"Did I do something wrong?" Ares covered his mouth in horror as he watched his unmoving phone screen.
"Calm down, friend." Estella tapped the boy's shoulder and guided him to sit back down. "It's only a small piece of news for now, but who knows when it will blow up? It's better if Jaxon or Ms Queen knows about it now."
Eric nodded next to them. "Yeah. Don't sweat it."
Ares's hand had moved to his forehead. "But what if, what if," He groaned and buried himself in his knees. "She had a heart attack from what she watched?"
"Wha-"
At that moment, Estella, Eric, Omal and the maid in the corner looked like quadruplets, having made the same expression of what the f*ck? Ares continued to wail on his knees and hands while the rest stared at him.
But those wails ceased to exist in the next moment. The four bystanders sucked their breath and raised a brow. Did he realise something? Did he come to his senses? But their hopes were betrayed quite easily and quickly.
The boy only stopped to check if Eirene had replied and returned to wailing when she hadn't.
Estella was the one who first chin-pointed at Ares to Omal, followed by Eric. Even the maid gave a nod to the model.
Omal sighed, "Alright." He then moved towards his worried friend. "Buddy, who is this we are talking about?"
Ares didn't raise his head, "It's Ms Queen..."
"Exactly. Then why are you worried."
The boy gave a peek at his friend with a frown. "Why wouldn't I be worried. She's a person with a fragile heart of glass."
Omal shrugged, "If you she had a heart made of glass, she wouldn't have survived this long in the industry. Not to forget, she has more haters than fans."
Ares looked at the self-claimed number one fan, who nodded, "Hate to admit but it's really true." She then clicked her tongue in annoyance before muttering, "Some people are born twisted and pathetic. They just can't get over someone who has worked hard to get to where they are."
The model continued, "I know this first hand. It is too easy to get hated, especially if you are a celebrity and rich, just by breathing." He sighed and placed a hand over his heart. "They want to feel better about themselves saying sh*t. They can even hate a person like me."
Estella turned to Omal with a surprised look. "Damn. I admire your confidence."
Which the model shrugged off. "I won't be suite for the job if I don't have confidence."
"Anyway," Eric chimed in. "She is more famous and wealthy than Omal. And she has been doing this for a long time. This means she is probably more used to encountering difficult times than any of us. Plus, she's got Jaxon. I don't think he will let it slide."
Ares raised his head gradually and tried to chase away the bad thoughts, but that didn't stop him from checking his phone one last time before burying his head in his legs again.
Seeing that the friends had given up on cheering the boy, the maid approached the group. "Young master, I know it is not my place to say, but I believe Ms Queen is well, and she had work to do. And that is the reason why she hasn't responded."
Ares asked with doubt. "Do you believe so, Vee? That she's not dead?"
The maid flashed a smile. "I believe she's very much alive. Not to discourage you, young master, but she is a busy lady, after all. She must have a lot on her plate. Giving her time is what she might need, sir."
But Ares was still in a state of guilt and doubt. Although the possibility of her having a heart attack has now been crossed, he still wanted to make sure she was okay.
Right then, he heard a tired sigh from his side. It was Eric. "If you are worried, why don't you go visit her? You only have one lecture tomorrow, right?"
Estella added, "Also your parents are allowing you to take a time off, I don't know how long, but I don't think you have to go back today."
The boy shook his head in fear as if he was a dog coming out from the water. "I can't do that. Its, its, its..."
"It's what?" Eric asked and made weird movements in his mouth to remove the choco-chip stuck in between his teeth from the cookie-crazed milkshake.
The boy didn't answer and continued to shake his head. The room was engulfed in tired silence.
Ares only looked up after a while and found Omal texting someone on the frown with a dissatisfied expression.
The model spared a glance at him, momentarily pausing to type but resumed soon. Then he gave one last look at the boy before his thumb pressed hard onto the screen, and he brought the phone up to his ear. All the while chewing the non-existent bubble gum.
"Hello?" Omal asked on the phone. "This is Omal Genie. My dear friend Ares wanted to check up on Ms Queen. He's worried that she had a heart attack because of the news he shared to her. Is she alright?"
Ares forgot how to breathe. He couldn't believe it. Did his friend casually call the manager of one of the big-shot actresses of the century? Was he allowed to do that? Wouldn't the public come to him for acting like they were friends?
The boy covered his mouth in realisation.
If what Omal was doing right now was an offence, how about him? Ever since he and Eirene exchanged numbers on the night of the party, he disturbed her with messages without care when she could have been resting.
'I'm so annoying.' Ares thought to himself. 'She must be angry. I've been disturbing her in her sleep, at her workplace and everything. It's because she's too kind. She didn't say how she was uncomfortable with me. How can I be so horrible? I'd also feel the same if someone I barely know starts talking to me as if they know everything.'
As the last words were spoken to himself in his mind, Ares frowned. Although those words were true, they were hurtful. He didn't like it.
Suddenly, he felt sharp, piercing pains in his heart as if he had hugged a rose.
"Huh!" The boy abruptly sucked in his breath.
At once, Eric asked him, "What is it? Are you alright?"
Ares turned to his friend. Was the throbbing a symptom of underlying heart disease? Was he dying? How will his parents react to him dying before them?
"What is it?" Estella asked when he didn't answer the previous questions.
Ares took in a deep breath before telling them. "I think I'm dying."
"Say what?"
----
Jaxon came out of the door within five seconds of knocking. "Hi, Ares. Welcome. Oh, you brought flowers? Eirene would love them. What are you doing? Come in."
Ares nodded, snapping himself back to reality. Adrenaline was pumping through him like a broken shower.
He finally did it.
It was only yesterday when he was on the verge of breaking down when Jaxon casually allowed him to come. Initially, he would have loved his friends' company, but they all told him to go alone. They were like mother birds forcing him to take a step by himself like that one bird that pushes their chicks down a cliff to teach them how to fly.
"Oh then. Please excuse my disturbance." With a bouquet and a bag of fruits, he entered the show house like a beautiful home.
The manager chuckled after closing the door behind him. "Why are you so rigid? Relax. No one is going to eat you alive." He then led the boy through the corridor and various doors.
The house smelt of flowers, creating the image of a garden that couldn't be seen. The scent resembled the Red Queen's Garden. But the scent of the house couldn't be replicated easily, even with the diffusers.
Ares felt like he was Alice from Alice in Wonderland. The surroundings were all new to him. It felt refreshing and poked his curiosity a little.
As he watched the manager strode so confidently in a relaxed manner, he couldn't help but ask, "Is this your house?"
"Oh no." Jaxon spun and shook his head with a friendly smile. "This is Eirene's. But I come often." He then paused in front of a brown wooden door. "I have no one in my house. It gets lonely, and I don't like being lonely."
The manager knocked on the door, and when they heard a faint reply, he swung open the door. "How are you doing? You look terrible."
There lay Eirene on the majestic bed. She looked like a deity. A sick deity, to be more exact. Like a god of death might have been unsuccessful in bringing her to the afterlife.
The overall colour of her face was pale-grey, and although her hair was brushed, it wasn't shining like the last time he met her. And the hands on the covered lap had visible veins popping out.
The actress looked at her manager and said, "You left me for fifteen seconds, and you ask me that?" She then turned to Ares. Imagination or not, he saw her cheek twitch and her expression becoming rigid. "Hello, Ares. Sorry for welcoming you like this. Have a seat."
Her voice was rougher, and she seemed to be struggling to speak.
Ares greeted her back and sat on the chair she gestured to. He kept the fruit basket on his lap and handed the flowers in his hands to her. "I wanted to bring you lotus flowers, but they weren't available. So I brought you this. It looks common, but I hope I'm not troubling you with this."
Eirene cradled the red roses in her fragile arms and gently snuggled her nose to them.
For the first time, Ares felt everything go blank everywhere. He could think of nothing but her.
She was more breathtaking than any of the famous paintings. She held more emotions than an entire romance movie. She was more bewitching than any of the places he had ever visited. And most of all, she was pure, just like a lotus.
I love you.