Chapter 20

GRACE'S POV 

I had to admit, I could spew better advice than the one I gave Lana. Even I didn't totally understand what I said, but I refused to let my face give it away. If Susan was here, she'd laugh, trying and failing to hide it. I mean, the hilarity of the advice was just clear and there. Seriously, risk the problem and result facing you head-on? 

I understood she was just trying to be polite with her comments. 

“Got any more advices for me? Maybe something about not hitting and running?” She snarked, and eyebrow raised. 

Alright, her fangs were slowing coming out. Most likely out of defense.

I exhaled softly, looking around briefly. “Look, I’m not here to fight with you.” I told her. 

“Then why are you here?” she asked, her voice almost tired. Almost like she just wanted to drown.

Good question. Why was I here? I'd asked myself when I was walking towards her, I asked the same question when I sat down, and now, I was questioning myself once again. What did I want to do? To fix things for her? To change something? To prove that I could? Truth is, there was nothing I could do for Lana. 

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Maybe I just didn’t want you sitting here alone pretending you’re fine when you’re clearly not. It would bug me so much.”

She stared at me, really stared. Heck, if I could, I'd step out of my body and stared hard at me. I couldn't believe I was really doing this.

She stared at me like she was trying to figure me out. I threw a silent good luck to her. 

“You’re weird,” she said finally, eyeing me.

I smiled faintly. “I’ve been told, trust me.”

There was another pause, but this one felt different. It didn't feel tense, but like some ice finally melted. I could take that, I really could.

She sighed, leaning back in her chair. “It was a total mess. I don't know how I've survived till now.”

“Understatement of the year.” I said, nodding my head slightly.

She huffed a small laugh. “Everything just…” she trailed off, shaking her head. “It wasn’t supposed to happen like that. It just wasn't.”

I watched her carefully. “Then how was it supposed to happen?” Because I was very curious to know everything, the root, and even what happened afterwards. Did they meet somewhere and throw fists? Or pulled hairs? Or did they just ignore each other?

She didn’t answer immediately, but when she did, her voice was very quiet. “I don’t know,” She sounded very honest, raw, and ultimately real. 

Then, I wondered, was this more than just office drama? It felt like it was way deeper than we saw.

I leaned back slightly, crossing my arms. “Well, whatever it was, it’s already done.” 

And it was. Unlike my case, time couldn't be turned around. Except she had a dead father who'd pull strings for her to go back in time, she just wasn't murdered by a cheating husband. 

“Yeah, it is.” She said softly.

I couldn't hold myself from trying to enquire about the after drama of the office drama. Besides, shamelessness never killed anyone. If anything, it got people further than they ever were. 

“So, I want to ask. What happened afterwards? After you both left the office.” I almost groaned aloud at the lame attempt at being subtle.

She smirked weakly. “See, I knew something was coming. You're just thirsty for some gossip, aren't you?” 

I shrugged anyway, chalking down the shamelessness. “Wouldn’t you be? I know I am and I'm not even going to deny it.”

For a while, she didn't say anything. She just sat there, searching my face like she could find something underneath a facade. When it looked like she couldn't find anything, she sighed. 

“I couldn't catch up with her. I guess between the moments where she stalked away, I fell, stood up, and left, she she disappeared. I haven't heard from her since.” She bit her lips, eyes suddenly looking lost.

“Have you tried to contact her?” I asked her.

She leaned back a bit. “And sat what? Hey, Victoria. How about we meet up for brunch and talk about how everything went downhill at the office? And then she'd definitely be down for it, we'd hug and all will be well?” 

I cocked my head. “What are you really avoiding? Both of you said things you weren't supposed to say. I could bet she's drowning the same way you are and is probably waiting for you to call.” 

Lana laughed shortly. “And I can bet that she absolutely hates me. There's nothing else you can tell me.”

I understood where she was coming from. A few years from this time, in the other timeline, Susan and I would have the biggest fight in the history of our friendship. We'd say the most hurtful things about each other and go weeks without speaking to each other. I sat at home, all sad and thinking about her hating me with every fiber in her body, meanwhile, she was patiently waiting for me to call. 

I didn't call, neither did she. 

We only reconciled when we bumped into each other in our favourite ice cream shop, that I'd been avoiding throughout the weeks of silence. The moment she saw me, she burst into tears and hugged me, squeezing me dearly. No words were said, we just wiped our tears, got ice cream and moved on. It was amazing. 

I could see, clearly, that Lana cared for Victoria. They weren't just work wives. Somehow, along the way, they built a beautiful bond that made them best friends. They probably didn't realise it just yet. 

“Call her, Lana. Or don't, you just never know what will happen. You could call, and she could either agree to make things right, or ignore you.” I said, finally. 

She sniffled, and covered her face with her hands.