Twisted Souls || Michael Langdon

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Burgers and Fries

"Please, give yourself some credit. I'm just the guide, you do all the heavy lifting."

"Still..." He took hold of my arms and embraced me warmly. "I wouldn't have been able to go this far without you. So thank you, really."

"Of course, Michael." I whispered before breaking away from the hug and giving him a soft peck on the cheek. 

Sighing, Michael tore away from me and made his way to the door. "Miss Mead is probably waiting for me. She wants to drag me to the supermarket and the mall."

"Why do you look so miserable? That sounds like fun!" A giggle slipped past my lips when I noticed Michael's disgruntled expression and furrowed brows.

"Because I'm going to be the one who has to carry all of the shopping and grocery bags to the car and into the house." He pouted. "To be honest, I'd rather spend the day with you."

"Well too bad for the both of us. I'm fully booked today and won't get home until later tonight." I sighed and waved goodbye as he began to open the door. "I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Or tonight... in my dreams." Michael whispered flirtatiously, sending me a wink before leaving. A goofy grin bloomed on my face as I held in a laugh, staring at the door in admiration as I thought of my favorite person in the world.

However, the feeling of elation and complete bliss quickly left my body when my office door flung open once again.

"Estella! Finally! Now are you ready to leave for brunch?!" David asked cheerfully with Lillian trailing behind him. She, just like me, had an exhausted expression on her face.

"No, David. No one is ready for brunch, because we're all working!" Lillian seethed and shoved the stack of papers into his arms. "Go and read through these patient files to determine if any of them need to be reexamined. If you get these done, then I'll consider us three going out to eat."

David stared at the stack in dismay and surprise. "This is abuse. I'm going to human resources to file a complaint."

"Good luck with that. You slept with and harshly dumped the girl in charge of HR, so I doubt you're going to get very far." Lillian and I chuckled as we high-fived each other, watching a defeated David trudge back to his office.

"Honestly, it's like working with a child!" I said.

"Tell me about it, Wintour."

After a long, slow day of meeting with all of my patients and updating their records, as well as dealing with other tasks, I was finally finished for the day. Poor David was still stuck in his office, finishing up the work Lillian had given him. The clock on my wall indicated that it was late in the evening and I had no energy to cook myself dinner. My mouth watered at the thought of stopping by McDonald's and grabbing a burger and fries instead.

Quickly, I cleaned up my office space and sorted my paperwork for the next day. I gripped the handles of my bag and left my office, beelining towards the exit and straight to my car. The engine purred to life and I buckled in my seat belt, ready to get my food and head home.

But, someone else had other plans for me.

Ding.

Confused as to who could be texting me, I withdrew my phone from my pocket and looked at the screen. 

From: Queenie

Hey girl! I'm starving right now, but didn't feel like going out to eat alone. Are you free?

I bit down on my bottom lip gently as I thought about what I should say. A part of me wanted to eat my fries in peace on my couch, while watching my comfort show. The other part wanted to hang out with Queenie and get to know her more.

After all, she is my friend now, right?

To: Queenie

Sure! Where do you want to meet?

A few seconds later, she responded.

From: Queenie

There's this great Chinese restaurant that I really want to try! Let's meet there. I'll order some stuff when I get there, so we can start eating as soon as you get here. I'm five minutes away from the place.

Queenie had sent me the address of the venue and I typed it into my MAPS app on my phone. I weaved through the LA streets, praying that traffic wasn't terrible so I could finally get something to eat. My vehicle finally pulled up to the restaurant's crowded parking lot. After grabbing my bag and phone, I opened the door and stood on the pavement, stretching. Eyes wandered around my surroundings, watching dozens of car lights whizz by as people frantically drove to their destinations. Street lights shone bright as they aimed their rays down onto the ground. The moon glowed brightly in the sky and the cheerful chatter of the public filtered into the air.

However, amidst the bright and bustling street stood a dark building. Its sign was the only thing that shed light, though its bulbs were dull and some of the letters were cracked. I took a step closer to the building that was positioned across the street from the Chinese restaurant. Despite the lack of light, I was able to read the sign that clung weakly to the building.

HOTEL CORTEZ.

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Author's Note: Hello everyone! Sorry for the long wait :( I would have posted much earlier, but a few weeks ago, the chapters that I had written beforehand were all deleted from a glitch. I was so disappointed and frustrated, I couldn't find it in me to write until now. I apologize for the wait, I was just so frustrated with what happened. At first, I contemplated ending this story, but knew a lot of you want to continue reading. So, I decided to just write the chapters from scratch and continue updating.

 Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter! Feel free to comment and tell me your thoughts. Until next time....

Lizzie