A week later

Lacy

“Why don't you come with me? It'll be fun.” Aaliyah said from the bathroom where she was brushing her teeth and getting ready for her little vacation.

I shrugged with a smile, helping her fold her clothes into her suitcase. She's going home for the holidays. She didn't get to go last year because she chose to stay with me.

However, this year, her father pleaded with her to come home. And she's been trying to convince me to go with her.

Except, I don't think I should. Firstly, I've never met her father and I don't think it's a good time to start.

Secondly, I hate being a nuisance and that's all I'm gonna be there.

Aaliyah comes from a very rich family. Her father owns the biggest corporation in the country, and they're worth over a billion. I can only imagine what the aura in her house is gonna look like. I don't wanna put myself through such trauma.

Don't get me wrong though. She's very nice to me. She's a natural blonde, with a striking beauty that comes from her perfect face, nicely done pointed nose, and full lips. She's a typical human Barbie who knows how to flaunt her wealth.

But she's not egoistic and that's what I love about her. Rich people are usually very stuck-up and egoistic. Cocky, like that man from a week ago.

God, no. I decided never to think about him again. Never.

“Girl, listen to me.” Aaliyah stepped out of the bathroom in her lingerie. “You don't wanna stay rotting in this apartment all through the remaining days of this holiday. You should come and have some fun.”

“I think I'd rather stay here.” I smiled, zipping up her suitcase. “But you're all set and ready to leave.”

“Why do you have to be so boring and overly thoughtful about everything?” She pouted, dropping onto her bed. “And why can't you understand that I'd feel guilty leaving you here alone?”

I smiled. Aaliyah and I are both sophomore students. We're both 22 years old. She's just a month older but she treats me like I'm some kid put under her care.

Maybe because to her, I act innocent and reserved. To everyone here in school actually. They all see me as this innocent little virgin. It's not their fault though. It's what I show them.

So none of them know of my nightlife and that I'm nothing close to innocent or a virgin. They have no idea what kinda life I've lived before coming here to study. They know nothing about my family and background. All they know are the little lies I told them about my parents being offshore workers and about me being an only child.

Sometimes I hate myself for lying to Aaliyah about everything. My parents. My hometown. My background. My job. Everything.

Sometimes I wish I could be honest with her. But I've lived more than half of my life hiding. I've got an intense trust issue that stems from the misery I've been through. So it's just so hard and impossible to fully trust anyone. Even though it's someone as nice and charming as Aaliyah.

“Fine. I promise you. If you come and you don't like it, I'll let you leave. Hell, I'll leave with you. We'll both return to this apartment and rot in here until the holidays are over.” She vowed, putting a hand on her cleavage and the other hand upwards.

I laughed at her dramatic display. “You really don't have to take me along with you,” I said, but my protest was weak and almost nonexistent.

“So it's a yes?” She grinned, winking at me.

It's so impossible to say no to her. So I nodded. She hugged me happily and quickly went to get my suitcase.

“Go take a shower. I'll pack for you.” She offered.

I went into the bathroom and got into the shower. On second thought I turned it off because I needed to ask her something.

“What's your father like?”

“My Daddy?” She replied in her tiny, beautiful voice.

“Yeah. Your daddy.”

“Well, he's the quiet type.”

Quiet? A quiet billionaire? That's very unheard of. They're either pervs or very cocky.

“What else?” I asked, as I began scrubbing my body with a sponge.

“He's nice. He's very laconic. He's principled. He can get moody but he's not violent. He's a gentleman. And I think he still misses my Mum a lot.”

Right. Her Mum passed away when she was 15. Cancer.

“That's one of the reasons I wanna go spend the rest of the holidays with him. He's a lonely man. He might just stay staring at her pictures all day.”

I nodded without asking any more questions. From her description, it seems her father…’ Daddy’, wasn't gonna be a problem.

So maybe I'm gonna enjoy staying over at her house after all.