{Keira}

 

“Ok, you’ve got to fill me in on the details here,” she grabs hold of her teacup, steams still spuming from the top up, and gives me that insistent look, too unflinching and annoying for me to escape from.

“I’ve already told you everything I know,” I make an excuse. But really, that is somewhat true. I told Maelis everything there is to tell about him. And yet there she is, for some reason, keeping pushing pressure on me and forcing me to spume out more and more about him. And it feels like I’ll run out of details and start making them up to satisfy her endless inquiry.

“I see you’ve been keeping a few things from me.” She looks at me playfully.

What now? What has she discovered that I already don’t know of? Ok, he’s gorgeous, and unfathomably rich, but…other than that it’s not like there is much more that I’m comprehensive of.

“You told me you had a one night stand with your prospective boss, who happens to be gorgeous-looking and wealthy. Though you did forget to mention he’s the most eligible bachelor on the city. And he’s kinda known by the online community simply by one word. Playboy.”

I don’t know why her little disillusion kinda has me all encumbered, and to think that it’s not as if I didn’t know any of this. I mean, I didn’t take him for the eyes-on-one-girl kind of guy, but I didn’t know he was so…elusive.

“I’m not sure whether it really was a one night stand.” I make a firm point here and waddle toward the counter on my kitchen to take a look at the laptop, which Maelis has not taken her eyes off of ever since she’s been having all the chit-chat about him.

Wow, this I didn’t expect. He really is famous. How come I didn’t know that? Ok, it’s not like I’m the most updated person when it comes to inconsequential magazines that I’ve never given a damn about. But still. His face should’ve sounded familiar. He’s made the cover of three local magazines over the last six months. I guess he really is that big a deal.

But, what do I care, anyway? I don’t have to come across this man again.

Oh, wait. I do. He’s about to become my new boss. This thought has got me really agitated. I need to do something about this situation.

“Something tells me he’s no good news for me.” I look at her over my shoulder, while plunging the teabag into the steamy water. Figured I might need extra tea to take this down.

“Mm-mm. That’s where you’re wrong.” She approaches and grabs my mug delightfully as if it was hers. “He’s all the good news that you ever needed.”

“Agree to disagree.” I tell her, but for some reason I don’t feel like needing to play along with this morning fuss. My head is enough mixed-up with this mess for me to add more to it.

My phone rings across the room and I run disinterestedly toward. An unlisted number pops up and somehow today I don’t feel like talking to strangers no matter the reason behind why they’ve felt the need to dial me. I slide over the answering option.

“Hey, babe…it’s me, Kyle. Don’t hang up.” I roll my eyes at the recognition of that voice. And it’s weird knowing that I’ve blocked his number on my phone over six months ago. And yet he’s found a way to get at me by ringing from a foreign number. Kyle is my ex, in case you’re confused. Our breakup was left not on the best note possible and he’s been trying to reach me ever since. I tried to pull a plug to him up front in the beginning, but over the months his behavior has turned a little worrisome. And by putting this social embargo on him, I think I’ve just got myself a stalker. Seriously, I’m starting getting worried.

“Kyle,” I whisper mildly. Despite the way how we ended things, I always had a soft spot for him, and I think that on some certain way I always will. But there’s always that part of me that’s not sure enough whether I’ll ever be able to forgive him for what he did to me. “I think I was clear enough with you last time your number was not on the blacklist.”

“That’s why I changed my number. Babe, I really need to talk to you.”

“What makes you think this time it’ll work out?” I stay firm to my inquiry there.

“Because I’ve changed. Things have changed. This time it’ll work out.”

“Like it did last time I made that stupid mistake and let you set things clear?”

“That’s exactly why I need a second chance. Let me make it up to you.” There’s a gap in between the line until he comes up with something else. “Keira,” he breathes heavily. I can feel his indisposition through the phone. It’s painful even after all this time…even after I’ve convinced myself I’m done with this man, forever. “I need you.”

“I think that’d be the I’ve-lost-counts-to-care time. And I’m pretty sure you’ll screw up again and again.”

“But, babe—”

I need to stop him right there. I think I’ve had enough. It may seem a little egotistic from a distance, but from within, if you knew the whole story, you’d feel for me.

“Kyle, let’s just not make things more complicated than they already are. I don’t think I’ll be able to confront you again, and if I didn’t know better, I might throw in at the deep end. But after all this time, I think that I deserve better. You deserve better than keeping stalking me for months now. If I were to be asked for advice, then I’d tell you to move on with your own life. We had something. It didn’t work out.” It worked out terribly, but I’m letting this out. “So the best thing you could do—the best thing I could do—is embracing new opportunities life has to offer.”

“Keira, please, listen to me…I love you.”

“Kyle, I think I’m gonna need to stop you right there. Please don’t bother dialing again before I put even this number on the blacklist.”

I get back to my tea, trying to keep what just happened under wraps. It took me a whole couple of months to clear any Kyle mental possession outta my mind. Maelis just gives me a weird look, comprehending my need to keep this smooth. I hoist the cup to my mouth and let the nice fragrance cuddle my nose, while embracing myself to this sensation and trying to imagine that just for a few seconds I’m lodging in a serene valley over a tangerine sundown.

Yep, this barely makes it two seconds. My phone rings again, while all the stress that I’ve tried to muffle down, just comes up to the surface altogether like a suppressed spring.

I don’t even dare look at my phone this time, but just answer the call.

“I think I made it clear I didn’t want to hear from you again.” Even I am surprised at how autocratic my voice comes out. This confusion merges up with discomfiture right after I hear the voice of the man on the other part of the line.

“Is that how you talk to your boss?” His voice sounds smirking, yet bossy. I can imagine him purling his lips contemptibly in a way that locates all the blood in my body in places I don’t want to talk about right now. “I think we’re gonna have to work on your manners from this point forth…together.”

God! How does this man manage to raise my hackles even though he’s conspicuous by his absence? How am I gonna handle myself anywhere near him? Maybe I should quit right off the bat, but that would be a ballsy move, since if I quiet, I wouldn’t know what to do with my life then, and on the other side, if I stay, this might be my one-way ticket to the top. The promise made was that if I succeed to satisfy this man, a lot of privileges will come along the way. Then again, I’m not precisely cognizant of what satisfying him would imply.

I’m so scared, and undecidedness has blurred its way around me and wrapped me thoroughly. I’m trying to pull myself together and sort out a proper sentence on my mind to break the tension in between.

“Oh, it’s you.” I mumble foolishly, and gulp down a dose of uncomfortableness. “I took you for the wrong person.”

“Obviously.” He whispers calmly. Only his voice can be so overpowering on me. I’m not sure whether I really want to spent time anywhere nearby this man ever. I wouldn’t trust myself wherever his mocking presence is around. “Anyway, the reason I’m calling is to ask whether you’ve taken a gander at the flyers I’ve emailed you last night. And also to remind you that you’re almost an hour and twenty-two seconds late to work.”

“What?” It’s like my world crumbles down at the moment. Why does he keep making me feel like a silly teenage girl who’s trying to avoid the crush she’s too afraid to talk to and acts stupidly anytime he’s around? “I don’t recall us having arranged a meeting for today.” I make an excuse.

“Of course, we did. It’s attached to the other worksheets I sent you, which I reckon you’ve been too busy to even bother opening.”

I haven’t checked my email last night, since I wasn’t expecting anything important to be delivered, and I’d been so perplexed to have gotten the nerves and time to keep my phone around.

“However, I expect you to be here not a second later than ten thirty, otherwise there’ll be consequences I should’ve already set off.”

“What?” I bring the phone in front of my face to look at the time. It’s 9:48. It takes me more than thirty minutes to bring myself to his office. Which means I have to kick it off right this moment and get myself to work in my pajamas. “You know I can’t be there on time.”

“That’s your problem.” His voice is firm, and yet I’m wondering how much entertained he must be from this. “Oh, and Ms. Akerson. I won’t tolerate a second later. It’s up to you whether you wanna keep your job or not.” He hangs up. No goodbyes implied.

Once he leaves me all startled and bleary at my own confusion, I can imagine how strict and regular he must be at his own conceitedness. I’m in such a hurry, needing to figure out how I’m gonna manage to bring myself to a quasi-presentable slate over such short time.

“What’s the hurry?” This time, she can’t swallow her inquiry down. And who could blame her? I’m a mess.

“It’s my boss.”

“Ooh, the husky one?” Maelis raises an eyebrow playfully. I just don’t get it; what’s with the excitement when it comes to my prospect boss?

“Yeah, that one.” I say and regret saying it a second later.

“I can see behind the disorderliness. God, I wouldn’t be calm knowing I was going to spend the next few hours nearby the hottest bachelor on the city. It’s awesome ‘cause he’s giving you something to look forward to after your ever so boring morning.”

“I’m not sure we have the same definition of ‘awesome’.” I roll my eyes at her and grab my phone and purse, ready to hit the exit. I’m a little swamped. Okay, ‘a little’ wouldn’t even begin describing it. Anyway, that’s the reason I decide to skip thinking about the mess that is my outfit.

“What? What are you doing?” she stops me before I’m about to step foot out that door.

“Um, going to work, obviously…” I mumble disinterestedly.

“What I meant is, don’t you think you’re a little overdressed for it?” She mocks me, regarding my outfit.

“I was put on a job-threatening demand. If I don’t make it there on time, I might lose my job, and any chance of getting a decent other for that matter.”

“Wouldn’t you think this outfit would put that on risk?”

“I mean, that’s the point. I wanna present myself to him as unenviable as I can. Although…” I squint, glancing upward and pondering. “I don’t think it’s my looks that made him chase after me.”

“And why other would he track on you like a stalker?” She asks me and then mumbles at herself. “I can’t even fathom how exciting this sounds.”

“Because I ditched him. Basically, the morning after consisted simply of me being horrified by my surroundings and gathering my stuff to get myself out of the mansion. Clearly, he’s not used to girls doing that.” And then I mumble to myself. “I can only imagine them. Throwing in at his feet.” And then I come up with a resolution. “Yep, no, that’s not me!”

Just like that, I leave my friend alone at my house, and head toward the subway. I need to be there as soon as possible and I’m so agitated, I almost ditch the weird looks people are granting me for being downtown in my pajamas.