Her Safe Haven

Nine.

A.N: Can anyone guess the song that is mentioned later on without looking it up??

It was as if the entire family had made a unanimous decision to hide their opinion. [Name] slowly ate her dessert, the taste dull against her tongue as her mind raced elsewhere. Instead, she watched the rest of the room enjoy their dessert, assessing. Smiles broke out across the room, and occasional glances were sent her way-silent praise. The knot in her stomach loosened the slightest, however... It isn't their praise that matters.

Clink.

Senor Pink's fork rested against his empty plate. [Name's] eyes widened, lips parting in the smallest smile.

Clink. Clink-Clink-Clink.

All around her, the family rested their utensils against their empty plates. Empty! Not even their dinner plates were empty; most had something that they didn't enjoy from Machvise's dinner selection, the evidence of this through the leftovers. Her chest started to swell, her eyes could be seen gleaming through the lace of her mask.

"Well," Diamante's voice carried, his sharp eyes meeting hers from down the table, "I'd have to admit that your desserts seem to be a success."

Machvise's laugh boomed, "good job kid, I don't think I've ever had everyone leave a clean plate, iin." Do I detect a slight hint of jealousy? I hope so~

"Well Sugar only ate her plumb tart," but one glance at Sugar, and anyone could tell she was utterly content with the single tart. Her cheeks were flushed, closed eyes crinkled in a small smile as she chewed the last bite.

"You did good my dear! I'd have eaten more if I could!"

"This was a manly treat, for sure."

"Definitely hard-boiled enough for me."

[Name's] cheeks were flushed from the praise, her insides tingling from relief. But there was one man who hadn't spoke; he sat there with a blank expression, utensils abandoned.... While the plate, was not. Her chest suddenly ached, seeing her desserts wasted like that. She'd spent so much effort on them, to see them discarded like that... Her brows furrowed, eyes meeting with the glint of his glasses. His solemn expression held, as did her troubled one.

If anyone had noticed, no one commented, the conversation starting to flow into a different topic. Doflamingo was the first to look away, turning to the waiter who motioned to take the discarded plate. Doflamingo allowed him.

[Name's] gaze fell to her own plate, to whatever was left of her dessert. Everyone else liked her baking, and despite the man's obvious distaste, she knew she did a good job....

"Hey, don't dwell on it," [e/c] eyes lifted upon hearing Jora's kind voice. "The Young Master wouldn't reveal if he truly enjoyed your dessert in front of so many people, so it can't be said if he liked or disliked it... Besides! They were displayed with such beautiful elegance! If it's appearance were to fulfill my standard then the Young Master must have liked something about them!"

"Ah, thanks..."

Before she could dwell any longer, a shorter older man walked to the stage near the opposite wall, a microphone in hand. His bright, white smile could be seen all the way from the back of the room as he said, "we hope that everything has been satisfactory up until now, and if we all know Lord Doflamingo, we know that the standards were certainly set high!" Soft laughs were heard across the room, as if everyone there understood how ruling the man in the throne could be. "With that said, tonight's musician is going to perform. Our lovely Jora-san had somehow tackled a great feat in finding such a new and dazzling young woman for us tonight... She needs no introduction as I'm sure you all recognize her, but please, welcome Kanna Takahashi!"