On Monday morning, the Beckhams family were getting ready to leave. While everyone else was bidding their farewell, Eva decided to say goodbye to Èdouard. So, she went to his room. At the door, she was met by the housekeeper, Louise.
"I'm sorry, Madame Eva, but Monsieur Èdouard left very early this morning." Louise said.
Disheartened by the news, she smiled at her and bade her final goodbye, and walked away. In less than 30-minutes, the chauffeur arrived to take them back to the airport.
Now on the plane flying back home, Eva plastered her face on the window, reflecting on the moments shared with Èdouard. The fleeting clouds reminded her of how temporary life could be when it comes to people. She tried to relate it to the feeling of being left behind by him without saying goodbye to her.
Why do I even care? I only just met this guy. I barely know him. Why does he have such an effect on me all of a sudden?
She pondered, as the plan made slow descending motions in the air.
"Care for some coffee, Madame?" The flight attendant lady asked her.
"No, thank you." Eva smiled back at her, whilst resuming her reflections.
…
Now home, Eva must prepare to go back to school. As exhausted from the trip as she was, she refused to lay for an hour or two.
"Are you sure you don't want to cancel classes for today, honey?" A concerned mother asked.
"No, mom, I can't." She said, as she continued to pack her bag.
"The chauffeur is here!" Mack called out to her.
"Give me a few minutes, I'll be there soon." She cried out.
Finally set to go, she bid her parents goodbye. She got into the car, and they took off…
…
During the drive back, her thoughts began to drift back to Paris…
"You know, we should tour the world together someday. It'd be fun to have you with me…"
She could hear him whispering in her ear as they relaxed by the terrace, talking about nothing and everything.
Damn it! I don't even have his number, and he doesn't know where I live.
The realization of it all hit her hard like a wrecking ball. How could they possibly get to see each other again, when there's nothing linking them back together?
Or maybe there is!
A lightbulb switched on in her head.
Maybe you could ask Dominic for his contact…after all he did mention they're friends…
One voice suggested.
No, that'll reek of desperation, you already have a lot on your plate, Eva Beckhams! Don't be fooled by a French accent.
Another countered, dismissing the other condescendingly.
And the warring voices continued until Eva couldn't take it anymore…
Just shut up, you two!
"Sorry Miss, but I didn't say anything…" The chauffeur replied, looking confused.
Embarrassed, she apologized and brushed it off like it was nothing.
"Are we there yet? The trip appears longer than usual." She said frustratingly.
"We're almost there, Ms. Beckhams. Just a few minutes away…" He assured.
In less than ten minutes, they arrived at her hostel. She was elated and could not wait to unpack and tell her best friend, Sade, all that had happened over the weekend.
As soon as she approached the door, Theo was exiting the building, with Sade behind him…
"Hiii Eva, I wasn't expecting you." Sade said nervously.
"Uhm…I live here, and I'm in school, so…" Eva replied while assessing them both.
"Hey Eva, welcome back…See you around!" Theo said, as he hurriedly walked away, leaving the two young ladies behind.
"What is he doing here, babe?" Eva fixated her eyes on Sade, hoping for an explanation.
"Nothing," she lied, "he came to apologize."
"That's it?"
"Yup! That's it. Nothing more." Sade reassured her.
Still dissatisfied with her friend's claim, she decided to let sleeping dogs lie…
All settled down, the two girls talked about Eva's ordeals— from the drama at home upon her arrival, and the chance meeting with the handsome Èdouard at cousin Dominic's wedding.
"Wait, what?" Sade screamed in disbelief, "You mean Philian was in Paris too? That bastard literally shows up everywhere!" Sade blazed up at the revelation of Philian being present in Paris too.
Eva shot her friend a look of disapproval at the name-calling…
"What are you looking at me for? Don't tell me you pity him now, do you?" She eyed her, "He even came around the day you left. Said he wanted to talk to you, but I wouldn't speak to him, so he left." She paused. Taking a moment to examine Eva's countenance, she carried on, "Are you reconsidering taking him back?" She inquired curiously.
"No, Sade." She scoffed. "Although he wants us to be friends and hang out together…I told him I'd sleep on it." She confessed, feeling the rage of her friend's incoming outburst…
"I know you already know how much I despise him for all that he's done to you. So, if you do plan on getting back together, make sure you have someplace planned out to live in. Because we will not be sharing the same space, young lady." Sade warned.
Eva started laughing. She missed her bestie so much while she was away. It was refreshing to finally be back, even though she wasn't gone for that long…
Later on, Eva went to History class. Afterwards, they were all asked to submit their week-long assignment. When class was done for the day, she bumped into Benjamin in the hallway.
"Hey, Eva!" He called out excitedly, "I went over to your place to see you, and uhm…Sade said you went home?!" He stated.
"Yeah…something came up, so I was called home."
"Oh! Well I hope it wasn't an emergency or anything like that?"
"Not at all. It's just that we had to attend a wedding, so…" she said plainly.
"Sounds…great, I suppose." He chuckled, still trying to make sense of why he sounded that way. "So, I wanted to ask…not that I'm prying or anything, but uhm…is Sade back with Theo now?" He hesitated whilst asking.
She shrugged.
"Why do you ask?" She said with a hint of curiosity in her tone.
"Oh, nothing really. It's just that…the other day, I came by to ask about you and he was there…" He revealed.
"When…was this? If you don't mind me asking." She pressed on.
"Saturday night, I believe. Don't say a word to her, but they appeared pretty much comfortable, you know…like he was spending the night over." He added.
The revelation sent shock waves through her body.
Omg! It all makes sense now…
She thought…
"Thank you for telling me this, but I don't know if they're back together."
"Alright then, but I hope not…for her sake." He said.
There was something about the way he said that that piqued her curiosity even more…
"Why would you say that?"
"Because he's still with the new girl we saw at the party…remember her?"
The outpouring made her feel dizzy.
Why would Sade lie to me? She's been seeing Theo. Does she know? Or is she simply okay being the other woman now?
As these thoughts rang in her head, she began to feel even more dizzy.
"Are you alright, Eva? You look…lost."
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just need to get out of here. I need to get home, so I can work on my project." She said to him, "I'll see you later, Benjamin. It is good to see you…" She said, and walked away…