Of Mochas and Macchiatos

Part 26

Okey, warning. This chapter's a lil weird. There's a lot of fantasy intertwined in this chapter and I'm not exactly sure if it makes sense. Maybe one day, I'll cut it out, but right now, stick with me (and the random mythology/fantasy elements haha)

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The next day, I avoid Rafe. And Lara. Gareth leaves before dawn, catching the first plane back to Alexandria and I find myself missing his easy smiles and perpetually vibrant spirit, and yet I can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen; something that he is fully aware of. I meet Maria at Tilbury's and introduce her to Mika and we wander through the Astoria Gardens together for a while.

And it feels so nice to just chatter mindlessly and laugh about anything and everything and to just be myself without worrying about who I am, or what I did.

After school and work, I walk back to The Henley alone. I leave my bag on the floor, stack my books on the dining table and place my phone upon the tip of the precarious pyramid. Glancing at the time, I see that Rafe finishes another one of his meetings in a few minutes. He'll doubtlessly call or text me and right now I can't deal with it and so I leave my phone there, snatch my notebook and a pencil, and traipse down to the piano.

For a while, I forget about the inordinate homework I have yet to tackle. Let my mind stop stumbling over fears about secrets and instead whirl with the music I play.

I lose track of time, so caught up in the endless possibilities and arrangements of notes as I compose a cover to a song. I weave together deeply appegiated harmonies and overlap them with a slowly flowing melody and the dark tone of the song sends a thrill through me. I slightly regret bringing my phone; I would so adore to record the music and replay it later, and so I scribble a few chords and notes in my book.

After a while, I feel that my composition is perfect and I launch into it, vaguely aware of a figure standing behind me, but I resolutely ignore them, and let my fingers carve out the dark bitter voice of the song. Finally when the last chord rings out and I turn around, straddling the piano seat to face him. He speaks.

"What the hell was that?"

"A cover I composed of Heart Shaped Box. By Nirvana. Didn't you recognise it?" I say evenly, innocently.

"Don't play stupid, smart girl." He growls.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. You haven't answered any of my calls or messages. Nor any of Lara's-"

"I forgot my phone in my room-"

"Moreover, you were a total bitch yesterday. It was Gareth's last night and you couldn't even-"

We keep cutting each other off. Sniping at each other with a figurative lexical sword.

"Rafe! I told you I felt sick!" He suddenly sweeps down and perches on the end of the piano stool. His eyes bore into mine and I know that he knows I'm hiding something.

"Yes, I know. And tired." He makes air quotes, mocking me. "Because of all these nightmares. You said that they weren't about Elio. So what are they about, then? Oh, but you won't tell me, will you? You don't even trust me."

His scathing tone hurts, especially because what he says is true and I do not want to admit it. And yet he continues, but I stop listening. A passage from MadeLucky's persuasive homework drifts into my mind.

A scathing tone intends to disparage and mock an opponent, diminish any respect for them and compel the audience to view them as inferior.

"Excuse me." He pauses at my words, mid-tirade, eyebrow raised, head tilted slightly as if to say What?