I crossed my arms in irritation as I muttered to myself angrily.

My mother looked up and frowned, "Seri. Stop muttering to yourself."

I whined, "But mother! Why do I have to go to the stupid ball? I've never had to before!"

"That's because you weren't old enough to. A young woman attending a Debutante Ball is an important thing. It's your debut in high society as an adult."

My father was sobbing while he sat next to my mother, "My little girl is an adult!"

I rolled my eyes as he cried, "Daddy, if you don't want me to go I won't."

My mother sighed, "Seri, stop trying to get out of it. It really isn't so bad. Millie will be there with you."

That probably was the only good thing about it. Everyone was able to attend except for Mary because she was only a commoner. It made me feel a bit bad. Originally she had accompanied William to it in the original novel. That was the only way she was able to go in the first place. This caused Ilene to grow furious and she actually spilled wine all over poor Mary at the ball.

However, it seemed like William didn't invite Mary. I guess this means Millie might have a chance in obtaining William after all. Hmm... I wonder how I could possibly help them along?

My mother watched as I alternated from thinking to growing sick from the carriage ride. After a while, she spoke, "Seri. I've told you this many times, but I have a feeling you have forgot. So, I'm going to quiz you. Do you know what it means to accept a dance from a man at a Debutante ball?"

I snapped out of my thinking and answered, "Uh. It means you want to dance?"

She frowned at my answer. My father stopped crying and looked at me with a serious expression, "Seri. You must not accept ANY dance requests tonight!"

My face twitched, "Okay... But, I usually don't accept requests anyway."

I've only danced with someone publicly once before and that was William. Even with his dance skill, he still couldn't avoid my terrible accidental stomping. I may have even broke one of his toes at one point. Either way, anyone who watched us dance thought it looked like William trying to escape certain death. There was no way anyone would want to dance with me after that.

And I didn't intend to dance with anyone either.

My mother spoke, "To accept any dance today is considered to accept their courting."

"Courting?!" I didn't know if I wanted to puke from the carriage ride or from the word courting.

My mother nodded her head, "Yes. If you only accept one dance, then it is assumed that you intend to marry that person. However, if you accept several dances then it means you are considering them all as potential marriage partners."

My face turned pale. First the whole flower situation, now this?! Can't this world just let people propose the old fashioned way?! Wait... I guess the old fashioned way is actually considered modern.

My father spoke quickly, "In any case, you can not accept a single one!"

I nodded quickly, "I won't! There's no way I will!"

Somehow I have a bad premonition....

We arrived at the location where the Ball would be held. I could see several high class people standing outside chatting leisurely. This scene seems like something you would find in a country club. We walked inside and were announced like usual, however it was a bit more casual then the previous announcements.

I guess people only care about the dance and not about anything else.

Once we were inside, my father left to go mingle with some new potential clients. I can't help but be impressed by that glib mouth of his. If he was a car salesperson in my world, he would probably be really rich.

A waiter passed by carrying a tray of wine. I grabbed one and sipped it. I could feel the bubbles go straight to my head. I giggled in pleasure.

My mother frowned at me, "Remember to drink like a lady. If you get drunk and act like a fool again, I will not be as nice as I was last time."

My face grew serious. She considers that being nice?! She made me go out and do a bunch of things the next day while I was hungover! And she made me go with Queen Luna who spent the entire time chatting my ear off! I was ready to wave my death flag!

"Just remember. Don't accept any dances unless you intend to marry someone. And, don't get drunk. Just remember those two things for me." My mother clicked her tongue, "Now I have to go watch over your father. It seems like a lot of whores are eyeing him right now."

My mother hurried off to stand by my father. She silently death stared the other women who were trying to flirt with him. I watched while sipping my drink. It certainly is entertaining to watch her possessiveness. I guess she still hasn't gotten over her insecurity.

Millie walked in and I waved her over. She smiled gently as she walked to me gracefully. "Ah, Seri. I'm surprised you came here today."

"I was forced to."

She giggled, "Of course you were. Well since you are here, are you intending on accepting any dances from any men?"

I spat in disgust, "No way. I hate dancing more than anything. Even without the implication behind accepting a dance, I still wouldn't accept one."

She breathed in relief, "I see. That's good."

Ah, Millie must have been worried I would accept a dance from William. Sure enough, she really likes him. As her friend, I must support her whole heartedly.

I looked at her with determination, "Don't worry Millie. I'm sure you will have a chance to receive a dance invitation from the one you love."

She tilted her head in confusion, "Oh? But I don't think anyone will ask me..."

I tugged on her arm playfully, "Well if no one else asks you, then I will. We can dance together."

She giggled happily, "Seri, two girls can't dance together at the Ball. That would cause too much of an uproar."

I grinned, "Who cares? I think it sounds exciting."

Creating chaos at this stiff event? Count me in.

Millie laughed as she covered her mouth bashfully. She truly is the definition of elegance and beauty. Someone came out and announced the start of the dance. Those not dancing had to stand to the side and watch those who had dance partners. Millie and I stood off to the side and watched everyone dance.

First it was a dance for those already married. Then, it was the dance for those who were intending on getting married. Finally, it was the dance I was dreading. The dance for those who wanted to court someone. It was then that I got an extremely bad feeling that I was being targeted.

Dante and William appeared out of nowhere and stood in front of me. William outstretched his hand to me, "Seri. Could you do me an honor of accepting my dance invitation?"

Dante outstretched his hand, "Seri. Please accept my dance invitation. I want to be your first and last dance partner this evening."

Why do I feel a sense of deja vu?

William glared at him, "No. I should be Seri's first and last dance partner."

Dante glared back, "No. I should be."

William didn't back down, "No. ME."

As they argued, Millie slipped away from my side without me realizing. I sipped on my wine as I watched the scene play out in front of me. I wonder if I should just run away or watch this dramatic moment. It's probably the closest I will come to watching a drama in this lifetime.

As they continued to argue I felt a lot of people staring. I looked over and noticed Queen Luna staring at me in excitement. I looked to the other side and saw my father glaring at the two boys fighting over me. My mother was holding him back as he muttered curse words under his breath. I felt an overwhelming pressure from around me.

The worst part about this situation? I finished my wine.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Millie walk over to a blonde haired girl who was chatting leisurely with some others. Millie bent over and whispered in her ear. She stopped speaking as she listened. The blonde-haired girl turned to me with hate in her eyes. Millie smirked as she walked away, leaving behind this girl who seemed to want to attack me.

Just what did Millie just say to her? She must have said something otherwise that girl would not have immediately looked at me like that.

I suddenly felt very uncomfortable inside. I suddenly recalled the times when I caught her doing questionable behavior. Millie was my friend... Right?

Surely she wouldn't purposely try to sabotage me... She isn't like my past coworkers, right? Right?

There's no use in guessing. It's best if I go straight to Millie and ask her.

I completely disregarded the two boys fighting over me and slipped away. I weaved in and out of the crowd trying to find Millie. On my way, I grabbed another glass of wine. Suddenly, someone stepped in my way. I looked up in irritation and noticed it was the blonde haired girl in front of me. She held red wine as she looked at me with an arrogant and angry expression.

"What?" I said already upset from being stopped in my pursuit of speaking to Millie.

She spoke haughtily, "You think you are so great, but you are actually a tramp."

I raised my eyebrow, "It's been a while since someone had the confidence to speak to me like this."

She clicked her tongue, "Everyone knows you're just stringing along all the men in the student council room. Don't you have any dignity?"

I thought for a second, "Nope. I don't."

This was not the answer she had expected. Her lip curled up, "You really think everyone should bow down to you, don't you?"

"Yup." I said paying her no attention, "Now could you move? I'm trying to find-"

She dumped her wine on my head. It dripped down my face and onto my dress. My body froze as I felt an incredibly irritating sticky sensation from the wine. The entire room went quiet. Dante and William stopped fighting and noticed that I had slipped away. When they looked, they saw the girl dump wine on my head. Both of their eyes widened as they rushed over.

She chuckled haughtily, "Oops! I'm sorry my wine spilled on you. It was an accident."

I grinded my teeth as my brain felt like it was being electrocuted. I gripped the wine glass in my hand so hard it shattered. I didn't even feel any pain from the shards of glass in my hand. I spoke through a clenched jaw, "I. Hate. Feeling. STICKY!"

Before I could stab the girl in front of me with the shard of glass in my hand. Dante picked me up and whisked me away as I shrieked in anger. William quickly replaced my spot and looked at the girl in front of him with a furious expression.

"Penelope! Just what were you thinking?!"

At first, the girl was thrilled to see William standing in front of her. However, his fury caused her to shrink back. "I-I just-"

He shouted, "You are a disgusting shameful women!"

She started crying from his sudden yell and ran away sobbing. William turned to the band and smiled, "Let's play something upbeat to lift the mood." They nodded quickly and played. Soon, no one thought about what had happened a moment before.

Dante carried me quickly as I screamed. When we were in an isolated place, he put me down. I started kicking the wall in anger, "THAT F*CKING B*TCH! WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?!"

As I vented my anger on the wall, Dante watched me expressionlessly. However, he quietly apologized to the wall which now had a hole and several cracks.

I shrieked, "UGH! I HATE FEELING STICKY!"

Dante pulled out a handkerchief and tried to wipe of the wine. However, the sticky residue was still left. He spoke, "Maybe we should go to the washroom."

I punched the wall several times making holes. He grabbed my hands and led me away. He got the handkerchief wet and began to clean me up. I was still muttering to myself, "I'm going to destroy her. I'm going to destroy her entire family. I'm going to make her pay."

Dante spoke, "That was Penelope. She's the daughter of a duke."

I spat, "Who the f*ck cares who she is? The more she has, the more I will take away."

He smirked as he cleaned the wounds on my hands, "Then I will help in any way I can."

I glanced at him as if I just noticed him. Slowly, my mind became less hectic. I smiled at him, "I could never turn down help. Especially from you." He finished dressing my hand wounds and looked up at me with his golden eyes. I could tell he wanted to say something, "What is it?"

He pulled out a small box from his pocket and handed it to me, "I wanted to privately give this to you on your birthday. However, I didn't get the chance."

I blushed as I remembered my drunken actions. I hesitantly took the box and opened it. Music started playing from it. My eyes lit up, "It's a music box?"

He watched me with an expressionless face, "Just wait."

The center platform suddenly sprung up, revealing a small ring with a thorn design carved into the band. In the middle was a pearl shaped to look like a white rose. It was simple, yet exquisite. I looked at it in awe and picked up the ring from the small platform. I put it on my ring finger and held it out.

"Wow! It fits perfectly!"

Dante started coughing in surprise, "Do you realize what you're doing?"

I looked at him in confusion, "What do you mean?"

He stared at me in disbelief before replying calmly, "Ah. You must not have this concept in your previous world. Well, you just placed a wedding ring on your ring finger without a second thought. This would mean that you intend to marry me."

My face turned pale. AH! I really did put it on my finger without thinking!!!

The worst part is that we definitely have a similar, if not the same meaning in my original world!

I smiled convincingly, "Ah yes. I had no idea it meant that. Please forgive my ignorance."