chapter 20
No sooner had she finished speaking than Isabella smiled joyfully and gestured.
Then the boutique staff neatly arranged the racks so Serena could see all the clothes clearly.
When they had been piled in a corner, Serena hadn’t noticed the volume—but laid out properly, there was quite a lot.
Serena’s eyes roamed over the dozens of outfits. Isabella, laughing like a little bird, chirped,
“Now, shall we choose the outfit you like best?”
The first outfit Isabella recommended was a deep pink dress. It had cute ribbons and delicate lace decorations scattered all over.
It was a bit over-the-top for everyday wear, but it was quite pretty. An outfit like that would definitely stand out at a tea party.
However, Serena couldn’t help but frown.
It felt as if Isabella had completely misunderstood her taste and picked this as the first recommendation.
“Um, Isabella? I think there’s a misunderstanding. The dress I’m wearing now—I’m only borrowing it for a short while. I really don’t like these weird, eccentric clothes. Especially ones with colors so bright they hurt your eyes or with too many decorations—I absolutely hate them.”
She rattled off her words in one breath, and Isabella’s eyes widened in surprise.
Her long eyelashes fluttered slowly.
“…Oh my, I thought it was unique but cute in its own way.”
As expected, Isabella had completely misunderstood Serena’s taste.
“Absolutely not. Not even once have I thought it was cute. I find it so disgusting that if I ever get a new dress, I’ll burn this one immediately.”
As Serena said this with a grimace, Isabella’s eyes softened.
Though it seemed like she wanted to tease her, Isabella smiled professionally and recommended the next dress.
“How about this one? It’s still in the pink family, but the color is lighter, and the decorations aren’t overdone, so I don’t think it will feel overwhelming.”
It was a pale pink dress with only ribbons tied at the chest and waist. The expensive-looking fabric made it simple yet elegant.
“You could also match it with a hair accessory and shoes like these,” Isabella added.
The hair ribbon was slightly large, but it suited the dress well.
It seemed wearable anytime, without looking out of place. Indeed, it was better to keep it simple than try to be overly stylish.
“This seems fine,” Serena said.
As soon as she spoke, the pale pink dress was placed on an empty rack.
Isabella continued with her next recommendation.
“How about this one? I think it would suit your hair color well.”
This time it was a yellow dress. The frills at the hem and sleeves made it very cute. Perfect for a spring picnic.
Of course, Serena had never gone on a picnic or even thought of going, since she had always been tending to her family—but it still gave that impression.
“This one’s nice too,” she said.
When she approved it, the yellow dress was hung next to the pale pink one.
Isabella’s recommendations continued.
It was as if she had immediately figured out Serena’s taste—the dresses, shoes, and accessories she showed were all to Serena’s liking.
After trying on several of the suggested dresses, two hours had already passed.
Skipping breakfast and just looking at clothes had drained her energy; she felt like lying down immediately.
It was time to decide what to wear.
“A simple dress I can wear anytime would be best, right?”
Whatever the reason, Serena didn’t want to stand out because of her clothes anymore. She even wished people wouldn’t mention her outfits at all.
So she picked up the first pale pink dress.
“I’ll go with this one. I like all of them, but this one seems the cleanest and prettiest.”
“Oh my, I’m so glad you like them all! Then how about taking all the outfits you liked with you? You said you wanted all the dresses you like to be a gift.”
“…All of them?”
Serena quickly counted the dresses she liked with her eyes. There were easily over twenty.
Even though Isabella had said it, asking someone to buy over twenty dresses after seeing her only once felt overwhelming.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll buy more when I need them. Even though it doesn’t look like it, I actually have a lot of money,” Serena said.
…Probably.
She hadn’t confirmed the exact amount of her inheritance yet, so Serena added “probably” in a very quiet voice.
Isabella blinked her round eyes for a moment, looked around, and whispered to Serena.
“Actually, Carlos also has a lot of money. So why not accept them now? I’ll also ask nicely. Okay?”
With all the effort of picking and preparing so many clothes, she said it in a cute, pleading tone as if asking for multiple outfits to be bought.
She had spent all night picking out clothes, came all the way here, and even helped with trying them on—she must be exhausted too.
“Buying just one dress feels a bit rude… I can’t just wear the same one all the time,” Serena thought.
But she couldn’t in good conscience ask Carlos for over twenty more outfits.
So she decided to accept only the pale pink dress as a gift and pay for the rest herself.
Just then, an unwelcome voice came from outside the door.
“Isabella’s here?”
It was Stella.
Even though it was her own house, Stella entered the lounge without asking Serena, who was using it.
Somehow her hair looked slightly thinner than yesterday as she went straight to Isabella.
“Is that really Isabella! How did you get here? You never come when I call!”
Stella couldn’t hide her disappointment.
Isabella bowed her head slightly with a gentle smile.
“I’m sorry, Miss Stella. I’ve been wanting to visit, but my schedule has been fully booked.”
“Then how did you come today? You said your schedule was full,” Stella asked, glaring at Serena. Her face was full of sulking.
Isabella’s smile was like a picture-perfect scene as she replied,
“I came because someone important requested it.”
“Surely, that’s not her, right? To Isabella, am I less important than her?” Stella snapped.
Isabella maintained her smile but didn’t answer. Though still pretty, her demeanor was now more formal than when she was with Serena.
Serena, recalling how she had forced a smile in front of her older sisters, stepped in front of Stella.
If no one intervened, this situation would drag on until someone got tired.
“Isabella, please wrap all the dresses I picked. But I’m going home soon, so can you pack them? Some might be slightly too large and need adjustments…”
Isabella, handling the generous purchase, lightly bent her knees.
“Don’t worry. We’ll quickly and carefully adjust them and prepare them nicely. It’s worth bringing all my little ones here. Thank you very much.”
The staff, seeming skilled with clothes, immediately started organizing and preparing for alterations at Isabella’s instruction.
“I’ll wear the pink dress now. Could you help me change? Oh, and I’d like this one to be burned.”
“Yes, of course!”
Isabella smiled as she received the pale pink dress from the staff.
With everyone busily moving around, Stella was left standing awkwardly alone.
Her mood, standing idly by, became increasingly uncomfortable.
