Love, Zed

1. Pilot

ZED

"Did you meet your ex-girlfriend?" Mrs Lohan regards me closely and cautiously.

"No."

"Do you want to?"

"No."

"Did you talk to her over call recently, Zed?" She asks me calmly.

I scratch my cheek. I need to shave. "No."

"Why don't you tell me how you feel?" She says kindly and I sigh. My therapist, Sidney Lohan, a plump lady in her late forties is the person I love to hate. I allow myself to think that I hate her because she's too meddlesome and I really think that she's conducting some of kind of a psychological test on me and might write a research paper on me... anyway, the truth is that she's actually been helpful.

The worse thing is that I keep wanting to come back to her, even though most of the times I don't utter a single full sentence. She knows it but doesn't ever mention it. She's getting her bucks. The most useful way I can empty my worthless bank account. My father loathes it, that's a plus.

"I feel hungry, most of the time. And tired. And I still want to hurt him physically." I reply honestly, brushing off invisible dirt from my shoulder.

"Zed, we talked about this. You cannot get in into a fight with him again." She lets her formal manner slip and leans forward.

"I don't want that either." I assert calmly meeting her grey eyes. I already feel some of the stress melting. "Tell me how to." I ask even though I have it under control. I haven't punched Scott in months.

She gives me a knowing look and plays along. "There are no buttons, Zed. It's all about managing your emotions. Tell me again about that night."

"No." I just glare at the painting behind her. Just for the sake of glaring at something that's not her. This is one of the things that leads me to believe that I'm a guinea pig. She urges me to recount the events of the night when I found my ex-girlfriend cheating on me. Like making me relive the horror will do me any good.

"The more you talk about it, the more you normalize it." She says smiling. I shake my head. What if I don't want to normalize it?

"I don't think that's the way for me." I lean back into the couch, interlocking my fingers. It's the same drill every session. Sometimes I feel I know why I like my sessions with her and sometimes... I just feel stupid.

I glance at her wall clock. Five minutes more. When I turn to look back at her, she has one of those faint smiles on her face that women of her age usually have.

"Why don't you start dating again?" She asks out of the blue. This is new.

"I'd ask you out if you weren't still hung up on your ex-husband." I offer one my flirty smiles.

She tips her head back and laughs. "Date someone who would agree to ride one of those death rides you call a bike, Romeo."

"I don't think that's happening in near future." I grin and get on my feet, putting my jacket on.

"The life is constructed-" She utters in a strange voice. I stare at her. "-that the events does not, cannot, will not, match the expectation."

I stare at her for a long time before I get the hell out of the place. She creeps me out sometimes.

-------

ARIA

"Aria!"

I'm shaked violently by this evil being. I groan in frustration and hide under my blanket.

"Arianna, get up now!" She yells and the next moment my blanket is snatched off my body. What the fuck?

"Are you a rapist or what?" I yell, my voice raspy. I'm blinded by the sudden light pouring into my room. I rub my eyes to look at my precious obnoxious sister, Tessa.

"You'll get all of us late. How could you sleep for late today?" She scolds and stresses on "today". I know, I know this is our first day of college. But that doesn't mean she can barge in my room, waking me up like this.
Wait, she can. She's Tessa.

"Aria!" My mom shouts before I could throw some insults in my sister's face.

"Mother has been calling you up like this for half an hour." Tessa crosses her arms over her chest and gives me her best serious look.

"And I'm supposed to listen, why?" I roll my eyes at her sitting up in the bed.

"Just get up and get ready. Aria, it's a big day. A lot of stuffs are to be done and-" Tessa goes on.

"Okay, Grandma." I fake a smile at her and jump out of my bed. Tessa shakes her head and takes her nervous ass downstairs.

I steal a look in the mirror at my disheveled state before hoping up into the shower. I still feel sleepy and the hot shower doesn't help, being so mercifully warm. I literally drag my body out of the shower and dry myself.

"Aria!" Mom keeps on yelling my name and I roll my eyes in frustration.

I search frantically for my sleeveless denim jacket and my black snug jeans. This is the time when I regret not being as organised as my mum and Tessa.

I put them on when I find them and brush my hair looking into the mirror. The thing I adore the most on me is my hair. I feel lucky that I'm a brunette unlike Tessa and mum. God knows how freaky I would have looked in dirty blond hair. No offense to all blondies out there but it's just not for me!

I push my phone in my jeans back pocket and look around the room. Finally leaving this den. This room has been my lair all these years and countless time I've locked myself in here or banged the door in my mother's or in my sister's face just to annoy them or whenever they used to give me much shit. Oh how I'll NOT miss those years.

"Arianna!" My mom yells as I walk down the stairs into the hall.

"Don't." I pout. "Don't yell that name again at me." I glare at her walking down. I don't like being called by my full name. I like Aria better. It's got funk.

I grab a sandwich and see Noah standing beside my fraternal twin.

"Hey Noah." I call out walking up to him and hugging him.
He hugs me back and gives me a perfect bright smile.

Noah Porter is my sister's boyfriend, childhood love et cetera. He's a saintly boyfriend to a saintly girl.

The saintly girl who's lost in her world at present. "Earth to, Tessa." I tease her but she ignores me pulling her blond hair into a bun.

"Honey, we can wait a couple minutes while you fix your hair." Mom says quitely giving Tessa a disapproving look. Tessa's face falls. Ugh mom, get a life.

"Aria, you haven't straightened your hair." She narrows her eyes at me.

"Oh I can see that. It's because I like my natural waves." I fake a smile at her. Can't she take a hint? She has always been pushing me to straighten my hair but I love my waves and I won't lie.

She shakes her head at me. I make my way to the mirror in the hallway and smirk running my hand through my hair. I look sexy. I don't need anyone's approval.

"I will put your bags in the car." Noah offers looking at both me and Tessa but I grab most of my things myself and walk out.

I bite my lips in anticipation for a new life. Away from this shithole. Away from the controlling mother, judgy neighbours and bitches who call themselves my friends. However I shall be, I'll be happier.