banish any wrinkles that may have tried to form.

"In any case, yes, I'd say Mr. Kade is quite the character. I'd be lying if I said I don't dream of one day poaching him away from The Mimosa Bloom." She blinked back up to Juniper with a slight mischievous glint in her eye, coupled with obvious curiosity.

"You're pretty lucky if he's taking an interest in showing you around. I'm almost a bit jealous." Amelia gave a subtle wink, ever assuring Juniper that her tone was lighthearted and playful. Though, maybe this moment was just a touch less convincing than usual, especially as Amelia asked a follow-up question. "How much has he told you about his boss?"

Juniper blushed lightly at Amelia's wink if only because it was an unexpected addition to her comment. An irrational part of his mind wondered if she knew about the lounge already, but he assured himself that the word could not have gotten out yet. Plus, Amelia wasn't exactly the type of crowd they wanted to attract. Juniper was, however, happy that he had been correct in assuming Serio was a good business partner to engage with. 

"Honestly, very little. Mr. Peterson seems rather mysterious, though, and I hear he has a bit of a reputation." At this point, however, it appeared as though Colleen had lost interest in the conversation.

"If you'll excuse me, there are other guests I should be attending to for the moment, but this conversation has been delightful," Colleen said and tossed a pointed glance at Amelia, maybe because she didn't approve of the direction the conversation had gone, maybe because she was annoyed that the conversation was no longer focused on her, but the look was quickly subsumed by a light, friendly smile as she turned to Cory and Juniper, allowed her smile to become a little brighter, and made her way back to the main party.

Amelia gave Colleen a smile that was either completely oblivious to the pointedness of Colleen's smile or very intentionally ignoring it. She didn't follow after her friend, but her posture did shift just slightly towards disengaging. Some part of her was tempted to leave Juniper hanging, but it was entirely too appealing to get the last word in first.

"Yeah, tread lightly there."

She kept her expression mostly light, but didn't toss in any playful winks or smirks. Cory blinked between Amelia and Juniper curiously, kind of obviously out of the loop on this particular conversation.

"And," the blonde continued more playfully, "don't go dragging Mr. Carter here into too much trouble."

There Amelia did toss in a wink to Juniper, and then gave a brief curtsey before heading off, quite possibly giddy about her departure being a bit abrupt.

She'd certainly successfully left Cory just as blush-ridden as before the ladies had come over, if not moreso. Once she was certainly departed, Cory tossed Juniper a nervous shrug accompanied by an equally-nervous chuckle before gathering his plate and pushing himself to his feet.

"Amelia's pretty enthusiastic about making sure I make friends," he offered, hoping that would excuse the blonde's comment there at the end. "But in any case, I, ah, suppose we should both also go mingle."

With that the artist stepped close to Juniper and held out his hand, his expression admittedly terribly awkward, but radiating warmth all the same.

"See you on Tuesday?"

((OOC: Or whatever day of the week the date on the back of Juniper's card would be lol))

The amount of seriousness with which Amelia delivered her comment struck Juniper, and he was inclined to believe that Amelia was giving him genuine advice, advice--it seemed--he should remember and heed. But before Juniper could respond, she was off on a different topic, bringing Juniper's attention back to Cory, who had been somewhat overshadowed by the two women, though his blush spoke for him.

Juniper didn't know what to do with Amelia's statement about trouble. Could she possibly think that Juniper would drag Cory into problems with Ken? Surely not. It was altogether too early for something of that. The wink was also too playful to be heeded the same way as her first comment. Then... what trouble did she imagine...?

Cory interrupted Juniper's thoughts, though, and to some degree put the socialite at ease. That must be how Amelia treats all of Cory's potential friends. Yes, that was it. Surely.

But then Cory went and mentioned Tuesday, and Juniper had to quietly clear his throat a moment to catch himself from startling. He immediately doubted and began to regret his (rather bold) decision to hand Cory an invitation--handwritten at that. He tried to mentally reassure himself, it's just an art show; it's not a date. It's absolutely innocent, and this man has no reason to think otherwise. But then Juniper started to worry about the opposite issue altogether. What if Cory was interested in him and needed some sign to feel confident himself?

Juniper knew he needed to gather himself for an appropriately timed response and so stood up and reached out to grasp Cory's hand gently, noticing the awkward way that Cory was holding himself--as though Cory gave handshakes only rarely and was never good at them--but was almost entirely distracted by the softness of Cory's hand. Juniper found himself unwilling to let go, though he did as he said, "Yes. The art show. I'm certain that you will appreciate it." Juniper composed himself, brushing some nonexistent dirt off his excellently tailored suit. "I'm grateful to have run into you again, Mr. Cory Carter." With a nod of his head, Juniper turned around to face the music of the rest of the party, a light burning sensation along his back as he imagined Cory watching him walk away, which made it ever more difficult for Juniper to leave.

Once he had put some sufficient distance between Cory and himself, Juniper scanned the room for Serio. He knew it was only polite to close out with the man, but he wasn't going to look exceptionally hard. Juniper had made the required appearance for Colleen's and her father's sake, and there was really no further need to linger.

-----

"Ms. Sommers' cousin, is it?"

Serio's voice glided a little bit playfully into Belledor's hearing as the man approached her from behind, stepping up beside her and offering her a soft, knowing smile and a fleeting, subtle wink.

He'd seized an opportunity when the brunette was on her own for a moment, with her guard down and situated so that she wouldn't catch his approach. Not that she had anything to fear from him, as far as he was concerned--Belledor may be new, but so far she'd been an excellent employee, and he had no desire to cause trouble for her--but previously in the party he had certainly noticed her avoiding him, and he couldn't really blame her. After all, he had also avoided her, prior to this particular opportunity presenting itself.

"Enjoying the party?"

His tone was casual, his posture relaxed, and his smile soft and warm as his dark eyes lightly took in Belledor's posture and expression, trying to subtly assess how well his attempts to put her at ease were working.

Belledor had been seated in one of the plush arm chairs against one side of the room when Sarah announced that she needed the ladies' room, this time without inviting Belledor to come along before stepping away. Belledor had half a mind to follow her anyway but decided against it. She knew how Sarah could be; sometimes she just needed some time to herself. Nervous but confident that she could occupy herself, especially when one of the home's staff members brought her a second drink, Belledor watched the party from the angle of her comfy chair, sitting politely and leaning in with interest as she surveyed all the different conversations taking place around her, immersing herself in other people's flirting, their banter, their casual gestures...

"Yes, I..." Belledor said immediately, more because she was startled by the voice behind her rather than making an actual attempt at confirming the story. Her vocal chords needed something to do other than scream, which was their first impulse. That would not be a great way to make an impression at her first fancy party.

But then her face paled and her voice stopped its tracks altogether as the speaker came into view. And, really, now that she saw him, she should have, of course, recognized the voice of her manager, but out of context--and tipsy--it was, at first, difficult to place.

Belledor looked down immediately, though she swore she saw a flicker of a wink across Serio's expression. She thought about trying to keep up the story Sarah and she had set up, but Belledor's stomach curdled at the thought of lying to her boss.

"It was Ms. Sommers' idea," Belledor admitted. "She wanted an excuse to get me on the guest list. I tried to argue, but..." Ugh. She was saying more than she really meant to, probably due to the drinks. And she had just been so immersed in the atmosphere. Going back to interacting with people directly was difficult.

"I am enjoying myself," Belledor finished, eager to respond to Serio's questions in full, looking into his eyes as she did so. She found a warmth and softness there that she had no right to expect from the situation, but she was grateful nonetheless. For some reason, his gaze made her feel confident that he wasn't trying to chide her. Not here, at least. Though she still wondered if he would scold her for her careless behavior later.

She had had only a little difficulty keeping up conversations with the men Sarah had taken her around to meet and interact with, more as a distraction so Sarah never got caught alone with them than anything, but Belledor found herself lost for words with Serio and so turned her face toward the rest of the party again. What would Serio think about the fact that she was letting Sarah lie on her behalf? Would this impact his opinion of her ability to do honest work? She really hoped not.

Finally, she said, "You seem at ease here. It's... impressive." She delivered the statement with a small, shy smile, but the comment was genuine, and there was a twinge of melancholy in her tone.

((OOC: Sarah's last name is "Sommers," just for the record. ))

((OOC: Fixed! lol))

In some ways Serio was grateful for Belledor elaborating on the situation so readily, though he wished she'd sounded less nervous. Or, part of him did; part of him was, admittedly, pretty amused, but he tucked that thought away and was careful to keep it well out of his expression, which he was definitely glad for once Belledor brought her gaze back up to his. He could tell she relaxed some once she found his eyes, which was good; it meant his expression was accomplishing its goal.

He was mildly surprised by Belledor complimenting him, but he accepted it gracefully.

"Thank you", he said with a light nod, his smile widening slightly and his eyes casting their gaze lightly over the scenes unfolding at the party before them. He had half a mind to tease her about having watched him, but decided they weren't quite ready for that, especially considering the melancholy note in her voice.

"These sorts of events are certainly fun and useful," he said after a moment, "but also a bit fatiguing. In some ways I'm more at ease at work, where expectations are a little clearer."

Was it strange to give that kind of commentary to Belledor--to an employee, whom he was only just getting to know? He considered that question, but waved it off easily. He'd come over precisely to build rapport with this new employee who'd found her way into a social circle he hadn't expected; sharing details about his internal experience of the party seemed in line with that goal, and he didn't think it would hurt her impression of him any. If anything, he had a hunch that she would probably understand exactly what he meant.

"This might be a strange question to ask," Serio brought his gaze back to Belledor delicately, "But does Ms. Sommers know the real you?" He started to pause there, but then thought of a way to clarify what he was getting at: "Or, should I pretend you and I are just now meeting when she gets back?" At first his gaze had been curious and, while light, mostly serious, but by the end he'd regained the playful, knowing smile he'd first shown up with, more confident that Belledor would understand him after the clarifying question.

Belledor certainly did not expect Serio to admit that the party was fatiguing to him, and she certainly would not have expected that from his appearance. But she didn't have more than a second to contemplate that before she processed his second comment. Boy, did she ever understand. She knew that most people would think it strange, but she loved work environments, at least when the expectations were clear. Belledor wanted nothing more than to know that she was achieving (and exceeding) the expectations where they existed. She had always been praised for her work ethic, and nothing pleased her more. It was exactly what energized her and encouraged her to keep doing a good job.

But then Belledor was blushing again as Serio asked about Sarah. Turning away to disguise her blush as best as possible, the heat from her face a well-known sensation to her, she answered, "Oh, yes, she's aware." Belledor wondered how Sarah would react to meeting Serio and some internal part of her giggled. Sarah wouldn't recognize him, to be sure, and for some unknown reason, imagining their interaction made Belledor's stomach twist with excitement.

Returning to Serio's expression, Belledor was grateful that he did not appear even the slightest bit angry. In fact, if she had to guess, he seemed almost jovial about the whole thing, which was immensely relieving. Or would be, if Belledor's nerves would stop trying to disbelieve it. Trying to distract herself from thinking that Serio was actually upset, her mind shifted to work, which was safe, though she failed to consider whether it was appropriate for the context.

"That's one thing I appreciate about working for you," Belledor started, immediately unsure that this was the right direction, "And Mr. Peterson. You set clear and reasonable expectations." She smiled somewhat hesitantly, internally shaking her head at her choice of party dialogue, though he had said he almost preferred the work environment... Belledor sighed unconsciously, her brain foggy with alcohol.

Serio was glad that it sounded like he wouldn't have to put up pretences for Belledor's companion. He was sure he'd have done so with ease if required, but being able to speak plainly was always a relief. Granted, there was still more context to gather before he would feel completely confident about how to speak with Ms. Sommers, and he was just formulating what question would be pertinent to ask next, when Belledor spoke up again in a way that surprised him.

His smile got away from him for a moment, curling much more brightly than usual in response to the warmth that her comment stoked in his chest. He felt a bit silly, feeling as flattered as he did by a compliment on his managerial skills of all things, but he supposed it was something he did rather take pride in. There was also something about being complimented by an employee completely outside of a work context, he supposed...

In any case, he reigned his grin back in to his usual calm smooth smile, very lightly touched his hand to his chest, and leaned forward just slightly in a very subtle hint at a bow.

"I'm very glad to hear that."

With that, he straightened his posture, and took a small sip of his drink--looked like a scotch, which he was taking his time on. He worried after half a moment, though, that his response had been a bit... dramatic? Or might even have come off as sarcastic, which absolutely would not do. Once he swallowed his sip, he continued as though he'd planned to all along, hoping to clarify.

"I take a lot of pride in running things smoothly, so it's always nice to hear that the experience is translating that way--and for everyone, not just customers."

He let his smile brighten again very briefly, although in that moment of being more expressive, he was caught off-guard by a soft swell of sadness--pensiveness?--as he thought about the transition that would be taking place. They still had some time, but at some point Serio would be leaving The Mimosa Bloom, one way or another, and... well, it was difficult to imagine that transition going completely smoothly, much as he hated to admit it.

His expression remained extremely subtle, but for a moment there he knew his eyebrows had showcased more worry than he would have liked. He reigned himself in to just that signature smile of his again, his own personal reassuring poker face.

"May I set aside work and ask you something personal, as an acquaintance?"