Ruby“Can we please talk?” Dad eyed us desperately, imploring us to listen. We backed up towards the door, preparing to escape. “Caleb and I were fighting.” He let out an exhausted sigh. “I just thought—” He circled his hands around, struggling to justify this.”I squealed with shock as soon as he mentioned Caleb.“What? Oh, my God. Dad, why would you do that?” I demanded an explanation, livid that he got into a fight with my boyfriend.My insides were screaming. That was Caleb’s blood. I felt sick.“I know this seems bad.” He ran a hand up and down in front of himself, gesturing at his presentation. “But it looks a lot worse than it is,” he splutter

Caleb She growled in embarrassment and hid her face in her hands. “Ugh, fine. Just don’t laugh.” “I can’t promise that. You laughed when you saw me standing in the buff. Now that doesn’t do much for the male ego, does it?” I replied, not letting it drop. I wanted my answer more than ever. Ruby gasped in amusement. “I wasn’t laughing at ... whatever.” She rolled her eyes. “Alright, I’ll tell you. Ever since I met you, that night in the elevator in Washington, I thought about you a lot.” A blush crept across her flawless creamy skin. It reached her ears, turning them crimson. I ran a hand down my face in mock horror. “Ooh, no, no, you had a little girl crush on me? Babe, now I feel weird.” She stoo

RubyThe pretty waitress returned carrying an ice bucket containing a bottle of champagne. I didn’t take my eyes off Caleb as she popped the cork and poured some into my glass, then into his.I picked up the delicate flute and brought it to my lips, pulling back for a moment as the fizz bubbles flew up my nose. I took a small sip to sample the taste, wincing and scrunching my lips. The effervescent liquid set my taste buds alight. It was gorgeous. Not like the sugary sweet stuff my mom usually buys at Christmas. I knew absolutely nothing about champagne or fine wines. I was a clueless novice. Just like Eliza Doolittle in the movie ‘My Fair Lady’ before she was trained to fit into high society with all the rich, snobby, socialites, I imagined myself speaking in an overly accentuated, upper class, English accent, reciting the famous phrase, ‘The rain in Spain,

Ruby Caleb dropped me home, promising to bring my car to me by the morning. My head was giddy from the champagne, so I couldn’t have driven home myself. I blew him a kiss and waved goodbye at the front door. Apart from the slither of light that spilled through the kitchen doorway, the rest of the house was in darkness. It seemed peaceful. My slippers served as a welcome replacement for my high-heeled shoes. I kicked them off, sighing with relief by the shoe rack. My lips curved into a slight smile, replaying the evening’s events in my mind as I shucked off my leather jacket, hanging it up on the coat stand. I hummed a tune, plodding through to the kitchen. My initial thought was to make a hot drink, maybe invade the fridge and seize the can of ready-whip. But the first thing I noticed was the dirty dinner dishes in the sink.

CalebThe following day ...We were about to hold a legal meeting. My father, Aaron and I, were all gathered around my father’s desk, waiting for Charles, our lawyer, to finish flicking through the heavy file. Neither one of us spoke during the painful silence as we watched and waited, and waited.“This is ridiculous,” Aaron huffed and folded his arms.My thoughts mirrored Aaron’s. I had been dreading this encounter for days. Everything was riding on this meeting and I crossed my fingers as I prayed for good news.“So, where do we stand?” I asked, in my assertive, all business, tone. My eyes were fixed firmly on Charles, who was fidgeting uncomfortably under my heated glare.