"Hmm... what time is it?" Shirley twirled lazily in her bed, her eyes struggling to open against the bright sunlight pouring in.

"Good afternoon, sweetie."

She smiled at the sound of her man’s voice—her love, her lifeline. Slowly, she opened her eyes and saw Rayan sitting on the edge of the bed. She raised her arms to him, and without hesitation, he pulled her closer and enveloped her in his embrace. Shirley relaxed in his hold, letting out a contented sigh.

"Are you feeling okay now, baby?" Rayan caressed her hair fondly.

"Much better," she mumbled, clinging to him more tightly. He chuckled and tightened his grip around her.

"I'm sorry, but you have to give me my kiss now. You were exhausted when you landed yesterday; that’s why I let you sleep, you know," Rayan playfully insisted.

"Aww, I love you, baby." With that, Shirley kissed him, and he responded without a care for her morning breath.

"So, how was the trip?" he asked after pulling away.

"It was..." Shirley paused, trying to find the right words to describe their trip.

"Eventful."

"Hm. I guessed as much," Rayan nodded, understanding. Shirley sighed heavily, her mood dimming with each passing moment.

"So, Larra made it difficult, right?"

"It wasn’t completely her fault; I played a part too," Shirley admitted, feeling guilty. Rayan looked at her, puzzled. She went on to explain the things that happened during the last two days of their trip, which she hadn’t had the chance to share over the phone. After hearing the entire story, Rayan sighed heavily as well.

"You know it must be very difficult for her. We can’t imagine what she’s going through. But is she really not planning to attend our wedding?" Rayan asked, grabbing her hands.

Shirley nodded sadly.

"That can't happen. I won’t let her do that," Rayan said, his expression offended.

"Do you really think I’ll let that happen?" He shook his head in response.

"But she is so stubborn, Rayan. I thought things would change when she came to our wedding. But I don’t know... I really don’t want to think about it right now," Shirley said, rubbing her temple.

"Don’t stress about it. I’m sure she will come," Rayan said, patting her face reassuringly. Shirley simply shrugged.

"Come on, get up and freshen up. I made lunch for us," Rayan said, pulling Shirley out of bed. She stood up with a groan and walked toward the washroom.

Rayan closed the door after she went in and headed to their living room. He picked up his phone and dialled the last number on his call log, but as expected, the call went straight to voicemail. He sighed in defeat as he looked at the screen.

Best idiot 👫

*****

Riley sipped her hot coffee after removing her gloves, the fragrant aroma bringing her a heavenly feeling in the cold weather. She opened her phone to check a particular chat and rolled her eyes. Her messages had been seen but received no replies!

"Bitch," she muttered under her breath as she looked outside. Fall was approaching, and people had already begun relying on hot coffees. Her gaze fell on two girls walking down the street, chatting and laughing together. The scene further fueled her annoyance, and she picked up her phone again.

"You better reply to me, bitch 😡"

She sent one last message and locked her screen, then turned her attention to two men entering the café. A bright smile spread across her face when she realized it was them whom she had been waiting for.

"Hey, baby!" Tyler exclaimed, opening his arms wide and hugging her tightly, which she gladly returned.

"Hey," she said, patting his back before pulling away from the hug, while Ron chuckled as he pulled out a chair and sat down.

"How was your flight?" Riley asked the man in front of her.

"Hell," Tyler replied, pulling out a chair for her to sit down. After settling in close to her, he kissed her cheek, causing Riley to turn as red as a tomato.

"Hello to you too, RJ," Ron said sarcastically, earning their attention.

"Hey, Ron."

"Are you tired, baby? Don’t you have to sleep?" Tyler asked, knowing she had night duty after returning from the trip.

"I was sleeping until noon. Now, I feel as fresh as a morning flower, even though it’s the evening," Riley replied dramatically.

"Good."

When the waitress came to their table, the two men ordered their drinks and snacks. In the meantime, Riley noticed the flirtatious glances the waitress was giving the man beside her.

"Bitch," she thought.

“So, what’s your plan?” Riley asked Tyler after the waitress went to take their order.

“I have two more days until I rejoin. I was wondering if I could stay with you for those two days if that’s okay with you,” he said hesitantly. Riley’s face brightened at his suggestion, and she tried hard to hide her excitement.

“Sure. Why not?” she replied, masking her enthusiasm.

“And I will take the train to London at night,” Ron chimed in, even though nobody had asked him. Riley nodded and sipped her coffee, feeling a bit awkward facing him now.

"Is everyone okay? I mean, Shirley and- Larra?" Ron asked after some time, making Riley stop her actions.

"Um, yeah. Shirley must be relaxing in Rayan's arms right now since she has no school for a few more days. And, Larra, she must be very busy after going back, so she doesn't have time to reply to our messages," Riley said sarcastically; Ron noted the tone and nodded. What's more pissed Riley was that Larra just ignored her after going back.

"Can I ask you something?" Ron asked hesitantly. He had a question in his mind after Larra left, and he was desperate to get the answer. He felt suffocated this way. Riley narrowed her eyes and nodded. She somehow had an idea of what was coming.

"What's her deal?" Ron asked, putting down his fork and knife, indicating he was done.

"Ron?" Tyler looked at the man, confused, asking what he was doing silently.

"Tyler, it's fine." Riley put her hand on Tyler's, reassuringly.

"Ron, I know she just fucked up with your mind, which she always does with people," Riley said with a serious face. Ron and Tyler looked confused.

"What do you mean by like always? Is she a player, like, playing with the guy's heart?" Tyler asked.

"That's not what I meant. I mean, she plays with everyone's heart. She won't give us a hold on herself" Riley looked at both, explaining herself.

"Why? Why is she being so complicated then?" Ron asked, not getting the point totally.

"Look. It's not my cup of tea to spill. But, still, I am gonna tell you something, for your sake" Riley said finally. Ron furrowed his brows and nodded.

"First, you have to understand, what happened in Miami doesn't mean anything to her. She is not ready for commitments, anymore. Usually, she doesn't do it with her friends. You are an exception."

"Any more?" Ron raised his eyebrow, catching the point.

"Yeah. She had a tragic past, which led her to live this complicated life. She is not ready for any kind of relationship now"

"Can you be more specific, please? I cannot understand what you are implying. What do you mean by tragic?" Ron asked puzzled.

"She had a relationship before, and he died" Riley dropped the bomb, and the two men looked at her, terrified.

"What?"

"How?"

"Yeah. She found her love when she joined the university. They were together for five years. And he.. he died" Riley's voice cracked at the memory of their friend. Tyler placed his hand on her as support.

"Damn," Ron murmured, still in shock.

"I didn't know that Larra had gone through this," Tyler said, sympathetically.

"So, she, still loves him? Is she living in his memory? That's why she is not ready for another relationship?" Ron asked with hurt eyes.

"Honestly, I don't know. Sometimes, I feel like she has already moved on. But, sometimes I feel like she is still stuck there,that night," Riley said, staring ahead.

"Night?" Tyler asked.

"Yeah, the night he died. She believes that it's her fault he died, even though it was a bike accident"

"Why does she believe that?" Tyler was curious now.

"It was she who sent him out that night"

"What was his name?" Ron asked, surprising Riley and Tyler.

"Noah. Noah Archer" Ron nodded in return.

"Listen Ron. At first, me and Shirley thought she had a thing for you. Because she was acting strangely around you.." Tyler looked at his friend; after giving him a small smile, he looked at Riley; she was hesitant to say something.

"But.."

"But?" Ron asked expecting. He wanted to know that, he was waiting for this reason.

"See. I know it's hurting you. But I don't wanna give you false hopes or anything. That's why I am telling you this" Ron nodded assuring her to continue.

"She was only into you because.. because you have the same eyes as Noah."

"What?" Tyler asked in shock.

"Yeah. Noah had these same bluish-grey eyes, which she fell in for the first place," Riley said, looking at Ron's eyes.

"So, she was seeing Noah in Ron?" Tyler asked for clarification. Riley nodded and looked at Ron in pity. Ron took a deep breath.

Now it's clear.

"Did me and Noah have anything else in common?" Ron asked. Riley shook her head.

"I don't think so. He was a very calm and quiet person, just opposite to you. And Larra was head over heels for him, saying she conquered the world," Riley said, chuckling, every hurtful memory flashed in her mind. Ron fisted his hand in hurt.

His heart was bleeding!

Larra was interested in him only because of her boyfriend, her late boyfriend, and not for him!

"Was she .. using me?" Ron asked with a pained expression.

"No. Not at all. Larra won't do that deliberately. I know her very well" Riley shook her head abruptly. Ron nodded, even though he wasn't completely convinced.

"I don't know if I could tell you this. But, please don't hate her. She was into a lot lately. She is still in her recovery period "

"Is that why she left India?" Tyler asked.

"Um. Not completely. After one year of Noah's death, her parents suggested seeing someone else, their family friend. That really pissed Larra and she left her home"

"Huh?" Tyler asked with wide eyes while Ron just stared at Riley. Too much information in one day.

"It's been four years since Larra left her home. She never came back, and she never contacted her parents ", Riley said sadly.

"So, she is alone? Like, really alone now?" Ron asked with wide eyes. He didn't know why his heart was aching with each piece of information. Riley nodded and sighed.

"She practically left everything behind and walked away."

"Then, how did you guys meet? She still used to talk to you two?" Tyler asked.

"No. She didn't contact us for an entire year. But then, there was a BTS concert in Seoul, we planned to go there with Noah and Rayan for a long time back. I had this thought that Larra wouldn't miss that concert, me and Shirley went to attend the concert in hope. And yeah, we met in that crowd like a miracle. Like, God wanted to meet us again. Since then, we have been going on our trips, our only chance to meet Larra again." Riley said, chuckling.

"Woah. This is unbelievable" Tyler said exasperated.

"I know, right"

"So, that's why Shirley wanted Larra  to attend her wedding?" Ron asked.

"Yeah. That's one reason. And the other one, how the fuck she could miss Shirley and Rayan's wedding?" Riley asked, annoyed.

"The girl is too complicated," Tyler said himself.

"I already told you"

Ron was lost in his thoughts when he suddenly felt a hand in his. He looked up to see Riley looking at him with sympathy.

"Don't overthink it. Just forget her. She won't ever contact you. I know that," Riley said. Ron nodded, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill.

"I should take my leave now. I have a train to catch," he replied as he stood up from the seat. Riley and Tyler nodded in understanding and also stood up. After exchanging their goodbyes, Ron walked away with a heavy heart.

****

Your thoughts please!