Kyla sat alone in her room lost in thoughts. Her father's words kept flashing through her mind's eye as she flipped the pages of her favorite novel.
"This isn't right" she voiced out, as a photograph of Greg fell out from one of the pages of the novel. A smile brightened up her face, but suddenly, it grew dark again when the thought of her engagement to him came to her mind. She stared down at the engagement ring that sat loosely on her finger and with a sigh, she took it off.
"I need to do this, for my sake and my parents'." She muttered to herself. Just then, her phone rang the second time. Seeing that it was Ryan, she took the call quickly.
"Hey Kyla" came Ryan
"Hello Ryan, how have you been?" She asked in reply
"Not so good, but I'd like to see you, it's pretty urgent"
"Alright, where can I meet you?"
"My house, can I come pick you up?" Ryan asked, but Kyla replied
"No, I'll be there soon" when she had hung up the call, she hurried on to get dressed to meet Ryan.
Getting to Ryan's mansion, the surprised faces of Greg and Catherine greeted her.
"What are you both doing here?" She asked as she collapsed into one of the armchairs.
"We are just as surprised to see you" Catherine replied, but Greg spoke
"Actually, I'm even more surprised you honoured Ryan's invitation but not mine. You're either so busy or not available at all, what's going on Kyla?" He yelled
"Hey...hey....chill Greg!" Ryan said as he walked in with bottles of beer in his hands.
"If you're this worked up over the invitation, what about me?" He asked
"My fiancee hasn't been taking any of my calls either, but here she is, sitting next to my best friend who invited her with just a phone call. If you ask me we are pretty much in the same shoes right now." Greg buried his face in his palms in frustration, but Ryan nudged him.
"That's the main reason we are here, to sort these differences okay?" He said.
"Catherine, Kyla, I should apologize to you two first." Came Ryan
"This is all my fault, it was my decision to introduce our partners to our parents on the same day, but it obviously didn't turn out well, and this is affecting us all." He paused, and looking at Catherine, he continued.
"Cathy, I know I'm so annoying right now, I promised I was going to take care of things soon, but to be honest, Sophia...Sophia...um...she" He struggled for words.
"...Can help you sort this out" Kyla said interrupting Ryan. Everyone's attention was suddenly directed at her.
"What exactly are you talking about?" Catherine asked in anxiety
"What's going on? Will this wedding be cancelled with her help?" She asked. Ryan's heart warmed up a little bit, and a smile curled up his face.
"I'm glad you still care about our relationship Cathy" he said. They were all silent for a split second before Kyla continued.
"I'll get Sophia to call off the wedding in the easiest way possible, and of course without affecting the deal between the Aredian Smith Defense and Walker Airlines."
"How will you do that?" Ryan asked
"Just leave it to me" Kyla replied.
"Then you have my support" he said, and for some reason, this simple statement filled Kyla with so much joy, she couldn't stop herself from smiling. Irritated, Greg spoke up
"Is that all that matters to you Kyla?" He asked furiously.
"Can you take a break from other people's problems and let's face ours?" He asked
"Ryan and Catherine aren't just anyone, they are our friends, you of all people should know that" Kyla snapped back at him. Ryan read the room immediately, and taking Catherine's hand, he whispered into her ears, and they both excused Greg and Kyla
"Is it okay to leave them both in such state?" Catherine asked when they had gotten to Ryan's study
"They should settle their differences. I know Greg, he loves to vent in private" Ryan replied. Soon, he got lost staring at Catherine
"What is it?" She asked curiously
"It's nothing, I'm just scared of loosing you" he replied.
"You don't have to be scared, we should both be thankful to Kyla, she's trying to save our relationship at the expense of hers, being supportive is the least we can do for her right now" she said
"Yes Cathy, I totally understand" Ryan replied pulling Catherine into his arms.
Meanwhile, Sophia kept frequenting Wild dreams bar. She just couldn't get enough of D.J. On one of such occasions where she had to wait till late at night for D.J's shift to end, she'd busy herself with D.J's photographs in her phone that had taken six years ago before she flew out of the country for her studies. She was still lost staring at one of these photos when D.J walked up to her
"I've told you times without number baby, you don't have to wait here for me, please go home" she said
"I've already told you D.J" Sophia replied
"I want to be with you, only then will I truly feel at ease. It's been so long since I spent this much time with you" came Sophia, but D.J became furious.
"This isn't about spending more time with me Sophie, what about your father and your marriage to that man, Ryan Smith?" She asked. Sophia was taken aback.
"Did you really think I'm a fool huh? You're getting married soon but here you are trying to put me at ease. What are your plans? To Leave me like you did years ago?" D.J yelled, but Sophia couldn't speak a word in her defence.
"Listen Sophie" D.J continued.
"If you truly love me, you should know exactly what to do" she stormed out of the bar, leaving Sophia to her own thoughts. A tear dropped from Sophia's eyes, but she wiped it off almost immediately. Picking up her purse, she made to leave the bar, but someone spoke to her from behind her
"It's as simple as ABC, come out of the closet Sophia..."