A ghost

Rebecca's playful consent to meeting his friends, caused Anthony to smile as well, and he took a few large steps to catch up with her. Once he was by her side again, he swung his arm around her shoulder and used her own words to show his appreciation. "Well, in that case, let me thank you for protecting my honour." Rebecca chuckled as she glanced up at Anthony's face, before returning to a straight face to say, "You're welcome. Besides, I am curious to meet the people who grew up by your side. See if any of them share your oddness."

Anthony playfully pulled Rebecca towards him as his arm had moved up toward her neck as he said with a chuckle, "Why you little-". Without ever finishing that sentence, the two of them walked the final few steps to the diner and they entered with big smiles from their earlier playful interaction. Once inside, Anthony was quickly spotted by one of his friends, who called out to him and raised his hand to make it easier to find him. When Rebecca and Anthony looked over, the group seemed to have already gathered, with them being the final two to arrive.

With Anthony being as tall as he is, the gazes of his friends had been aimed so high, that they initially didn't notice Rebecca being there. Especially as she had been mostly shielded from their sight by his large frame. When he turned around and started approaching them, their eyes landed on Rebecca, and her presence was finally noticed. If you watched closely, you could see their eyes slowly moving down from Anthony's face, to his neck, his shoulders, and by the time they reached his chest and Rebecca's hair came into frame, their eyes grew wide and their mouths dropped.

When Rebecca felt their attention shift to her, her cheeks started to become flushed and she began to feel a bit nervous. But Anthony gave her arm a little squeeze, which immediately made her tensed up body relax as she glanced up at him for a split second, before putting on a smile and turning her gaze to the front as they had reached the table and were now standing face to face with a group of four men and one woman. Anthony greeted them all and said, "Hey everyone, long time no see." To which one of his friends replied, "It must indeed been a long time, because otherwise I can't explain how you are suddenly standing in front of us with a girl under your arm". This caused some of the others to chime in, "Yeah, who is the girl? Don't tell me you finally snapped, kidnapped some poor little thing, and are now keeping her hostage". Then he turned his attention towards Rebecca and said, "If you are being held against your will, blink twice and we will get you the help you need".

This of course was all said and done in good fun, and resulted in bouldering laughter from all the men there, including Anthony himself. The only person who did not laugh, not even showing a little forced, uncomfortable laughter like the still slightly uncomfortable Rebecca, was the only other woman present. In a much more serious tone than the others present, she asked Anthony, "Yeah, Anthony, do tell us. Who is this mystery woman you have brought. Don't tell me she is your girlfriend?" From the look on her face, and the way that she was looking at Rebecca, with coldness and disdain, it was clear that she wouldn't be pleased if the answer to that question was 'Yes'. In fact, she seemed as though she expected the answer to be 'No', as though that was the only logical answer.

Which explained why her face initially lit up when Anthony replied, "No, she isn't my girlfriend", only to look completely shocked when finished his sentence. The moment Anthony said, "She is my fiancé", the girl looked as if she had seen a ghost. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. But her reaction wasn't noticed by either Anthony, Rebecca or the other friends, as their attention was taken by something else. For the friends it was of course Anthony showing up with a fiancé, dropping the news so casually, and for the two of them, it was the reaction of the friends to that news. Their excited cheers drew the attention of all the guests, who could easily tell that they were overjoyed for their friend.

As Rebecca was being introduced to the group, one by one, the woman sat there in silence. Initially she was looking shocked from what she had just heard, but this slowly changed into her looking angry. When it had become her turn to be introduced to Rebecca, she ignored Rebecca's presence completely, including her extended hand. Instead she looked right at Anthony and said, "This is just a joke, right? Until a few months ago, you weren't even dating anyone. How can you now suddenly be engaged?"