“Don’t mention it. You’re the patron, so it is our pleasure. For your information, we have an infirmary here that you could visit to have your injury examined at no personal expense.”
“And they have a doctor too. That’s wonderful, Nat.” Joyce’s eye lighted up as she patted Natalie on the back.
Natalie’s heart warmed as she knew what Joyce had in mind, but she shook her head. “There’s no hurry. I can go there after the bidding.”
“It’s no problem. The doctor will be around so you could choose to drop in anytime. If there’s nothing else, I shall take my leave.” With that, the friendly staff made his exit.
Joyce snatched up the shoe box and opened it to reveal a pair of white soft-sole flats. Minimalist but classy, it matched Natalie’s outfit to a tee.
Joyce fiddled with the shoes in her hands and sighed. “The organizers ain’t half-bad. Not only did they paid for a luxurious brand while taking into consideration the clothing you had on you, but they’ve also provided medical care. Tsk! Nothing here to complain about.”
“Alright, give ‘em here. The bidding is about to start.” Natalie nudged her with an elbow.
Joyce placed the shoes back in their box before dropping them back onto Natalie’s lap. “There you go.”
Natalie smiled before she bent down to change out of her heels.
The competition in the bidding had reached fever pitch as the various corporations and studios went head to head.
Joyce had made several cracks at it previously, but their studio’s lack of ability and a proven track record as a new startup saw them wiped out of contention in short order.
As disappointing as the outcome was for her, it was to be expected.
Jasmine had no idea that Natalie had no expectations for Studio Nouveau to win coming in, so she was jubilant when the new upstart was eliminated. She eagerly looked behind in the hope of catching Natalie’s dejected expression.
However, she was slightly miffed to see Natalie all smiles and at relative ease.
What’s this? Why is she smiling after failing in her bid?
Jasmine was perplexed.
Natalie felt Jasmine’s eyes on herself. She thus looked straight back at her nemesis as she said to Joyce. “She’s looking right at us.”
“Who?” Joyce did not catch Natalie’s drift immediately.
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