The bouncer was a huge guy dressed in all black. The dark goggles made it difficult to see his eyes.
"You can't enter through this door. You need a VIP card," he said with a gruff voice.
"Please, can you let me in? There's someone important I need to meet." Anne decided to try pleading. According to the detailed location Matt had given her, both investors were somewhere inside this club but in the VIP section.
"No, get lost!" the bouncer said harshly.
Anne almost felt the urge to cover her ears because of how scary he sounded.
She cleared her throat and moved closer to the intimidating-looking bouncer, speaking in a conspiratorial tone, "Listen, you shouldn't be so mean to me. My boyfriend is a VIP member, and if he finds out a bouncer didn't let me in... tsk, a cool guy like you shouldn't lose your job."
Yes, she had chosen to lie. What was life without a few twisted truths here and there?
Though she shamelessly lied through her teeth, her face betrayed no indication of that.
In fact, she stood tall, eyes blinking widely in a way that made the bouncer almost convinced.
A VIP member wasn't one to mess with, and this lady before him had eyes akin to that of a fawn, and her appearance wasn't that bad at all. It was just that... most ladies that would come to Nightscale tended to look a little more provocative than her.
The plain attire of jeans and a shirt...
The bouncer seemed to scan her from head to toe suspiciously.
"Who is your boyfriend? Give me his name."
Anne swallowed nervously.
She had lied, but she definitely hadn't expected that lie to do a 360-degree turn so quickly.
"Uhm..."
"Are you lying to me?" The bouncer stepped towards her threateningly.
There weren't many people at the VIP entrance, but on the other side, there was a long line through the regular entrance.
Unexpectedly, someone standing in the dark shadows seemed to be keeping an ear on this interaction.
That person had come out to get some air, but he didn't expect to see a familiar face.
What was this woman doing here trying to get into the VIP section of Nightscale?
The person put away his phone, tucking it into his pocket before he strode over just as the bouncer was about to kick Anne away from there.
"Drake, hands off my girl."
The bouncer immediately went still, eyes widening in fear.
"You... your girl?" the bouncer asked with a face full of disbelief. "This one?" he asked again as if to confirm.
Since when did Don do cute girls?
When Anne heard a strange voice coming from behind, she turned around to look.
A young, handsome-looking male strode over. He was dressed casually, but his eye-catching looks made him seem like a dazzling red fish in a school of grey.
What was this kid doing here?
Donald Sterling, a brooding twenty-year-old who would rather have his head buried in his devices than have any human interaction.
Looking at his youthful face, Anne couldn't help but be reminded about Kristen. He would be nineteen this year, and just about the same height as this young Sterling son.
Her eyes prickled at that thought, and she lowered her head but suddenly jolted when an arm circled her, grasping her by the shoulders.
"Yes. She was specifically chosen for me by my grandfather. Am I right?" Donald looked down at her, a strangely rare smirk on his lips.
His dark hair covered the front of his forehead, and his eyes seemed to have lost that laziness with which he would usually gaze at people.
"Huh?" Anne was at a loss for words. Mainly because of the sheer guts of the young man coming up to her to actually claim that she was his girlfriend. She was three years older than him, okay? It didn't matter if he was taller than her, she could smack the back of his head for this.
"Ah, your grandfather..." the bouncer mumbled, giving her a quick once-over again while thinking,
'Of course, only the elders choose good girls. Poor Don.'
"My apologies, ma'am. You may go inside."
The bouncer's words neutralized the current thoughts running inside Anne's head at the moment.
He'd actually let her in?
Donald still had his arm slung over her shoulder as he led her in, but immediately she was inside, she shoved his arm off.
He looked from her face to his hand, which was pushed away, in bewilderment before suddenly saying, "Is that your form of gratitude?"
Anne reined in her urge to scold the young boy. In her eyes, he was no different from Kristen. Instead of spending time at a club like this, shouldn't he be studying or doing other productive things with his time?
"Thank you. I'll get going now."
He looked her over. "Why would you dress like that to a club?"
Because she had no idea she was coming to a club in the first place.
But Anne didn't say that. Instead, she blurted the words stuck in her mind.
"And why would a kid like you be at a club?"
Donald was taken aback. He scoffed incredulously.
"Kid?"
Anne sighed. She knew exactly what he was thinking.
Being young makes you believe you have a lot of time and freedom. She couldn't help but internally shake her head and click her tongue.
"Listen, let me tell you this—spend less time partying and going to clubs. You'll achieve a lot more with your time." She patted his shoulder good-naturedly before walking away.
Donald could only look at her strangely.
First, she'd called him a kid when he was at least over a whole foot taller than her, and she'd even spoken to him like one would talk to a child?
He stared at her slender back as she walked away and suddenly realized something was wrong. She was walking towards a certain private room.
He suddenly looked at her with interest as she stood outside the door of that private room before disappearing inside it.
"Ah, so you're more interesting than you seem," he muttered to himself, lips lifting up in a strange smirk.