It's Never Too Late x

3) Riya HER pov

As I walked out the door, I realised that I forgot to take my keys so I went back. I stopped dead when I heard him on the phone. Wow, my little show just now meant nothing if he's already gone back to work.

Then I heard her voice. I knew that I should just walk away there was no need for me to be here. I went back down the elevator and walked to Riya's cottage, as I always kept a spare key with her. Yes, a cottage in the city, it made absolutely no sense but that was her. She had the brightest blue eyes that I had ever seen, shielded behind her thin-framed glasses. She was all I needed at this time. I let myself in, made a cup of tea, and thought over everything. I vowed never to go back to Adrian after today. I will not give him the satisfaction of seeing me like this. 

Just then the door flung open and in came the person I wanted to see most. She had the biggest grin on her face as she screeched "Sophie I bought a bird box!" She was always the creative one and nothing stopped her, one time she painted in the rain, it looked amazing but she was bedridden with the flu for two weeks. I remember how Adrian had made her soup and scheduled a visit for us every day. At some point I started to wonder if he would ever do this for me, then I realised him taking care and building up trust with my best friend was showing me he cared. Riya agreed that I shouldn't go back to him and that I should 'make him miss me' I scoffed knowing that would never be the case. "Sophie let's give you a make-over" Riya looked at me lopsided. "Use the new card your company gave, come on let's do it." I thought it over and could only think that if I made myself into a somewhat presentable or affluent looking female Adrian would kick himself, but first I'd feel amazing. We went to the Rosa de Blanco Mall and immersed ourselves in every shop trying on dresses, office wear, quirky outfits you name it.

Adrian called but before I could accept it Riya rejected it and said that today was a "no-men" day. Riya had just gotten out of a messy relationship with her supervisor, he was obsessed with how free she was and how beautiful she made everything sound, so like any rational man he painted a picture of the both of them under a blossom tree. Like any rational woman, Riya said yes but things got complicated when Eric started to do his job and critiqued her work, they'd fight for hours over him telling her that she layered the paint too thick or if a certain hue would've have worked better. He called again, I rejected it. If I had picked it up, I would have possibly cried, told him I loved him and then cried some more.

After an hour I began debating whether to go home and finish my paperwork or stay with Riya tonight as I felt uneasy. I decided to go home I really needed to focus on work. After hugging the life out of each other we parted and I headed home under the blanket of stars. The cold air harsh on my throat. 

I heard hurried footsteps behind me I took a glance at the shadow printed on the brick wall beside me. I picked up the pace to an almost jog, I was roughly five minutes from my apartment building. Then the figure behind me walked up a street and was no longer following me. At times like this, I missed walking with Adrian, how he'd snake his arm around my shoulders, keep me company.

"That's it I'm calling him," I said out loud unlocking my phone only to receive a notification from a gossip column it read:

Adrian Cavelli Dips A Beautiful Woman In Office Amidst Rumours Of Marital Problems.

Marital problems! Wow, he really did tell that woman everything. Wallowing into self-pity I put any notions of calling Adrian out of my head as I scuffed my feet along the sidewalk in an attempt to find something amusing but I could not. All I kept thinking was has Adrian ever held me like that? Has he ever let a photograph been taken of us like that? More importantly, did he ever want to? He called again.

 Now I knew exactly why I was Miss popular today. He wanted to somehow explain how his arms just happened to hold another. I walked into my building and pushed the elevator button to go up. Everything was so slow today so I decided to take the stairs all the way to the 43rd floor I made it up 5 flights, angrily pushing my poor feet through the marble steps until I called the elevator. It came quite quickly this time around so I carried my lethargic body in and selected my floor.

The doors closed. A burning smell started to tease my nose and then my mouth.