[ m i l l i o n d o l l a r q u e s t i o n ]
♥ talisa ♥
I SWORE FOR the fifteenth time, launching onto the bed like a madwoman and pummelling the heck out of the mattress. If they had enough space to put a 6ft statue of an octopus in the bedroom, why couldn't they had fit in a punching bag?
My hair was in knots as Uncle Alek's words rang in my head. It wasn't even that. It was the tone of his voice. The same degrading tone that I'd heard for the past decade. "Screw them! Screw them all. Who the hell does he actually think he is? And his pathetic excuse of a wife."
Gripping at the corner of the gossamer bed veil, it groaned in protest as I furiously ripped it off and tore it to the ground.
Don't embarrass my sister any more that your existence already has.
I know you're not pure Russian but you better damn well try to be-
That pure condescending tone.
A smooth voice spoke from the corner of the room pacifyingly. "Talisa, calm down."
I'd forgotten he was even here. Ignoring him, I continued my assault on the bed, punching it repeatedly fist after fist.
"Those fucking aristocratic freaks," I growled in sheer fury. I needed to smash something. Or drink something. Or just do something.
Or all three.
Before I recognised what I was doing, the two champagne flutes beside the jacuzzi had been knocked to the ground.
My head was starting to spin at how tightly I was gritting my teeth together. Or perhaps it was because I hadn't smoked today.
I hate them. I hate them. I hate them.
The reflection of myself in the wardrobe mirror terrified me. She looked crazy. And skinny. A shell of a person. Unhappy with what I saw, I grabbed a pillow and launched it at it. Of course nothing happened. It bounced off and landed on the ground.
"Talisa," Gabriel's voice warned, a slither of annoyance evident.
Before I could reach for something heavier that would successfully shatter the mirror's lens, Gabriel caught my wrists tightly pressing me into the mattress. "Lisa, just calm the hell down and breathe." He sounded pissed off but I didn't give a damn. "I'm not here to babysit you so pull yourself together."
"Then get out. Nobody's asking you to be here." I didn't mean what I said but I could see nothing apart from red. There was so much aggression bubbling in me and I needed an outlet. He knew I didn't mean it.
I tried to claw my way up and Gabriel pinned me down harder. After all the havoc they'd reeked, the hopeful part of me thought they'd have learnt something.
How ridiculously naive. Time gives hope to the foolish and you are not foolish, Talisa Lisin.
I thrashed against him and continued muttering angrily under my breath. "I swear to God, I pray this damn ship sinks to the bottom of the seabed if it means the lot of them suffocate and drown. Even if I get dragged down with them, I'd do it time and time again. Time and fucking time again.
"Let go of me, Gabriel. Just wait until I wrap my hand around their throats-"
My voice was getting louder in frustration and just when I was about to let out a shriek of anger, he clamped his hand over my mouth. "Oh no, you don't," his steel eyes locked in mine as Gabriel read my mind. "Remember you're not the only damn human being on this boat."
I bit his hand.
Gabriel didn't even flinch, his emotionless face locked in place like stone.
Lovely.
Why did he have to be a damn robot?
I mumbled against his hand, my words inaudible from the pressure of his palm.
"Fine, I won't scream."
The second he let go, I yelled in anger.
"I hope they choke on their words and die from asphyxiation-"
His hand slammed over my mouth again as a frustrated sound escaped him. To be fair, it was the most emotion I'd seen from him since Louisa's return. "For Christ's sake, Talisa. Just calm down for a moment."
The fury clouded my mind and unfortunately, the same cycle continued for the next few minutes until I collapsed onto the bed completely exhausted. Judging by how out of breath he was, I'd clearly put up a good fight.
We lay in silence for a few minutes on the battered king size bed, my chest heaving from the immense volume of emotions that had rattled through me. The atmosphere was weirdly comfortable.
That was what drew me to him. The fact that I never had to explain myself. He had no expectations of me and I had none of him.
"Pass me a cig."
He threw the whole pack at me, the only remaining sign of his vexation. It bounced off my eyebrow and I glared hard.
Another few minutes of silence passed before he spoke. The tone of his voice was as resigned as ever when he pulled himself up with one arm to rest again the headboard of the bed. "Talisa, what is the issue? Like what's going on?"
There was something sunken in his eyes as if Gabriel had asked that question a lot in his life.
Biting back a laugh at the simplicity yet complexity of his question, I followed suit and sat up straight. "Well, isn't that the million dollar question?"
I rested my head against his shoulder, feeling his muscles tense up under me. This time I did laugh. "Go on then, shove me off liubimiy." I noticed how his breath quietened. When Gabriel stayed completely still, not a rustle from his short and his jawline tensed, I gave him a sarcastic look. "Do it. Gosh, don't tell me you've gone soft. I despise sympathy."
At his lack of response, I rested my head against his shoulder again. Clearly deep in thought, he wordlessly took the cigarette from between my full round lips and took a long drag, tipping his head to the ceiling. His eyes were shut, sharp contours of his face casting shadows.
The curtains were still drawn tightly, refusing entry from the beams of golden rays outside. It was broad daylight yet something about the midnight-like serenity lingering in the dark room quelled my agitated mind. An idea came drifted to me.
"You know what? Let's play a game," I said quietly. Gabriel looked at me with uninterest yet I continued nonetheless. "You have seven days. On this cruise. Let's see if you can figure out the story behind the mess of my life?"
Gabriel eyes briefly flickered open but still remained trained on the patterns across the ceiling. "And why would I do that?"
I was aware that that was code for 'I don't care about your life.'
It didn't hurt me anymore.
I was immune to it.
You liar.
A wry expression grey on my face as I shifted on the bed so that I could face him. Pieces of his dark tawny hair fell upon his face. "Always on it, aren't you, Riel? And I thought I was a killjoy."
Yet again, it was like talking to a brick wall. But I knew he was listening. I could sense it. That had caught his attention.
I said the next part without thinking them through properly.
It was a dumb decision.
I had so much to lose.
High risk, high reward.
"How about this? If you piece it together successfully, I'll leave you alone," I breathed out, masking my apprehension. I could have sworn he scoffed.
"You'll never hear from me again. I'll avoid your every step at Forteaux without ever causing any problems. And at the end of the school year, I'll be gone. Willingly. Hassle free. Out of your hair forever."
It was a big statement.
And if I hadn't been so drained of emotion, that would have worried me a little.
But in that moment I meant ever single word.
"No more Talisa Lisin in your life."
A different part of me wondered why I'd never thought of it before.
Yes, this had certainly got his attention. The grey iris of his eyes were fully focused on what I was saying having picked up on the seriousness in my voice. He knew that was a lot coming from me.
"What's the catch?" The sound of his tentative voice vibrated through the air.
A slow smile grew on my face.
This is your only chance, Talisa. Speak now or forever hold your peace.
"You're right. There's no fun in just that, is there, liubimiy? Let's up the stakes."
I moved on the mattress, rotating so I was sitting right before him, legs crossed. My long torso meant we were eye to eyes. "If you fail, then..."
I already knew what I was going to say. It was the only thing I ever wanted.
"Well, then you're officially mine."
I surveyed his reaction carefully. "Simple as that."
Knowing my intentions to read him, Gabriel kept his emotions guarded perfectly. Not a flicker of humour passed through him but I could see his conflict. He didn't hesitate, only evaluated the situation.
"I'll let you sleep on it." Smiling to myself, I slinked away, sliding of the bed and making my way back to the credit card on the table. "Do you still want to-"
"Deal."
His direct voice bounced across the room like a rock being thrown at a brick wall. I paused.
"On a few conditions." He rose to his tall height and covered the distance between the bed and sofa in a mere three steps.
"One, you don't try and deliberately cover things up around here. You let things run as they do without being secretive. Otherwise, we both know it's unfair."
"Fine."
"Two. You tell everyone here that we're just friends."
I raised an eye brown and sneered at his words. "Don't be daft. They're not idiots. Friends don't share a damn room."
Come on, Talisa. Remember what's important here.
My white teeth bit the inside of my lip and I held my tongue. "But fine, if it makes you happy." Gabriel's last condition affected me more than the first two.
"And finally." The grey of his eyes analysed me carefully, inspecting my entirety and searching for something I didn't know. "Just know that I expect you to live up to your side of the deal. There's no going back afterwards. You keep your promise to every word."
I scowled at him hard. "Are you doubting my loyalty?" If there was one thing that I was in this word, it was loyal. It ticked me off immensely and I glared at him. Clearly Gabriel didn't expect it for there was a flicker of surprise on his face.
Hands tingling, I ran my fingers through my straightened hair, pulling it into a tight ponytail with more strength than what was needed. It tore at my scalp.
"Oh, don't you dare question my sincerity, liubimiy. If I wasn't loyal, I would never spend every damn day at Forteaux defending your every move after the rumours about Logan and that bitch. You know how deep my stubbornness runs. I'll honour my words so long as you do."
His head sharply moved up and down as he nodded curtly. "That's sorted then."
From the corner of my eye, I noticed him stand up and amble towards the door. "Where are you going?"
He paused in his step but didn't turn to look at me. "If I'm correct, you were told to - no, ordered - to get back to the party in five minutes approximately..." Dragging his eyes away from his watch, he continued. "Twenty minutes ago. So let's get moving."
•••
Just to piss my Aunt and Uncle off, I took 'putting on a pretty dress and some make up' to another level.
Knowing it would irk them, I dressed as the epitome of Russian beauty. I straightened my natural brown curls once again so there a single kink wouldn't be seen even with a magnifying glass and put on a fresh make up that made my skin glow. I wasn't blonde or fair but I sure as hell could tick their narrow-minded beauty boxes of tall, thin and elegant.
Dinner was being served. Round tables had been dotted around the room with multiple layers of cutlery and fine china. In the centre was a large rectangular table that had been decorated particularly lavishly.
The set up almost reminded me of Forteaux's layout.
My eyes caught those of the woman sitting in the centre. With bright green eyes and blonde hair, which I knew had been dyed last week, the woman wore a fitted muted rose dress. The man beside her had a tie that matching the rose colour perfectly.
I looked at him with interest. It was one of the few times I'd actually ever looked at him. Of course, I'd seen him many times before but numerous dismissive glanced has never built up a full picture. His image in my mind was more of a fragmented jigsaw puzzle.
Ivan or my step-father had a short stubble across his beard and chestnut brown eyes. The closer Gabriel and I got to them, the easier it became to see the elaborate wedding band around his finger. When he saw us, a pleasant smile grew on his face. "Ah, Talisa is here. Come on over. It's been a while. You look lovely," he ushered. He was about to stand up to greet us but stopped sharply upon making eye contact with Uncle Alek. I couldn't see his face but I could have bet a couple grand on what it looked like.
One by one, their heads turned in out direction. Ivan. Then my mother. Then Zhenya and Max. Aunt Natalia. Uncle Alek. Ivan's parents.
My grandparent were nowhere to be seen but I knew has they been here, they would have given me even snider looks than the ones my aunt and uncle were shooting me.
Oh no, they wouldn't dare make a scene in front of the guests.
I went to grip Gabriel's hand but he moved it awayy and gave me a harsh look. "You agreed to telling them friends," he spoke lowly. Biting back a scowl, I tucked hair behind my ear putting on show my sparkling helix piercing.
Smiling with more fakeness than a certain brown-eyes brunenette I used to know, I walked towards them as if the ship were mine. "Oh, how lovely it is to see everyone together!" I gushed in sickly sweetness. "I do apologise for being late. My, friend, Gabriel seemed to lose his bow tie after our-"
Gabriel tried to elbow me in the ribs but they'd already caught on.
I have him a look reading I didn't break my promise.
"-encounter. Anyway, where should we sit?"
An idea came to mind. The two encrusted chairs were certainly for Deduska and Babushka and I was certain my Aunt and Uncle would have a heart attack if anyone non-Russian sat in it. How unfortunate would that me. Carnage.
Keeping my posture rigid and casting myself in the most lady-like way, I walked direct towards them and seated myself in one.
A/N: i know i've been so unactive lately so big apologies but i hope this update brightened up your day a little. the reason i wrote this part was because i read some of the direct messages that you guys have sent me and they were the sweetest thing ever! i almost cried! they inspired me to get writing so just know that you absolute stars are responsible for this update - so thank yourselves, haha. sorry, i haven't had a chance to add a banner in but i hope you still enjoyed the chapter!
- kiwi x