Call My Bluff | NaNoWriMo

Chapter Nineteen | Shut Up

It is our last day in Cape Town the following day. Tomorrow we are set to drive to James' family vineyard for the wedding. For breakfast, we choose a nice safe option of sitting with my parents, who have free seats at their table. I thought they would probably want to sit with their newfound friends but the sigh of relief from both of them had me thinking otherwise.

"You would not believe what happened at the beach yesterday," my mom says after we greet each other. Today I opted to have a waffle with fresh fruit and ice cream, while Henry chose pancakes. I already plan to steal a bite from him.

"What happened?" I ask as Henry joins us with our cups of tea. He sits down, across from my dad.

"What did I miss?" he asks as he takes a sip from his tea and then unwraps his knife and fork.

"You've missed nothing dear, I was just about to tell Evelyn about our beach day yesterday," she pauses to take a bit of her biscuit that she dipped in her tea before continuing, "Yesterday Anna tried to set up two youngsters. I forget their names but it's Anna's niece and Thomas' son."

We have no idea who Anna or Thomas are, let alone their relatives but we nod along like we do. If I have no idea who they are, I doubt Henry does. We have stayed relatively clear of the group. I think I could recognise them vaguely and I am sure my mom has been telling everyone that I'm her daughter so they might know me. My dad tuned out the conversation since he probably witnessed whatever drama first-hand already.

"So they were very happy walking along the beach and being a cute couple. Anna started bragging about her matchmaking skills. She offered to set you up too, Evelyn, but I told her you already had Henry and that there is no need for her to do that. I would not use her skills anyway since the two of them started arguing on the beach loudly for everyone to hear. The language they were using was shocking."

"Oh, that's crazy." Compared to the lady who threw a tantrum, I think it's a little bit more reasonable. Poor restaurant workers don't deserve such nightmarish customers. Here, on the other hand, it looks like they had an argument with is pretty normal.

"No, that's not even the crazy part. The girl threw the poor guy's phone into the ocean!"

That was not the plot twist I expect to hear. I mean people arguing on the beach sure. Throwing phones into the ocean? Sounds toxic. I steal a pancake off Henry's plate and in return, he cuts a quarter of one of my waffles and puts it on his plate.

"Did he get his phone back?" Like how deep in the ocean did this girl throw? Either way it probably caused a lot of damage.

"I doubt it would work since it took a swim in salt water," Henry adds as if he can read my mind. He steals a few pieces of fruit off my plate with his fork.

"I don't know yet. I wonder what Anna will say today. Did you see we are spending the day shopping today? I can't wait to explore all the new shops with you, Evelyn."

I give a noncommittal sound. Little does she know that Henry and I did a lot of exploring yesterday after our double date. Luckily, my mom is distracted when one of the people from yesterday's drama walks in for breakfast and she along with everyone else in the room turns to look at the poor guy. I am sure they are checking to see if he has a phone now.

After we finish eating our breakfast, Henry and I don't bother going back to our room. We originally planned to go with everyone to Waterfront today. However, the whole thing is looking unappealing even if we take our own car. Henry has a similar idea, but he is not pushing me to run away from another day at the shopping centre. I think the most tedious part is trying to keep up with shopping with my mom.

"Let's ditch them and go to the beach," Henry suggests when we get to the lobby which is soon going to fill up with the group to get onto the coach. The idea of going to the beach instead of Waterfront shopping is appealing. Henry and I already explored the area after the double date.