Craft Beer & Roses

Chapter 11

The beanbag cushioned Aviva's body as she crashed down into it. She brought her hands to her face, rubbing the tension from her temples.

Suresh. Suresh. Suresh.

He saw nothing wrong with what he'd done. He'd lied to her - for months - and he really saw no fault in that. And he was lying to her now. He didn't even mention his blatant flirting with Dana. What had he really done so far to prove he'd changed? If anything, he was still the same person he'd always been – cracking on with someone else while promising her the world.

As if summoned by her thoughts, Dana made her way toward Aviva with long, speedy strides. Her raised eyebrows screamed, 'Oh my God! What just happened!?'. Aviva stood from her spot in the beanbag and folded her arms tightly across her chest. Seeing Aviva's withering stare and domineering posture, Dana cautiously slowed her pace.

"Hey babes...are you alright? What's he done this time?" Dana asked hesitantly.

Aviva thinned her lips. "I think you know."

"Oh! Uh, I'm not sure that I do? It looked serious, though..." Dana laughed quietly, rubbing her forearm uneasily.

"I'm giving you an opportunity to be honest, Dana." Aviva spoke dryly.

Dana looked down guiltily at her pedicured toes, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. "I like Eddie, really I do. But I've just been thinking that it's still early days and...I should try to get to know everyone."

"And?"

"And...Suresh and I have been chatting. Like, proper flirty chatting. He can be kind of sweet and vulnerable under all that alpha energy...had me blushin' a few times."

Aviva closed her eyes, suddenly feeling faint. It felt as if the oxygen had been sapped from her body; she hastily drew in a lungful of air to stop the world from spinning. She had been so sure she'd know how to handle this confrontation, but hearing Dana say those words – that he was sweet and vulnerable – it triggered a deep pang in her chest. Aviva had believed she was the only one Suresh trusted with his heart, and now he was freely giving it to some random girl he'd just met. Did she really mean so little to him? Even after all this time?

Dana anxiously shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "This was the last thing I was expecting, and I'm so sorry I didn't say anything sooner. I really do want to be your friend! But if I'm honest...I kind of want to get to know Suresh better, too. W-would that be okay...?"

You two-faced snake...

"Let me try to understand this." Aviva began, irritation simmering from within, "You've come to me, inserted yourself in my life and my business, said you were my mate, admitted how horrible he was only to turn around and ask for my blessing to crack on with him?"

Dana visibly shrank beneath Aviva's heated glare.

"You know what, Dana? Yeah. Yeah, it's alright if you want to try it on with him. Just know that I do not and will never trust you, and you're no longer a friend of mine. And if you still want a boy like Suresh after everything he's done and continues to do, then you're probably just as fucked up as he is. Stay away from me from now on, yeah?"

"Aviva, wait!" Dana cried desperately as Aviva stalked off to the villa.

A moment of peace. That's all she needed. Away from the cheating. Away from the lying.

Away from these bloody cameras.

Aviva could see one of the cameramen tailing her in her peripheral. Early days and she was already feeling suffocated. She hurried her steps, and the cameraman sped up to match. She sought shelter from the blistering sun inside the villa, closing the glass door behind her just before the man could maneuver the bulk of the camera through. She watched as he adjusted the device in his grip before turning around to find a new victim.