The next day Nancy and Nick woke to find an empty bed next to them as they checked the balcony to see Jason and Ivy were asleep in each other’s embrace. It did spark a little anger in Nancy as Nick quickly ushered her to shower first.

Nick wondered if it was really all an act as he watched his friend sleep peacefully by Ivy. It crossed his mind about last night’s sudden movement in the room and he figured Ivy did indeed have issues with the dark as he decided to do them both a favor of resting properly after an uncomfortable night and bring Nancy out for a car ride after breakfast.

Nick left a text message to update Jason of their whereabouts and counted his blessings that Nancy was still taking her antidepressant medication which did a huge favor for everyone.

The heat radiated from the scorching sun woke Jason as he slipped off the chair to check the room was empty. He checked Nick’s message but he didn’t want to change his plans. He knew Ivy needed distractions as she seemed to be under a lot of pressure lately.

He carried Ivy and tucked her into bed to let her sleep in while he showered and booked a car to rent for the day. While he made the reservations, Ivy woke and quickly went to shower as well. While showering, she noticed Nick and Nancy weren’t around and wondered if they saw them by the balcony. As last night’s event unfolded in her mind, she couldn’t help but to feel butterflies in her stomach.

Standing in front of the mirror while drying herself, she could see her face blushing as she quickly washed her face and walked out of the washroom. Jason was standing by the mirror styling his hair which captivated Ivy for a moment.

“Hey… you’re ready? We have somewhere to go…” Jason asked after putting on finishing touches to his hair and went to take his phone and wallet. Ivy stood watching his every move for a long while till Jason walked up to her and raised her chin. In an instant she flinched with her twinkling eyes.

“Sorry…” She blushed and quickly took her phone and pouch before walking out of the room with him.

Jason sent Ivy to the restaurant to order takeaways as a distraction from his surprise while he went to collect the car keys from the receptionist. When Ivy was ready, she saw a text message to wait at the front lobby. She was surprised to find him driving a car in Landsfield as she hopped on.

“Where did you get this?” Ivy asked the moment she entered the car with their packed lunch, grinning while pointing at the car.

“Secret…” He winked as he drove away from the lobby. Ivy didn’t seem to look disturbed as she unpacked their lunch.

“Quick grab a bite… You must be hungry…” Jason urged as she nodded.

Instead of taking the first bite from the fried rice she ordered, she offered it to Jason. Jason was taken by surprise while driving as he quickly took the bite and kept his eyes on the road.

He nearly stepped on the break when he saw Ivy took a bite next from the same spoon and prepared another spoonful of rice for him.

Ivy widened her eyes in panic as she jerked forward, struggling to balance herself while Jason stepped on the breaks and blocked her from going any further forward with an arm.

“Sorry... Are you alright?” Jason asked worriedly as he stopped the car to check on Ivy.

“I’m fine… Drive properly. I will feed you lunch…” Ivy managed to calm herself and urged him to continue driving as she lifted the next spoonful of rice to him.

“Don’t you want to use another spoon?” Jason mumbled loud enough for her to hear.

“What’s wrong with it? Besides, I always share utensils with Andrew and Sandra. It’s not like either one of us has contagious diseases…” She snarled at him before feeding him another spoon of rice as he smiled.

“Where are we going?” Ivy asked while he took the bite.

“Hmmm… Somewhere I have always been told but haven’t gotten the chance to go…” Jason explained while he ate another spoonful of rice.

“The peak of the city?” Ivy nonchalantly asked as Jason widened his eyes in surprise.

“You knew about it?” Jason mumbled. “Of course, that’s a tourist attraction here anyway…” Ivy said while she ate another spoon of rice.

“Are we there to avoid bumping into Nancy too much?” Ivy half mumbled the question not knowing if she wanted to know the truth which was obvious or was she expecting a wishful thinking answer such as a date.

“Hmmm…” Jason hummed in agreement as he continued to drive which left Ivy a little disappointed at her wishful thinking but scolded herself that it was all an act. She shook her thoughts away as she continued to feed him lunch in silence. With a long road ahead to drive, the view outside the window was so soothing that Ivy fell asleep after they finished lunch just as he had planned.

The frequent interludes of acting with her seemed to have made them both grow more comfortable with each other that the thought of revealing her identity to her father crossed his mind.

He needed to make plans to slowly start letting Mr. Ophal know about Ivy’s existence and lift some hope she would understand his actions which seemed to be selfish. When the time comes, he only wishes she would live a happier life with her big family and even if she disregards their friendship after this, it wouldn't matter to him.

At the thought of it, he winced at the sadness he felt in his heart thinking about never contacting Ivy again. He sighed as he fought with himself to stop stalling time in making the move to save his company.

When Ivy stirred awake, she found herself in the car covered by a sweater as Jason stood in front of the car and enjoyed the spectacular view himself. Ivy smiled to herself watching Jason finally had time for himself and rest despite the busy schedule he always had. She stepped out of the car to join him.

“How could you not wake me up and watch all this by yourself?” Ivy teased as Jason smiled.

“Good morning Princess…” Jason helped her to straighten some of her messy hair as she breathed in the fresh air. Ivy’s heart fumbled at being called Princess by Jason like how Phoenix always called her as her eyes twinkled watching him fixing her hair. He pinched her nose to tease her as she smacked him.

“It feels so good here…” Ivy mumbled to herself as Jason nodded. It then crossed Ivy’s mind that tonight’s event might be a big one that they needed two emcees.

“What’s the event about tonight?” She asked as Jason crossed his arm.

“It’s for a good friend of Nick and myself. It’s his engagement reception…” Jason explained.

“No wonder the both of you had to partake by being the emcees…” Ivy replied as an idea crossed Jason’s mind about receptions like this.

“There is a special task for you but it is just in case…” He hesitated for a moment to tell her his idea as Ivy raised an eyebrow curiously but he continued to stall time.

“Oh come on Jason, spill the beans!” Ivy whined as she shook him. He flashed a smile watching her reaction.

“It’s an engagement banquet…” He finally said and her face grew eager as she listened to him.

“So, they have a waltz session and it wouldn’t be appropriate to reject someone who asked you for a dance. Well again, it’s just in case.” He explained quickly, thinking she would get his point to dance with him as she blinked with a poker face.

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She was trying to link her job backstage with having to waltz but couldn’t find any connections.

“Do you waltz?” Jason asked watching her blinking in confusion while thinking intensely and he understood instantly.

“So, you don’t know how?” He stood straight laughing at her as she pinched his cheeks in retaliation but he managed to grab hold of her arms as he was taller.

“Yes, I don’t but I don’t see the need for me to waltz since if the event reaches to that part of the agenda then I could just leave the ballroom for a while or continue to stay backstage?” She questioned as she pulled back her arms from his hand and folded them.

“Like I said, it’s a precaution. It's pretty simple to waltz anyway. I can teach you... Provided you are willing to learn?” He winked at her, trying not to show himself being eager for her to agree.

She looked out at the view in front of them for a distraction while thinking of an excuse to reject him for being caught off guard so suddenly. She was trying to talk herself out of the deal as she didn’t like to dance but waltz was something she thought she could give it a try since it was also useful in the future for business dealings perhaps. With Jason still standing coolly by her side but kept stealing glances of her thinking, she ended up giving in and nodded in agreement.

He cheered happily when she agreed as he knew when she was caught off guard, it would push her to the edge which usually ended up having her being submissive.

Lessons were easy since she learned fast and he taught well that it took her less than an hour to master the steps of a square box waltz and left box turn waltz. They practiced and rested on top of the lookout point till it was time to leave and prepare for the event.

When they got back to the hotel, they noticed no one was in the room as they both quickly got dressed. Ivy thanked her lucky stars that she had packed two pair of dresses; one plain white maxi dress which covers her heels definitely and a not too long blue maxi dress. However, as the thought of having to dance crossed her mind, she ended up choosing the blue maxi dress which had a shorter front hem to avoid stepping on the hems if she had to dance later and chose a pair of flats instead of her usual heels.

Jason stepped out of shower dressed in his formal wear while fixing his bow tie as he took a few moments to admire Ivy’s breathtaking beauty. He quickly walked to the dressing table to style his hair when Ivy turned around after putting her flats by the door.

“No heels today?” Jason asked nonchalantly while styling his hair.

“Hmm… Just in case?” She shrugged while she stared at him dashingly, styling his hair. It was the second time she caught herself being captivated at this sight.

He stared at her in the mirror as she stared back at him. “Why?” She blinked while asking, realising she stared too long at him and got caught.

“Trust me. Wear your usual heels. It’s easier to dance. Just in case…” He winked looking at her reflection in the mirror and grabbed his coat heading to leave.

She couldn’t help but to grin as he chuckled watching her changing to her striped heels.

“Just in case...” She smiled and joined him heading to the ballroom.

She did the usual sound checks and microphone testing before checking on the song list for the night and ensured there were sufficient songs to last till midnight while Jason rehearsed the scripts with Nick. Nancy and Nick had in fact gotten ready earlier before Ivy and Jason headed back to the hotel in order to not clash with each other.

“Bro… Thanks man for the considerate arrangements you made…” Jason thanked Nick after they finished rehearsing their script. Nick crossed his arm and gave Jason a questioning look.

“How serious are you with her?” Nick teased as he smiled.

“Huh? We aren’t… you know that…” Jason said sternly.

“It doesn’t seem like it, bro… They say your gestures and body knows it before your conscience and heart…” Nick chuckled as Jason lightly punched his arm and smiled.

“Does she have issues sleeping or with the dark?” Nick asked curiously as Jason looked at Ivy’s direction. He hesitated awhile but Nick didn’t want to let the topic go.

“Must be sleeping issues then?” Nick took a guess but Jason sighed without answering. Nick noticed Jason had been staring at her differently and could tell his friend was too far gone as he put his arm over his shoulder and pulled him in Ivy's direction.

“Take it one step at a time bro… Let’s go take a bite…” Nick urged as Jason continued to be drowned in his own thoughts. He suddenly realised there was so much he worried about for Ivy other than telling her dad about her identity and risk losing their friendship to her sleep paralysis issues, her friendship issues and career choices as well as avoiding Nancy hurting her. He sighed at the thought of her becoming his problem in life.

Ivy could not get her mind off the waltz dance steps she had learned earlier while Jason and Nick were talking to each other over their light meal. Ivy was surprised that she ended up loving the dance instead and thought it would be a waste if she didn't dance tonight although she was a little shy. Nancy was listening in to Nick and Jason but was also keeping an eye on Ivy who was daydreaming while nibbling on her sandwich. Jason noticed how quiet Ivy was as he switched his conversation over to her.

"Why are you so dreamy today?" Jason asked in the midst of chomping down his sandwich while Nick understood Jason’s intention and made small conversations with Nancy instead.

Ivy blinked and looked elsewhere trying to shrug off from being too obvious after being caught off guard.

"Me? Dreamy? No… it's a lovely day. The weather is not so humid and the birds are flying freely you see…" She was diverting his attention away from her embarrassment.

He smiled at first at her sudden change of topic and soon couldn't contain his laughter as she giggled together. He signaled her to head back to the ballroom first as she nodded.

“We will head to the hall first…” Jason said to Nick and Nancy as Ivy joined him, leaving the table. Nick nodded as Nancy snarled at them. Upon noticing Nancy being upset, Nick suggested that they too head back to the hall which had Nancy smiled a little and nodded in agreement to be able to see both of them in vicinity at least.

"Nervous?" On the way back to the hall, Jason asked Ivy.

"About what?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Just in case." He winked and walked off to catch the bride and bridegroom who had just arrived at the main entrance while she was still trying to register his tease.

When she finally understood him, she blushed at her wishful thinking of dancing with him tonight while walking back backstage. She grinned at the sight of her heels and thought about their little secret about the waltz dance being coded as “just in case”.

As she spent most of the time backstage during his emcee jobs, Jason would come into the sound room to check on her intermittently and send her food. Tonight, she got anxious when he told her they had special seats allocated for them to enjoy their meal. All she had to do was let the songs play and head back when the next agenda on the list needed to start.

It took her awhile to gather up the courage to step into the hall for dinner after sorting out the song lists. Upon identifying the location of their seat, she didn't regret it as it was close by the entrance to the backstage. She noticed Nancy was seated in between Jason and Nick as Jason kept an empty seat on his right for her.

Jason was busy engaged in a conversation with a couple of ladies on the table when Ivy walked over. Upon noticing Ivy finally appeared for dinner, Jason stood to pull the chair out for her to sit and fussed over her before feeding her. She noticed the awkward stares from the other ladies he spoke with earlier although he introduced her as his assistant but they were judging and she didn't like it. He noticed it too as he tried to distract her.

"Is the salmon too sour?" He whispered in her ear close enough for her to feel his breath. She nervously tried a bite and nodded while she winced at the unexpected sourness.

"Why? Isn't it supposed to be…" She noticed hers was coated with a whiter sauce than his on his plate. His plate's salmon had some black sauce on it. She glared at him.

"What? Didn't you like sour stuff more? So I added lots of lime for you whereas mine I added more soy sauce. Thank me..." She was on the verge of wanting to smack him in front of all the ladies but ended up chuckling to herself.

"I will thank you soon." She gave him a dangerous smirk as he drew her in for a hug by her shoulders. Nancy was watching their act and couldn’t help but to envy them as Nick had no choice but to quickly remind Nancy of their next duty to distract her.

When both ladies left the table, Jason and Nick exchanged glances of gratefulness as they went up on stage to continue the event.

The night went by smoothly with speeches from respective parents and a cake cutting ceremony with a toss of champagne. Before Ivy knew it, it was the highlight of the event she had been anticipating; the couple's waltz dance which was at the end of the reception. As Jason gave the closing speech, the couple took their first round of waltz followed by their respective parents and the crowd slowly joined in.

Jason was waiting for Ivy to appear from backstage but she seemed to be stalling.

He went to check on her backstage and found her standing by the window pane looking out at the gloomy sky illuminated by occasional lightning as she smiled, easing into the peace and quiet scene in front of her trying to forget about the waltz dance she would never have a chance to dance to tonight.

He cleared his throat to catch her attention as she turned around, caught by surprise.

"Are we done?" She smiled and asked abruptly. He nodded as he held out a hand. She knew he was asking for a dance as that was what they did in practice earlier this afternoon as she blinked nervously at him.

She shook her head as she walked past him out of the room to find everyone was waltzing in the hall in sync with the bride and her groom. Jason stood by her side as he noticed Nick and Nancy were already on the dance floor. It was a mesmerising view as the bride’s parents who stood by the side to rest signaled Ivy and Jason to join in.

Jason knew this was his last chance to keep her around to dance. He knew she wanted to but she always had issues with her confidence. He grabbed her arm and slipped his hand down to her palm as he pulled her to the edge of the dance floor and eyed her nervous self as he nodded, signaling to her that she could do it.

She smiled nervously and held his arm as he placed another arm by her waist and led them. Soon before she knew it, they were twirling with the crowd in a symmetrical round of waltz. She thought to herself, he was right about the heels and their “just in case” situation had became a reality. It no longer was her wishful thinking but a moment Jason and Ivy would always remember of each other.

Maybe because he was her teacher that it was easy to catch up with his tempo and fall into his rhythm. Under the ballroom light, she realised he looked so dashing tonight compared to other events. She wondered if it was because it was his good friend’s engagement that he purposely dressed up more than his usual style as she twirled with him on the dance floor.

Jason had been watching out in case she tripped but as they twirled a couple more times on the dance floor, he knew Ivy had overcome her nervous self. As he took his mind off worrying about her tripping, he found himself being captivated at the sight of her dancing her heart out. He told himself Ivy was an unpolished gem and that he wished to slowly help her unlock her potential one by one.

She couldn’t take her eyes off him during the entire dance as she savored every moment of it. When she caught herself still lingering in the moments of them dancing, she was already standing by the side of the ballroom all by herself watching Jason being dragged to a drinking session with the groom and his friends. Watching him having a great time with Nick and Nancy, she fought her waves of haywire emotions as she walked out of the hall and took a breather.

The sky was rumbling with thunder as the first night she met Jason ran through her memory. The same scene happened back then as she smiled to herself reminiscing that moment but reality slowly seeped in as she lamented on the remaining time she had left with him. She comforted herself that at least she had these beautiful memories to accompany her when she was to leave him in a few months' time as promised to Nancy. She hoped Nancy would be more patient and keep getting better. Only then, she would be able to leave Jason at ease.

Unexpected tears trickled at the thought of leaving him as she forcefully wiped them away and tried to control them. She sniffed in the damp air and knew it was going to rain soon.

“I have been away too long haven’t I?” Ivy asked her old friend, the rain, as she tried finding refuge like how she used to before meeting Jason in her solitary moment. However, all she felt was more emptiness and she knew it was too late to save herself from retreating from being Jason's acting girlfriend.

Her heart already had the truth she was trying hard to deny and control. “Few more months… Hang in there… By then, it would be worse if you don’t control yourself from falling for him…Ivy, it’s all an act…” Ivy told herself as she let a few tears escape while she looked up at the gloomy thundery sky looking for the courage to continue with her fate.