Hope constantly imagined a lot happening, but she definitely hadn't prepared for when Raymond would decide to go all 'ghost mode' on her.
Granted, she hadn't exactly reached out to him either, but that was only because she was suddenly at a loss of what to say to him if she did. He on the other hand, should have plenty to say to her. After all, he was the one that had made an almost move on her. Sort of. Bottom line was, she hadn't spoken to him in close to a week, and she was on the verge of depression.
"I seriously don't know what's going on with you. Have you even been listening to me?"
That successfully jolted Hope out of her thoughts and back to her friend who'd been in the middle of a narration -- one that Hope had tuned out of the last few minutes.
Rolling her eyes, Hope replied dismissively, "No, I wasn't listening. So leave me alone."
There were times Hope was grateful Tayo had thick skin. This obviously wasn't one of them. She'd have preferred her friend to get angry and storm out of her house. Instead, all she got were raised brows and a look filled with so much superiority.
"If you're planning to ask me questions, let me just inform you now. I will lie," Hope declared, hoping that would be enough to keep her friend's pending interrogation at bay. As if.
Tayo scoffed. "Yes, and we both know I'm a lie detector when it comes to you."
A reluctant smile tugged at Hope's lips, causing Tayo's eyes to light up in predatory glee. "C'mon now, talk to me. I promise not to laugh at you too much."
It was Hope's turn to raise her brows. "And what makes you think whatever it is will have you laughing at me in the first place?"
"One sure way to find out is for you to actually tell me," Tayo pointed out sweetly. Smartass.
Hope exhaled, contemplating it. She turned around on her bed so she was now facing the ceiling. Coming to a resolution, she blurted, "I think Uncle Ray has been avoiding me."
Tayo blinked, momentarily dislodged. She sat up and stared at her friend, waiting for Hope to elaborate, but she got nothing. "Wait, that's it? That's why you've been moody and spacing out?"
Hope responded with a hard glare. Don't you dare judge me.
Tayo threw her hands up in a sign of peace. She just didn't get it. "Okay, I just . . . Do you . . . Is there something else going on?"
"What do you mean?" Hope asked, puzzled.
"Y'know, between you both," Tayo clarified. "I mean . . . I know you've always kind of liked him, but it's always been harmless, nothing serious. At least that was what I thought."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Hope insisted.
Tayo shook her head, trying to keep a straight face despite the laugh threatening to spill out. "Okay, fine. Let's try this angle. Why do you think he's avoiding you?"
"He's not contacted me at all the whole week."
"Today is Thursday, babe. The week is still young." She smiled sheepishly at the drab look Hope threw at her. "Oya sorry. What about you? Have you reached out?"
"No."
Tayo nodded. "Why? Are you avoiding him?"
Hope's face scrunched up in confusion. "What? Of course not. Why would I--"
"Exactly," Tayo interjected. "You didn't reach out even though you're not avoiding him. It could be the exact same case with him. You're probably the one who is overthinking it, and I wonder why."
Hope ignored the veiled question in her friend's words. "You're wrong. I just know it."
"How are you so sure?" Tayo challenged.
"It's just. . . I don't know, it's just that feeling you get."
"And you said nothing happened?" Tayo asked, looking suspicious.
"Nothing happened," Hope insisted.
"Really?" Tayo prompted.
Hope scowled at her friend. "Seriously, nothing."
"Then you're probably overthinking it," Tayo concluded, dismissing the topic in her head. "It's not like you reached out and he ignored you."
"I didn't call because I don't have anything to say."
Tayo sighed, knowing arguing at this point was a lost cause. "Well."
"I mean, isn't he the adult? He should be the one to know what to say," Hope continued, obviously not ready to drop the topic.
Tayo scoffed. "Of course. Now that it comes to issues like this, you're suddenly no longer an adult."
"I'm my mummy's baby girl. You can go ask her yourself," Hope argued, face serious.
Tayo shook her head, lying back on the bed as well. "I forget sometimes how tiring arguing with you can be."
"Wha--"
Hope's words were cut off by the sound of Tayo's phone ringing. She held a finger up to Hope as she picked the call. Although Hope didn't know who had called, it didn't take long to pick up on it.
"Yes . . . I'm with Hope, actually . . . I'm trying to cheer her up. She's here moping over a guy . . . Yes . . . Yes! Perfect . . . Okay. See you."
The glare in Hope's eyes were scorching as she turned the full force of them on Tayo who remained unfazed. "Was that Paul?"
Tayo nodded, sitting back up. "Yes, and he wants to take us out."
"I'm not--"
"You're so going. Don't even try to say any different."
• ~ •
An hour later, Hope was seriously regretting ever listening to what her friends had to say.
"This food tastes horrible," Hope declared, dropping her spoon. "I'm not eating this."
There was a sheepish smile on Paul's face. "Sorry. I heard about a new restaurant so I thought to check it out, and who else is there to share the experience with, if not my very best friends?"
"I hope your curiosity is well satisfied then," Tayo sassed, shuddering. "For the first time in my life, I wish I had listened to Hope. See how low you've made me stoop? This experience has scarred me for life."
"Drama queen, calm down," Paul laughed, not looking the least bit apologetic. "You both, be nice. Don't forget it's out of the purity of my heart I decided to treat you."
"Yes. To food that neither of us can eat. What was the point again?" Tayo lamented, looking mournful.
Paul laughed harder. "You're right. It tastes horrible."
"Now you need to get us ice cream to make up for it," Tayo declared.
"Perfect," Hope agreed as she jumped to her feet, Tayo eagerly doing the same.
"Here?" Paul teased, chuckling at the horror on Tayo's face. He stood and cast one last long look at the food that was the exact definition of 'too good to be true.' "But the food was expensive sha. Is this how my money is just going to waste?"
"Next time, be more careful with your choices, sir," Tayo sassed as she linked her arm with Hope, almost dragging her as she hurriedly headed for the entrance as if the devil himself was on her heels.
"Tayo, stop pulling me. I can wa--" Hope's breath came out in a whoosh as her shoulder -- the one that wasn't being dragged -- collided with someone. She stumbled a little at the impact and probably would have lost her balance if Tayo hadn't been holding onto her.
"I'm sorry," Hope blurted out reflexively even as a soft female voice did the same.
Hope's eyes caught the woman's and they both exchanged small smiles. That seemed to settle it as the woman continued into the restaurant. Hope was tempted for a minute to call her back and warn her the food wasn't worth it, but then who was she to rob her of that experience?
Tayo tugged at her arm, and Hope would have complied if her eyes hadn't chosen that exact moment to roam until they caught on a familiar figure seated at one of the tables. Raymond. She'd recognize that face and dimpled smile anywhere. A smile that was directed at someone else. It was then it occured to her that he wasn't alone. There was a woman seated across from him, and even with her back turned, Hope could tell she'd be gorgeous -- or maybe it was her jealousy speaking -- and Raymond was smiling so lovingly at her.
Suddenly feeling light headed, Hope hurried out of the restaurant, leaving her friends to trail after her. Her legs gave out weakly the minute she was out the doors and she crouched, hands over her knees and her head bowed.
"Hope?" Tayo called worriedly. "Are you okay? Is something wrong?"
Hope shook her head, trying to calm her elevated breathing. What was this?
"That's obviously a lie," Paul said, looking scared. "What happened in there? You're scaring us."
"I'm fine, really," Hope insisted, glancing up. "I just . . . I saw uncle Ray in there just now."
"Really? In the restaurant?" Tayo asked, surprised, yet relieved. "I didn't see him."
"I almost didn't as well. He was with someone. A woman," Hope blurted.
Tayo sighed, finally getting what was wrong with her friend. She crouched beside her, hitting her head gently. "That's why you went all panic attack mode on us? That could have been anything, Hope."
"I didn't say otherwise," Hope pointed out, rubbing her head.
"You don't have to. I can almost hear the clogs in your head turning," Tayo replied. "This is your chance. Why not go talk to him?"
"I just said he's on a date with someone."
"You don't actually know that. Plus, it's just saying hi. It's a simple solution to what has been eating you up the whole week. Maybe then you'll stop spacing out so much."
Hope didn't say anything, weighing her options. On the one hand, she really was dying to talk to him, but a huge part of her was scared of what he might have to say.
"So, are you going in there or--"
"I'll just wait for him here," Hope resolved.
That didn't seem like a very reasonable option to Tayo. "You don't know when he's going to be done."
"I'll wait," she insisted. "It's fine, you guys can go have that ice cream. I don't think I even have the appetite for that anymore."
Tayo shared a look with Paul who just looked plain confused. Sighing, Tayo stood back up.
The three of them remained like that, with Tayo constantly monitoring the entrance for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, she spotted Raymond and a pretty woman walking toward the entrance.
It wasn't until he was almost out the door that his eyes caught Tayo's who was already boring a hole into him. She watched as recognition grew in his eyes, followed by surprise. She caught his eyes flicking around her, most likely in search of Hope. A knowing smile crawled up her face.
"He's here," she whispered, not so quietly to Hope who jumped to her feet at lightning speed.
"Hope?" He called, a bit flustered as he registered her presence.
"Hi," Hope muttered weakly, suddenly feeling coy.
They both went quiet as they both seemed to be at a loss of what to say to each other.
It wasn't until the woman beside Raymond cleared her throat that his gaze shifted off Hope and back to her. The woman was regarding them all with unmasked curiosity. It was obvious she was curious about who they were but didn't want to seem forward. Hope wouldn't have minded though; she was curious as to who she was as well.
"Uhm, so . . . Thank you for stopping by, Raymond," the woman said, flashing a smile at him. Hope felt her hand fisting at the action, shocking her. She'd never for once considered herself the jealous type.
"Anytime," he replied, returning the smile. She waved briefly at him before going back into the restaurant. Looking to occupy herself, Hope watched the woman until she was out of sight.
Tayo cleared her throat awkwardly, getting all of their attentions. "Paul and I will be leaving now to get that ice cream."
Raymond looked lost to what she said and Tayo didn't wait for a response as she hastily walked off, pulling Paul with her. Left alone with Hope, a feeling of deja vu struck Raymond as he remembered the last time he'd been in almost the same situation. It had felt just as awkward then as well.
"I wasn't expecting to see you here," he said for lack of a better conversation starter.
"Yes. I'm sure you weren't expecting me to show up on your date," Hope replied, her voice surprisingly devoid of the malice she was feeling.
He seemed a bit taken aback. "What? That wasn't . . ."
"Wasn't . . . ?" Hope prompted, hoping.
He shook his head slightly. "Never mind. Are you going home?"
Hope could hardly hide her disappointment. "I-I guess. My friends seem to have ditched me."
He nodded, tilting his head in the direction where he'd parked. "Let's go then, I'll drop you."
Hope didn't bother replying but she followed him over to and into his car, silently brewing. It was like a war had broken out in place of her feelings and it wasn't helping that he just sat there, driving, seemingly unbothered by her presence while it felt like she was about to burst any minute.
Unable to bear it anymore, she blurted, "You didn't reach out to me all week."
His eyes briefly left the road as he chanced a glance at her. In that brief moment, she could see the reluctance in them. "I could say the same about you."
Touché. She'd expected that, and she wasn't surprised. That wasn't enough to make her back off though. "Still. Why didn't you?"
He seemed at a loss for an answer but that only lasted a few seconds. "Why does it matter if we texted or not?"
"What?"
"We've known each other for years, Hope, and it has never mattered that we don't talk regularly. Why is it now an issue?"
It didn't seem like a question, it was more like he was getting a point across, and Hope was a bit scared she knew just what that point was.
He waited patiently for her response, so much so that it started getting on her nerves. If she didn't know better, she'd have thought he was toying with her.
"I don't know, okay?" She finally conceeded, frustrated.
He nodded as if he'd been expecting that. "You want to know what I think?"
"Not really," Hope replied honestly.
He obviously decided to take that as a 'yes'. "I think we're both getting a bit too carried away."
Hope felt herself getting defensive. Somehow, she had seen this coming. "What does that mean?"
The only indication that he was uncomfortable or struggling with the conversation was the slight tightening of his grip on the wheel, a gesture that went unnoticed by Hope. "I've really been thinking about it, and I think it's about time we put an end to this."
Hope's heart skipped, and not in the good way. It was almost as if she was on the verge of a breakup, which was funny since they weren't in a relationship in the first place. Taking her time so she didn't come off as whiny, she asked, "Put an end to what?"
He sighed softly, and it was then Hope could sense a little that he wasn't as unbothered as he appeared. "This . . . Secret thing. I don't like that I'm lying to Alex, Sophie and your mum for you. I can't help feeling like it's going to all blow up one day and hurt a lot of people. I don't know what your reasons are, and I'm not judging, but I've come to realize I shouldn't have agreed to cover for you in the first place. I encouraged you and that was really wrong of me."
Hope was lost for a while there. That wasn't what she'd been expecting at all. She supposed she should have been tensed and worried, but all she felt was rising anger. "What? Why are you suddenly bringing that up? You know that's not what the issue is right now."
He glanced incredulously at her. "I beg to differ."
"You're just using that as an excuse to avoid the real issue," Hope accused, feeling confident for whatever reason.
"Hope . . . ," He started, sounding exasperated.
"You almost kissed me on Friday." She wasn't even aware she was calling him out on it until she was.
His jaw hardened, his grip tightening on the steering wheel. It was then it occured to Hope that they'd arrived at her house at some point. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"Please. I'm not a child, don't talk to me like one," she warned.
"Alright, I'm sorry." He shifted slightly so he was facing her. "What do you want from me, Hope?"
What did she want? Him. She wanted him. She figured she couldn't just tell him that. "I just . . . I just want to know how you really feel about me."
His gaze visibly softened, and Hope felt that moment of tenderness down to her bones. "You already know," he whispered softly.
Inexplicable joy was surging through her, but the last thing she wanted was to get ahead of herself. "No, I don't. I won't know until you tell me."
He looked genuinely tortured, and Hope felt bad that she put him in that position, but she really was exhausted with the back and forth.
She could sense the moment he gave in. It was like his while body softened. "I'm falling for you, Hope."
Her breath hitched, a huge smile splitting her face. "Ray . . . "
He held up a hand to cut her off, briefly looking away from that beautiful smile that was slowly making him lose all sense of reasoning. "Don't. You wanted to know why I didn't reach out to you all week? It's because things have changed. My feelings for you change everything. Something as trivial as texting seems to hold so much importance for me now, and it's driving me crazy."
"I--"
"I know I shouldn't let my feelings grow any deeper than they already are, but it's really hard to think straight when you're right in front of me."
Hope was yearning to make him understand just how mutual the feeling was, but she couldn't come up with the right words that could do justice to what she was feeling. All she seemed capable of was staring longingly at him, feeling like she finally had him but didn't at the same time.
"But you and I can't happen, Hope. I'm not ready for that," he concluded. The sole consolation to her for those heartbreaking words was how miserable he looked uttering them.
That put a tiny dent in her joy, but only a little. "Do I even get a say in this?"
He exhaled and nodded. "Yes, but it won't change anything."
Hope was not sure why she found that cute, but she did. She couldn't even bring herself to feign anger. "Alright. Fine. I get that you're overwhelmed. I'll give you space to sort through your feelings."
She watched amusedly as his face slowly scrunched up in realization of what she meant, "I didn't ask you for sp--"
"Yes, I know. I have the right to make my choice and decision as well," she stated, throwing his words back in his face. "All I said was that I wanted to know how you feel about me. I know now, so I'm fine."
His mouth opened and closed, genuinely lost on how to respond to that. That wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting. At all. If anything, it was the direct opposite. All he seemed to have achieved was revamping her resolve and tiring himself out.
He shook his head, deciding he might as well drop it. "Go in, Hope. We're home."
She didn't resist, getting out of the car feeling the best she'd felt all week. "And uncle Ray?"
"Hm?"
"You didn't ask, but for what it's worth, I've fallen for you as well." She didn't wait for his reply as she flashed him a wide smile before turning on her heels.
Yes. He really was in deeper trouble than he'd thought.
• ~ • ~ •
I'm very sorry I've been terribly inconsistent, guys.
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