Chapter Six

“He really smiled with me Noor. He talked to me and everything was so perfect like we have known each other for a long time. He isn’t as bad as I pictured him Noor,” she kept talking and talking about it and her friend’s smile was reaching her ears as she listened to her.

“Awww! I knew you loved him,” she cooed blinking her eyes.

“Crush. I have a crush on him big difference,” Maya emphasized.

“Crush, love there’s no difference. You love him and he might as well love you the same. Girl, he asked you to have lunch with him and the last time I heard that he took a woman out for lunch except his sister is…never. Zero.”

Maya chuckled. “He is very handsome though. I would die to have him take me out. For me it’s his eyes and smile, I would lose myself in those misty grey eyes. God that smile with dimples, I wish I could just have him for myself. And I really, really want to kiss him again.”

“You are a bad girl! Wow, at least you are learning something by being in my company. I presume aunt will be hearing the good news very soon but I really pray that mini Christian and Maya comes first before the actual thing,” she chirped.

“Noor, you are crazy,” she shook her head in disbelief taking a sip of her milkshake. “I doubt he would look at me in that way. Noor, the man is perfect in everything. A man like him deserve great women not someone like me. Sometimes I really wish I was slimmer and sexy like you Noor.”

“Hey stop it. You’re beautiful Maya. You should know that in this world there are two types of beauties. The first one is the physical beauty and the second one is the inner beauty. Maya, you don’t lack in either. You’re both beautiful in and out. What is the point of being beautiful physically and lack the second type of beauty? Men like Christian Ambrose are seeking out for real women not jokes.”

She sighed playing around with her straw. “You are right about that one but then I…”

“Maya? Maya Rose?” a voice interrupted her and she raised her eyes to see who it was, once she did she really wished she didn’t.

“Its really is you! Wow! It’s been a long time since we have seen each other. When was that? High school?”

Maya awkwardly chuckles. “Yeah ,yeah it was in high school,” she nodded and she really wanted to leave from there. “It’s a pleasure to see you again Chantelle.”

“Me too,” she glanced over to Noor then back to Maya again.

“Oh she is my friend, Noor. Erm…Noor she is Chantelle my former high school classmate.”

“Hello it’s nice to meet you,” Noor smiled at her.

“It is indeed,” she answered in a disinterested manner then looked at Maya who has gone silent. “Well…Maya it’s good that I have met you here. I am actually here on an outing with my fiancé. I have been wanting to meet you so that I can invite you to our dinner party,” she searched inside her bag and pulled out an invitation card. “This is your pass and the venue is on there. It’s more of a reunion I would love it if you would come. You will come right?”

“Erm…sure! Yes I will definitely be there!”

“Wonderful! I have to get going now. My man is waiting. See you on Friday Maya,” she waved goodbye and left.

Noor sighed staring at her friend. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to Maya.”

“Wh…what?”

“We have been friends since college and I know it when you don’t want to do something. You don’t want to go to this reunion thing and you are not comfortable with this girl either. So are you going to tell me what is going on or we will leave it at that?”

She fidgeted with the strings of her hair. “Remember the girl I told you about? The one who used to call me fat and make jokes about me?”

“Yes.”

“She is the one. Chantelle Paige, the golden girl of the school whom guys wanted to be with except for one who pretended to love me and later embarrassed me in front of the whole school during prom,” she swallowed a big lump that was forming in her throat. She has tried so hard to forget those haunting memories and when she saw one of those nightmares all her wall collapsed.

“Oh babe I am so sorry,” Noor immediately went to her side and gave her a comforting hug. “But she doesn’t look like it. She looks so innocent.”

“Yes, that’s what all the adults said every time I went to report. Chantelle can never do that. She’s a good girl with good grades. Little did they know she was pure evil and what surprising is she was only mean to me.”

“I am sorry. You know you don’t have to go right? Don’t force yourself to face those demons after what they did to you in the past.”

She shrugged. “We were kids then Noor. I want to believe that she has grown and is mature now afterall she did say she is engaged right?”

“You are so naïve and think positive of other people. A leopard doesn’t change it’s spot and old habits die hard. That girl there didn’t look like she has changed to me. She didn’t even bat me an eye. She reminds me of Chanel even their names are almost similar and their attitude sucks as well. If you are not going to change your mind about going then you are going to need a perfect plan.”

She turned to look at her friend with a puzzled face. “How do you mean?”

“You are going to need a complete make over, a new dress with shoes and a boyfriend. Not just any boyfriend. A hot dapper boyfriend like Christian Ambrose.”

“Do you think that Brad would agree to go with me as a fake boyfriend?”

Noor gave her a sour stare. “Wait, I am talking about a real deal and correct boyfriend and you are here talking about Brad. I was talking about Christian.”

“And what about him? He is not my boyfriend and will never be if that’s what you are thinking. Stop pairing us up and help me with my make over,” she grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the ice cream parlor.

“Okay. Okay just slow down for me please. Besides the party is on Friday. You still have three more days to look for a dress.”

The latter didn’t listen she kept dragging her out of the parlor.

                               ★★★

Maya swirled in front of her mirror. Noor looked up from her laptop and sneered.

“Girl I hate that dress,” she said causing Maya to smile and swirl more as if admiring the dress.

“I hate it too,” she added.

Noor gave her an amused look. “Then why are you wearing it?”

“Because it is my mother’s dress. Apparently it will give me some good luck at the dinner party tonight. It’s the same dress she wore when she met my father for the first time according to her.”

“Your mother is crazy! She actually thinks you would meet your husband by wearing this dress tonight?”

She hummed a response taking out another dress to try on. “So what should I wear? Casual smart or formal?”

“Well this is a dinner party so go with formal. Wear the purple dress since purple is your favorite color.”

“Isn’t the dress a little too much for a dinner? I mean won’t I be a little over dressed?”

“Maya it is a dinner party. Everyone will be over dressed. Just go in and change. I have a date with my boyfriend at seven and we have to take you to that party as well,” she pushed her into the dressing room.

“So how do I look?” Maya asked after a few minutes changing into the dress and fixing her make up.

“Sexy. Hot. Beautiful. All the good things you can think of. Is that cherries? You smell like cherries.”

“Its my cologne and my lip balm. I like to smell fruity,” she smiled fixing her hair. “I have a collection of those. You might want to have some. Honestly I really wish you were coming with me.”

“Me too honey but I wasn’t invited. You just go in there and show everyone else what you are made of. Don’t you dare cry when you get there. Where’s the dinner at? Gardens of Eden.”

“Yep! The most beautiful gardens in the entire city. I can’t wait!” she chirped.

Noor grabbed her car keys. “Lets get you there. I have to come back home and prepare myself for my handsome and hot boyfriend.”

Maya rolled her eyes at her. “Please don’t get pregnant. I am not ready to become an aunt yet,” she joked.

“Oh trust me we will just be having fun. Nothing serious will come out of it. Even I am not ready to become a mother.”

They laughed together as they walked out of the room.

 🌹

The gardens of Eden were known of there magnificent beauty. A garden of roses and other beautiful and unique flowers. However it’s beauty was best witnessed at night. Maya was awestruck as she admired the splendid sight. She could live here forever if she wanted to.

It was so enchanting. Her fingers brushing along the flowers as she walked on the paved pathway. A smile crept on her face

“Maya?”

She quickly turned around to see Chantelle. She was wearing a elegant blue dinner gown and her make up was spot on and outstanding. She couldn’t help but compare herself with the goddess standing in front of her.

“Wow! You look beautiful in that dress,” the lady stated eyeing her from bottom to top. “So different. You don’t even look fat in the dress.”

“Erm…thank you for the compliment.”

“It wasn’t,” she gave a sinister smile and took her hand. “Come everyone is waiting for you especially your special guest.”

“Special guest? Who are you talking about?”

“Come you will see,” she led her to where the crowd was. “Ladies and gentlemen please welcome our guest of honor, Maya Rose,” Chantelle announced shoving her into the center.

“Maya? Is that you?” Brad who was in the party noticed her. She looked different from the last time he had seen her. She was beautiful and hot in that lacy dress. She never dressed up like this when they were together.

Maya glanced at his side and there was his ex girlfriend with a baby dump in a pale blue dress. She is pregnant! Bile coiled at the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t stand the sight.

“Brad, you know her?” Chantelle asked in curiosity glancing between them. “What would a hot man like you be doing with an ugly fat pig like her.”

Glad with the insult thrown at Maya, the latter smirked taking a sip from his wine glass. “A pass time,” he nonchalantly shrugged giving his girlfriend a kiss on the cheek. “I was lonely and horny, I saw her and asked myself why not have some fun.”

“Wow Maya! You are really a cheap. Hooking up with my cousin brother? Seriously? I guess you never let go of your cheap ways of getting men. You did the same thing with Saint back at high school and I have invited him and his girlfriend.”

She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth glaring at Brad who was blowing kisses at her when no one was watching. “We were just kids. Saint, was just a high school crush that’s it. I don’t even think of him anymore. One more thing I didn’t know Brad was your cousin when we started dating. Had I known I won’t have dated him in the first place. He is nothing but a punk and a mistake any other girl would make by dating him.”

“Is that an insult?” Brad asked fuming.

“Take it however you want Brad. I have said what I wanted to say,” she concluded.

Saint managed to break the heated conversation between the three and initiated for everyone else to start eating. Maya grabbed a chair and made sure she was far away from Brad, his baby mama and Chantelle.

“So how have you been holding up Maya?” Saint asked with a smile which she couldn’t help but return.

“I am good, I guess.”

“What are you doing for a living?” Brad’s girlfriend whom she learnt was Georgia asked genuinely.

“I work at Ambrose Fashion as a design manager.”

“Wow! Such a big company. Are you sure you work there or you are just saying for a show off?” Chantelle asked smugly. “Or maybe you are not a manager but an assistant. A pathetic assistant not forgetting fat.”

“I do work as a manager Chantelle. Why would I lie about that?”

“Well lying is in your veins. I remember you once told the whole school that you and Saint were a couple. Guess what everyone, Saint denied all the claims and showed her, her real place in his life. Right on the ground.”

The entire table roared with laughter.