Written Wonderland

Belledor was completely unprepared for the warmth and brightness of Serio's response smile, even though it didn't last long before settling back into the one to which she was accustomed. She was certain that he had never smiled like that in front of her at work, and if only for that reason, she was at once tremendously grateful that Sarah had dragged her along to this party.

Then Belledor watched as Serio touched his hand to his chest momentarily and bowed forward toward her slightly. He certainly was gentlemanly, wasn't he? She caught herself, though. Should she be having thoughts like that about her boss? Especially since he was clearly far above her in terms of their social echelons, if naturally receiving an invitation to a party such as this was any indication? But, it was true that Serio was far more intriguing and graceful than any other man Belledor had interacted with at the party. That was objective fact as far as she could tell, though she couldn't completely rule out her own bias from knowing him outside of the context.

Something about the way he said "not just customers" made her heart skip another beat, though. She appreciated being included in the sentiment, even in such a vague and general way and was incredibly grateful that her compliment had landed well. But then Serio's expression shifted, displaying some authentic level warmth before that became background to an emotion Belledor couldn't place. She was grateful when his countenance settled onto something familiar again, but his words only deepened the blush that she was only beginning to recover from.

"Yes, of course." She was about to add "I'd be honored" but decided to refrain at the last moment as that might be the drink talking.

Serio nodded gently, and then asked his question.

"What drew you to this party tonight?"

His eyebrow raised slightly at the tail end of the question, honestly curious and hoping to communicate that.

Encouraged by Serio's look of genuine interest, Belledor provided the most honest answer she could think of.

"Sarah doesn't like attending events like these on her own, but that's not really a response to your question." Belledor took another moment to gather her thoughts lest she sound like she was rambling. "I suppose I could have said no, but I didn't want to." Belledor looked away from Serio a moment, inspired to continue being honest but embarrassed at the implications Serio might draw. She did, however, unconsciously lower her voice so other people might not hear and get the wrong idea. "As much as I love my job and am grateful for the independent life I have, I can't help but look at the people I wait on and wish to be them. This event seemed like the opportunity of a lifetime, and all and all, it seemed like a harmless way to be someone else's secret."

Belledor turned her face to Serio once again and gave a little smile so he would know her next comment was designed to be playful. "At least until you showed up."

As she thought back over what she had said, Belledor was surprised at her own comment about being someone else's secret. Was that true? Was that really what had appealed to her? Was that something she was on the lookout for unconsciously? She knew she didn't like lying, but secrets weren't always lies, were they?

Serio was very glad that Belledor didn't stop at the throwaway answer. He was confident he could have dug for what he was really looking for if she had, but--fun as digging could be--watching her open pliantly to his gentle inquiry was deeply gratifying.

Especially given what she revealed to him in the process.

He'd guessed at some of what she said--after all, it wasn't as though it was unfamiliar to him. It wasn't as though it was uncommon, either; he was sure that several of the people who worked for him had shared similar wishes to be waited upon rather than doing the waiting. But, he and Belledor were the ones at this party, and while chance played its part, it was far from the only factor--for either of them.

He was surprised by how she ended, though, and allowed his eyebrows to raise and a slight curl of a grin to tug his lips in amusement and intrigue. What she'd admitted to just then was slight, but telling, and he couldn't deny that was thrilling information to learn. He almost couldn't help casting his gaze out over the party in search of Stephen, wondering how it'd go if he started the process of introducing them.

His gaze found the Brit across the room, flirting shamelessly with a small group of ladies who couldn't help eating it up. Serio shook his head lightly at himself and took another sip of his drink. No, introducing her to Stephen tonight would be hasty and honestly probably reckless, and he didn't want to scare the poor girl. Another thought did come to mind, though, and he drew his gaze gently back to Belledor, his expression since returned to normal once again.

"Have you had a chance to enjoy any musical theatre since moving to New York?"

Watching Serio turn his head away from her back out toward the greater party made her worry that she had spoken for too long or perhaps had otherwise bored him. She began to regret going into so much detail, but then he completely threw her for a ride when he asked a question that seemed entirely unrelated. Unless...

That wasn't an invitation, was it?

Entirely too demure to get her hopes up, Belledor answered the question without much of a second thought, "No, I haven't had the opportunity." She then felt a blush reemerge onto her face, uncomfortable admitting that her tight budget wouldn't allow for things like that, not at the present, and she lamented briefly not taking one of her coworkers extra shifts earlier that week. But, Serio was well aware she wasn't what she was poised as tonight, and he hoped he wasn't just trying to make small talk and would give her something more to go on.

Hm, that was the answer Serio had expected, but somehow he found himself momentarily stumped. Not that he didn't have a next move planned, but that he suddenly questioned the wisdom of it. He allowed himself a brief pause while he rearranged his next words to feel just a little less reckless.

"Definitely worth experiencing. I could probably get you a comp or discount sometime."

His words were a little bit distant, though, in a way that was difficult to pinpoint. His eyes drifted just the tiniest bit to the side, not quite meeting Belledor's gaze, and after a moment, he let his smile turn a bit sheepish.

"Actually," he spoke up again, almost apologetic as though he might be cutting Belledor off, "Thursday night a couple friends and I are going to a show. If you can get someone to cover your shift, I'm sure we could get you a ticket, and I'd love to have you along."

There, he was much more present again, his warm, dark eyes now re-focused on Belledor's gaze as he awaited her reply.

Belledor nodded, believing wholeheartedly that it was worth experiencing, though she lowered her head a little, confused at the reality of her manager giving her a discount or gift. Where had this come from? She felt disappointed, try as she might have not to see the situation as an invitation. But then Serio continued and somehow the actual invitation come as more of a surprise than anything.

First, her manager was suggesting she get someone to cover her shift to go out with him and his friends. Was it, was it, a date? What would her friends--not to mention her parents for that matter--think of her going out with her boss and his friends, potentially all male? But, theater seemed harmless, right? And Belledor really did trust and appreciate him...

Before she was able to respond, however, Sarah made it back from the powder room.

"Ah, and who do we have here?" Sarah asked casually toward Serio, her blue, red, and orange gown shimmering in a feather pattern that was easily the most beautiful dress in the room, if Belledor had to say.

Belledor glanced from Sarah to Serio and wondered if she should let Serio introduce himself or if it would be better for her to jump in to salvage the situation. Uncertain how to indicate that she was both interested--albeit terrified--in the invitation and include Sarah in the conversation, Belledor scrambled to keep both parties happy and said, "Ah, this is Mr. Kade. You might know him from... well, he's my manager where I work. You remember..."

"Ah, yes, Mr. Kade. Pleasure," she said, extending her hand in genuine good faith.

"He was just talking about going to an event on Thursday," Belledor said with a rote tone to her voice. She looked over at Serio while Sarah's back was to her and nodded twice with a slightly worried expression, deciding that turning down her boss' invitation was surely worse than rearranging her work schedule, and several of her coworkers owed her favors.

Serio stiffened ever so slightly at Ms. Sommers' greeting, though it would have taken a keen eye to catch it. Truth was, she'd caught him by surprise, which wasn't a terribly common occurrence. His own fault for failing to keep attention in all the usual directions, though he wasn't about to beat himself up about it. He recovered quickly and easily, and likely without anyone who didn't have an eye for that sort of thing noticing.

Ms. Sommers held out her hand, and Serio accepted it gladly and gave her a slight, warm bow in the process. After he straightened and let his hand fall back down to his side, his eyes shifted just enough to take in Belledor's nodding and worried expression, and he flashed her a warmer-than-usual smile before returning his gaze to her friend.

"Mm, sounds like I'll have the honor of treating Ms. De Lacerda here to her very first New York musical."

As he spoke, that warm smile of his curled almost giddy--at least compared to his usual expression--though it returned to normal shortly after.

"Are you much of a theatre person, Ms. Sommers?"

The question was delivered lightly, and he raised his eyebrows gently as he took a small sip of his drink.

If Sarah caught Serio's momentary discomfort, she didn't make any perceptible note of it.

Belledor took Serio's smile as a good sign, though she was immediately back to worrying once Serio was so candid about wanting to take Belledor out. What would Sarah think? This was her manager after all.

But, before Belledor could even find words to alleviate her embarrassment about the situation, Sarah spoke, definitely having caught the excitement in Serio's expression as he mentioned the musical, narrowing her eyes just the slightest as he did so. "Always a thrilling social experiment to watch people put on new identities. Who hasn't dreamed of such a life?" Sarah raised a hand to her chest in a playful, half-dramatizing way, "But, yes," Sarah said, growing more serious, "I prefer the short ones."

Offhandedly, sitting down in a chair that was further away from Belledor and Serio than they were from each other and taking a drink from a passing waiter, Sarah added, " 'bout time that someone other than I showed her the better parts of living," finishing off the statement with a wink that appeared, improbably, aimed at both of them.

"What's playing?"

Serio allowed his genuine amusement with Sarah to re-curl his grin as she spoke melodramatically and winked in his direction. At the very start of the interaction, he'd worried he'd mis-stepped with her, but now that he had a better feel for her conversational style, he felt confident the rest of this would go smoothly.

"A musical called Sally is our destination for Thursday. It's a bit silly, from what I hear, but should be a good time: a rags-to-riches sort of tale playing with a mistaken identity."

Serio's eyes flickered very briefly to Belledor before returning to Sarah.

"If you prefer shorter shows than the typical Broadway musical, you might be interested in some of the acts they put on at the Black Butterfly Lounge, which I'm sure Miss Rayne would be happy to regale you about. I'm not up to date on their current docket, I'm afraid, but they frequently host colorful one-acts and more novel or experimental performances."