Talks and thoughts

ZOE

“Your place is beautiful!” Rachel exclaimed, as she sprawled on my bed.

I nodded, grateful for this apartment. It was big and beautiful. “It is.”

“Apartments are very expensive in New York, my place sucks.” She shivered in hypothetical chills.

“Is that why you were outside so late?” I asked, handing her a glass of juice. I wasn’t really good at hosting.

“Thank you.” She took a sip before she continued, “That’s part of it. I’m still uncertain about what to do in New York. I thought to take a walk, observe, and learn. Maybe I’ll get an idea.”

I frowned. “Why did you leave your salon?”

She smiled. While I was scared her salon had gone under, she was either good at hiding her worry or she wasn’t sad at all. “It’s fine.”

“Well, you’re welcome here, anytime,” I offered.

“Thank you.” She looked grateful. “Now tell me all about your relationship with Arman.” Rachel jumped. “I’ve seen the pictures and I have to say, that chemistry is real!!” she screeched.

I winced. “I’m not allowed to talk about our relationship. If I tell you, you’ll have to sign an NDA.”

She frowned. “Grass is always greener on the other side. Wait! Don’t tell me YOU signed an NDA too?”

“Did you think dating a celebrity would be a piece of cake?” I snorted.

Rachel shook her head. “Are you happy though?”

I pondered the question. “My happiness isn’t tied to a relationship. Besides, I’m busy myself. I have interviews, shoots, ads—I have a lot going on beyond a relationship.” It wasn’t a lie.

Rachel lifted her phone and handed it to me. “Or he’s more into you than you’re into him.”

It was a picture Arman had posted barely an hour ago. A picture of me sitting across from him in that coffee shop. The only part of him the picture featured was his hand holding his cappuccino.

It was captioned: “My world.”

“He called you his world!!” Rachel screeched, turning red like he had called *her* his world.

Another fangirl.

“It’s complicated,” I tried.

“Love is not complicated. It’s quite simple. He loves you, but you don’t love him.” She sighed, disappointed I wasn’t madly in love with her idol.

“Believe me, this case is complicated!” I really wished I could tell her the details. Arman wasn’t really the old Arman.

“Because you don’t like him? Wait? Are you using Arman as a stepping stone to big deals? You’re taking advantage of him? Zoe! You devil!”

My face fell and horror crept up my cheeks at her words. Not exactly because it came from her, but because they were true. I *was* using Arman. I had lied to myself and said it was the doctor in me wanting to help him, but the statistics showed I had too much to benefit from this deal.

Rachel sobered immediately. “Wait, you know I’m kidding, right?” She slapped herself lightly on the lips. “I swear I was kidding. I am kidding. Whatever you do in your relationship is your choice. No relationship is 100% fair.”

I nodded. “We should sleep, I have a shoot tomorrow.” I sighed. Yes, no relationship was a hundred percent fair, but mine with Arman was a hundred percent unfair.

Rachel and I shared my bed. It was big enough for both of us to sleep comfortably. She apologized over and over as we got ready for bed, and I insisted that all was well and I wasn’t angry.

Surprisingly, sleep came easily, the smell of Rachel’s lavender shampoo soothing my nose.

I woke up to the smell of eggs and toast, my ears greeted by soft music coming from the kitchen. I dragged myself out of bed to find a dancing Rachel in the kitchen. She had a very flexible body, moving like fluid, and her waist looked nonexistent.

“You’re beautiful,” I muttered.

Rachel laughed. “Come join me.” She made a motion with her hands like she was holding a rope tied to me, trying to drag me over.

“I suck at dancing. My body is a log!” I confessed.

“No! That’s not good enough. What if you have a meet-and-greet with fans and they expect you to dance? Or what if you’re offered a collaboration with a musician to be a video vixen? You’ll have to decline because you can’t dance.” She looked like she could come up with a million more scenarios. “How about I teach you how to dance?” She looked excited.

“Well, just remember, you did this to yourself,” I warned.

“Oh, I won’t forget. By the way, I saw your calendar. Your shoot today is by ten, so you should go get ready. Breakfast is ready, you could pack it along or eat before you go,” Rachel explained.

I tilted my head. “You’re good at this.” I nipped a bite of her scrambled eggs before heading to the bathroom.

I got out and found a nice red dress on my bed, along with every accessory that went perfectly with it.

A sudden scream from the sitting room had me running out with my towel, only to find Rachel jumping in front of the door, and Arman holding flowers on the other side.