First Kiss & Broken Promises

Chapter 25 - My two besties-in-love

Owain Glyn - His poems make me smile, laugh, cry, and most importantly they touch my heart. He is a generous soul with a kind heart and a fabulous sense of humor. He is a constant source of support to several wattpaders. I have waited to write a chapter worthy enough to dedicate to him. I hope I have in this one. Thank you Glyn for all your kind, encouraging words. Bow to thee!

___________________________________________________________

I didn’t know how long I sat on the stairs with tears streaming down my face and my head resting on Annie’s lap. Her hands trembled as she gently stroked my hair. A constant stream of her teardrops mingled with mine reminding me of the second fight we had within this month. I felt lost without her championing my thoughts at every step of the way, like she had, ever since Aryan left.

Why had I not confided in her before? Was it because I could not see her hurt? Or had I selfishly known all along she would take her brother’s side? I envied her unshakeable confidence in her brother’s innocence. How I wished, I could turn back the clock and set it to four years ago when my world had revolved around Aryan, Annie, my parents, and a perfect sister I had adored. I had trusted each one of them with all I had, until the day my world crumbled around me amidst vibrant streamers, and floating balloons.

Jai stood awkwardly, resting against the wall, tension clear in his stance, his eyes trained alternately on Annie and me. He had thrown a bomb in our midst with his accusation, but I wasn’t sure if I should even take it seriously. The guy was never serious, and suddenly since Aryan’s arrival, his solemn side was making more of an appearance, and it was scaring me a little. I wanted the jovial Jai back. As a friend, and a dance partner, he had unknowingly provided a sense of balance in my life when everything around me had spun out of control. It was ironical he would now contribute to the ripples in my life that he had tried so hard to ease the last few years.

A shrill ring of a mobile phone interrupted our somber thoughts, and I straightened to fish out mine from the back-pocket of my jeans. It was GG calling, and I eagerly sprung up on my feet, answering the phone.

“Divi,” his voice crackled against the background noise of busy traffic. “Good news and bad news. Which do you want first?”

“Spit out both GG. No time to play games.” I was eager to unearth any hint that would lead me closer to Aryan.

“Okay, okay. I’m near Sam’s house. The guard at the gate says he hasn’t been home for over a week. Now the good news is I managed to get his unlisted personal number. Trust me the guy is paranoid about his space. Bad news again, none of my contacts are willing to track the number immediately. We’ll have to wait at least a couple of days.”

“No that’s fine. Number is good,” I said, my eyes seeking Jai’s, who simply nodded, and my hand involuntary grabbed Annie’s for reassurance. A fresh wave of energy rushed through me as she squeezed my hand, and felt her lean closer to me. “Text it to me, and I’ll take care of it. Thanks GG. I owe you one,” I said, genuine gratitude welling up inside me.

“Come on Divi, anything for you. I am heading home now; I’ll dig around some more tomorrow.”

“That’d be great, GG,” I said, wanting to hug the guy.

“And Divi,” he paused, and in a hoarse voice barely above a whisper he said, “he was my hero.”

I waited for him to say more, unable to respond to the reverence in his words. After a moment of heavy silence, I heard him clear his throat and continue, “He is my hero. We’ll find him soon, I promise.”

“Yeah….” I nodded, gulping in enough air to fill my lungs.

After ending the call, I stood rooted to the spot until the phone chimed with an incoming text.