Chapter 323: A New Year's Beginning

When Ambryan eventually let Eve go, he excused himself to use the restroom. Eve wandered around the room while waiting. She checked out the titles on his shelves, searching for the sort of books young Ambryan wanted to read. 

His nightstand also had a few reading materials. Sitting on his bed, Eve brushed her fingers up along the spines of magazines. Then, they touched a hardcover one found at the very top.

The only lights in the room were from outside the window.

"Why is this book away from the rest?" Eve asked as Ambryan walked back into the room. "Has it always been here?"

Ambryan took one look and immediately knew what it was. "Since it came here, yes."

She widened her eyes in his direction. "It has legs?" 

His response came with a shake of his head. "No, but it was in my penthouse."

"A book you always have to have with you. I wonder what is it—" Eve thought out loud, her voice in a sing-song tone. She pulled out the book and immediately dropped the act. 

"This is not a book."

"It's a photobook."

"Yes, but…" 

Eve fell at a loss for words. She hadn't seen this photobook before but she knew of its existence. Ambryan turned on the lights, making it clearer to see. The cover had the face of a young woman edited to look like an oil painting. It had a slanted tear right across the middle where the canvas revealed a black and white version of half of the painting underneath.

Ambryan stayed by the doorway and leaned his shoulder against the wall. When he had asked Wen to pack up things from the penthouse, he hadn't expected she'd bring along a present he got in the mail.

He had hidden it in this room ever since. 

Why?

"This is…" Eve attempted to speak again. She flipped through the glossy pages. The artistry in the photos astounded her. "This is the portfolio Elias had me do, isn't it?"

It was.

"It's the final version of it, at least," Ambryan supplied.

She looked up at him. "There were other versions?"

"That bastard had sent me a sample copy, asking for my opinion on the photos, the theme and the layout." Ambryan walked over to the bed and sat beside Eve. He took the photobook into his hands. "I didn't want to admit it but he did a wonderful job. These black and white ones had completely drawn me in. I knew for sure that you could make it as a full-time model just by looking at them."

"You're exaggerating. You've seen me do other things too," Eve protested with a snort. "Besides, you had asked me about that even before this photoshoot happened."

"I know but this had blown me away unlike the others."

"In what way?"

"Look at this one." 

Ambryan opened to a page where a headshot of Eve stared right into the camera. The giant wings flared out behind her. Elias had edited the black and white version to include black wings instead of white. He also dimmed the lightning to match the dark theme—causing the shadows in the photo to intensify while the highlights dulled. 

"That is beautiful," Eve breathed out. "But that's due to Elias' handiwork."

"That's you," Ambryan said.

"I know."

"It's you."

"I am the subject of the portfolio."

"You're misunderstanding me."

"I think you're the one misunderstanding the whole purpose of this photobook."

Ambryan chuckled, licking his bottom lip. How should he explain this? He closed his eyes briefly and said, "This was how I found out you were Eve."

…

…

…

Now that he mentioned it…, Eve snatched the photobook back. She scanned through more pages made of black and white. The colors lost meaning in these photos. It came down to lighting and shadows, angles and shapes, and monotone shades. Whenever Elias dimmed the light, her eyes resembled a darker color—almost similar to her brown ones.

That trick combined with the minimal makeup for a dainty angelic look and hair pushed back, it did resemble herself without the Evangeline disguise.

"That's… scary." 

Ambryan released another chuckle. He propped his hands behind his back, digging into the mattress. "I'll say. I had stopped breathing when I realized I just compared the photos to my own secretary. I looked for more and saw the resemblance again."

"I could also hear my mother laughing inside my head, I might add." He frowned at the memory. "It sounded ridiculous but I remembered how confident she was that I should know who you were. Then, everything else made sense—like your demands when we started fake dating."

Eve closed the book and hugged it to her chest. She pressed her lips together, turning her head towards Ambryan. "Were you angry?"

Her voice came out small.

Ambryan raised his eyebrows and straightened his posture. "Surprisingly, I wasn't. I had gotten to know you during this time as my fake girlfriend and as my secretary. I had also known we both had our own agendas with the arrangement."

"I was more amazed at how much time you actually dedicated to me," he continued. "I was very flattered. It really boosted my ego. I didn't have to wait every weekend to see you. Of course, I was sick at the time so I actually had to wait—"

Eve grabbed a pillow and whacked it to his face. 

She rose to her feet, putting the photobook back. "Come on, Mr. Detective. We still have the announcement to go through. Your mother will have our heads if we missed it."

When the guests came back in, the servants had finished setting up the tables and silverware. Avery paced behind her chair while the twins drank their glasses of juice. Jackson sat beside Ede and glanced at his wife.

"Why won't you sit down?" He questioned, frown lines between his eyebrows. 

"Where are they?!" Avery hissed under her breath. "It's an important night and they're supposed to be here. I had taken ages to make this presentation and they will not miss it—!"

"What presentation, mother?" Ambryan asked to announce their presence. He was almost afraid to hear the answer if he was being honest. 

Avery's violet eyes snapped in the direction. Eve had taken her seat next to Eri while Ambryan followed beside her.

"Well, FINALLY!" Avery exasperated. She grabbed a remote control from her purse and ordered a servant to get her a microphone.

Eve gulped, already sweating from what she witnessed so far. Just how big of a presentation was this? She searched for Andie in the next table and found both her and Rose looking their way.

Alarm and desperation radiated out of her brown eyes. They shrugged, answering with sympathetic smiles. 

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please," Avery spoke through the microphone. Chatter died down as people shifted their attention to her. A white sheet screen lowered from the ceiling behind the madam.

"First, I'd like to thank everyone for coming and to greet you a Happy New Year." She beamed. The lights slowly dimmed as a projector lit up on the sheet screen. "I have an important announcement to make. And I would also like to take all of the credit because it was me who had introduced my son to his fiancé—"

A round of applause and cheers erupted from the crowd. Eve buried her face instantly on Ambryan's shoulder. The loudest support came from the nearby table where Rose and Andie had stood up. 

It took about a minute or two before the audience became quiet once more. Avery brimmed with excitement from the positive feedback.

"Now…" she said, looking at the couple. "I could save this for the wedding but tonight is a night where new beginnings happen. And I thought… why not look at an old beginning to celebrate a new one."

"As many of you know," Avery addressed the crowd once more. "My son wasn't always keen to have a committed relationship. Not only is he my only child but I am also an old woman who wants to see her grandkids before the inevitable time comes…"

A few laughs echoed around the room.

"So when my son finally agreed to regularly date someone, I had wanted assurance of his commitment."

Eve spotted a familiar photo flashed on the white screen. She blinked several times. Five purple buttons were connected by a swiveling line. Each one had a name and symbol.

> Chat

> Call

> Memories

> Calendar

> Capture

"And this was it," Avery said, pointing to the menu screen of the DTC app. "Every message, every call, every date, every photo was recorded in this app I have customized. According to my research, it's a wonderful app to use. Be sure to check out the app stores later after this."

More laughter came from the audience at her last statement.

"I don't think either one of you had used this before," the madam told Ambryan and Eve. "But we will tonight. Let's take a walk down memory lane, shall we?"

A white border outlined the button for "Memories." Then, the screen had vanished. In its place was a roadmap that followed dates instead of destinations. Avery manipulated the settings so it rewinded back to the beginning.

"Do you both still remember your first chat?"

When Eve heard what Avery had said, her ears reddened like two strawberries on either side of her head. She did remember it. But… the madam surely wasn't about to show the conversation to everyone, was she?

"July 12, 20XX," the madam read from the white screen. "Then, the first date came on July 18, 20XX.  My son works fast, huh?"

The pin for July 12th moved down a few dates until it hit July 18th. A slideshow began where a picture of Stitz Bistro came up along with the time of their meetup. The app also tracked their visit to Parthenos Mall where Ambryan attempted to buy a bag for Eve. 

Then, came the Alight Rolling Skating Rink where they spent the most time for their date. It ended with a final destination at Evangeline's apartment complex.

Without Avery's commentary, the pin moved again until it landed on the night of the launch party when their dating status became public.

It had recorded their stop at WcDonald's and the cliff they stayed after the party. Their next meetup came two weeks later when Eve met Jackson for the first time. Their time apart grew longer after that due to the scandal Eve fell into with Mikael.

But among all of them were recorded time for their chats and their calls. The pattern continued until the presentation reached the time Ambryan cooked for Eve in a restaurant's private room.

Eve hadn't noticed she welled up into tears. Each pin had given her a flash of memories—just like the app had intended.

"Truth be told," Avery spoke after a while. "I had added this feature in case something wrong happens. I wanted you both to be able to look back and see what exactly you were about to let go if you had decided to end your relationship…"

Her voice cracked at the end. Jackson touched her hand that held the back of her chair. She showed him a small smile. "I know this app is now unnecessary since you will be making new promises on your commitment to each other."

The screen showcased more memories such as their date at the arcade and a street food fair, eating lunch everyday at Evangeline's apartment, the unexpected weekend stay at Zehell Castle, their visit to Cornelia Town—and so much more.

Tears began to form in the corners of Avery's eyes. The sight of a crying Eve didn't help her either—but the madam did her best to steady her trembling hand.

"But know that DTC will always be here for you. No matter how much time passes by."