Mystery Man..

~~Indigo~~

The past week sucked.

Seriously, there was no poetic way to say it. Just… sucked.

Between Braxton’s wedding, Slade’s words, and my impulsive decision to leave, I’d spent the past few days pretending that “moving on” as I called it was easy. It wasn’t actually. It was way worse than I imagined and I spent the last two days in my apartment living on caffeine and anything that didn't require me having to get up from my couch.

Today however, I knew that I needed to fully unpack and begin my daily routines. The minute I stepped in my room and looked in the corner where I kept my bags, I froze.

Nothing had changed. What was I expecting? That someone would come clean up my mess? No, I seemed to have a knack for letting every single problem pile up until I had no way to get out of it. I kicked off my shoes, muttering under my breath. “Great job, Indie. New start, same chaos.”

I tried unpacking — my sweaters, makeup bag, my old charger tangled around a photo frame. I set the frame down on my bed side table, tilting my head to see what photo it was under the glow of the morning light… then wished I hadn’t.

It was us. Braxton and me. Grinning at the camera, faces close as he wrapped his hands around me, the smile on his face nothing short of goofy.

Of course I remembered where we had taken this photo. The first time we had gone mountain climbing ㅡ I was scared shitless and well… he was there to support me until we made it to the top.

A sharp laugh slipped out before I could stop it. “God, I’m pathetic.”

And yet, I couldn't let go of it. Slade's words echoed in my head as tears blurred my vision. Slade was gone, Braxton was gone, Emily would take a few days to return as they were cleaning up after the wedding since I had bailed.

“Seriously?” I groaned, dragging a sleeve over my face. “Crying again? Ugh.”

I couldn’t do another minute of this. Sitting around, thinking. I had wanted to spend the whole day in bed again, just eating and watching movies but I needed a distraction. Fast.

Without thinking, I snatched my phone off the counter and hit speed dial.

“Hello?” A familiar voice came through immediately.

“Yeah, hey. It’s me.” My voice came out tight. “I’m coming in.” I ripped the phone tighter.

There was the sound of jabbing keyboards. “Indie, it’s your day off—” The woman started but I didn't let her finish.

Well, I had taken several days off and it wasn't exactly helping because I was still going crazy.

“Not anymore.” I breathed out and grabbed my keys. “See you in twenty.”

Work. I needed work. Not feelings.

Grabbing my purse off the counter after changing into a better outfit, I rushed out of my house, flagging down a taxi.

The ride to the office was mostly silent and I leaned my head against the cold window pane, watching as the city blurred past with people and cars.

When I got to the office, I paid the taxi driver a crumpled $20 bill before I took a deep breath and walked into the block of buildings.

The office smelled familiarㅡ Coffee and the underlying smell of papers. My safe zone.

I dumped my bag on the chair and powered up my laptop.

Okay, now I needed to update my account with the photos and videos of Braxton's wedding so that potential clients could reach out to me if they liked it.

Y'know, this could be fun. Very calming.

Click. Scroll. Upload. That was all I had to keep doing as I sorted out through the photos in my cloud.

Then I froze, staring at one picture, scrolling back up to take a better look at it.

On the screen was me and Slade dancing at the rehearsal. My hand in his and his gaze locked on me. That look on his face made my heart skip a beat even though it was only through a screen—soft, focused, like I was the only one there.

Oh god, this wasn't exactly an escape. Memories of his fingers in me, slowly thrusting filled my mind and I felt my mouth run dry for a moment, my thighs clenching together.

I swallowed hard. “Nope.” I clicked away fast, but the image had already seared into my memory.

Emily had said something about using him to distract myself from Braxton and it seemed like a really plausible idea because he looked like the type that would make you forget every other thing and just focus on them.

Yeah, sure. He also looked a lot like the guy I was still trying to forget.

“Move on,” I muttered. “Right. Easy.”

A knock came at the door to my office.

“Come in,” I said, straightening up as I minimized the window, turning around.

A lady poked her head in, her glasses resting on the narrow bridge of her nose. “Miss Indigo, the board’s ready. They want you in Meeting Room A.”

“Now?” I raised a brow.

She nodded. “New client. Said they requested you personally.”

Requested me? Great. Hopefully not another couple getting married this week.

That would be the joke of the century.

My boots clicked against the marble floor and I fiddled with my fingers as I made my way to the Boss's office.

I mean, I had expected a job offer soon but not this soon. Well, it only meant more money and a distraction.

When I got to the large doors, I paused for a second before I raised my hand and knocked lightly on it, hearing a soft mumble telling me to come in before I opened the door.

“Indie.” My boss smiled as I entered. “Good timing. We’ve got a fun one for you.”

“Fun? That’s debatable.” I muttered as I took a seat. “What’s the project?”

He clasped his hands together, his leg crossing over the other. “New client. Big spender, just the type we need. He specifically asked for you and said he knows your work. We don't have much detail on him as he wants to remain anonymous but he's planning something huge and wants you to handle it. You're doing a great job”

Okay, slow down.

“Knows me?” I frowned. “What kind of event?”

He grinned. “That’s the big mystery. He didn’t say. Just gave us a theme: ‘A Forever in the Making.’”

I blinked. Once. Twice. Then let out an indignant scoff. “That’s it?”

“That’s it. He said you’ll figure it out and you'll see.”

My brows furrowed. “So he basically said ‘throw a party’ and vanished?”

“More or less. But the budget’s generous. Real generous. You in?”

I hesitated for half a second, then nodded. “I’m in. Might as well keep busy.”

“Good. He’ll reach out with the first instruction soon.”

I shifted in my seat, feeling like the leather was biting into my skin. “So I'll see him?”

The man paused. “I don't know”

I mean, how else was he going to send the instructions? Well, this was seeming to be fun and I was totally down for it.

My boss explained a few more things to me while I just sat there, gripping the armrest while listening attentively to the tiny details we knew about the project before I told him I was going to clock in for the day and resume fully tomorrow to start planning the event.

I’d just stepped out of the meeting, running through ideas in my head, when my phone buzzed.

Unknown Number: The first clue’s waiting in your office.

I stopped mid-step, my brows furrowed. “What the hell…”

Pocketing my phone, I walked back in my office and there it was — a colorful box sitting neatly on my desk, wrapped like a gift.

How did it get there?

My heart thudded as I peeled off the paper.

Inside was a folded letter and I gently tore it open and it read: Every forever deserves its colors. The blush of first glances, the ivory of promises made, the wine of love shared.

Seriously? A poem.

No name. No signature. Just a fucking poem.

I read it again slower. Then once more, because really? A four line poem?

Whoever this client was, he clearly liked games. Lucky for him, I needed one.

I smiled faintly, folding the note before tucking it back into the box to take home. “Alright, mystery man,” I murmured. “Let’s play.”