my heart rate (aksana)

So far Godfrey was enjoying the festivities the cruise ship put on for the Ministry Gala. He was lucky to have attended a few in the last years because of his son, but he had little experience in the affairs prior to that. He could not forget the one high-society party he had crashed as a boy in an attempt to see his (then) beloved Catherine, only to be told off by her so cruelly in the lobby.

Those days seemed so long ago now...

He had sampled quite enough of the food at this point, so now he was going for some of the champagne. After a mere few sips, he felt it going straight to his head. He never had a very high tolerance for anything alcoholic, and only ever really consumed it in confectionary.

As he stood at the sidelines making small talk to a few people he recognised, he saw a very distinctive head of hair. She was half-hidden behind a cluster of Ministry men, but he knew it was her. It must have been the giddyness of the alcohol, but Godfrey gave her a very cheerful wave. Come to think of it, they hardly knew one another. She was a quiet sort of woman, always wanted the same thing from his shop, and left before he had the opportunity to make conversation.

@Aksana Zimova

Aksana had never really enjoyed the buzz events brought, and bootlicking wasn’t her strong suit either – it was one of the reasons she had never felt happy in the Ministries. The possibility to meet some of the more pleasantly remembered colleagues again had been the only reason she had accepted the invitation. She, however, had not expected to see *him* here. He stood a bit further away, chatting with apparent friends.

While it was nice to see his friendly face, the safety blanket of being his customer was missing, and Aksana did not feel ready to jump into a real conversation with him just yet. Quickly, she ducked herself, but to no avail: The next time she glanced over the shoulders of men she had ducked behind, he had already spotted her, even waved at her. Looking at him sporting a grin that went from one ear to the other, she felt her cheeks warm up. She took a deep breath and stepped forward, straightening out her long dress as she did so.

“Hello”, she said, feeling awkward and clumsy in her speech and like she had no idea to what say next. “You um- Are you the one responsible for the desserts?”

@Godfrey Van Doom

Godfrey thought he should erase his first impression of her as soon as he saw how charming she looked: those who were meek could not look so glamorous, he wagered. It was very good of her to approach him after waving so goofily at her, but he was pleased nonetheless.

"Hello there!" he replied cheerfully, eager to continue their conversation past a few words of consumer exchange. "Yes, you're quite right! It really was all a last minute thing, and baking isn't my port of call, but I am hoping everyone is enjoying them. Oh!" he cried suddenly, turning to the table at once and waving his fingers over the various desserts until he picked up a large cupcake. "Have you tried this one yet? The frosting has your favourite: the toffee crisp clusters!"

He didn't have many customers who returned for that particular product, but he thought it would make for an indulgent cake for the event.

"Please, you must try this if you haven't already! You're sure to enjoy it!"

@Aksana Zimova