Bossy Vibes (Editing)

Cнα⅊тɛʀ 25 (edited)

“I didn’t know he lived near you”, I realised with a stunned face. I noted that Elijah was keeping this conversation a little too simple and broad for my liking, as if he was purposefully avoiding the details so I wouldn’t know more about Ben.

An air hostess walked past and smiled in our direction, interrupting us in the most overpolite voice someone could muster. Her smile reached her eyes and the pearly white teeth glistened against the overhead lights, “Hi there, can I get you anything before we take off?”

‘Go away, we’re having a conversation’, I irately huffed, crossing my arms over my chest and trying to give the air hostess to subtle hint to walk away and leave us alone.

“No thank you, I think we’re all good”, Elijah replied to her. Usually he would have fumed at her or scared her away but since our conversation last night I had noticed him act a little calmer and more controlled than usual. He was no longer the fully released devil but the equivalent to a tense chihuahua. The air hostess nodded her head and left us alone, sauntering off to go hassle the security guards behind us.

I took her departure as an opportunity to keep hounding my boss, “Does Ben have any connection with my father?”

“How would I know? I don’t keep tabs on all my friends. Seriously Nora, what is it with all these questions?” Elijah asked me and a small thrill shot up my spine at hearing my name so casually mentioned.

However, I wasn’t sure whether Elijah knew anything about Ben or whether he was just playing me so that I’d drop the conversation. It was annoying me that that mysterious number had sent the photos of Ben and my father together and yet hadn’t bothered to tell me anything more. ‘Could I trust Elijah enough to tell him about the number and the picture or would he panic and somehow shield me from the real truth?’

“Just answer them”, I exasperated in the end, deciding that it would be easier to not tell him of what I already knew. Just because we were on casual terms now didn’t mean I trusted him and he had some explaining to do as well, he wasn’t a saint either and I knew he was involved in some shady stuff like that gun and his conversations with David and Rico and the girl that they had mentioned in the office.

“I’m positive that he’s nobody in relation to you, there’s nothing to worry about alright?”

There it was, that tone and choice of words that made the conversation seem like it had ended but was really just a way of sweeping something under a rug when Elijah didn’t want me prying into it any longer. He was suspicious of me, and I was suspicious of him but neither one of us wanted to state the facts since we were attempting to mend our toxic relationship. Regardless, he would be useless to dig information from, so I gave up and nodded, placing a sweet smile on my face, and acting like alarm bells weren’t ringing in my head.

If Elijah wasn’t going to help me then I had to set up another meeting with Elian so I could finally get the information from him and if that didn’t work my mom was my last option, I was planning on asking her once I’d make it back home.

Elijah seemed to accept my submissiveness because his head fell back against the seat, and he closed his eyes finally having the chance to catch up on the sleep he so desperately craved. Once I was sure his breathing had evened out and he wasn’t going to notice my actions, I took the opportunity to reach for my phone. I was hoping to send a quick message to Elian before we were up in the sky, and I’d lose signal. Since we weren’t able to have the conversation about Ben before the trip to Las Vegas, we’d just have it after the trip instead.
Elian didn’t reply to me by the time we’d lifted off, but I knew he’d get back to me when he could. He was probably working at the office and was too busy to reply to me but that was alright, I’d done what I had to do, I just hoped Elijah wouldn’t find out about any of this. It would be detrimental to our relationship this got out and he knew I was prying at things bets left untouched, but he was keeping things from me, and the mysterious number was only adding to the effect.