LYRA'S POV
'Who are you speaking to dumbass?' I thought to myself, when I could finally hear her clearly speaking through phone.
"Dad I am not at college, I have some work. I came outside to complete some work and you don't need to worry about me, I am not a dumb teenager". She sassed with her father with an annoyed tone. 'well you are dumb! that I can vouch for'.I spoke to myself, when she turned suddenly to my side where I was hiding, when i thought I was almost caught spying behind her. She didn't see me at first and continued talking. When I decided to come out of hiding, this dumbass spotted and beamed at me and hopped to near me like a happy rabbit.
"Good morning mam, how are you today? Have you had your breakfast? Why are you so quite? Are you ill mam? Oh my god!?. answer me mam..oh my if your not able to answer, you can speak through signs.". she was continuously blabbering nonsense when i finally stopped her with my words.."Idiot take a breath. Atleast let me answer". She finally stopped her blabbering and looked relieved!
"Thank God I thought something happened to you mam" she said while looking at me like a puffer fish taking fast breaths which is mainly because of her nonstop blabbering about my wellbeing. ' Why are people so concerned about my wellbeing nowadays' i thought to myself when she gained my attention with her words.
"Mam let's go and have breakfast, you promised me to spend your time with me yesterday". She spoke with lights in her eyes which slightly resembled with Leo, well maybe that's why I promised her yesterday without a thought.
"Ok let's go" I said her when she gave me her billion dollar smile. 'She's just like my Bubs. So bubbly, energetic and joyful. I doubt why she chose to work for that asshole...maybe she is not but...who knows!'
I think in my mind without realising that I've been staring at her. She noticed it and questioned me "What are you thinking about? Please don't tell me you regret your words. Don't say that you're taking the promise back!" with a slight worry in her voice.
"I'm not thinking about that! stop worrying so much.... let's get inside the library first! We'll leave in 10 minutes". I start walking towards the library with her following behind me with a big smile on her face.
After I checked the log book for any new inputs, I called Eline from the front desk. She was talking with an old lady cleaner at the end of the book cabinet about something. She has a very social and approachable attitude. She got along with all the staff so quickly. Eline peeked from behind the bookshelf when I called her. She bid goodbye to the lady and walked towards me in full grace. Her face is glowing with happiness. Her aura delighted with vivid colours. 'Too bad I'm going to ruin them soon. Tsk tsk' the devil inside my mind quoted.
"Shall we go mam? " She asked , like a puppy ready to pounce on it's owner, her body resembling a leaf that's swaying up and down with the wind of upcoming storm. Totally unaware of the damage it causes.
I nod my head in a 'yes' and take my car keys out of my bag. I dashed out of the library to my car with Eline tailing behind me. We both are exact opposite of each other.
I am dull, fading colour that would disappear any time soon. My life has been so suffocating as my fate is written by smoke and ashes. My aura so dark that anyone would mistake me for a devil. Infact I look like I just creeped out from the dark world. While she is a bundle of radiant colours and bright pink hues. Her aura is so soft like soap foam bubbles, imitating the great rainbows in the world. She looks like she doesn't belong in world that I saw. She is full of emotions while I'm a void. A void that has only beginning and no end. She's just like a star that's born out of god's will.
We fit each other like a puzzle block. I am a black birthday cake and she is the colorful sugar sprinkles on it. Completely different worlds.
I wonder why she's working under me in a library if she have a father who can buy thousands of libraries. Time to find out why. We soon reach my car in silence. I came out of my thoughts and heard faint humming behind me. Maybe we didn't reach the car in silence. I unlocked the car and opened the door to driver seat. As she was about to open the passenger seat door, I decided to play with her.
"Am I your friend?" I asked her rising an eyebrow. She hesitated for a moment but quickly got the situation and closed the front passenger seat door. Reaching out for the back door, I interrupted her "Do you think I'm your driver?". Which absolutely worked and I smirked.
"I'm sorry where am I supposed to sit?" She asked me out of confusion. 'good. That's just the beginning my babygirl. The real show is coming up!haha' I thought and smiled mischievously inside my head.
"Sit in the front. I'm just kidding" I gave her a smirk when she finally got inside the car and sat beside me. I drove to a nearby restaurant, parking my car in the parking lot, we got down and entered the restaurant.
Eline looked so excited about this plan. She has been talking non-stop about random things and finally reached to her feelings about this plan. I couldn't even hear what she was talking about. We sat a table and ordered our food.
"So? Why are you so excited about this?" I broke the silence this time. Eline responded grinning and wiggling in her seat due to happiness.
"What do you mean why mam?I am eating at a fancy restaurant with my boss!! I get to know her a little more. Like wouldn't you be excited?"
" No.."
" ....but I am happy. I get to treat you food to show how grateful I am " she said witha thankful face.
" Are you that poor to feel so grateful just for a job in library?" She became silent as soon as I asked that question. 'here we go' I opened my mouth to say something when she spoke. Her next sentence made me wonder how people can lie so easily.
"Yes mam..I couldn't afford to pay for tution. So I am working part time and studying at night. " She lied.she absolutely lied about that.
'woaahhhhhh...that was quick. I was thinking to stop this nonsense but she clearly proved why this is necessary.
"What are you studying again?" I ask her to take things deep down the volcano.
"Law....at NORLONA University?.." okay that's good. But I haven't seen her going to college so...that fact in hold too.
" Mmm.....how are your studies going?"
" Great mam "
What a pathetic lie! Ha!...."I have someone I know studying at the same college. There's some cultural party at the University this weekend. Aren't you going? "
This made her clearly nervous and she smiled nervously and answered me " Uhhh....no mam. I have to go...I have to go somewhere that day. I will be out of town. So I'm not going to the fest. "
" Why???we could go together! And you can introduce your friends to me. That would be fun!" She started fidgeting with the hem of her top, looking down in her lap. Probably thinking about what to answer. Her red strands of baby hair falling on her face along with a small sweat drop rolling from her forehead. Relax babygirl.. we're just halfway through the show.
" I...don't have any...friends mam. That is why I am going to the tution ".
"There's some teacher I know at the law department. Umm his name is something like ...james or Jones ... Jonathan Saunders. Yeah johnny. Do you know him? He is a lecturer there . I don't even remember his face. " I just threw a stone in the dark. Let's see if she catches it or lets it fall on the ground.
" Yeah...I know him. He is a nice man. He is so good looking that almost half of the college is behind him. I don't know him personally but he is a nice man".
There is no freaking Johnny in the university. She Caught the stone and threw it back to me!!haha
" Hmmm" I hum nodding my head.
Our food arrives and we both started to dig in. We complete our food in silence. This silence is one of my favourite things in the world. When I silence the opposite party with my obvious questions that they just go silent for their own sake. I love that. I glance at her in the middle of eating and noticed that she is nervous and hesitating to keep the conversation going. She is afraid what more I might ask her, to which she doesn't have answers.
" I heard that food in your college mess is so good. Is that true?" I asked her again making her sigh in tension and helplessness.
"Yeah that's true. Food is so good there. You should try it once" she said weakly. And I made her lose her spark. Ok that's enough I guess.
"I want to meet your father once. To tell him how good child you are. He really raised you good and upright. I want to thank him for doing a great job" I say making her already tensed face more stressed that her forehead is sweating a little bit more than earlier.
"Yeah mam..I will take him to you once"
" Eyh don't tell me that! Your father is respected person we should go to him. Not all the way around. So what do you think about tomorrow?"
" Noo..! I mean yes but not tomorrow. He's away on a business confer- ..ummm he's out of the town on some important matters."
" We can go meet him after he arrives! Doesn't that sound great?we could get a lot closer and I will be finally able to talk with him genuinely. "
" What!! Noooo....uhhh...he will be coming back after .,.....t- two months. And he won't talk to other people. He's a bit introverted. So I will lure him to meet you" Eline said so casually. But her body is saying otherwise. Her hands trembling, legs shaking and eyes unable to maintain eye contact with me.
" Okay! If you say so!"
We finished our breakfast and I paid the bill. She said that she would pay the bill but I refused saying that I should pay. We walked out of the restaurant and directed towards my car in silence.
" I didn't see you going to college from two days? You don't have any classes?" I raised my eyebrow to depict that I am doubtful. She stuttered for a second but quickly composed herself and said "No mam...We are on vacation leave. So I don't need to go to college".
We get inside the car and I decided to speak up.
AUTHOR POV
" Why are you lying Eline?" Lyra asked, getting straight to the point, not beating around the bush this time. Eline looked at her confused at first and darted her eyes down thinking what Lyra meant. She thought that Lyra had some suspicion on her because of her hesitant answers. Lyra started driving out of the restaurant and into the main road.
"What do you mean mam?" Her hands fidgeting with her mobile as a sign of nervousness.
"I mean that I know you're lying to me. But I just can't differentiate between lies and truths. I just can't exactly tell which is a lie and which is true" Lyra asked stopping the car on the side of the road.
"I'm not...I'm not lying mam....." Eline protested out of worry that she may get exposed. But what she's doing right now is what gets her exposed.
"You said you didn't want to got to the fest because you have to go somewhere next week. You managed to perfectly tame me but you didn't even know that there is no fest happening in your college. And what about the freaking Jonathan? I don't even know it remember there's a Jonathan in your college! how do you know him? ....Eline ....are you trying to cheat me into something? Why did you lie about your father?" Lyra held the steering wheel so tight that her hands and knuckles became white.
Maybe she didn't want to hear Eline say something that breaks her heart. Maybe she wanted to treat Eline just like her brother. Maybe she wanted to skip this day in her life. Maybe she didn't wanted to believe the fact that Eline has been lying to her.
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Hey guys....do comment on how you like the chapter..do you think Eline reveals the truth? What do you think happens next? Please consider letting us know your thoughts. Thankyou 🤍
~Luna