And Then It Rained (Sequel to Rain Again; Stand Alone Book) (Completed)

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Fever and a Night Together

"Victor?"

He stood by the closed door with his head tilted and a hand shoved inside his pants pocket. Hearing her call him, he smiled in greeting. The fact that it looked pretty odd was maybe because he rarely ever greeted her in a welcoming way in the recent past.

"I had a meeting with Orland about some last-minute stuff of the event at our store the day after tomorrow," he explained his reason for being there as she walked closer. "We were done sooner than expected. Then Orland said you are busy with a shoot. So, I headed over here to check how you're doing after last night."

The models and others assisting in the studio hurried out, not wanting to waste a second of their allocated break time. As per the rules, they switched off the brighter studio lights to save electricity.

"Well, the swollen has come down considerably," she replied, standing in front of him. "I think my throat will be as good as new in two days max."

"But if it doesn't, then we are going—"

"To the hospital. Of course," she cut in. "But it wouldn't come to that."

Victor remained silent for a moment as though he was in deep thought and then nodded.

In the now shadowy, dim lights of the studio, being alone with him made her feel a bit nervous. It might also be because of how he looked at her quietly.

"I'm going to go grab lunch," she broke the silence, glancing at the half-gaping studio door. "You want to join?" She asked, turning around to grab her bag from the chair she had kept it on earlier.

Considering how he had always been steering clear of spending much time with her, she thought he would deny conducting such an unnecessary activity and go on his own precious way. That he had waited to ask about her well-being was a rare incident and more than enough of his kindness bestowed on the woman who he thought was responsible for ruining his life. And the meals they were having together at home were perhaps because of his humanity and the understandable fact that he didn't want her to burn down the entire building.

See, she had it all figured out.

And it made her feel like the loneliest person in the whole damn world.

"Let's go then."

"Huh?" Victoria's face snapped up, and her eyes held wonder as she stared at him.

"Lunch—" Victor clarified, looking at his wristwatch. "Let's go and grab some fast. How long is your break? We're running out of time, I believe."

What on earth?

It took her a few seconds to recover from her dumbfounded state.

One would call the two of them a normal couple having lunch together in a small restaurant if they saw them now. But the truth was they were far from it.

She didn't direct him toward the cafe where they usually went for lunch. It was a small Nepali restaurant a five minutes walk away. Obviously, the main reason for coming here was to avoid her colleagues. She was in no mood to pretend today.

They both silently ate the Nepali version of biriyani served. Despite being a Nepali restaurant, the chef who cooked was an Indian. So, Victoria relished the authentic flavors of her home country's food. It's been a long time.

Victor seemed impressed too, and she didn't realize when they got into a casual chat to praise Indian food and festivals between clatters of cutleries.

"I never miss Holi every year. It's celebrated at the end of winter," Victoria said, looking out the glass of the restaurant. A group of teens was playfully squabbling across the street. Their laughter could not be heard in the enclosed, soundproof indoors two of them were in.