Keep Me Safe

FOUR: Friends Again

Three days after the disastrous meeting with Kendall, Gigi, Bella and Anwar called me and asked me to go for dinner with them at Nobu in Malibu. I hadn't seen the Hadid siblings for about a month now and I was looking forward to catching up with them. I had met Gigi and Bella at Paris Fashion Week a few years ago and they had introduced me to their brother last year. They were my favourite people to hang out with whenever I needed to get my mind off something or have fun because they had a great sense of humour and they were constantly in a good mood. 

I left the Beverly Hills hotel that evening and arrived at the restaurant in Malibu at around eight o'clock. The waitress at the entrance showed me to our table where the others were already sitting waiting for me. 

"Oh my God!" I grinned happily as I pulled Bella into a hug before doing the same to Gigi. "I've missed you guys!" 

"Same! It's been ages!" Bella beamed as they sat down and I walked around the table to greet Anwar. 

"Hey, buddy," I said as I kissed his cheek and pulled him into a one-armed hug. "Looking as handsome as ever!" 

"Yeah, you sure you're not straight?" Anwar teased and me and his sisters burst out laughing as I sat down opposite Gigi. "How're you?" 

"Good, good," I replied. "Happy to be back in LA!" 

The four of us spent the evening laughing our heads off at the different stories we told each other and it felt seriously good to be back with my friends again. We ordered way too much food and when we were halfway through our third portion of sushi, Bella nudged my arm and I looked up at her. 

"Don't look now but I think you're ex just walked in," she said, her eyes fixed on something behind me and my heart skipped a beat slightly. 

The only person she could be referring to was Stella. I looked around at the others and saw them checking the entrance to the restaurant before the three of them looked back at me and nodded. 

"It's okay, guys," I said casually. "She might be my ex but she's still your friend as well." 

"Yeah, but you guys haven't seen each other since you broke up last year," Gigi told me with sympathy. 

"Yeah, Y/N, it's alright," Bella nodded. "She probably won't see us, anyway." 

"Guys, will you please just calm down!" I laughed and I think my smile eased their minds a bit. "Come on, just ask her over here!" 

When they didn't budge, I rolled my eyes playfully before turning around in my seat to look for Stella. We saw each other at exactly the same time and both of us froze. It was different seeing someone in photos online and seeing someone in real life, especially when it was your ex girlfriend. She looked seriously good, like, better than she did when we were together. I quickly shook myself out of my trance and flashed her a smile before motioning for her to come over to our table. 

A look of relief spread across her face as she said something to the woman at the desk of the restaurant before making her way towards us. 

"God, you're the best ex girlfriend I have ever met," Anwar muttered under his breath and I giggled slightly before Stella approached our table. 

I got to my feet and we smiled at each other shyly for a second before she just spread her arms open wide. The two of us laughed happily as we pulled each other into a hug and for some reason it didn't feel awkward. Everyone always thought things had to be awkward between you and your exes but Stella and I were just living proof that that wasn't the case. 

"How are you?" I asked her once we let go of each other. "How've you been?" 

"Really good, thanks," she replied. "You look good, Y/N." 

"Yeah, you do as well," I said as I looked her up and down and bit my bottom lip slightly. "You really do." 

She blushed slightly before I stepped aside so that she could greet the Hadids. When they were all finished hugging and chatting, I pulled up a chair in between me and Anwar. 

"Do you wanna come join us?" I asked Stella. "I mean, if you're not meant to be meeting anyone else." 

"No, actually, I was just passing to book a table for lunch tomorrow with my mom," Stella told me as we both sat down. "Thanks, guys. I hope you don't mind me crashing!" 

"Don't be stupid," Gigi laughed as we tucked back into our sushi platter and a waiter brought Stella a plate. 

We spent the next hour or so chatting and catching up on everything that had been happening in Stella's life since we had last seen each other. There was honestly nothing awkward about the evening at all. No one mentioned the break up or other people we had been dating so there was no need for any awkward silences. Stella and I also couldn't help each other from flirting slightly. It wasn't a big deal and it wasn't like we wanted to kiss each other but it just felt natural. 

"Well, thanks for the invite, guys," Stella said once we had paid the bill. "But I should probably head home. I have a 5 am call time tomorrow." 

"Yeah, it was fun," I smiled I got to my feet. 

"C'mon, Y/N, I'll give you a lift back to yours," Gigi said as we headed outside to the car park of the restaurant. 

We said goodbye to Bella and Anwar who were heading back to their mum's house in Malibu whilst Gigi, Stella and I headed to Gigi's car. Both of them lived really near to the Beverly Hills Hotel so Gigi was acting as the driver for the night. I climbed into the passenger seat of the Range Rover whilst Stella got in the back of the car. We were halfway down the freeway when my iPhone began to ring. 

"Hey, Mark," I said as I answered the call after seeing his caller ID flash up on my screen. "I'm on my way home right now. Can I call you when I'm back?" 

"Sure, I just wanted to let you know that I've been speaking to Kris and we've come to an agreement and arranged something for you and Kendall," he told me and my face fell. 

I had completely forgotten about the drama that had happened a few days ago and I had managed to stop worrying about the campaign whilst I was out for dinner. I didn't want to have to think about dealing with Kendall again. 

"Alright," I sighed. "Just email me the details and I'll call you in the morning." 

"Okay," he replied clearly getting the hint that I didn't want to talk about it right now. "I'll see you soon." 

I hung up the call and ran a hand through my long, blonde hair as Gigi looked at me curiously. 

"Everything okay, Y/N?" Stella asked me from the back and I just turned and smiled at them both. 

"Yeah, of course," I lied successfully. "All good."