Sharon and Thomas

The party was loud and festive, the people were dancing, moving and weaving through the crowd as one. The disco music in the background injected adrenaline into the veins of everyone present. The atmosphere was that of a raving storm. All was happy, hyped up and excited, all except for one.

Sharon stood on the second floor landing, looking down at the action, but not really seeing it. She was motionless, and there was a glaze in her eyes that could only be from a flashback of memories.

...10 years before...

Sharon looked about the great hall, it was lined with huge round tables to seat 12. On top of each table hanged a dazzling chandelier, which made the hall sparkle with dancing diamonds. In the middle of the rows of tables were two sweeping grand staircases, which curved upwards to either side of the second floor. The floor was made up of white marble and it was polished so heavily that you could see your reflection in it.

The general architecture of the hall could be described as that of old English style. The ceiling was patterned with vines and so were the designs on the double doors, which opened to the entrance.

Sharon was sitting at a round table, which was surrounded by 12 highly polished wooden chairs. And in those chairs sat 12 highly polished businessmen and their families.

"So, Susanna darling, please do tell me where you brought your lovely dress. Oh my, I have seen nothing so pretty, and it shines as bright as sunlight." Said one of the businessmen's wives to Sharon's mother.

"Oh thank you dear, Cameron bought it for me when he was coming back from an overseas trip. He thought I would look more lively in it." Susanna giggled and looked across at her husband with affection.

Cameron was silent and appears to be deep in thoughts. He had wavy dark brown hair and a clean-shaven face, but his most recognisable feature had to be his dashing emerald eyes, it shone with delight and sparkled when he smiled. He wore an elegant suit, which must be at the same price as one week's wages of an average worker. His shoes were made of quality Italian leather and shone so brightly it could have taken month to polish it. He was what women called the ideal men and what men called their role model.

Two seats to the left of this one of a kind male sat Susanna. She indeed looked lovely in her stylish yellow dress, her straight black hair flowed down her backside seamlessly, as if it were made of silk. She looked much younger than Cameron, and much more outgoing. Her voice was heart warming and her eyes were bright and merry. It seemed that she could want nothing else, perfect husband, perfect daughter, perfect life?

Between Cameron and Susanna sat Sharon. She was 18 years old but she looked younger, and on her face there was the expression of pure boredom. She had inherited her mother's hair, but not her mother's personality. She disliked to be involved in other people's affairs and was not interested in having conversations with her parents' friends and their families. She had always regarded those people as arrogant, even her own family. All in all you could say that she was a very pessimistic girl, although she was not always that way.

"So Sharon, how old are you now?" Asked a young woman from across the table.

"She has just turned 18." Said Susanna when Sharon did not appear to hear the question.

The women sitting opposite Sharon looked slightly startled by her silence but she recovered quickly and started on another subject.

Sharon was used to the luxuries dinner, the formal dresses and the never-ending chatter of the businessmen. Her father was one of them, he was a director of SQUARE corp. Which was a very large company, and he attended business meetings and functions every week. Sharon usually went to these functions, she had to, it was what her father call "family time" and "keeping up appearances".

Family time would be right, thought Sharon. It was the only time she ever saw her father at a place other than home. She often wondered whether her father ever felt lonely with all those long hours at the office. Coming home in the midnight hours and leaving before dawn.

Sharon thought back to the time when she was young, the time when she was feeling down or lonely, she would go and talk to her father and feel much better afterwards. But now, with her father at work all the time, she had only her mother and the maids to talk to at home. But whenever she did talk to them she had the feeling that they did not take her seriously and that she could not have a proper conversation with them.

"Why am I so dull?" Sharon asked herself quietly. People like herself are meant to be charming and classy, not dull. Only the maids and servants are dull, or so they say. Maybe I should get out more and talk to people?but?why bother? Gosh, what am I thinking?

Sharon pulled herself out of her thoughts and scanned around the room once more. As she did her eyes fell on something quite different. A lone waiter was standing in the corner of this vast hall. He wore what all other waiters wore, but for some reason he stood out. Maybe it was because he looked younger, Sharon didn't know, but for some reason he out of all people caught her attention.

*

Thomas had just handed a group of ladies their drinks when he had the feeling that someone was looking at him. He looked up and found himself staring at a black haired girl wearing a white evening dress. She looked about 17 and had beautiful emerald eyes.

The girl waved Thomas over to join her, he hesitated, then went over to her table.

"How may I help you?" asked Thomas in the way he was taught.

"Umm?I err?#034; Sharon suddenly found herself speechless, something that was not new to her.

Thomas stared at her expression and smiled.

"That's okay," he said, "you can take as much time as you want. Folks here like to think thoroughly before they order."

Sharon looked at him closely, he had an honest, hard working face and soft brown eyes. On his waiter's shirt there was a badge that said "Thomas Milton". To be honest, she didn't even know why she called him over, it was just something she did.

"Sorry, but I do not want anything right now, sorry." Muttered Sharon awkwardly.

"Well, can't I even get you a drink?" Smiled Thomas.

"Umm?#034;

"You don't have to drink it, most people who order drinks don't actually drink any." Thomas persisted.

"Hmm?then I will just have a glass of apple juice thanks," said Sharon. She was slightly startled by his cheerful personality. He was a low class waiter, someone who had no future, and yet here he was, smiling happily.

"Sure, won't be long. I'll be right back before you know it." Said Thomas as he walked away and left Sharon to ponder her thoughts.

He talks just like any low class citizen, but he was graceful in the way he walked and talked. Like he had a class of his own. I guess he was a bit sweet. Maybe it is true what some people say about low class citizens, they are more than just what you see. And with that thought Sharon decided to have a conversation with Thomas when he gets back.

*

Thomas hurried through the crowd of people, he was eager to get back to the girl. And therefore he did not notice where he was going. He almost reached the girl when he ran right into someone else and tripped, he fell face forward and as he stretched out his hand to break his fall, he dropped the glass of apple juice he was carrying.

The glass of apple juice smashed on the marble floor and broke into a thousand pieces of jagged fragment. Thomas looked up and saw the contents of the glass spilt all over the girl's white dress. What was worse was that the person he ran into was none other than the manager of the function hall! Sharon stood up in shock, she was covered with apple juice. It was staining her dress, little trickles of foul brown liquid mixing and taking over the whiteness of her evening gown.

Thomas now too stood up, the owner of the function hall was trying to calm everyone down. Thomas felt that he was in a dream, frozen in time. He didn't know what to do, what to say or whether he should be doing anything at all.

Sharon felt her numb fingers work again, she tried not to look at the disgusting stain on her dress. Instead she focused on the waiter, the idiotic waiter who couldn't keep his own feet, someone who is so stupid that they could not even fetch a glass of apple juice. Sharon felt the anger rising in her to a degree of almost hatred.

...5 years later...

Sharon sat nervously in the waiting room, waiting for her name to be called out. The waiting room was dark and bare, the only furniture are some chairs and a table with some magazines on it.

Sharon picked up a magazine from the table and flipped through it. But it was too dark too read the print and she soon felt strained and tired. And before long she fell into a weary slumber.

"Sharon Smith! Sharon Smith!" the high-pitched voice of the receptionist woke her up with a start.

Sharon made her way to the office and opened the door.

"Come in, do please sit down." A charming voice echoed. The office was modern and spacious, in front of Sharon was a large office desk with many papers and documents clustered on top of it. Behind it a young men sat on a stylish armchair, the manager of the company. He had a hansom face, chiselled chin and soft brown eyes, which reminded her of someone she met long ago?

"So, you are applying for a job with our establishment?" The charming voice continued.

"Yes, I really need this job." Sharon felt her ears redden, which often happened on such interviews. But nevertheless she continued. "I have all the qualifications and I can meet all the requirements listed here. I am a very determined person and I will not..."

"Hold on," the well-mannered voice interrupted Sharon. "Haven't we met before?"

Sharon's eyes shone with trepidation as her fears were realised. For she now knew whom that well-mannered, charming person behind the desk was.

"Oh, I know! You are the daughter of Cameron Smith. The director of SQUARE corp.! But?but?then, why are you applying for this job?"

Sharon felt the wave of humiliation hit her, as if a tidal wave was approaching, and there is nothing that she can do to stop it. She did not want to continue this interview but she had to, she needed this job, she needed the money.

"SQUARE corp. collapsed and my father went bankrupt. I am living by my self and I do not rely on the support from my father." Close to tears, Sharon glanced at the young manager, he looked sympathetic.

"Well, I looked through your resume and I believe that you are perfect for the job. So Sharon Smith, welcome to Function House Pty Ltd! I have not introduced myself yet have I? I am Thomas Milton and I will have ordered your waitress uniform by Monday, so you can start as early as next week. I will be looking forward to more conversations with you after you start working." And with that Thomas led Sharon out of the office.

"Thank you," stumbled Sharon as she walked out of the building. Looking back, she saw a large sandstone building which housed many functions and parties, which she spent a great deal of her youth attending and which she will spend even more time working at in the future.

The End

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