I Deserve A Second Chance

The cake shop was located about ten minutes from the center of the city. Feifei had found a space amongst other shops nearby, that the whole area was resembling a little outdoor shopping district on its own.

Li Xiqing had parked his car in a public parking garage area, and then the two of them decided to walk to the cake shop. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon. The weather was perfect for a stroll; the wind was breezy, and the warmth from the sun was just nice.

Along the walk to the shop, Shao Yan saw that a lot of people were also enjoying the outdoor feel as them. A lot of couples were spending their Saturday window-shopping. She also saw some families with children sitting outside the restaurant and enjoyed basking under the winter sun.

Walking hand in hand, her heart felt light as happiness swept her on her feet. She turned to the side to glance at the man who was holding her hand tightly. Her lips curved into a gentle smile when Li Xiqing returned her glance.

Today, her man had dressed up really handsomely. He had paired a blue knitted sweater with beige dress pants; and then he put on the same color tone as his suit jacket. This morning, Shao Yan had caught him dressed in his usual dark grey colors, so she suggested for him to change to a brighter color to lighten the mood.

She glanced down at herself. Today was Feifei's day, and she had invited a few food bloggers and people from other media for publicity as well; so Shao Yan had decided to also dress up a little to blend in with the occasion.

She decided to put on the navy qipao dress that Grandma Wu had gotten for her. Shao Yan pursed her lips as she remembered Li Xiqing's reaction this morning when he saw her in this dress.

.....

Shao Yan was standing in front of a tall mirror in the dressing room, when Li Xiqing came in to check on her.

The first thing he saw when he walked in, was the sheer view of her back. The cherry blossoms embroidery on her back captivated him at the first glance; and he stopped on his track for a while as he was admiring her figure from behind.

His eyes traced along her bodyline before he brought his gaze back to her and caught her reflection in the mirror. The dress looked very plain at the front, but looked amazing from the back.

"What do you think?" he heard her question.

He stayed quiet as he sunk deep into his thoughts. His woman looked stunningly classy in this dress. 

Shao Yan saw Li Xiqing slowly walking towards her and then he wrapped both arms around her. Looking into her eyes through the mirror, he placed his cheek against hers as he teased her playfully, "Missus, who are you dressing up so beautifully for? I am getting jealous here," and then he touched his lips and planted a warm kiss on her soft cheek.

Shao Yan raised up both of her arms and placed them over his hands before she answered, "I am in a really good mood today. Besides, I will get to see a lot of people who are dear to me at the party today, so I thought, why not dress up a little?"

And then Li Xiqing heard her say, "Should I change into something else? Is this too revealing?"

Li Xiqing slowly let her go, and then kissed her on her temple, "Not at all, you look amazing in this. Let's just go with this."

His nose caught a whiff of her flowery fragrance. He stood next to her for a while longer as he was admiring her adorable face.

.....

Back to the present, Shao Yan smiled as she looked down onto their synchronized feet that were walking together in the same steps and the same rhythms.

Her black velvet ankle boots were stepping on the same ground; paired with his masculine brown leather shoes.

Her cold hand was wrapped inside his large, warm palm.

As they walked side by side, Shao Yan could vaguely smell his masculine cologne around her.

It was really a beautiful day.

.....

When they finally reached the cake shop, Shao Yan saw there were already some guests that had arrived.

From the outside, the shop looked pretty. On the left and right side of the front door, tall windows were decorated along the walls, so people who were walking by could see the inside of the cake shop.

A small blue and white striped canopy was placed above the front door. The name of the cake shop was carved in cursive letters on a wooden board that was hung on the top of the door.

"L'atelier" or "The Workshop" when translated.

Feifei was standing at the front of her shop; talking to some of her guests that had just arrived. She was wearing a deep red dress made of suede. The bottom part of the dress; starting from the thigh to her knees was decorated with black laces around her.

When she spotted Shao Yan and Li Xiqing, her face beamed with excitement. Feifei raised one hand and waved at them.

"You guys are finally here, come on in!" Feifei reached out to hold Shao Yan by her hand when she stood in front of her, and then she turned to Li Xiqing and said, "hello, we meet again, Mister Boyfriend. Good to see you!"

Li Xiqing nodded at her greetings, "Likewise. Congratulations!"

Shao Yan smiled at their exchanges, and then she handed a paper bag in her hand to Feifei, "Here, just a little something for you. I hope you like it."

Feifei was surprised when she saw that Shao Yan had prepared a gift for her. She scowled at her, "You don't have to bring anything. Your presence here with me is already enough, Xiao Yan!"

Shao Yan smiled but she insisted for Feifei to accept her gift, she pushed the paper bag into her hand, "It's really nothing, don't feel burdened. Just accept it, alright? Are my friends here?"

Feifei reluctantly accepted the gift. She passed the paper bag to another woman who was standing by her side, and then she walked inside with Shao Yan, "I think some of them are here. They said they are your coworkers."

As they walked in, Shao Yan finally got the chance to look at the interior of her cake shop.