Ethan sat on the train, heading home. He had a headache. It had been a very tiring day for him; with his assistant gone, he had to arrange the books, attend to customers, record sales, clean the store, etc., all by himself. He just wanted to go home and lie on his bed. At least, he didn't have anyone now to call and tell how tiring his day was. He didn't have anyone to say funny things to soothe his tired self. No sweet angelic voice to tell him it's alright, all he needs is rest. He didn't have all that anymore. He had all that up until three months ago, but he lost everything. Honestly, Ethan wasn't yet used to this loneliness. Before sleeping every night, he listens to their call recordings and reminisces about the old times. Damn, he misses her so much.
Ethan's stomach growled, then it occurred to him that he had little for breakfast and nothing for lunch and dinner. He had been so engrossed in his work that he cared less about his stomach. His mind went back to eighteen months back. Ethan was busy arranging the books on his shelf.
"Hey, Mr. work work work, do you have any spare time to have lunch with your girlfriend, or are you too busy with that side chick of yours, huh?" Ember asked jokingly, referring to the books as his "side chick."
Ethan smiled at her.
"I'm never too busy for you, my love," Ethan said, smiling as she came closer, giving him a hug and a soft kiss on the lips.
"What do you have there?" Ethan asked, looking at the lunch pack she held in her hand.
"Eggs and toasted bread with some cold juice, it's a hot afternoon anyways," Ember replied with a cheeky smile.
"I'm one of the luckiest guys in the world, you know," Ethan said, leading her behind the counter where they could sit and eat.
"Of course you are, now let me guess, you had nothing for breakfast," Ember said, observing the way he couldn't wait for her to unpack their lunch.
"I have the most observing, sweet, and caring girlfriend, I don't have to stress much because she always got me covered," Ethan said as he pinched her cheeks, and she smacked his hand.
"Hmm, very funny. Starving yourself every time is bad for your health. Putting your work above health is wrong," Ember said, reaching out for his hand, looking very concerned.
"Well, I'll always have you to feed me, won't I?" Ethan replied with a playful smile on his lips and tickled her a little.
"Ethan... Stop," Ember said amidst laughter.
"But seriously, you have to stop this habit of not eating," Ember continued.
"That's why I need you to always ensure I eat well," Ethan said.
Ember glared at him for barely 10 seconds before chuckling.
"Why do you always make me feel like a babysitter?" she asked playfully.
"Well, I guess I have my work cut out for me. With your attitude, I have to bring you lunch every day, like I have always done," Ember said.
Ethan let out a long sigh as his mind came back to the present day. How long ago was that? When last did he have anyone bring him lunch? Maybe he really needed to follow her advice: health before work, he said to himself. As the train had a brief stop, he noticed a familiar figure leave the train, a figure he hadn't seen since...
"Stella?" he called out, but the lady didn't turn. He couldn't tell if it was her or not, considering the fact that a lot of people left the train, so the place crowded. He wanted to get down and chase after her, but the train continued its path. He looked confused. Was it really Stella, or was his brain playing tricks on him? "No, I must be mistaking," He told himself . All this starving isn't doing him any good, he thought.
After Stella came down from the train, she zipped up her denim coat, put her hands into her pockets, and looked around. Nothing has really changed even after months. Stella was a pretty young lady: oval face, big, brown, round eyes, excellent jawline, and thick eyebrows. She had long, brown, silky hair, which she let lie freely on her shoulders. She headed straight to a restaurant. She often looked back to see if anyone she knew saw her. She wasn't here after months to meet old friends. She came for business. She straightened her coat, took in a deep breath, and walked into the restaurant. She saw the person she came to see sitting at a table, reading a newspaper, and Stella walked over to him and sat opposite him.
"Hello, Mr. James," she greeted the middle-aged man, probably in his late fifties.
"What do you want, Stella? Our deal has ended," James said nonchalantly, his eyes still on his newspaper.
"If actually it ended, you wouldn't honor my invitation, would you now?" Stella said with a smirk. James dropped the newspaper on the table and looked at her lazily with his ocean blue eyes, and he picked up the coffee he had ordered before her arrival and took a sip. He then signaled for the waiter to come over.
"Please, a cream latte for the young lady," he said to the waiter.
"I'd prefer cappuccino, thank you," Stella told the waiter and gave him a slight nod and smile.
"A cappuccino it is, then," James nodded to the waiter, who left to get her order.
"So tell me, how's your mother?" James asked.
"She's the reason I called you. It came back... cancer... I need money for her surgery," Stella said, letting out a deep breath and looking at with a frightened expression.
"Stella, I'm very sorry about your mom, but why are you telling me this?" James asked. Stella gave him a confused look.
"Look, Mr. James, I just need a loan. I'll repay you, I promise... I'll pay you back. Right now, I just really need to save my mom," she said desperately.
James saw the desperation in her eyes, the same desperation he saw months ago that made her agree to the unthinkable. He let out a long sigh.
"How much are we talking about here?" he asked.
"Thirteen thousand pounds," she said, facing down.
"You have got to be kidding me," James said with a huff.
"I know it's a bit much..." She was interrupted.
"You think thirteen thousand pounds is a 'bit much,' Stella?" James asked rhetorically and huffed.
Stella just faced down, playing with her fingers in shame.
"I don't have that kind of money, Stella," James added.
"I need to save my mom, she'll... she'll die." Stella looked up at James with teary eyes.
"I can't help you with such an amount of money," James said firmly and sipped from his coffee
Stella looked at James and saw he wasn't ready to give her the money , it seems she has to switch to plan B, she sighed she really hoped it didn't had get to this but she was desperate and helpless . She can't do what she did and still lose the one person she did it for. She took in as much air as she could and looked up preventing water works on her face. She looked at James again, this time with devilish smile on her lips.
"Then maybe your wife would," Stella said with an evil smirk.
James' eyes widened in shock ,he never expected blackmail from her,at least not her!. He stared at her horror for a second before his expression darkened and his eyes furrowed in anger as he flared up.
"I have given you your fair share of the deal, for you to keep your mouth shut, I owe you nothing," James barked and hit the table, attracting stares from people in the restaurant.
"Relax, you'll draw attention, and we don't want that now, do we?" Stella asked rhetorically. James turned around and saw indeed people had begun to stare at them. He took slow breaths to calm himself down.
"You have no right to come back here and make silly demands. You asked for twenty thousand pounds, and I gave you twenty-five, you should even be ashamed to call her name. If you have any decency left, you would never show your face in this town again," James said in a hushed but angry tone.
"Look, I didn't want it to be this way. I don't even want to be here, but desperate times call for desperate measures, you told me that months ago, remember?" Stella asked, raising an eyebrow.
James looked at her fiercely for some seconds like he could pounce on her any minute . Stella almost got intimidated by his deadly glare , but remembered her ailing mother and realized it was no time to be a "chicken" . She gathered enough courage and looked back at him ,eyes defiant . James saw her undeniable boldness that wasn't there before. He adjusted his tie, and cleared his throat before speaking.
"If I give you this money, how am I sure you wouldn't come to blackmail me again?" James asked.
"I promise not to come back here for anything," Stella said.
"You broke your promise by contacting me and coming back here. How am I sure you wouldn't break this new promise like you did the old one?" James asked.
"I guess you just have to trust me this time," Stella said.
James stared at her brown eyes for a while.
"I would send you the money by this weekend," James said as he stood up, buttoning his suit. He motioned for the waiter to come, then he took some dollar bills from his wallet and placed them on the table.
"Thank you," Stella said but got a glare from James instead. Stella sighed. This is really not her. First, a traitor, then a slut, now a blackmailer. It seems she keeps adding to the list. She wasn't happy with herself at all. She looked at her cappuccino that had turned cold and hissed. She drank the whole coffee in one go and left the restaurant.
Ethan got home that day, still not being able to shake that feeling off. He still wondered if actually the lady he saw was Stella. He hadn't seen her since... He pushed the thought to the back of his head and forced himself to eat dinner alone, like every other night for the past three months. After dinner, he just lay in his bed listening to some call recordings, reminiscing about those times; for this had been his routine for three months now. He felt as time goes on, he would get used to it: the loneliness, but who was he kidding? He shuddered at the thought of living a sad, miserable, lonely life.