Chapter 2 is finally here! I hope you guys enjoy ❤️
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A couple days later, my friends from outside school decided to go out together and celebrate because we have all just finished year 11. Considering that we all lived in different parts of London, we decided to go on a shopping trip to Westfield. We haven't seen each other for years and I was a little nervous at meeting them for the first time in a long time.
For the millionth time, I checked that I had all my things, because that is what I usually do. I like to be prepared.
"Omy, I'm going out now " I called, checking the time as I put my watch on.
"Okay, wait, wait!" she responded.
My siblings were at school and Aby was at work. It was a weekday so that meant that the Underground Tube and Westfield shopping mall weren't going to be packed with lots and lots of people.
"Here you go," Omy said, giving me some money, "Stay safe and be careful, take care of yourself. If something happens, call me and if you get lost just ask or use your phone."
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Have a good day" I said, giving her a quick hug and walking out of our flat with her locking the door behind me.
"Just left the house. Going to catch the tube now." I texted
PING!
My friend Aisha replied saying: "Ok see u soon".
Waiting for my tube, I wondered why Americans called the Underground the Subway. Surely the subway was that underground tunnel that allowed you to walk across a very large, busy road?
I was still busy in thought as I got on the Tube and passed a couple stations until I noticed a smartly dressed man sit down in the seat directly opposite me. Ugh. Sometimes I do not like any social interaction and prefer strangers to be at least a good metre away.
I moved my focus to the adverts above trying not to pay any attention to him. His jaw was clenched and I could feel that his grey eyes were staring straight at me behind a couple of stray wisps of hair.
It was getting really awkward and I was feeling very uncomfortable. I quickly glanced at him to see if he was still staring after a couple of minutes and guess what? He sure was. Quickly, I diverted my eyesight.
I can't keep doing this. Come on Asmaa. Stare him in the eye back. Show him that you refuse to allow him to continue this way. Show him that he can't intimidate you.
He seemed to be in his mid to late forties. His hair was as dark as the feathers of a crow, however it was dark, soft and shiny. Turns out, his eyes weren't grey, but light blue like the ocean on a cold, foggy morning. His mouth was tightly shut, his lips a thin straight line as if he was trying to concentrate on something. Clenched tightly was his angular jaw, its jawline so sharp and prominent like the blade of a knife. Shirt, tie, blazer: he wore an expensive suit that did not have a single flaw - not even a crease! Shining brighter than the glaring lights were his shoes, polished mirrors that allowed you to see your reflection in them with full colour even though they were the colour black!
Why is he catching the Tube? Men like him would have been driving their own cars.
Finally he looked away and I scoffed, smirking. The winner of the staring contest was... me!
I was glad I stared back, instead of going on my phone and reading a downloaded Wattpad story to avoid the awkwardness. Not only would I have been a little intimidated, but that would have used my battery charge – trust me I do not like going out with a battery charge lower than 90%.
Luckily, we Tube arrived at my stop just as we finished the staring contest. I got off the Tube with my head held high and walked out of the station only to see that so was Mr Businessman.
Wait, WHAT?!
I started panicking slightly inside and had to take deep breaths to calm myself down. There were a million reasons as to why he could be here as well: he could go shopping, be meeting someone or maybe he works here? Besides, I wasn't going to be alone for much longer now, my friends should be here somewhere.
Just then, I got a phone call from my friend Aisha.
"Hi Asmaa!" she exclaimed.
"Hi Aisha!" I replied forgetting about Mr Businessman.
"Are you at Westfield yet?" she asked.
"Yes I am, I'm by 'The Village'."
"Oh! I'm not too far! Wait, I'll be right there."
We soon met up and exchanged greetings. We were so happy to see each other again after such a long time. It wasn't as easy meeting up with our third friend though: we had to spend 15 minutes searching for our friend Zainab. Like a pair of maniacs, we ran all over Westfield because Zainab just couldn't just stand still and wait for us to come; Zainab kept walking around searching for us which resulted in her getting further and further away.
Finally, we caught up with Zainab and were able to go shopping and catch up. I can't believe that we haven't seen each other in around 4 years! Everything was going smoothly and I was enjoying myself. I completely forgot about Mr Businessman (yes, that is his new name: it is a bit long but it suits him).
After a couple of hours, we decided to settle for some food at one of the many restaurants. We all agreed on pizza so we went to Pizza Express. We talked, joked, took photos and had a good time. Then I saw him from the corner of my eye.
I turned my head slightly to make sure that I wasn't imagining it all. It was him. Staring right back at me, again. I stared back, narrowing my eyes at him.
"Asmaa!" Zainab shouted.
"What?" I snapped back without realising, "Oh, sorry."
"Is everything okay?" asked Aisha looking at me with a look of worry on her face.
"Uh... yes, everything is fine. "I –um, I just thought I saw someone I knew" I lied.
"Ok" they replied in unison.
He was still standing there. I was getting a really bad feeling about something.
After lunch we continued shopping, but this time, I couldn't forget about Mr Businessman easily. I often saw him around as the day continued. Trying my best to forget him, I pretended nothing was bothering me. I didn't want to tell anyone of our encounter earlier, nor did I want to ruin the day out. I even tried to persuade myself that it's all a figment of my imagination!
Clothes, shoes, accessories: our bags weighed us down. We had spent hours shopping, it was getting dark outside and we were getting tired. At least we had fun.
We said goodbye at one of Westfield's doors and set off on our separate ways, trying not to look too awkward with our many shopping bags, as we all headed to our homes. I was grateful that the Underground station was literally next to Westfield but I still couldn't help but wonder how I was going to go home with all this shopping.
On the ride home, I was getting rather agitated and anxious. It was getting late and Mr Businessman was in the neighbouring carriage.
Just great.
Upon arriving at my station, I picked up my bags and hurried off the train looking behind me to make sure that I didn't leave anything behind (typical me). I then rushed out of the station also. I'm sure Mr Businessman got off at the same stop too, because I had this nagging feeling that he did, but I didn't look back to check: looking back would have slowed me down. Instead, I rushed home and sighed a sigh of relief as soon as I stepped into safety.
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Hmm... Why would he be following her? 🤔
Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! If you found it a bit boring, I'm sorry, but I promise that it'll get a lot more interesting soon...