Angela stared blankly into her closet.

"What are you supposed to wear to a corporate dinner? I haven't even been at the company a year and they're inviting me to corporate dinners? Jeez,"

She picked out a knee length black dress – smart and simple. She wasn't in the mood for drawing attention to herself.

"What do you think?" Sharon appeared in the doorway sporting an eye catching mauve number. Angela hadn't actually invited Sharon to be her plus-one, she had just assumed.

"Isn't it a bit short?" asked Angela, trying not to sound too much like her mother. She may live with Sharon, she may cook for Sharon, she may do most of Sharon's laundry but dictating her choice of clothing was taking it a bit far. "I mean I don't know most of these people, they might be like perverted or something."

"Angela, it's a corporate dinner … for corporate people."

"Your point being?" Angela took the black dress off its hanger and laid it on her bed. Sharon sighed at the sight of its sensible hemline and high neck. Angela looked up at her. "What?"

Sharon raised her eyebrows and returned to her own room.

In the comfort of her bathroom Angela appraised her reflection in the mirror. She saw every one of her 22 years gazing back, complete with all of the decisions she had made – good and bad. But the one that stood out to her more than all of the rest was the one she was most ashamed to remember. She turned on the tap and splashed water on her face as if it would erase everything that been revealed. But when she looked back in the mirror nothing had changed.

There was a loud knock on the door. "Angela? It's nearly six-thirty."

Angela opened the bathroom door and Sharon gasped, "You haven't even done your make-up yet. Or your hair,"

"I don't know if I should go. I don't even know why they invited me, it was probably a joke."

"Angela. Do you know how long it has been since I have had a night out at a place that was actually half decent?" Sharon pleaded. It was true, her boyfriend Sean was a major disappointment when it came to spending money. Sharon had become an expert on the best of the worst of New York's pizzerias. Angela looked at her poured into that dress, with her hair perfectly tousled and her make up flawless. The dinner was being held at a smart hotel and Angela couldn't bring herself to see Sharon's effort go to waste again.

"Can you help me with my face?" Angela managed a smile. "Like, get me a new one?"

Sharon grinned. She led Angela through to her room and sat her down at the dressing table.

An astonishing crystal chandelier hung in the lobby of the hotel and neither woman could help but stare up at it in wonder as they entered. Hotel staff, dressed in burgundy uniforms, crossed the lobby carrying expensive looking luggage and one, Sharon noticed, carrying a dog in a designer bag. Angela watched a couple standing at the reception. She noted how they held hands and shared a kiss as the receptionist turned to retrieve their key. She wondered about their relationship; how long they had been together and how much hurt they had caused each other.

At the far end of the lobby the two women found a sign directing guests to the Park Lounge where the dinner was to be held. It was the largest function room in the hotel, filled with round tables seating eight guests each.

Angela had joined the company, an international finance conglomerate, straight from university. She started at the bottom but had progressed some way in the year she had spent there. But she had made little headway in fitting in with the social aspect of her workplace. She struggled to find anything in common with her colleagues on the fifth floor of the New York office and whilst they toured the trendy wine bars of Manhattan on a Friday night, she returned home alone, usually to find Sharon out for dinner with Sean.

Angela was single. She had been for a year. She had a few boyfriends at university but she inevitably grew to resent them. They were too kind, too clingy, too well mannered, too straight forward. In the end she grew tired of the guilt she felt ending the relationships for no apparent reason and the knot that formed in her stomach every time she bumped into one of them on the campus.

"Oh my God Angela look at it. Exactly how well has your company done this year?" Sharon took in the scene. Waiters, dressed in white, served glasses of champagne from silver trays to groups of guests dotted around the room.

Sharon and Angela seated themselves at one of the tables. Three women were already sitting there who Angela knew. They smiled at her but didn't say hello. Sharon glanced at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Angela," She turned at the sound of her name.

"Oh hey," Angela smiled at the man standing before them. Will ran her department and was generally the only person prepared to engage in an actual conversation. She had to admit, he looked good tonight.

"I'm glad you came," he smiled and Angela panicked inside.

"This my friend Sharon," Sharon grinned but to Angela's annoyance then stood up and excused herself.

"I wasn't sure it would be your kind of thing," Will took the seat vacated by Sharon.

"It's not," Angela gave him a sincere smile.

Will leaned toward her and lowered his voice to a whisper, "that's why I made sure you got an invite,"

To Angela's relief Sharon had reappeared with two glasses of champagne. Will looked up and she grinned at him. He returned the smile and stood.

"See you later,"

Sharon handed Angela one of the glasses and sat down. She sipped the champagne but Angela couldn't bare the lack of comment.

"We work together Sharon. He's like the only person in New York who actually treats me like a person,"

"Did I say a word?,"

Angela and Sharon left Three Rivers to study at Colombia. During their final years at Liberty High Angela and Rayanne went their separate ways. She had forgiven Rayanne for what happened with Jordan but they drifted apart and by the time they graduated were barely speaking. It's not something that Angela could explain and she felt bad about it, especially as it upset Rickie. That's not to say that things went back to how they were, Angela and Sharon weren't joined by the hip in school. Angela made new friends and divided her time between them. But when they both got places at Colombia, Angela was grateful to have Sharon there and they grew close again.

When all of the guests were seated the waiters began serving a meal. Another woman from Angela's office had joined their table with her husband. The eighth place was initially taken by a man who worked on the floor above but at the last minute he changed places with Will. Angela desperately attempted to maintain conversation with Sharon so as to limit the risk of Will trying to talk to her. But they could only discuss the candelabra centrepiece for so long and Will took full advantage of the first opportunity to jump in and talk to Angela again. Sharon struck up a conversation with one of the other women on the table who took an interest in her work in marketing. Will leaned in like he did before and spoke to Angela in almost a whisper.

"I think you look beautiful by the way,"

The remark took Angela by surprise and she instinctively sat back in her chair to create some distance between them. Will let out a short laugh which left Angela feeling even more uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry. It was a compliment. I didn't mean to offend you"

"You didn't. I just wasn't expecting it,"

Will smiled as Angela rested her arm on the table and leant in again.

"You know, I think Adams has something special planned for his speech," he winks at her and taps the side of his nose as if he has told her a secret.

"Oh no you don't think he's going to try and persuade us he's a real person do you?"

"There's not enough money in the world to manage that," Will laughed.

Angela laughed freely. It felt good. It felt good talking to him and being with him.

"Well you never know one day it might be you up there. I heard they put you in charge of a big account,"

"I don't know about that …

His voice faded out. She wanted to listen to him but her attention had been drawn elsewhere. Angela took a sip of her champagne but only to give her an excuse to look over at a table on the other side of the room. A number of waiters were gathered there serving the table with their food. As though he had felt the weight of her gaze, one of them turned and their eyes met briefly. He lowered his eyes quickly and turned back to the guests at the table. Angela felt cold, it had always been that way when Jordan Catalano turned away from her.