“I swear, it’s like this dress was made for you.” Tiffany said as she pulled a dress out from the garment bag she had brought over.

The dress was a gorgeous emerald hue, and was covered in embellishments, yet somehow it still managed to come off polished and elegant. My first impression was that it was too gaudy. But slowly, I found myself appreciating the intricacy. 

“See, I told you you’d love it. It’s a Balmain dress.”

I paused my evaluation to look up at her. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?”

Tiffany seemed slightly insulted by the comment. She softly pet the dress between her fingers, leaning down to speak to it as if it had a conscience. “I’m sorry, she just doesn’t know any better. But don’t worry. I know how precious you really are.”

I rolled my eyes at her mild display of insanity.  

“So I brought two shoe options for you, because I couldn’t choose between the two.” She said, pulling out some boxes from her giant bag.

I studied the two options, eventually opting for the basic black stiletto heels.

“Nice choice. You’re going to look amazing.”  

“Thanks again for bringing this stuff here.” I said as I hugged her goodbye.

“It’s no problem. Just…treat it well.” She said as she left, blowing the dress a kiss goodbye.

I completed my hair and makeup before finally slipping into the dress. As soon as I closed all the front-baring clasps, I evaluated myself in the mirror. I definitely had to give it to Tiffany. The dress fit me like a glove and the color did wonders for my complexion.

Promptly at seven o’clock, I got a call on my phone from Xiumin.

“Punctual as usual.” I muttered before picking up the phone. “Hello?”

“Hey, we’re downstairs.”

“Alright, I’m coming down now.” I said as I got into the elevator.

When the elevator doors opened to the parking garage, I found both Xiumin and Kris leaning up against a black escalade. Both looked absolutely dashing in their Armani suits, but Kris’s choice of tie particularly stood out to me. It was a deep green, meant to match my dress. That was when I was reminded of the act that we were supposed to put on tonight.

“Hm…” Xiumin muttered as he laid eyes on me, his pupils rising and falling as he did a thorough scan of my body. “You suit those clothes better than I thought you would.”

I struggled with the hem of the skin tight dress, checking to make sure everything that needed to be covered, was in fact, covered.

“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or an insult.” I said, stumbling slightly as I refamiliarized myself with heels.  It had been a while since I had last worn them. “Won’t I stand out too much in this dress?”

Xiumin let out a sigh as he opened the car door for me. “That’s the point. You’re supposed to be the trophy wife, remember?”

I smiled as I noticed his Givenchy Obsedia belt out of the corner of my eye. “You’re wearing it again.” I said, giving the buckle a light flick as I passed him.

He let off a smirk as he closed the door behind me. 

I situated myself in the back seat with Kris, as Xiumin took the driver’s seat. It felt weird have Kris beside me instead of Xiumin, but I came to terms with it, mentally preparing myself for the night.

“We got a tip that Kris is going to a gala tonight.” Kai said as he took a seat next to Sehun. “Obviously, it’s a very different crowd from his usual, so we’ve decided to scope it out. We want you to come with us, since they haven’t seen your face yet.”

Sehun’s ears perked, excited by the prospect of going undercover.

“Are you serious?” 

“Leave to go get a change of clothes before I change my mind.” Kai said, shooing Sehun away.

“Wait, I’ve never been to a gala before. What am I supposed to wear?” Sehun asked, his feet restless.

“Just dress nice. Suit, tie, the whole shebang.”

“Got it.” Sehun said before racing home.

When he came back, it was nearly eight o’clock. He walked through the doors of the police station feeling slick as ever, going as far as to give Jessica a wink as she left for the night. Her slight giggle, to Sehun, was an indication of bashfulness.

“What the hell are you wearing?” Kyungsoo asked as he laid eyes on Sehun’s get up.  

“You guys said to dress nice.” Sehun responded, failing to see where he went wrong with his choice of purple dress shirt and white slacks. His choice of tie didn’t help matters much either. It was made of some shiny silver material, looking akin to aluminum foil.

“Give me that.” Kyungsoo muttered, pulling the tie off him. “Where the hell do you even find something like this?” Kyungsoo asked rhetorically as he threw the article of clothing in the trash.

“Hey! My mother bought that for me!” Sehun yelled, quickly retrieving the tie.

“You’re not wearing that into the gala.” Kyungsoo forced Sehun to the stuff the atrocity into one of his pockets.

“We’re late.” Kai said as he arrived, giving Sehun’s appearance a once over. “You look like you’re going to prom.”  

Sehun refrained from mentioning that this was, in fact, the exact outfit he had worn to his senior prom.

“Come on. Let’s get going.” Kyungsoo quickly ushered the group into an unmarked van.

It had been about twenty minutes since we first entered the extravagant ballroom. Every direction you’d look, there were expensive fabrics and lavish jewels being flung about as men and woman alike mingled amongst each other. At some point, I was handed a glass of champagne. I proceeded by drinking it silently at Kris’s side as he made small talk with complete strangers.

I ticked my glass in the air as I met eyes with Xiumin from across the room. He had been watching us relentlessly, though taking care to keep his distance. I remained mindful of his gaze, moving a step