PHILIP
The moment I saw her standing outside, looking dejected, I sighed slowly. I know it didn't go as planned. Oh, good lord, I hate seeing her sad.
I alighted from the car and shouted, "Hey Sydney!" as I walked closer to where she is standing. She looked up at me and ran straight into my arms, sobbing, and I could feel the coldness of her tears dampening my shirt.
I wrapped my arms around her and started patting her gently, and we remained like that for a while.
"I'm sorry for ruining your shirt," she said, pointing at my already tear-soaked clothes.
I chuckled lightly.
"We should get going; it's getting late," I responded, and she smiled gently as we both walked towards the car. I opened the passenger's seat, and she hopped in, muttering "thank you" gently.
I walked over to the driver's seat after she had settled in, reached over to the parcel on the chair in the backseat, and brought it to her face.
She giggled, and I smiled. It's nice to finally see her smile.
"A promise is a promise," I said, smiling.
"Burgers!" She yelled excitedly, and I smiled.
I kick-started the car, and I glanced at her munching on the burger happily; you wouldn't know she was crying a few minutes ago.
I'm curious about what happened, but I decided to just ask another day when it'll be less painful for her to talk. Then I noticed her dress and the shopping nylon in her hand.
"I haven't seen this before," I asked with curiosity.
"Seen what before?" she asked, all her attention still on what she is eating.
"This dress," I responded, pointing to it with my left hand and my right hand on the wheel.
She suddenly stopped eating, and her expression darkened.
"Hey? What's wrong?" I asked gently.
I burst into laughter after listening to what happened between her and the so-called "Crazy jerk."
"I don't know why you find it funny," she said, frowning, and I chuckled at how cute she looks.
"I'm sorry... he was wrong to do that, but why would you break his windscreen?" I asked, bursting into another round of laughter.
"Really? Like really?" She asked, frowning.
I placed my hand to stop myself from laughing hard as I parked gently in front of her house.
"I'm sorry," I responded.
She rolled her eyes at me and tried unlocking the door when I gently held her hand to make her stop.
"I'm sorry about all that happened to you today, for not picking you up because if I had, you would have gotten to the audition faster and you wouldn't have met the crazy..." I paused, trying to hold back the laughter as her eye threw daggers at me.
"I'm sorry about the audition too, and I'm sorry about your dress... I know it means a lot to you, but I just want you to know you're strong and you're very talented, and you'll live your dreams."
She looked at me, her eyes clouded with tears.
"Come here," I whispered gently as I pulled her into a warm embrace.
CLAIRE
I waved goodbye at him and waited till he drove off. I turned back and walked gently into the house.
"Welcome, my dear," Gran Gran said cheerfully, smiling at me.
I rushed to where she sat and hugged her tight.
"How did it go?" she asked gently.
I shook my head gently.
She smiled and patted me.
"Their loss, Claire... it's their loss," she said.
I smiled gently, genuinely consoled by Philip and her... there will always be another time, and if there isn't, then so be it. I'll just focus on being happy with these people that love me.
A month later
CLAIRE
I waved excitedly at Gran Gran as I rushed out to board a bus to the restaurant. I walked into the restaurant and went into the changing room immediately to change my outfit. I walked out back after changing my clothes to resume duty when I saw my boss and a familiar-looking man talking with their back turned to me. I walked gently to my working spot where they stood.
"Good morning, Claire," my boss greeted, now turning to face me.
"Good morning, boss," I responded curiously, staring at the familiar man whose back is still turned to me.
"I'd like to introduce someone to you, meet Ethan, our new part-timer."
My eyes almost fell out of its socket the moment he turned to look at me.
Crazy jerk!
CLAIREI frowned at how Philip keeps laughing after I had told him that crazy jerk now works at the restaurant. It seems he's enjoying this."So tell me, how did you guys react to each other after the introduction by your boss?" He asked amidst laughter."I just stared at him dumbfoundedly, and when I finally got myself together and stretched a hand to him, can you imagine that idiot just ignored me and said hi," I responded, still agitated from what happened.Philip burst into laughter again, and I glared at him."You're really enjoying this, right?" I asked."Hey, come on, but I'd really like to meet the guy that constantly gets under your skin," he responded, still smiling."You said he was driving an expensive car the first time you guys met. Why would someone like that be working part-time at the restaurant?" He asked.I never even thought of that. He looked like a totally spoiled rich brat, and now that I'm thinking about it, he still looked somewhat bratty in the uniform."I do
ETHANChuckling lightly as she glared at me, I could tell she was cursing me in her mind. After the other day at the market, her hatred for me has grown really tall, and I find that amusing. I like the way she reacts whenever I get on her nerves, and it makes me want to do more.Mathew rushed out of his office and started telling all the customers to leave. Claire and I both stared at him curiously. What's going on? Two big vehicles with dark-tinted glasses parked in front of the restaurant. One of the vehicles looks like that of an escort, and at that point, I realized what was going on.My insides started churning with anger. Mathew successfully drove the customers away, and THAT MAN walked in, smiling at everybody until his gaze got to me, and he frowned."What are you doing here?" I asked coldly."Greetings first, young man! Don't be rude," he responds sternly.Mathew took Claire by the hand, and they both hurried away.He sat down and pointed to the chair in front of him. "Sit do
ETHANI knocked gently on Michael's door. "Come in," he responded, and I walked in. "Ethan? How may I help you?" he asked, surprise evident on his face. "Erm... nothing much. How are you?" I asked, immediately regretting coming to his office. What am I even doing here? "I'm sure you didn't come to my office for the first time in weeks just to ask how I am, so spill, Ethan. What do you have to say?" he asked. I sighed. Fine! "That girl... she has not been coming to work for the past two days. Is she okay?" I asked, swallowing my pride and ignoring every sense organ in my body telling me not to ask. "Oh, Claire? She's, um... wait! Are you worried about her?" he asked excitedly, like a child given candy. "Never mind," I responded, turning to walk out. "She called in sick," he said, and I paused in my tracks. Sick? Is she very sick? Could it be because I pushed her? Did she hurt herself when she fell? I walked out immediately without turning back. It’s all my fault. Why did I
CLAIRE I glanced at him for the upteenth time , I'm still shocked the almighty Ethan is working hard and doing all the heavy lifting but don't get me wrong he's still the rude brat he has always been .He hasn't seen me for days and he ignored me the moment I walked into the Cafe .He's a cold annoying jerk !.I glanced towards his direction again and our eyes met , I immediately looked away .Whatever happened to him while I was away must be a good thing because he's been helpful since I got here in the morning.ETHAN I chuckled lightly the moment she looked away , I sighed nervously at how fragile and lean she looks .She must have been really sick but at least she's back now and that's a huge relief .Wait ! What? Why am I relieved she's okay now ? Why am I concerned ? She's my colleague so it's only right I worry ....it's not a big deal .'' If you keep staring at her like that she'll end up calling you a pervert." Micheal whispered into my ears and I glared at him." I'm no
CLAIREMy heart raced as I saw Ethan crumple to the ground, his body lying still where the plank had struck him. Panic surged through me, and I rushed to his side. “Ethan! Are you okay?” I knelt beside him, my voice trembling. His eyes fluttered open, and he groaned in pain. “Why did you have to be so stubborn?” he muttered through gritted teeth. “I-I thought I could handle them ,” I said, my hands shaking as I checked him over for injuries. “Why did you come after me?” I asked .Ethan winced as he tried to sit up. “You’re not exactly subtle when you’re in trouble. And don’t think this means I’m going to be nice to you or anything.” Despite his words, I could see the concern in his eyes. I pulled out my phone and called for an ambulance, unable to shake the image of him getting hit. “Just hold on, okay? Help is coming.” Ethan looked at me, his expression softer than usual. “You really know how to cause a scene, don’t you?” I managed a weak smile despite my worry. “Well, I
CLAIRE I approached the mirror with care, pausing for a final look at my outfit—it is my most beloved dress. The dark circles under my eyes from the overnight rehearsal didn't come as a much surprise . "It better be worth it," I murmured softly to myself.As I debated whether to keep my hair in a bun or let it cascade over my shoulders, my phone rang, playing "Heartbeat" by Christina Perri. I smiled nervously, knowing exactly who was calling and that he was close by. With a chuckle, I answered the call, my nerves palpable."Hey Sydney! Are you ready?" Philip's voice buzzed with excitement over the phone."Yeah... I guess I am," I replied softly."Hey? What's wrong?" His excitement faded as concern crept into his tone.Sometimes I wonder what good I had done in my past life to come across someone as sweet as he is ."Um... nothing... I just don't...""Come on, spill it already," he interrupted impatiently."Okay... fine. What if this is a wrong decision? What if I get there and I don'
ETHANWhy would someone like you do that to my car? Do you even know how much the car is worth? It's not like you'd even know, cause I can tell you've never been in one your entire existence!" I yelled, annoyed.She just stood there, staring at me as if she'd seen a ghost."Are you even listening to me?" I half yelled."Erm... what? What did you say again?""Oh, so you're not just dirty, you're deaf too, right?" I asked, fuming with anger."How dare you call me dirty when you were the one that splashed dirty water on me?" She yelled back, causing me to flinch.How did she go from being a deaf scaredy-cat to this yelling maniac?"Do you actually think you have the right to yell at me?" She asked, pointing to her ruined dress and hair .I sighed gently seeing how badly her clothes are ruined, and I strangely feel bad for doing that to her. Am I crazy? Why should I feel bad for her? How much can the dress be worth compared to my car's windscreen? Judging from the way she looks, it's obvi