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Vodka. Check.

Ice cubes. Check.

Plastic cups. Check.

Devy's special chocolate chip cookies. Check.

Laura made sure everything was ready for Devina's Barbecue party. Devina was always having parties like this every year. She didn't know what possessed her to agree to help host the party this year but then she remembered how convincing Devina could be.

"Everything ready, Ll?" A woman in her early fifties who looked thirty in her brunette hair which was styled in a ponytail and her beautiful sunny gown. Devina was a very beautiful lady that refused to grow old. She, just like her daughter was a psychologist who had a power of persuasion like no other.

"Yeah. I think. Remind me why I agreed to do this again?" Laura carried a tray of cookies and dropped on the table.

"Because you love me and you love my special wine." Devina smiled at her.

"Definitely the wine."

Devina laughed. "Come on darling, they are not that bad. Come to the window and see the guest that has arrived." She motioned with her hands for Laura to follow her.

They stood at the kitchen window that showed them the backyard.

"Seriously?! You invited Gary? That guy is just the worst company to have in a party." Laura lamented after seeing her colleague, Gary Donovan who always saying something stupid and meaningless with a straight face.

"Com'n Ll, he's not that bad. And I invited his wife Rita, there was no way I could tell him not to come."

Laura rolled her eyes. "Where is Tiffany?"

"She should be here in the next seven minutes." She said looking at her wristwatch.

"Seven minutes alone in hell then. Where is that wine that you used to trap me here? I need it now." She walked to the bar in the dining and brought out a bottle of wine.

"No you don't. What you need is to party."

"You know I could have been doing something more interesting right now." She opened the wine and poured it in a wine glass. She took a sip and closed her eyes savoring the moment. "Heaven." She sighed.

"Like what? Drink and cry yourself to sleep expecting Nathan to walk through the door like a perfect fairytale?" Devina collected the glass from her hands, keeping it some inches away from her.

Laura was quiet. What Devina said was true but it hurt her even when she knew.

"Come here child." Devina hugged her. "Sorry for the way I said it but I need you to let go of him. And I brought you here for a reason. You just don't know yet."

"What reason?" Laura got out of her embrace.

"Look outside who do you see?" They stood in front of the kitchen window again.

Laura was surprised at the question. "I don't understand what you mean?"

"I mean literally. Who do you see?"

Laura looked outside again. "I see Saint and Maryann. Gary and Rita. Kate from the coffee shop. Maddy. Maddy is here? Why didn't you tell me?" Maddy was a girl who attended the same elementary school with Laura. They weren't friends but more like acquaintances. "Logan is here. Are you serious?" She didn't know what could spoil her evening more than that. "Presley and Gina. Seriously I didn't know Gina was in town." She turned to Devina. "Okay let's be serious. Why did you tell me to do that?"

"Com'n we have guest waiting. You said so yourself." Devina carried the tray of cookies from the table.

Laura was shocked. "Are you serious?!" She laughed. "And here I thought it was one of those life lessons you were about tell me about."

Few minutes later, Laura was exhausted. After smiling and talking with almost everyone, even Gary. She felt like she needed a break. And to make it worst, Tiffany couldn't make it anymore. So she stuck here with no friends, no fun and no wine.

"So how much did you enjoy it?" Devina asked as she stood beside her.

"Zero much."

Devina laughed. "I doubt that. Not even when Gary got the pepper sauce in his eyes and tripped on his shoes?"

The memory of Gary jumping and screaming 'Pepper!' Pepper!' was enough for Laura to start laughing again.

"Okay. I admit that was funny. Especially when he hit his face in the wall when he couldn't see anymore."

Devina opened a can of coke and gave it to Laura while opening one for herself. "You never told me you were a sadist."

"I learned from the best." Laura joked as she clicked her can with Devina's.

They both laughed. "You see Saint and Maryann. Such lovely couples." Devina suddenly said making Laura look at her unsure of the direction of the conversation. "It's evident how much they love each other. You would never suspect that Maryann cheated on him last year spring with her colleague from school." Maryann was a high school teacher.

Laura was shocked. How Devina knew that she didn't know because she had never heard of it.

"Or Saint is still seeing his ex-wife behind Maryann's back."

Laura chocked on her drink. "Saint was married?"

"Did you know Aaron is not Presley's son? Gina had an affair. Did you?"

"Seriously Devy. Why are you tell me this?" Devina she knew was never one to gossip.

Devina shrugged. "Just because." And she took a sip from her drink then waved Logan who was about leaving. "You know he likes you."

Laura rolled her eyes. "Lucky for me, I don't care."

"He is not as bad as he seems believe me. His mother was murderd when he was a teenager in front of him and he has been in different foster homes since he was twelve. He ended up killing his last foster parent when he was sixteen when she tried to rape him. It looked like she had been doing that since she adopted him." Devina said casually.

"I didn't know that."

"Nobody does. He tried his best to erase his past and pretends like it didn't happen."

"Why are you telling me this Devina?"

Devina smiled and dropped her coke on the table in front of them.

"Everyone has secrets Laura. You, me, everyone. When someone walks into this place the first thing they see is a group of friends having a good time. But is that really true? Half of the people here don't like each other but they still smile and laugh like friends. Our whole life is like a script we have to act on. Nobody is hundred percent perfect. We just have very good actors. A person who is invincible is a person without secrets. Secrets have a great power over you more than you can fathom."

"I still don't understand."

"When you try to see someone. Really see the person. Not the mask they wear but their real faces. Can you? Can you really see people or you see what they let you see. Can you stop people from seeing you and let them see what you want them to see?"

The conversation was getting too serious for Laura that it was getting scary. "Guess it was one of those life lessons after all." She joked. The tension which was so high finally broke.

"Of course it is. You think I would miss a perfect opportunity like this to make me sound like those wise old women in the movies."

Laura laughed. "Thanks for inviting me Devy. You were right. It was better than sulking by myself at home."

"I love you Ll, you are like a daughter to me. I want you to know that losing Theo is not the end of your life no matter what the doctors said. You still have a lot of things to do in this life. A lot of babies to make." That made Laura laugh with tears in her eyes. "And a lot of good people to meet. The world needs you Laura. Now more than ever. You just don't know it yet. There will reach a time when you would know and you will remember what I just said."

Laura muttered a thank you while tears rolled down her eyes.

"Just remember something Ll when that time comes, remember you are good enough. Trust yourself. And don't just see what they want you too see Ll. Really see. Remember Ll. Remember."

I'm sorry for the late update. I have been trying to edit my work so I didn't have time to write a new chapter. This is a very short chapter with the first glimpse of Devina. I hope you liked it. Pleeeeeaaaaaaase don't forget to comment and vote. Next chapter will come faster I promise.

Love Toris❤️