As it turned out, when they arrived at the movie theater that evening, Deanna realized it was just her and Lance.
Lance was a bit surprised and asked, "Why is it just you? Where are your friend and the kids?"
"I don't know either. Julia said she got off work early to pick up the kids and told me to come straight to the theater to meet her," Deanna replied, feeling a bit confused herself.
Seeing her expression, Lance suggested, "Why don't you give your friend a call and ask?"
"Oh right, I can do that," Deanna said, suddenly remembering.
She took out her phone from her bag and dialed her friend's number.
After a few rings, the call was answered, but there was loud background noise on the other end.
"Julia, where are you? Mr. Mercer and I are already at the theater," Deanna asked first.
Julia replied, "Gregory, Chloe, and I are already watching an animated movie. I thought Mr. Mercer might not like this genre, so we didn't wait for you. Take Mr. Mercer to watch another movie, and I'll send you the QR code for the tickets later."
Before Deanna could say anything else, Julia hung up.
Deanna put down her phone, feeling speechless.
Lance noticed her expression and raised an eyebrow, asking, "What did she say?"
"Julia thought you might not like animated movies, so she took Chloe and Gregory to watch one without us. She suggested we choose another movie," Deanna explained, receiving the QR code for the tickets from Julia.
Lance saw it too and a hint of curiosity flashed in his eyes. "Well then, let's go watch it too."
Although Deanna felt something was off, she nodded and followed Lance to the ticket counter.
They chose one of the most popular movies currently showing.
During their time at the theater, Lance got some snacks and drinks from the concession stand.
"Here," he handed Deanna the popcorn and smiled. "I heard these are essential for watching movies."
Deanna was momentarily surprised but accepted it graciously, unable to resist teasing him. "I didn't expect Mr. Mercer to know about these things."
"I'm just an ordinary person," Lance replied with a hint of amusement, understanding the meaning behind Deanna's words.
Deanna nodded.
And so, with tickets in one hand and snacks and drinks in the other, they entered the theater and sat side by side.
Soon after, the movie began, but to their surprise, it turned out to be a romance film.
Deanna and Lance exchanged a glance and both saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.
However, since the movie had started, they could only continue watching.
But the atmosphere felt strange and ambiguous.
Especially when Deanna noticed that they were surrounded by couples.
Because of this, she briefly wondered if she had been set up.
But soon, her thoughts were interrupted by the plot of the movie.
She wasn't sure how long they had been watching when Deanna suddenly felt the need to use the restroom.
In the darkness, she couldn't see clearly and took a step forward but tripped over something and fell into Lance's arms beside her.
Deanna was taken aback by this sudden turn of events.
She instinctively looked up and unsurprisingly met Lance's deep, dark eyes.
At this moment, their posture became extremely intimate.
Lance caught a whiff of the delicate fragrance that belonged to women in the air. Coupled with the soft body in his arms, he suddenly felt a dryness in his mouth and a surge of heat from his lower abdomen.
His gaze grew deeper, and his body underwent some changes.
Meanwhile, Deanna finally recovered from her initial shock.
"I'm sorry, it was an accident," she apologized while trying to stand up from Lance's embrace.
But perhaps due to her haste or nervousness, she couldn't seem to find her balance and once again fell into Lance's arms.
Feeling her face burning up, Deanna wished she could dig a hole and hide in it.
Lance felt a hint of helplessness in his eyes as he quickly helped her up.
He didn't want to attract attention with their current position.
"Are you okay?" Lance asked in a hoarse voice.
Deanna shook her head gently. "I'm fine. I'm really sorry about earlier. I don't know what happened. I just couldn't find my balance."
She said that, but if there had been light, one could see how red her face had become.
At this moment, Deanna felt extremely grateful for the darkness around them. It meant that no one could see her embarrassment.
Almost two hours later, the movie ended.
Deanna and Lance walked out of the theater but didn't see Julia and the two kids anywhere.
Without Lance needing to say anything, Deanna took out her phone and said, "I'll call them and ask where they are."
However, when she dialed the number, it went straight to voicemail.
"What's wrong with her? Her phone is turned off!" Deanna exclaimed in frustration before hanging up.
Seeing her reaction, Lance understood what was going on and smirked. "Well, since your friend is taking care of the kids, they should be fine. I'm hungry. Let's grab something to eat. What would you like?"
"I'm fine with anything," Deanna replied.
And so, they found a nearby restaurant and went in to have a meal.
Only after they sat down did they realize that it was a couple's restaurant.
The chemistry between them grew.