Élisa thought:
How can someone be this rich?
That's why he looks and talks like a prince... He must be well-educated!
Her father asked:
— Élisa, are you okay?
She replied:
— Yeah, yeah, I'm fine.
Her father sighed while holding the steering wheel and then spoke calmly:
— By the way, Élisa, I wanted to say thank you.
Élisa, confused, asked:
— Thank you for what?
Her father smiled and replied:
— You see, I don't like to talk much about the past, but... when your mother and I separated, I didn't want to remarry. I was afraid of your reaction, so I avoided many women in my life. I know your mother meant a lot to you and that she would have liked to see you with her in the Philippines, but you know...
Élisa interrupted him with a smile:
— Dad, stop beating around the bush, just tell me directly what you want to say!
Her father sighed and said:
— Thank you for letting me marry Kethia without getting upset about it.
Élisa smiled and replied:
— Dad, why are you stressing over this? You need love too, like everyone else.
She looked at her phone and added:
— I'll never oppose your marriage, even if the man I love happened to be in this family...
Her father, moved by his daughter's words, felt tears running down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away and said:
— Thank you, Élisa… Thank you.
They finally arrived at their destination. It was already late, but Nasser's house was lit up like it was daytime. Élisa, who loved everything that sparkled, found it magical.
— Wow...
Meanwhile, inside the house, Nasser, dressed in a black jacket, was staring at the door while holding a bottle of whiskey. He was waiting for Élisa to arrive but thought to himself:
"I'm not waiting for this girl… No, I'm waiting for her father. She doesn't interest me. She's weird. Who could really be interested in a girl like her? … Even though..."
While he was lost in thought, his friend Ortho came over to tease him by kicking him and exclaimed:
— Hey, Mr. Serious! The gorilla! The monkey! Master Charisma! Batman!
Nasser, very annoyed and frustrated by his childish behavior, turned around and yelled:
— What's your problem?! Do you really want me to light you up or what?! I swear, if you do that again, you'll be going to say goodnight to my dad in heaven!
Ortho, amused, chuckled a bit and replied:
— Nah, my bro, calm down! You wanna kill me just for a little tease? Seriously, Batman, you shouldn't be sitting here all alone, it's weird. You're always in black, drinking whiskey, like you just came out of a comic book! Your job is to give weird nicknames to people with that proud face of yours or what?
Nasser, clenching his fists, retorted:
— If you want me to stop, you'd at least have to be able to talk to a girl!
Ortho, offended, shot back:
— Oh yeah, easy to judge, Mr. Hardcore Single! You act like a big gangster, but you're really just a first-class ballerina!
Nasser, furious, yelled:
— Say that again, octopus?!
— First-class ballerina.
They stared at each other for a long moment, and then suddenly, Nasser burst into laughter.
— Wait, now you're calling me "octopus"?!
Nasser, still amused, replied:
— You started with those stupid nicknames!
Ortho smiled:
— I just wanted to see you smile, buddy.
Then he added:
— By the way, who are you waiting for?
Nasser looked at his watch, which read 7:10 PM, and replied:
— I'm waiting for my future father-in-law... and his daughter.
Ortho grinned mischievously and asked:
— Oooh, a girl? How old is she?
— She must be around 16, if I'm not mistaken, Nasser said, looking up at the sky.
— Can you introduce me to her?
Nasser smiled:
— Even if I introduced you to her, you wouldn't do anything...
Just as he said that, Élisa entered the house with her father.
Élisa walked slowly, as if she were afraid of Nasser. In reality, she wasn't trembling out of fear, but because it was the first time she was wearing heels.
In her head, she repeated:
"One step in front of the other… One step, then another..."
Nasser, captivated by her, couldn't take his eyes off her.
"This is weird... I don't know why, but I can't look away. She doesn't usually dress like this, but now... I have to admit, she's really beautiful."
Élisa kept walking slowly, still focused on her steps.
Her father immediately went to greet Nasser's mother, completely forgetting about his daughter.
Gradually, Élisa reached Nasser's side without even realizing it. Nasser watched her pass by and couldn't help but admire her.
Suddenly, Ortho jumped in front of Élisa with a big smile and exclaimed:
— Good evening, miss!
Panicked, Élisa screamed:
— Aaaah!
She slipped. Just before falling, she instinctively grabbed Nasser. He, by reflex, caught her.
Élisa, trembling, opened her eyes and saw Ortho smiling in front of her. She then realized she was being held by someone. When she looked at who was holding her, she saw Nasser... and, terrified, she exclaimed:
— Oh my God!