"Angel? Is your meeting over?" Irene looked up at Melissa who had just greeted the hall.
"Kinda. What's in the process? The aroma brought me here. But you are here so… is Ilyan cooking?" She advanced a little to peek in the kitchen and Ilyan waved at her while stirring in the dish in the pan.
"This smell is filling up my nostrils and making me hungry now," Melissa confessed the true feeling of her stomach.
"Just five minutes. Give me just five minutes to serve." Ilyan turned off the stove.
"Sure." Melissa moved closer to Irene for some chit-chat.
Ilyan did not have to bother anyone for plates. They were right in front of him. He quickly took them to sink, ran them under water once, and grabbed the clean white dishcloth to wipe them dry. He carried the plates to the dining table first before he returned to take the bowl. It took him barely two minutes for plating and he sauntered to the hall to call the duo for dinner.
"Spicy Capsicum Tomato Fried Rice," Ilyan announced, gesturing with his hands, pointing at the dining table.
"Looks so good," Melissa already complimented even before putting a bite in her mouth. The medium-sized tomatoes and capsicums between the slightly yellowish and reddish rice gave it a delicious-looking sight.
As the trio made it to the dining table and started eating, Ilyan was showered with praises by Melissa and while Irene's complement ended with just 'nice one', her heart held immense respect for him. Despite not having a lot to cook, he had just been brilliant. His face did not have the slightest trace of complaints and that was the time Irene knew - Ilyan was far from the complaining attitude. He was rather the one to find solutions.
<>
"Grace. Finally. Saw your missed calls. All okay?" With hunched shoulders, Irene leaned forward. Grace had called her back after the whole twenty minutes - enough for Irene to grow restless.
"Bro hasn't returned home. The weather… is getting so terrible. We are worried. You have any idea where he could be?"
Anxiety grabbed Irene far more quickly than imagined after the heated argument and closure of their relationship. It had been quite long since she saw him last. Where could he possibly go if he did not return home? The possibility of him still lingering around there filled her with concern.
She tilted her head behind as she pulled aside curtains of the window. The ground, covered with a thick white blanket, made it seem no less than an arduous task to get through it. The wind howl had never seemed as scary as it had, that night to her.
Ayden. Damn it.
Melissa and Ilyan were sitting right across her and with her one glance at them, she read their expressions.
"I am sending you an address. Check that." Irene hung up hurriedly and quickly whatsapped her about the Bridgeway Street.
"What is it?" Melissa did not delay the question.
Hesitation painted over Irene's face for she was yet to break the news of her breakup to Melissa. She had been waiting for the right time. Making Melissa aware of her breakup meant revealing the reason and Irene knew that it would make Melissa mad. She had been trying to avoid that for the time being.
She fixed her eyes on her phone because she was going to lie. Lying and meeting Melissa's eyes couldn't be done simultaneously.
"Nothing much."
It did not take Melissa more than a couple of seconds to conclude that it was about Ayden. Days ago, when Irene had locked herself in her room and she had to call Grace to talk to her, even then it was about Ayden, Melissa knew. She had deliberately chosen to not ask Irene about it until she came to share on her own.
"Tell me what it is, Irene. Now." It was one of those rare times when Melissa had given the ultimatum to Irene. She never bossed around her. She did not like to. She did not need to but that time, she believed she needed to know what was happening because she had been consistently seeing Irene gloomy after that night.
Ilyan's eyes never left Irene's sight. He felt a little bad for the girl. He could understand how hard it was for her!
Irene thought for a moment or two before she made up her mind to let Melissa know. For how long was she going to hide that anyway?
"Ayden and I… we broke up."
Biting silence followed Irene's words. Melissa was stunned, under the effect of the huge blow delivered. She took several seconds to recover from the news but once she did, she rushed straight away to embrace Irene.
Though she had her issues with Ayden and she pretty much wanted Ayden and Irene apart but she never saw it coming true. Irene was hopelessly in love with him, she knew. She had seen to what extent Irene was into Ayden.
If Irene broke up with Ayden, it gave away that something unacceptable must have happened. Melissa hated to hear about Irene's heartbreak. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Everything began to make sense to Melissa. That night, Irene's silent breakdown made sense. Why didn't she think about it earlier?
"Sorry," Irene whispered before pulling apart, "but that's not important right now, Angel. Ayden hasn't reached home. Grace had called me up to ask if I know where he is."
Ilyan was alarmed as soon as he heard Irene.
Melissa's hand was still on Irene's shoulder. "Do you know anything about him?"
Irene's eyes went to Ilyan for a fraction of a second before she stopped them at Melissa.
"I think I do."