Chapter Two

INA DAVIS

I did not see it coming.

“You stupid bitch!”

My head swerved to the side, cheek stinging. I turned to look at the woman, meeting her face which was painted with rage.

I waited for the anger to come. But there was nothing. All I felt was the ache in my chest that had been there for quite a while. It was as though I had no strength left to feel anything, except for despair.

“Do you know how much this dress costs?!” She bellowed, glowering at me with her wide, reddened eyes.

My gaze shifted to the sleeve of her dress which was stained with the dark coloured wine.

I might have been partially absent, but I knew there was no way I spilled the wine on her. Not when she had been the one to take it off my tray.

And even if I had, it was no cause for her to slap me across the face.

Everyone's attention was on us. Yet I knew no one would say a thing against her. It was unfair, and I was tired.

Why was everything so hard?

I thought of how much I had to endure and how much I was still enduring. Why was it so easy for her to hit me like that? Like I was nothing.

I wanted to give her a piece of my mind, even if it put me in trouble. But I could not bring myself to do it. A single tear dropped from my face, as I willed my hands not to tremble.

“Are you just going to stand there? Apologize you dumb piece of shit!”

I saw her coming for me. But I could not will myself to move out of her reach.

“That's enough!” I heard a male voice order, as someone grabbed her.

Tears blurred my vision, and I was struggling to hold myself from breaking down in front of them.

“Let me go! What kind of people do you all hire these days? I have to teach her a lesson!” She yelled.

Teach her a lesson.

Perhaps he should not have held her back. Maybe that would have triggered me enough to do something that would probably get me in trouble.

“Leave”, the man ordered.

I did not wait. Else, I would only break further in front of them.

I abandoned the tray somewhere, rushing to get to the restroom.

I wiped my tears on my way, but they kept falling. I hardly cried. But once the tap opened, it was hard to close.

I bumped into someone on my way.

“Sorry”, I heard her apologize.

I nodded, walking forward.

But she held me back by my arm. I looked up, meeting a pair of soft hazel eyes. Her brows drew together.

“Are you alright?” She asked, sounding concerned.

“I’m fine”, I managed to say hoarsely, nodding my head.

“Excuse me”. I pulled myself off her, quickly getting away before she could say or ask me anything else.

Once I entered the restroom, I walked into one of the cubicles and shut the door.

I slid to the floor, supporting myself by the wall.

Alone, without worry of anyone seeing me, I let it all out.

All I could hear was the sound of me crying loudly.

I thought back to how hard I worked, and how much I tried to stay positive throughout everything. Yet nothing much had changed. It was like everything was against me.

And I couldn't even find someone to vent on, except myself. The one person I wanted her comfort, was the main source of my pain.

For how long would this go on?

Of course I was still very young, and had a lot ahead of me. There was still so much I could do. But could I stay strong till then?

My phone began to ring in my pocket. I stopped crying, reaching to take it out.

It was Christian. He probably heard about what happened.

I let out a shaky breath, trying to calm down before taking the call.

“Ina? Where are you? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine”, I replied, my voice hoarse.

“Shit, I’m so sorry about what happened? Where are you now? I've been looking for you”, he asked worriedly.

He also sounded a bit guilty. Christian was the one who helped me get the job. We worked together at a small fast food restaurant, where I did deliveries and he was a cleaner.

“I went to the restroom. I’m good, Christian”, I said to reassure him and myself, as I stood up. I felt slightly better after all that crying.

There was silence.

“Where are you now?” He demanded.

“I’m on my way home. Don't look for me, Christian. I… I just want to be alone”, I said, walking out of the cubicle.

I hoped he understood.

Christian sighed.

“I… Alright, Ina. Just take care of yourself, okay. I'll call you tomorrow”, he said softly.

“Thanks. Bye Christian”, I ended the call.

I stopped to look at myself in the long mirror on the wall. My eyes looked red and puffy, face streaked with tears and snot.

After washing my face and drying it with a napkin, I looked better.

I was supposed to be on my way home. Yet I was sitting on the floor at the rooftop of the venue, staring at the night sky.

Probably because my roommate would be waiting for me back home, and I was in no mood to talk to anyone. I just wanted to be alone. And the view was good.

As much as I did not want to drown in my problems, I could not help thinking back to her.

My mother.

She was alive and a taxi drive away, yet I was missing her. So much that it hurt.

Life had not really been easy for us from the beginning, but at least I had her. And now I was alone, left with only a shadow of her.

Sometimes it would seem like she was here with me. But I knew it was just a mirage. It was always so easy for her to slip back into her manic state.

Yet every time I saw her, I always wished to see that shadow. It hurt to know it would not last, but it always gave me hope. The mother I knew was still there.

I rubbed my arm over my sweater, breathing in the cold air. Hugging my bag to my chest, I paused when I felt the bottle.

Christian’s bottle.

He had given it to me earlier, telling me it was stolen that I had to hide it for him. And then he promised we would have it together after work.

Actually, he had shoved it inside my bag with an ‘I love you, you're the best Ina’.

I had blushed, and he had given me one of those mischievous, heart wrenching smiles of his.

A smile touched my lips when I brought it out to look at it.

It was an expensive wine.

And it was the perfect weather and scene to drink. I pouted, realizing I was missing a wine glass.

But oh well, I would manage.

I bit my lower lip with a smile as I uncorked the wine bottle.

IAN CARMICHAEL

I tugged at my tie as I made my way to the rooftop venue. I inhaled the cold air once the tie had loosened.

The party was over, with guests already leaving. But I did not want to go home just yet. My head was reeling, and I knew I needed a breath of fresh air.

I heard a soft groan.

My eyes narrowed when I saw a girl sitting on the floor asleep, back resting against the railing. There was an empty wine bottle lying beside her.

Annoyance tickled my chest. There was always someone when I needed space.

I furrowed my brows when I realised it was the waitress from earlier. The girl Christian had been worried about. After going off to find her, he had told me she left for home.

But then she was here, probably drunk. Her head was tilted in an unnatural angle.

She would be waking up with a hangover and a stiff neck.

Was she even old enough to drink?

The girl moaned, twisting in her sleep.

What was her relationship with Christian? She looked like an inconvenience. But then again, he was fond of picking up stray animals, which he would abandon after some time. Perhaps his attention had shifted to humans.

Maybe I should tell Christian his little friend was here. Or not, I couldn't be bothered.

I tore my eyes away from her.

“Please”.

I stopped walking when I heard a weak plea. I turned around, only to see that she still had her eyes closed.

“Please… don't leave. Stay”, she begged, moaning in her sleep.

I frowned at her.

She couldn't be talking to me. But it felt that way. Like I would be doing something wrong if I walked away. It was annoying.

A single tear trickled down her closed eyes.

She sure seemed to like crying a lot.

“Mum… I’m sorry…”, she cried.

Was she having a nightmare?

I debated on whether I should wake her. And why I was still standing there with her.

“Ahh, shit”, I murmured under my breath.

My legs pulled me forward, and I was walking towards her.

The girl whimpered. Something strange tickled my chest seeing her like that. She looked meek. So… innocent.

“Hey, wake up”, I said harshly.

But it did not look like she was going to wake up like that.

Cursing under my breath, I stooped low before her.

“Please”, she begged.

Unlike earlier, her hair had been let loose from its ponytail, framing her face. The length of it cast over her shoulders, falling down her waist.

With her small face, small nose and pouty lips, she looked… cute.

Not Christian's type. It clearly was not that kind of relationship.

I let out a sigh, realizing I was watching the girl instead of waking her up.

I quickly reached to grab her by her shoulders when she started slipping sideways.

“Wake up!”

She groaned, swaying in my grip.

“Hey!”

Her eyes twitched like she was struggling to open them.

“Oh”. She fell forward, her head on my chest.

“Seriously?”, I muttered, looking up and taking a deep breath to fill up my patience. I just knew she would be trouble.

I pushed her from my chest, supporting her body with my arm.

Not only did she fall into a drunken sleep outside and alone, but she also refused to wake up. Zero survival instincts.

I grabbed her chin.

She groaned again. And then finally she opened her eyes.

My chest tightened. Gray eyes. Dazed, yet stunning. The most distracting thing I had seen all night.

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