The waiter arranged the fruit platters in neat rows while youngsters ran past him while laughing and shouting at each other. Beside him, his colleagues were all busy arranging the decorations and food around the pool. He looked up to survey his work and turned to see the lady of the day. She was dressed in jaw-dropping hot pink bikinis, lounging on one of the pool chairs and surrounded by her ladies-in-waiting.

A huge banner hung between two low trees, depicting childish three-tier birthday cake and a large colorful message ‘Happy Sweet Twenty-First!’ Balloons filled the air in bunches at every corner along with ribbons and flowers, and one large table stood laden with gifts of various sizes and shapes.

A group of guys were playing water bombs by the pool, occasionally showering the girls nearby with their splashes when they dived. Latest hits blared from the speakers with a DJ busy writing down requests from everyone. The waiter shook his head and hurried to go on with his work. The kitchen has been ordered to serve a scrumptious lunch and a bunch of hungry adolescents would definitely not wait.

The pool restaurant was almost empty as the man stepped through the glass door to get to the kitchen. Like the pool, the restaurant was also booked for the day. Hardly anyone was around except for the other birthday girl sitting by the window, reading a book. The egg sandwiches that the chef had prepared earlier were only slightly eaten.

The manager looked up from his accounting books when the younger man walked up to him. Nodding to outside, he asked, “How’s the preparation?”

“Almost done, we just have to wait for the lunch to be served,” the latter replied. He kept his eyes on the other girl, curiosity clearly written on his face. The manager caught the direction he was staring at and cleared his doubt.

“That’s the younger sister. They are both celebrating their birthdays today.”

“They have the same birthdays?” the man asked his boss. The girl flipped her book to another page, sometimes looked up when some random people walked up to her to deliver a present or card. She nodded at them and waved them off with a simple smile.

The pile of presents on the table beside her was starting to amount up to a small hill and it was definitely more impressive than the ones outside.

“No, the younger sister officially turns twenty-one next month but the Lee family usually celebrates them together.”

The waiter tore his eyes from the girl and her interesting situation. “They sure have a funny way of celebrating.” He meant how the elder sister clearly was receiving the better end of the stick. “The elder sister is out enjoying the limelight while the younger sister is inside alone.”

The manager threw his employee an amused look. Obviously youngsters these days know not much of the high society and yet they were quick to throw in their judgment. Putting down his pen, he nudged at another young man in well-dressed suit walking up to greet the girl by the window.

“See that young man over there?” The waiter nodded. “That’s the son of President Zhou from Zhou Motors. All the people that came in today to deliver their presents or well wishes are important people in the business world. You don’t see them approaching the elder sister, do you?”

That was true but surely it’s because they had placed the younger of the two as representative to receive the people, the waiter reasoned. Again, the manager shook his head with amusement. “In our business, it is important to shower equal attention because you will never know who shall inherit the position that will favor you in the future. And yet you only see one gift from every people that arrived. And the youngsters that attended the party only brought the present for the elder sister.”

“The high society has long time ago acknowledged the younger sister, Miss Xiao Shan as the heir to Lee Enterprise. She was the daughter of the first wife and legitimate while the elder sister, Miss Ann was the product of Mr. Lee’s affair with his secretary when the deceased Mrs. Lee was alive. Even though the current Mrs. Lee is the mother of Miss Ann, it doesn’t change the fate that Miss Ann is the daughter of second wife and very much illegitimate. She was the source of the Lee family’s shame and the high society will never accept a lady like her.”

“Miss Ann is very different from Miss Xiao Shan. While Miss Ann knows that she’s unacceptable within the high society elders, she makes her presence known amongst the youngsters who couldn’t care less about status and background. She is even dating young master Lu Han, the heir to the largest electronics company in the country. Miss Xiao Shan, on the other hand, is a total outcast amongst her peers. She has no friends and yet the adults all bowed to her. That’s irony.”

The waiter looked up to Xiao Shan who was still sitting by the window. Her long hair was well made and the dress she was wearing made her looked very much like an angel. But even that didn’t hide the fact that she hardly sees any sunlight, with her pale skin and thin frame. Right now, she was staring out of the window, looking out at the party with a lost longing. It seemed to the young man that she very much wanted to be out there but knew that she was not welcomed.

“Yes,” he finally agreed. “That’s irony.”

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I hope this slightly explains the two sisters' background. I still have a lot way to go... *sigh* I'll try to update as much as possible for the upcoming month since it's already the last month of the year. Comments are welcomed! XD

@layferxoxo: Thanks for your comment. It really motivates me and hopefully you'll find it even more interesting with the upcoming chapters. ^^