Thanksgiving was just round the corner and it was making me peevish each passing second. Every year except for some times, my father invites me to his place and we have a great time together while catching up on our missed lives. This year, however, I wasn't looking forward to it.
My dad had been calling me nonstop for days now but I ignored him altogether. I know that he might be worried but I couldn't face him. Not after what just happened to me. I bet he must have watched and read the news splattered with my face everywhere. Yeah, super good money for the American media.
Not only that but this time during Thanksgiving, he might also have his fianceé, Angela and her son with him. How am I to face them? It was already difficult for me as it is but the problem of my new family knowing about it too was added in it as well.
It's been a week since I was fired, a week since my friends had come to check up on me and a week since Skye kissed me. That mere touch of our lips still brought out a funny feeling in my body.
Sighing sadly, I chomped down on my simple breakfast of scrambled eggs and orange juice. To make my depressing mornings complete, I had my laptop placed on the island countertop as I peered over my empty mailbox. Not a single company reverted back to me for my pretty "impressive" resume.
Never in my life had I ever felt so useless, helpless and cast off in a dumpster. My phone rang for the umpteenth time since the past week and it was no surprise when I saw my dad's caller ID flashing on my screen.
"Guess I am done with this shitty peek-a-boo. To hell with it." I sighed heavily and accepted the call, making my fork clatter against the dish.
"Hey, honey! How's my girl doing?" My dad's comforting voice spoke from the other side as soon as I'd picked up the call. He didn't even wait for my response. It was a mixture of relief and worry but mostly the former.
"Hiya, dad! I am doing good," I replied, hoping for my voice to sound just as excited as him but I guess I failed when I heard his soft sigh.
"I know you're lying, Val," he reprimanded me and I could imagine him raising an eyebrow at me.
"I know you do. And I also know that you'd know that I'd lie." I smirked teasingly and he chuckled. "I mean that question is sometimes supposed to be answered with an 'I am doing good' even when you're not. It's mandatory! They go hand in hand."
We both started laughing and I already felt so much better for the first time in days. Or maybe second if the kiss was to be counted. Talking to my dad almost boosted my serotonin. "There's my girl."
"Yeah, dad," I said with a smile while playing with the sleeve of my sweater.
"Val," he began, exhaling a deep breath. "Talk to me."
I didn't answer him for about a minute and started drumming my fingers on the island countertop. "I am… trying. I just… I need some space and time to figure everything out," I told him earnestly and closed my eyes for a second.
"You can tell me, y'know?" My dad used that tone wherein I would cave in and tell him about all my situations when we used to live together. The soothing tone where he would always sing 'Just Stay' for me.
"I do," I mumbled, my lips puckering despondently. "I got fired, dad."
It was silent on the other end and I thought that he was maybe disappointed in me but his next words brought me tons of relief. "Too bad, it's their loss then."
"I am ready to agree with you on that," I said, joking again. "You've already heard about it, haven't you?" I asked him, knowing his answer before he even told me.
"Yeah." He scoffed, as if not believing it and that's what I love the most about him. Not jumping to conclusions directly. "But I would love to know the true story. From you and not some made up butterflies when it's just a simple caterpillar."
"That was a good one, dad!" I chirped.
"I know, sweetie. I know." Was his complacent reply. "Anywho, as I was saying, prepare your script because I ain't backing off until you tell me the whole story. Oh, and you're coming for Thanksgiving, no excuses. I've booked your tickets and everything," he ordered and I had to smile at his sneaky attitude.
"Of course," I said sarcastically. "You leave me with no choice."
"How can I? Angie's pretty pumped up to meet you again. She couldn't stop yapping about it," he told me. He sounded frustrated but in all honesty, he was in love.
"Yeah, and I can't wait to tell her that you said that," I said, pulling his leg.
"You wouldn't."
"Oh, I would." I narrowed my eyes, enjoying this talk.
"I know you're kidding." I grinned, not knowing what else to say. "You know… Angie was so concerned about you," he spoke solemnly and I sighed. "Plus, you weren't picking up any of my calls."
"I… felt embarrassed and I didn't wanna talk to anybody, especially you, dad," I reasoned, biting my lip. "I didn't want to disappoint you like I did to myself even though I already have. To both of us."
"Val, honey… I am not disappointed, okay? Such things are inevitable and nothing can ever prepare you for that," my dad explained to me.
"I guess you're right," I agreed, nodding.
"Making mistakes is really important, Val. Because only then can we define what's right and what's wrong. It helps us to choose the best in the end," he added, trying to make me feel better and it was working.
"Urgh, dad. Why do you have to be so sweet and understanding all the time?" I whined but I was secretly smiling to myself.
"What? You don't want me to?" He laughed loudly.
"Thanks, dad," I said after a long pause of not answering him.
"Anytime, daughter." I could almost feel him beaming.
After talking some more, we both hung up before I began staring at my laptop mindlessly. Talking to my dad gave me the energy to go on with my day. Thinking about it now, I was actually looking forward to meeting him. Just talking to him, I was reminded of home. It led me to reminisce about those old days, freeing me from my stress.
Washing my dishes, I rummaged through my kitchen cabinets and refrigerator to find them almost empty. I knew that the task of grocery shopping was getting closer. However I didn't expect that "closer" to be now itself.
I whistled a small breath and decided to go for one before I lost all the motivation poured in by my dad to leave my apartment.
As I was leaving the kitchen, my eyes fell on my floor length mirror in the passageway. A sense of deja vu washed over me and I smiled ruefully.
My exaltation was all replaced by a frowny face now. I felt exhausted in every sense. It's like someone pushed me into a bottomless chasm and I couldn't find my way out.
Shaking my head, I relieved my mind from all the unwanted thoughts. I couldn't let my dad's uplifting words go to waste. Like a big girl that I am, I went into my room to take a shower and get changed.
Let's get this over with, yep.
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Once I put all the shopping bags in the backseat of my car, I decided to go to the nice coffee shop across the grocery store. When I knew that my car was parked in a legitimate space, I strolled toward it. Since I didn't eat my breakfast because I'd lost my appetite, I decided to feed my stomach with something good.
As soon as I entered the coffee shop, the comforting smell of caffeine wafted through my nostrils. I took a seat in a window booth after giving my order. While waiting, my eyes involuntarily swerved outside the window.
It was a pleasant day but after I'd received a lot of looks - not exaggerating on that - I got a feeling that most of them were contemptuous. So to ignore this, I had to wear a cap and sunglasses. To not get even more unnecessary bad attention, I pulled my hair up in a messy bun which seemed to have done the trick.
I was sitting idly for a few minutes before I was called out to take my order. Quickly taking it, I sat back down in my booth. As I was munching on my choco chip cookie, I absent-mindedly looked outside the window again.
I'd never felt so lonely. Regardless that I have friends now, they still have a job to go to unlike me. They've been calling me as well but I didn't feel like talking to anyone so I pretty much cut off from the world.
However, my train of thoughts stopped right there when my eyes fell on Ms. Maxwell across the road, talking to some guy. I couldn't see the man since their sides were facing me. The only reason I could identify Ms. Maxwell was because of her business attire and rigid posture. Working with her for two months gave me an idea of how she carries herself. No doubt it was her but who was the guy?
I quickly drank my coffee and held the last cookie in my hand to rush outside. The man seemed familiar but I couldn't quite tell. Also what struck me as odd was that Ms. Maxwell was talking to some random bloke. She's too important a person to do that, that too in the middle of a street.
What's the matter? Briskly walking toward my car, perched directly behind them, I got inside. They hadn't noticed me since they were standing a few feet away from where I was.
I tried to get a closer look at the guy but his back was facing me. Groaning, I hit the steering wheel softly and got rid of the cap and sunglasses. At this point, I couldn't afford to break anything.
Ms. Maxwell looked angry with the way her beady eyes were almost snapped together. She was saying something and from the looks of it, the guy didn't seem to negotiate with her. I don't know if I was supposed to feel happy or sad for her but anyway, my emotions were on the neutral ground here.
The only reason I was even staring at them was because I felt like I'd seen that guy somewhere. Apparently and unfortunately, his side face and back didn't help me much.
That's when I noticed the shift. The pinched expression on Ms. Maxwell's face softened somewhat and she nodded her head with a dark smile. I leaned back in my seat, feeling her malicious energy radiating off in waves. Taking a small step back, she gave one last look to her companion and walked off toward her car.
Hastily gathering myself, I put all my attention on the man as he finally turned around.
Squinting my eyes, I leaned forward again and took the support of my steering wheel to get a better view of his face. His hair looked like it had caught onto some wire shock, his eyes were popping out scarily and his lips were thin to the point of being invisible. His physique wasn't much but his pot belly looked foreign on his body and he seemed to be in his late thirties. As I was analyzing him, my eyes fell on an ID hanging around his neck. From the looks of it, there was something about him. Something that screamed bad.
I tried to look at him with more concentration but he was out of my sight real quick. However I caught onto the first initial on his badge. An 'A'. I was certain that it was the name of his workplace. I slapped my thighs because I felt restless as I couldn't really remember where I had seen him.
I was sure about the familiarity of his face because my memory had the image stored somewhere in there but it was agitating me for being so clueless.
Trying to forget about it, I drove back to my apartment. All the way, though, my mind swiped through the faces of the men I've met so far but to no avail.
I growled in a low voice and opened my front door. Putting all the bags haphazardly on my kitchen counter, I slumped on my couch without any care in the world.
Once I had my eyes closed, I started drifting off when one particular scene brought me out of my trance. The scene of Skye pushing me away in front of the paparazzi but that didn't catch my attention.
What caught my attention was the smirking and pompous visage of that one paparazzo.
"That son of a-" I stopped myself short when I realized that he was talking to Ms. Maxwell. Everything was starting to fall into place and my hands started shaking. "Was all her kindness an… act?" I whispered in the silence of my home.
Her receiving all the pictures in an envelope, firing me, that hyena faced guy looking amused, them meeting together today. What is she plotting? What is the meaning of all this?
I remembered Skye telling me that he was trying to find out the culprit behind this "scandal".
"Well played, ma'am. Well played." I clapped my hands as if I was talking to someone. All this time, she was right under our noses. She's sneaky, I'd give her that.
All my theories were pointing toward Ms. Maxwell working with the hyena paparazzo.
I switched on my laptop that was meticulously placed on the coffee table. Seeing that I had an ample amount of free time, I would love to know which media company he's working for.
I vaguely remembered his logo which was basically a white outdoor broadcasting van with a satellite dish at the top. I searched the American media starting with an 'A' and it came up with the top listed names. One of them caught my eye. It was 'Axis News' with the same OB van logo.
"Ha! Gotcha!" I clicked my fingers with a grin.
After being stuck on my laptop for hours, gathering all the important information about Axis News, I was stumped. Or maybe more than that.
Apparently, hyena, who's name is Rick Stile, has become a star in the media industry after sploshing around Skye's and mine pictures. He earned quite a lot of money by selling them to the other news agencies.
My blood boiled because he was getting all the fame by clicking and posting our pictures without our permission. Yet he was getting the pats on his back like what he had done wasn't lawfully wrong. I could have sued him if only I could afford this whole thing.
What bothered me so much was what would Ms. Maxwell get out of firing me by making it such a home issue? Why not simply fire me instead of creating such a sinister drama?
My concentration was broken when I heard my phone blaring. It was Shivaay. I took my time, contemplating if I could talk to him in such a foul mood.
Shaking my head for being so dramatic, I accepted the call. "Hey, Shivaay."
"You done ignoring us, you mean girl?" He spoke in his usual sarcastic tone.
"If I were in my sane state of mind, I wouldn't have picked up the call but lucky for you. And since I am going through some issues, I better take your sarcasm as well," I told him with my own amount of sass.
"Sure, okay," he replied dryly.
"Were you checking up on me then?" I asked him while staring at my nails. I swear, I needed a good nap to leave the world for a few hours before getting ready for the next day's futile battles.
"Sorry to prick your cute bubble," he cooed as if talking to a baby. "But no," he snapped. I chuckled, enjoying his irritation. "Listen, I am sensing something weird in here. I don't know what it is but I sense an ulterior motive behind making your pictures with Skye Williams public." His tone was serious and I sat up straight.
"I figured as much." I nodded my head.
"Wait, what?" He sounded like he just lost a video game match.
"Never mind. But how'd you know?"
"All right so listen up," he began in a low voice and I could hear his feet shuffling as if he was going to a more private place. "So, remember you'd prepared that radio script?"
"Yeah…" I scrunched my nose, not liking where this was going. "What about it?"
"Okay, so basically Ms. Maxwell didn't take it, saying it wouldn't be right since… you know? Anyway Sebestian called the whole content team to push ourselves for a good script and stuff like that. Once the meeting was over, we were dismissed and as I was passing by Ms. Maxwell's office, I heard her saying your name square at that moment," he narrated excitedly.
I gasped softly and my eyes widened. "And?" I urged.
"I stood there to eavesdrop because the hallway was empty. I mean it was weird, her using someone's first name, especially when it's an ex-employee. I think she was on the phone and had said something about giving twice the amount. Then added it with a "take it or the deal's off." The reason why I thought it's regarding those pictures was because she'd mentioned it too. Before I could understand further, I heard someone's footsteps and took off quickly," he explained to me in a quick and hushed voice.
"And you're telling me this now?!" I all but shouted.
"Oh, shut up! I've been trying to get hold of you for days now so excuse me. And our work hours have been extended which is why I couldn't meet you either," he replied.
I ignored his words and asked him, "Don't you think that it's Ms. Maxwell?"
"What makes you say that, VVJ? I don't think…" He trailed off.
"Why'd you call me in the first place, Shivaay?" I retorted.
He sighed as if sensing that my words had a point. "I guess, you're right."
"Of course, I am. I know it's all her doing," I said with conviction clear in my voice.
"Why do you sound like you're aware of this already?" He inquired suspiciously.
There's no going back, I guess. It was my turn to sigh before I told him everything that I had witnessed today. "Her expression was pretty damn venomous and I can bet million bucks that it's her. Plus, after what you just told me, about this deal or whatever, I am completely convinced."
"But why would she do that?" He whisper-shouted.
"I wish I knew the answer to that." I rolled my eyes, poking my forehead with my index finger.
Shivaay hummed in response. It was silent for some time like we were processing all this new information. "All right, look. I gotta go now. I can't stay for too long in the washroom. We'll discuss this later, okay?"
"Okay. Bye, Shivaay."
"Bye." With that, we both hung up.
What did I ever do to inflict such a response from Katherine Maxwell. I guess she really is a shark, after all. I scoffed loudly.