String the Player

4.

I wake up to vibrations from under my pillow. I ignore it, obviously, and tighten my grip on the body next to mine. The vibrations stop for one second, I let out a breath, and they start back up once more. I ignore it again. There's no solid reason for me to be ignoring it other than irritating whoever's calling me for the sheer sake of it. Honestly, I'm wide awake. I've been wide awake for quite a while now, but the person on the other end does not need to know that.

Besides, there are only two people who'll call me at this time. Actually, three, but I've blocked the third person, so I know it's not her.

Liam squirms underneath my draped arm and rolls over to face me, pushing my arm away. "Why are you not answering that?" he mumbles sleepily.

"I don't want to."

He opens an eye to glare at me, then stuffs a hand under my pillow, yanks my phone out, glides his thumb across the screen and throws the phone in my face.

"Why can't you ever answer on the first call?" Rishabh barks through the receiver.

"Because then I'll be considered easy," I say.

Liam snorts from where he's pretending to sleep, and I get off the bed to go find a corner.

"Who's that?" Rishi asks.

"Who's who?"

"I heard something. Are you in the room?"

"Where else would I be at the ass crack of dawn?"

"It's eleven o'clock."

"My statement still stands."

"Is there someone in your room?" Rishabh raises his voice, and I can predict the panic that'll soon follow. "Arya. Don't tell me you have someone in your room. Fuck. I told you—"

"There's no one. Now, what do you want?"

"Be ready in an hour. Check out and head to the airport. Your flight is at—"

"Yes, I know what time my flight is. I'm not a complete idiot."

"Three-thirty pm," he continues as though I didn't interrupt him, which, to be fair, is warranted since I'm known to interrupt a lot. "When you land, there will be some reporters wanting the first statement. Don't shoo them away. Don't walk past them. Don't—"

"I'm not talking to anyone," I say, and hope Rishabh can understand by my tone that it's not up for debate. I don't have any sort of wish to be under the public's scrutiny any more than I already am, and I intend to keep it that way.

"Arya—"

"No." I balance my phone between my shoulder and ear and stuff my legs into the tracks I found on the chair.

"One state—"

"No statements, no interviews, no photographs, no nothing. I told Kishan to park the car right in front of the VIP exit, so either way, it's just ten steps in and out. No point in stopping for those hounds."

I hear Rishabh let out a long, drawn-out sigh. It's not like I enjoy seeing him so exasperated—no, wait, that's not right, I do enjoy seeing him exasperated, especially when I'm the reason. But I don't like it when he's exasperated over something I've repeatedly told him I'm not interested in.

"Fine, do what you want. But after Hyderabad—"

"Just send the itinerary. You know I'm not going to listen to a word you say."

"Arya, for once in your life—"

I cut the call and toss my phone on the table.

"Why do you give your agent such a hard time?" Liam's propped on a fort of pillows, his hands behind his head, and a shit-eating grin on his face that makes me really want to make him eat shit.