I knocked at Valentina's door. It was Saturday night and I going to have dinner with her and some of her friends. I was still a bit confused about what had happened between Mary-Kate and me this afternoon so having dinner with her would be the perfect way to change my mind. I didn't know her friends though, besides what she had told me about them. She had met them a few months ago at a concert. I think it was Taylor Swift. She was queuing the whole day so she could be in the front row. I guess that inevitably, after spending a whole day queuing next to people, you end up bonding somehow. She opened the door.
"Finally!" She rolled her eyes.
"What? I'm not late?"
"Yeah yeah, come in. They're all here!" She grabbed my forearm and led me to the living room. When we arrived in her living room, they were all sitting around the table.
"This is Ana" She introduced me, a smile on her smile.
"We know Valentina, you've been telling us about her already." One of her friends said and I chuckled. She introduced me to all of them and I joined them at the table.
As I took my seat at the table, I couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. Valentina's friends seemed friendly, but the whole situation with Mary-Kate was still lingering in my mind. I greeted everyone with a polite smile and exchanged a few pleasantries.
The atmosphere was lively, with laughter and chatter filling the room. Valentina had prepared a delicious spread of food for the dinner. I started to relax as I engaged in conversation with the group.
I looked at every one of her friends, staying silent for a while. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, not an ounce of concern was showing on their face.
"So Ana," one of the girls, whose name I couldn't remember, looked at me. "Are you dating anyone?" I instantly snapped out of my trance at her question. My eyes widened and my cheeks flushed as I felt all eyes on me. I looked at Valentina and noticed her smirking.
I realized it was time for me to talk and answer the question, so I looked back at the girl. I cleared my throat. "Mh, no" I said, giving her a small polite smile. I reversed the question, hoping the attention would drift to someone else. Thankfully, it worked and she started talking about her own dating life with her boyfriend.
We were done with the main course and Valentina proposed a dessert to everyone. She announced that she was going to fetch dessert from the kitchen, but I told her I'd take care of it. I needed to take a small break from all the chatter and drunken girls. So, I got up and walked to the kitchen. I opened the fridge and took the bakery cake in my hands. I knew it was from a bakery and not handmade because Valentina could never have made that cake. Every time we bake together, I'm always the one getting my hands dirty while she just stands and looks.
"Ana!" Valentina called from the living room.
"Yes, I'm coming!" I said and grabbed the cake as I started leaving for the living room.
"You just got a phone call Ana" Valentina said. I saw that Valentina was smiling and that she had my phone in her hand.
"What? Did you see who it was?" I asked as I placed the cake in the middle of the table. She paused and looked at me, grinning.
"It was Mary-Kate" She tilted her head playfully. "And now, she's buzzing your phone" She smiled as she showed me the screen, notifications popping. "Ana, is there anything you haven't told me, yet?" Valentina asked playfully and I scoffed.
"What- Give me that." I swiftly took the phone from her hand and looked at the texts. Mary-Kate had messaged me several times telling me to call her back as soon as possible. As I pondered a few seconds about how I was going to deal with this now, the same girl who had asked me about my dating life asked Valentina who was Mary-Kate. I promptly raised my head to look at them.
"Mary-Kate Olsen. Ever heard of her?" Valentina answered the girl. The girl's mouth went agape, and she now stared at me with interest.
"Do you mean Mary-Kate Olsen as in the Olsen twins?" I was about to talk but Valentina stopped me before I even had the time to say a word.
"Yes, her. Ana and she are friends." I frowned and tried to clarify the truth.
"No we-" "Oh my god! How did you become friends with her!?" She clamored and I couldn't help but somewhat have mixed feelings about her behavior. She only had an interest in herself or anything that could be advantageous to her. I looked at her, then at Valentina, then back at my phone.
"I need to call her back" I excused myself and left the living room for Valentina's room. I sat on the edge of her bed and took a deep breath. I unlocked my phone and opened the messaging app. I had forgotten that she had my number.
"Hello?" I spoke.
"Ana," Mary-Kate said with a small voice on the other line. "I hope I'm not bothering you?"
"No, no, it's okay." I replied simply.
"I need to talk to you about something." She spoke. She seemed off for sure. Again.
"Is everything okay?" No answer. She stayed quiet for a moment until this silence was broken by a faint sob. She was crying. Was she in danger? Or hurt maybe?
"Mary-Kate," I called her.
"It's- It's nothing, it's not even important, I..." She whispered but I could tell she was still crying.
"Just tell me if you're safe, or- or hurt?" I asked.
"No- I'm okay..." She sobbed. "It's..." She sniffled. "It's something about Ashley..." My eyes widened nervously.
"Is she-"
"She's okay. It's about... something else." Mary-Kate said. I took a deep breath out of relief. "Where are you at the moment?" She asked with a faint voice.
"At a friend's, do you want me to come to the office?" She was really getting me worried.
"No, no. I'm not at the office" She said.
"Where are you?" I asked.
"In my car" She answered slowly.
"And where is your car?"
She paused, then continued. "I'm driving." My heartbeat fastened as I couldn't help but fear why she would be driving her car during the night, alone and crying.
"Wh- why are you driving" I whispered with worry. She didn't answer so I continued. "My friend's apartment is in Brooklyn, Williamsburg neighborhood if you want to-"
She interrupted. "Yes, thank you." She breathed. "I'm going there now"
"Okay," I said. "Drive safe, and I'll text you the exact address."
I hung up. I still didn't know what happened to her, or why she was in this state. She wouldn't be here before a good twenty minutes, so I still had time to go back to Valentina and her friends. I stood up and headed back to the living room.
As I approached the table, Valentina instantly raised her head at me. "Everything's okay?" She tilted her head.
I nodded and sat back in my chair. "I'm not sure. She was driving when she called, and she needed to talk to me, so I told her to pass by." I said, trying to keep this conversation between Valentina and me only. But it failed obviously. I trusted Valentina but I didn't know her friends that much. So, I'd rather not say anything that could start derogative rumors about Mary-Kate if the information were to fall into the wrong hands.
Valentina stared at me. "Mary-Kate Olsen is going to pass by my place." She stated, her face full of dismay.
"Yes, but let's not make a big deal out of it, okay? I wouldn't want the others to become ecstatic." I murmured so only she could hear. She nodded but still looked shocked.
I texted Mary-Kate the exact address and after about ten minutes or so, a notification popped up on my screen. I made a sign to Valentina to let her know I was heading out. I grabbed my coat knowing I would be freezing outside. I went down the stairs and once I had reached the street, I saw a black expensive-looking car parked. This should be her.
The car door opened, and she stepped out. She was wearing the same outfit as she did this afternoon. Nothing seemed to have changed. I walked over to her. As I approached, I realized that she had smudged mascara under her eyes down her cheeks. She looked tired.
"Hi" I said. I didn't know what was going to happen now. I didn't even know what happened to her that made her be in that state.
She mouthed a small hello as she looked at me with small eyes. "I'm sorry if I'm bothering you. I know it's the weekend and... and you were with your friends."
"Please," I waved her off. "It's totally fine." I assured her. She gave in and nodded slowly.
"Do you want to come inside? It's freezing." I asked and her eyes widened a bit.
"I- I'm not sure if I can... I mean" She paused and looked at me. I looked back at her, waiting for her to finish her sentence. She took a deep breath, then continued. "Would it be okay with your friend if I came inside?" She asked.
I smiled. "Yes. I already told her that you might come actually. She's with some of her friends so it won't even bother her."
"Oh, okay" She breathed. I showed her the way and we headed for the stairs. She was ahead of me and I followed. She was right in front of me, so I could see her more clearly from behind. I'd never noticed the length of her hair until now. It touched her waist nicely, even if it was curly.
A few minutes later, we were in front of Valentina's door. I looked at her. "Are you ready?" I asked cautiously and she gently nodded.