(Avery’s Thoughts)It is nine in the morning, I am taking a sip from this cup of coffee while currently looking at my wall scratching out things from my bucket list one by one. “Go to a casino, done, scratch it… Fit the wedding gown, done, scratch it… Hang out with bestie, done, scratch it…” I smile feeling great seeing my progress here. The next on the list would be ‘Donating Egg Cells’. I don’t know why but after watching a lot of documentaries about surrogacy, IVF, and couple having troubles getting pregnant, it makes me aware that not all can be given a chance to be a mother. Somehow, I believe I might help others, and besides, I have such great genes, duh?!A few minutes later my phone buzzes and the screen displays my day calendar appointment, “Seattle's Fertility Center appointment at 10.”Okay, I guess I’ll get going. Before I go out of my hotel room, an unregistered number appears on my phone screen and I immediately know who it is, so I answer happily, “Hey, Dee.”“I’m he
“Ava?” he is the first one to call my name. So I untangle my arms on Dmitri and walk to him. I kiss him on his cheek as a form of greeting and say, “Hey, Seid. Didn’t expect you to see here!”I try to be civil and I smile even though I am so damn nervous about this unexpected rendezvous. Why now? And why with Dmitri? “What are you doing here? And why are you with him?” he peeks on Dmitri who keeps his distance from us for some time.“Uh, I have things to do, how about you? What are you doing here?” I ask him back. I wonder because there’s no probable reason why he should be here so I thought he must be meeting a friend or a client. But his face tells me so, it is indeed related to him. He didn’t answer my question and his eyes are just fixated on Dmitri. “Avery, tell me what’s going on, does Jeff knows about this? Are you pregnant with that man’s child?” he straightforwardly asks me without any buckle. “Am I what?” I suddenly feel offended by what he said, although, there’s a good
(Avery’s Thoughts) “Hey, you’ve been crying since you and Seid talked but you never answer any of my questions,” I hear Dee comforting me while he’s driving back to his penthouse. But words can’t just escape my mouth. All I feel right now is heartache, pain, sadness, and guilt, a mixed emotion of thoughts,“I wished I had known.”“He should have told me.”“I wish I would have been more understanding.”But on the other note, this is how my mind goes, “I loved him for 10 fucking years, I was loyal, and yet he was a cheater.”“He was a liar.”“He deserved what happened to him.”My brain feels like exploding and I feel suffocated, I think I’m having a panic attack. So I whisper to Dee, “S-stop the car, Dee.”“Why, are you hurt or something?” he asks with full concern towards me. I can’t even bring myself to tell him, and because of frustration, I raise my voice, “Stop the fucking car!” All I ever want is to get out of that small moving box. I need to feel the air. My attack is limiti
(Dmitri’s Thoughts)I still can’t sleep wondering how Avery was. I didn’t even know what he and Seid talked about, nor the reason why she was crying. And, K was there. I wonder if she nags at her so much. A lot of things are bugging my mind today, but there’s this one thing that makes me nervous. That guy with Kendra. I think I’ve seen his face somewhere else. And the fact that he called me DeAndre, I click my tongue, “Does he know?” is all I ever ask myself. Just right off the bat, my phone rings, “It’s him, again!” this time, I bite my lips out of frustration. I hesitate to answer it, but if I don’t he’ll nag at me, so I answer it before it even stops ringing.“I told you not to call me, very much!” I scold him.But his feminine high-pitch voice is louder and more annoying than mine, “May I remind you I’ve given you enough time! Until when will I hide, huh? When will you give me that apartment, when can I go home to see you?” he sounds very upset. I distance the phone from my e
(Dmitri’s Thoughts) Before my appointment with Nikolai, I need to drop by here. It’s very unusual for Nik to invite me for a lunch, so it may be somewhat, important. I am inside my car waiting at the airport for him, I tap my fingers on the stirring wheel out of boredom. I hate going to the airport especially if I am to drive and pick up. I am used to riding a private jet, after all, so waiting here, at the parking lot is not an easy or even a comfortable task for me. “He said he would be out in a minute, where the hell is he?” I bite my lips out of frustration. Finally, Greta announces a call going through, “Incoming call from a restricted number, should you answer Dmitri?”“Connect me to him,” I command. “Call connected,” Greta confirms.“Where the hell are you? I’ll be late for work, hurry up,” I scold him.“Duh, you didn’t tell me about your car, dummy! Don’t be so hot-tempered Dee!” he answers with a sweet voice. Minutes after our last conversation, I can finally see his fi
(Avery’s Thoughts) It’s been three days since K and Art’s visit. It’s also been three days since Dmitri called me. Now, I can’t get what Art said off my mind. But I instantly shake the thought off everything it enters my mind, “There’s no way Dmitri is gay. First, he is good in bed. Second, he loves women. And third, he loves me very much.”“Don’t forget the word bisexual!” thought comes in. So I block it, “But there are no signs of being one.”“Then why can’t he marry you instead. Why did that Macau brat say those things?” “That’s because Dmitri is afraid of marriage itself, given what happened to his mom and dad,” I convince myself, countering every negative thought.“Then, who did Art see at that party? You know that Art would never lie or make a story.” “Probably it was an honest mistake, or maybe, it looked like Dee.”“Then why did Dmitri frown when Art calls him DeAndre?” “I wouldn’t be happy either if someone mistakenly call me by other nam
(Avery's Thoughts)I suddenly wake up with a pondering headache.I massage my temples and then press my fingertips against my nose bridge in a circular motion, trying to get the relief that I need. I try my best to crawl myself off the bed so I can at least wash my face and give it a rest from the heavy make-up and foundation covering it. Though my legs won't listen to me, I put in my best effort so my soles would stay connected on the hotel floor.With so much desperation, I finally reach the sink. I wait for the water to gush out from the faucet and begin to rinse my face, "Oh, god, this feels so refreshing." But looking at the mirror in front of me scares the hell out of me, "What the!" are the first words that come out of my mouth. What appeared in the mirror was the reflection of a woman without any finesse of her own, tangled hair, erased eyeshadow, smudged mascara, and tainted lips. "How the hell did I get home looking like this? My God!" I hold my head and slightly pat t
(Dmitri’s Thoughts) (A Day Before The Big Event)My head is still spinning from drinking too much, and when I open my eyes, I am in a familiar place, Avery’s apartment. “Ugh,” I groan as I try to sit down on this couch. Then a bag of ice hits me from the side, “Fuck!” I blurt out. “Fuck you, too!” a feminine voice of a man speaks with so much annoyance in it. “Hey, what are you doing here? And what this?” I ask while holding the ice pack.But instead of answering, his annoying attitude takes over. He ignores my question and won’t even talk to me. “Hey! What’s wrong with you?” upset of his treatment, I yell. “Liar! Why would you even lie to me, dickhead? Office? Work? Then, tell me, since when did a bar filled with alcohol and dancing ladies become your workplace, huh?” now his voice is higher than mine. I look away, “I just met a friend at a nearby coffee shop, that’s it,” I make an excuse. “Yeah right! Coffee shop, your ass! Bullshit!‘ he rebels. “Hey, I was telling the truth