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They had gotten the theme of the party wrong, or perhaps the Vice Mayor knew it was a Hawaiian-themed party and had given them the wrong information to make fun of them. Henry could believe that second explanation. Either way, they were already there and they had a job to do, there was no use whining and complaining. Some of the guests were giving them curious looks and a couple of mocking glances. They had to find a way to make it work.
Quickly, he looked for an excuse to be at the party dressed in tuxedos in case anyone questioned them again, which his sister did when she saw them. He wondered if their parents knew she was there, in that environment, but then dismissed that thought, it wasn't what mattered at the moment. Although he wished their parents had known and had made him accompany her as they usually made him do, because had he known Piper was going to be one of the guests, he would have asked her what the party would be about and what she was going to wear, and he would have been saved from going through the horrible experience of chewing that butt-flavored gum - he still felt nauseous remembering that moment - that didn't help, and putting Ray in a bad mood for giving the excuse that they were working as waiters for no other explanation. But it was too late for that. Better start the investigation, but first, he had to go get that cranberry mango fizzy punch for Piper or she wouldn't let him work in peace and might ruin the mission.
He went to the bar, where there were already people enjoying the party and drinking, the older ones drinking alcoholic beverages. Not paying much attention to who was there, he leaned on the bar and placed his order.
"Hey, can I get a cranberry mango fizzy punch?" He asked to the barman.
"Cute," a girl behind the bar commented after a short giggle.
He directed his eyes towards her, she was very pretty, dark blonde hair and honey eyes, was wearing an expensive looking pink dress and a flower in her hairdo. Henry smiled, slightly embarrassed to be overheard by her ordering that drink.
"Oh, the drink's not for me. It’s for my little sister," he clarified, his nervous smile turning friendly.
"Well, I wasn't talking about the drink," the girl said, smiling flirtatiously at him.
He let out a nervous chuckle, a bit puzzled. "Uh... whaaa... ha, w-what were you talking about?"
The girl stood in front of him, looking at him seductively. "I was talking about you. Because I think you're cute."
His smile turned awkward, the girl was clearly flirting with him. Another time he would be taking the opportunity to flirt, but at the moment he was busy. Still, he doubted that by talking to her a little more he was going to complicate the mission. After all, he had to blend in with the guests to go unnoticed, didn't he?
"Why are you dressed like that?" The girl asked, noticing the tuxedo he was wearing.
"Oh, I-uh... I thought it was a costume party. So I'd just come as a cute waiter," Henry explained, teasingly.
She gave him a soft smile of amusement, and as the bartender placed in front of him the drink the boy had ordered, the girl had an idea.
"Make it two," she requested, then raised an eyebrow. "Unless you have to bring it to your sister."
Henry, still looking at her, took the can.
"I really should," he replied in a tone that indicated it wasn't in his plans, tossing the can over his shoulder, backwards, without looking.
The can hit the chef in the head again, knocking him unconscious. The girl rested her chin on top of her hand and looked at Henry with interest.
/
The bartender brought them more drinks, a drink in a glass for Henry and a soft drink for the girl.
"Yeah, so... I'm in a band," Henry began to tell her, to impress her a little.
But she saw through his lie. "No, you're not."
"I know. But, uh, yeah, I think I'd be really good in one," He commented. "So, you should come checks us out. When we exist."
Then, he heard a short, mocking and feminine laugh coming from behind him, and he felt a presence approaching. He turned to one side and found a girl with dark skin and dark brown curls styled up, adorned with flowers. Her chocolate-colored eyes appeared large due to the volume effect of her lashes, and her lips had a grape-colored gloss. From what he could see, her dress was purple, with a heart-shaped neckline, short and with a pleated skirt, embroidered with flowers—white and pink hibiscuses—and short, gathered sleeves. She wore a flower necklace and other accessories of that style.
His heart skipped a beat as he sensed the scent of grapes emanating from her. She was very attractive.
"You're going to have to do better if you want to impress Joss, little penguin," the newcomer commented sarcastically.
"Charlie!" the birthday girl exclaimed happily.
The brunette leaned against the bar next to him and gave the other young woman a sly smile.
"Happy birthday," she greeted her. "You look lovely, as always," she complimented her looks.
Henry opened his mouth in bewilderment, momentarily ignoring his reaction to the sudden appearance of this girl, glancing from the blonde to the brunette. Joss, as he now knew the name of the girl he’d been flirting with, smiled proudly.
“Thanks, Charlie, I’m flattered you could make it. I thought you were still out of the country.”
“I asked my dad to lend me his private jet so I could attend your party,” the brunette explained. “I couldn’t miss my best friend’s sweet sixteen.”
The two shared a knowing smile, and Henry, feeling out of place, gave a nervous smile.
"Though I can only stay for a couple of hours. I have to head back to Japan as soon as the event is over; the jet is waiting for me at the airport. My dad wants me back so I can get ready for a dinner he has with his business partners," Charlie continued.
Joss rolled her eyes.
"Parents can’t think about anything but business, huh?"
"Well, it’s what keeps the money flowing," the brunette pointed out.
"You're right about that. Want a drink?" Joss offered. "I know exactly what your favorite is. A Mai Tai for my friend," she ordered from the bartender.
Charlotte accepted the drink, served in a tall glass with ice and a slice of pineapple adorning the rim.
"To your big day," the brunette toasted, clinking her glass against the blonde’s cranberry mango fizzy punch before taking a sip.
Henry tried to get his muddled brain to make sense of the conversation he had just overheard. The girl he’d been talking to was named Joss, just like the birthday girl. And her pretty friend was apparently wealthy if her father could afford to let her use the private jet as a taxi to travel between continents like it was an everyday thing.
The girl then looked at him, the intensity of her eyes making him feel exposed and sending a pleasant flutter through his stomach.
"And you, do you have a name, or should I keep calling you little penguin?"
Before he could join in the conversation and give a response, Piper appeared next to him.
"Where's my cranberry mango fizzy punch?!" The younger Hart asked, looking expectantly at her brother.
Then, she noticed the other two girls there and smiled.
"Hey, Piper," Joss greeted her.
"Hey, Joss," the blonde replied. "Love your dress," she complimented her, noting her outfit.
The birthday girl showed off her dress with a smug smile. "Thank you. I'm gonna wear it once then throw it away," she mentioned, eliciting giggles from the girls.
Henry faked a laugh as well. "Yeah, you should probably wear it more than once."
"Let me introduce you to a good friend," Joss continued, turning to Piper and pointing her hand at the brunette. "Piper, this is Charlotte Page."
Piper's eyes popped out of their sockets at the name and the girl smiled excitedly.
"Charlotte Page? The Charlotte Page, from the makeup line?" She asked in amazement.
The other girl-whom Henry now knew, her name was Charlotte-smiled more demurely than Joss, but in her eyes was a spark of pride at being recognized.
"That same one," she confirmed, stretching out her hand toward the blonde.
Piper rushed toward her over her brother's lap regardless of how uncomfortable it was, and shook Charlotte's hand with both of her own, looking up at her in exhilaration for finally meeting her idol.
"I've made dozens of videos testing your products!" She exclaimed. "Especially your mascara line, it's fantastic!"
"And I've seen a few of those," Charlotte commented with a smile still on her lips. "You do a really good job, you know? We're about to come out with a new non-transferable lip gloss... I'll send you some samples to try in your videos," she promised.
Piper's delighted smile widened and her cheeks were red with how flushed she was that her idol had seen her videos.
"I'd be honored, thank you!"
"Yeah, great," Henry interjected with a fake smile, pulling his sister aside and getting the girls' attention again. "I'm sorry, backing up here real quick, what uh-what'd you say your name was again? Joss? Mmm? Joss?"
The boy reached out to shake her hand in greeting.
"Joss Moss," the birthday girl nodded, accepting his handshake.
"Joss Moss, daughter of mob boss Rob Moss, Joss Moss?" Henry continued.
"Don't you know who you were hired to work for, little penguin?" Charlotte asked in an amused tone.
Piper and Joss both laughed. Henry looked at her sideways with a bit of indignation for laughing at his expense, making him look bad in front of Joss and giving him that nickname. And sporting a seductive smirk as she did so.
"Hey waiter. Still waiting for my cran-man-fizz-pu," Piper demanded, remembering the reason she had gone to the bar to find her brother.
Fortunately, they were interrupted by a voice over a microphone announcing a special message.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please, direct your attention to this special video message from your kind host, legitimate business man Rob Moss."
The dance floor was cleared of people, and the hologram of Rob Moss appeared in the center, wearing a flower ornament around his neck.
"Hello, everyone," he started. "I'd like to wish a happy birthday to my beautiful daughter, Joss, on her sweet sixteen, the most important of all the girl birthdays." He added, getting more applauses from the guests. "Unfortunately, due to a misunderstanding with Swellview Police Department", Charlotte snorted discreetly but Henry heard her and gave her a fleeting sideways glance, "regarding a number of crimes I definitely did not commit, I'm unable to be there in person," he looked at his daughter. "I'm sorry for tonight, Joss."
Henry clicked his tongue in frustration. This whole plan had been for nothing. However, Rob continued.
"But I do have a surprise for you," he added.
The hologram dissipated, and in its place appeared the real Rob Moss in the flesh.
"Surprise, I'm here!"
The birthday girl gave a squeal of delight and ran to her father. Charlotte watched the scene impassively, taking a sip of her Mai Tai as she noticed how the blond boy - whom she had nicknamed Little Penguin - put on dark sunglasses. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion, why would he be wearing them at night, and just then, when he had been fine without them before?
The sunglasses allowed Henry to discover that this was in fact the real Rob Moss, but Joss had his doubles called in to be in the photos as well. And from his position, Henry also witnessed Rob Moss's doubles show up to forcibly take Ray away and disappear behind a false wall.
He took off his sunglasses as he watched everything, and as Joss began to open her gifts, he walked over to the table where he saw Jasper sitting watching the show. For her part, Charlotte went back to the bar to order herself another drink.
"Excuse me," she called sweetly to the bartender, giving him an innocent smile. "Can I have a cranberry mango fizzy punch brought to my table? Thank you."
At the same time, Henry sat across from Jasper, who was amazed at every gift Joss opened.
"Ray just got dragged off by three huge Mob Boss Rob Moss lookalikes!" Henry told him.
"Gorgeous." His friend commented almost breathless as he saw the diamond tennis bracelet, ignoring Henry.
"Jasper, there's a big ugly dude guarding a secret passage... which I gotta say it’s pretty cool." Henry went on, worried.
"You know what's pretty cool? The gifts that Joss' receiving."
"Jasper, Ray needs help!"
"He's indestructible. I'm sure he's fine." Jasper dismissed, glancing over Henry' shoulder to where Joss was still opening gifts, then let out a gasp of surprise. "That's a Gherkin bag! Joss just got a Gherkin bag!"
"Glad you like it, I got it in Paris, that model hasn't hit the stores around here yet, I bought it on my way here."
Henry turned his gaze to the girl. Charlotte sat in the free seat next to Jasper. For the first time his attention was diverted from the gifts to her, dumbfounded to see a pretty girl sitting next to them voluntarily.
"Hi," he greeted her with a nervous smile and flushed cheeks. "I'm Jasper, are you a friend of Joss?"
She raised an eyebrow with a sarcastic expression. "Why else would I be here?"
Jasper closed his mouth and his cheeks flamed with embarrassment. She smiled playfully.
"Relax, I'm just kidding," she replied. "You work with little penguin too?"
It was Henry's cheeks that turned red then. Jasper frowned in confusion.
"Who?"
"He didn't tell me his name, so I just kept calling him that in my head," Charlotte explained, shrugging, nodding at Henry.
The boy held out his hand. "My name's Hart, Henry Hart," he introduced himself, very serious.
There was a moment of silence as they shook hands.
"The way you said that was weird. Very weird," she stated after have dropped his hand.
Henry looked away a little embarrassed.
"What's your name?" Jasper asked, stepping in to save his friend.
"Charlotte, nice to meet you."
Then a waiter approached them. "Miss Page, your drink."
She smiled politely, accepting her cranberry mango fuzzy punch.
After that introduction, they went back to watching Joss with her father. As they did so, Jasper drew a little more conversation out of the girl.
"Do you travel a lot?" he asked, remembering the mention of Paris she had made.
She smiled. "You could say I live between airplanes and hotel suites," she replied. "My father has a lot of business to take care of, and since I'm an only child, he doesn't want to leave me home alone."
Jasper widened his smile. "Sounds like fun."
"It's a bit of a lonely life," the girl admitted.
"But it's better than being stuck here."
"That may be, but it makes it hard for you to make friends, Joss is one of the few I keep and we only have contact because my dad and her father know each other."
When she said her father and Rob Moss were acquainted, Henry immediately took his eyes from the false wall and looked at her with suspicion. Anyone Rob Moss associated with couldn't be trusted.
"Oh, really? So, how do they know each other?" He asked, trying not to sound accusatory.
She looked at him, her face giving nothing away. "My father buys raw materials from Moss for the technology company he owns."
Henry nodded, but from his expression he was still suspicious of her. She might be pretty and charming, but criminals usually were.
"Raw material, huh?"
She looked elsewhere and cleared her throat. "You might want to pay attention to the show," she suggested with a hint of mystery.
Henry was intrigued by his suggestion, so he looked back at the Moss family. He saw Rob receiving a message in secret from one of his men, and he put on an expression of concern and worry.
"Oh, Daddy! How did you know?" Joss exclaimed with a big smile, hugging wads of bills.
Looking nervous, the man apologized to his daughter.
"Excuse me, I gotta go take care of... a charity thing." He excused himself and turned around.
Then, he walked briskly towards the false wall, passing by their table.
"Rob Moss on the move." Henry whispered for only Jasper to hear him.
But Jasper interpreted it differently. "Gherkin bag still in place."
"Wha...? No, I need a distraction!" Henry clarified still whispering.
However, his friend didn't hear him, or just didn't pay him any attention. Jasper just got up from the table and lost himself among the partygoers, slipping past them. Henry gritted his teeth, but then exhaled in frustration.
"Did something happen to your friend?" Charlotte asked, quizzical.
Henry looked at her uncertainly. "I think... he needed to use the bathroom," he justified, smiling awkwardly. "You know, the excitement."
She nodded with a hint of suspicion. Then Piper's high-pitched voice interrupted again, causing Henry to let out a high-pitched short cry that made Charlotte hide a mischievous smile behind her hand.
"Henry! Where's my cranberry mango fizzy punch?!" She demanded to know.
Agitated, Henry got up from the table but didn't know how to give her a clear answer. The blonde snorted wearily.
"Y'know what? Forget it. I'm going to talk to your manager." She decided.
Henry's eyes grew wide with fear of getting in trouble and being found out, and quickly, he tried to calm her down.
"No, don't, don't, don't, don't do that." He begged. "I'm gonna get you the punch."
"Will you? 'Cause I heard that from you, like, ten minutes ago." She rebuked him with crossed arms.
Help in getting rid of her sister came from someone he hadn't expected. Unbeknownst to him, Charlotte shook the drink she had received from the waiter, which she had not yet opened to drink.
"Here you go," she said, reaching out and offering Piper the drink.
"Thank you, Charlotte." Piper accepted the drink and walked away. Charlotte gave Henry a half smile.
"You've got your distraction, little penguin, do what you have to do," she urged him.
Henry, not understanding her, looked at her in confusion.
"I gave her a soda. Shaken, not stirred." She explained, winking playfully at him.
Henry's confusion disappeared as he heard his sister's panicked cries. Henry looked in that direction and saw Piper struggling with the fizzy punch that was now out of control and splashing everywhere.
He returned his startled gaze to Charlotte, who still wore that attractive, smug, teasing, one-cornered smile that set his insides on fire. He smiled back at her and got up to go rescue Ray. He didn't know why she had helped him, or how she knew she should do it, but he wasn't going to pass up this opportunity.
Charlotte got up from the table, and made her way to the bar, to order herself another drink and enjoy the show that followed. She felt sorry for Joss because it was true that she was her friend, at least a girl she talked to often from those who lived in her hometown, and she really didn't want to ruin her party. But, looking at the pile of gifts she had that she hadn't opened yet, she figured she wasn't going to feel the separation with her father that much.
"A Rum Runner, please," she asked the bartender.
Once with her drink in hand, she settled at the bar and quietly waited for everything to unfold.
She had been waiting for a good opportunity to get close to Rob Moss and get revenge on him, an idea that was often in her head, but difficult to carry out because the guy was such a slippery bastard. Because of that coward, her father had had to flee the country to save his life, very complex matters, and he still couldn't return. Severely wounding Rob Moss, maybe crippling him with a special toxin in a dart, wouldn't do much to get her father to be able to return to the country yet, but it would feel good to have a little payback.
The invitation to that party couldn't have come at a better time, she knew that Joss's father wasn't going to miss that event for anything, no matter how dangerous it was to show up there. The hardest part would be figuring out which of all the lookalikes was the real one, so for weeks she had studied the photos of the real one that her own father had to distinguish him, and listened over and over again to the available recordings of his voice to distinguish it from the impostors.
When she saw those three in the middle of the party, with no idea what they were doing, and looking for ways to fit in and blend in, she knew she had to keep an eye on them. And she hadn't been wrong. They weren't very subtle, even when talking, so she more or less deciphered what their plan was. More or less the same one she had, without necessarily rendering Rob Moss invalid, their intervention could make things easier for her.
However, after a few minutes after little penguin had left, she saw Rob Moss appear, walking hurriedly and looking uneasy. She thought she would have to act on her own plan. Rob was pushing people out of the way as he walked in a hurry, but before Charlotte could even move to act, the criminal was stopped by his daughter.
"Daddy! You can't leave yet," the birthday girl protested.
Rob Moss smiled nervously. "I'm sorry, honey, I got..."
The man was interrupted when an unknown force suddenly pulled him backwards, so hard that it sent him through the wall from which he had come. Everyone's eyes widened and they gasped in surprise at what had happened, Charlotte sipped harder from the straw of her drink. Then, believing it was all just part of the party, the crowd applauded and carried on as if nothing had happened. Although in the distance Charlotte could hear police sirens approaching, coming for Rob Moss.
/
Before long, officers arrived to take the criminal away with Kid Danger's help, and people began to leave the party, bidding farewell to the birthday girl. After have taken care of everything, Henry returned to the party and appeared as himself again. There he saw Joss talking in a secluded corner with the blonde waitress Ray had flirted with, and one of his father's look-alikes, and her friend, Charlotte, near the gift table. He walked toward her.
"Hey! What's up, Charlotte?" He asked sounding relaxed and ignorant of everything that had happened, with his hands in his pockets. "Hey, I was just in the bathroom for like a really long time." Seeing the look she sent him, he smiled crookedly and hurried to explain himself. "Not for like a gross reason though. For like a totally normal reason that someone would do that. What’s up with you, huh? What about the party? What did I miss? What's going on, huh?"
"Well you missed a lot. Joss got a Christian LaBoutin dog carrier." He nodded. "More money packages, I think that your friend Jasper stole the Gherkin bag I got for Joss..."
Henry grimaced ruefully.
"Sorry about that."
"It's okay, she must have a collection by now, she won't miss it, oh, and Rob Moss is on his way to prison," the girl concluded.
"Oh... what a birthday," he commented raising his eyebrows.
"Yeah... and you know I know you didn't go to the bathroom, right?" she mentioned casually, crossing her arms.
She looked at him questioningly. Henry became very nervous and flushed, babbling nonsensical gibberish trying to explain himself in vain. Charlotte gave a soft chuckle and placed her index finger on his lips to stop him.
"There's no point in denying it, I know you, Jasper and that other guy dressed as a penguin who was hitting on Joss's head of security came here for Moss," the girl stated.
She pulled her finger away and Henry cleared his throat.
"How did you...?" He asked incredulously.
The girl smiled cheekily at him.
"I'm not just a pretty face, you know?" She replied, pointing a finger at her head. "But relax, my lips are sealed," she assured, making the sign of zipping her lips.
Henry smiled in relief and nodded. At least she didn't seem to know who they really were.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome, little penguin."
The blond rolled his eyes. "I have a name."
"I know." She gave him a teasing grin.
"Miss Page, your father called, he wants to know if you'll be back soon, the limo is waiting for you outside."
Henry took a couple of cautious steps back as he saw the man who had spoken. He had Asian features, was tall and stocky, with some scars on his face and looked very intimidating. He wore a very smart navy blue suit. He looked at the boy warily, almost menacingly. Charlotte smiled at him.
"Easy, it's Ryuji, my bodyguard," she explained, then turned her attention to the man. "Okay, wait for me outside, Ryuji, I'll be out in a moment."
The young woman's easy smile and relaxed attitude reassured the bodyguard, who nodded and, with one last warning glance at the boy, turned around to go outside to wait for her.
"Well, I must go, my father is waiting for me on the other side of the world," the girl mentioned.
Henry smiled at her, calmer without the presence of the bodyguard. "Okay, have a good trip, it was nice meeting you, Charlotte."
Henry reached out his hand to bid her farewell, but the girl had other plans. Charlotte took his hand, but taking him by surprise, she tugged at his arm to draw him forward and stood on her tiptoes to place a sudden kiss on the blond's lips.
The startled boy froze for a second, unable to process what had just happened, unable to have any reaction other than to close his eyes. His face heated up, and for an instant he thought that everything around him had stopped, and he only perceived the warmth of her lips and her sweet taste of grapes.
"Until next time, Kid," she whispered in his ear before pulling away completely, her warm breath brushing against his skin and making him shiver against his will.
She pulled away, and he opened his eyes slowly, staring in puzzlement at her face for a moment, at her discerning chocolate eyes and triumphant smile. He watched dumbfounded as she turned and walked away, with her unattainable queen bearing. Had it simply been a gesture of thanks, or was there something more to that kiss? How had she known who he was? Why had she helped him? Did she gain anything from it? Questions were beginning to pile up in his mind, but try as he might to rationalize what had happened, he could only think of the kiss and its sweet taste.
A desire, deep and confused, ignited inside him. He knew that she was inaccessible to him, and that he might never see her again, but in that instant, he was sure that this kiss with this enigmatic girl would be repeated in his mind and in his dreams for a long time.