29-year-old ZJ, a resilient androgynous Malaysian, tragically lost her family in a car crash when she was 18. Growing up in Oldham, she took up waitressing under precarious conditions and pursued a part-time college degree, despite a job that offere...
I eventually brought Milla to meet Abs at the Antwerp bar and the chemistry between them sparked instantly as they met. They locked gaze at each other, like a perfectly matched couple with their stylish air.
I looked at myself in disgrace. Who would want to be attracted to a plain Jane like me in boyfriend jeans, loose shirt, leather jacket and trainers?
Abs strike off the conversation smoothly from nightclubs to music, workout spots and favourite things.
"I enjoyed Madrid, the parties were much more ecstatic. I've met Bale in person," Abs gloated. "He's an okay bloke."
"Have you tried their local drinks?" Milla inquired.
Abs took a while to think before answering, "I've tried Sangria, but I don't like having fruits floating in my drink. It's disrupting."
"You should try Tinto de Verano, similar to Sangria without all that rubbishness in your glass," Milla suggested and turned to me. "ZJ, shoot me any poison you know."
"She's a devout Muslim. She doesn't drink," Abs butted in.
"She's been living here long enough to know some," Milla objected.
"Well, I know a little. Whiskey Fix, Champagne Cocktail, Vodka Martini," I answered.
Milla winked at me as if to say "Atta girl!"
"What's your favourite?" Abs finally asked.
"I'm a Caipirinha fan. It's a Brazilian drink but it's my favourite when I go travelling. I love its sweet and sour taste," she declared. "A local told me that Caipirinha can only be called as Caipirinha if it's traditionally prepared with lemon and cachaça which is the base. That's the law. Cachaça is made from fermented sugar cane juice, garapa. The drink can be prepared in many ways, though. You can change the fruit or you can change the base but the name will change too. For instance, you change cachaça to vodka, you get Caipiroska and switch it with Japanese rice wine, you get Sakerinha."
"You know a lot about spirits," Abs complemented.
"I know more about Caipirinha," Milla replied, taking another sip. "Which reminds me, we're having a house party at Bury this Saturday and I want you two to come."
"Yeah I'd love to! That sounds sick," Abs beamed.
"You also have a house in Bury?" I asked curiously.
"One of my girls' weekend house. She's hosting it and asked me to organise," Milla replied. "It'll be fun you won't notice it's Bury. They have an indoor swimming pool, my girls are gonna be there too. We're gonna have an early summer party."
"Looking forward to it," Abs' face glistened in anticipation despite looking all composed.
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Milla and I shopped for some last-minute party supplies after it was later decided that they wanted to have rainbow fusion theme party. When we had everything we needed, we drove back to her apartment in Didsbury, a beautifully converted three-storey building which was set during Georgian era.
It was transformed into a three-bedroom townhouse with a split level living hall and beautiful modern-luxurious interior complemented its every room. The entire residential area secured with access gates only for the residents, consists of several townhouses similar to Milla's flanking in rows to form a square and a beautiful manicured garden in the middle of the square.
I entered into its compound with amusement, I never knew this beauty existed in Manchester.
"Hey, sweets," I called her as we entered her unit. "I guess I didn't get to thank you."
"What on earth for?" she gave me a quizzical look while shedding her outerwear.
"I don't know. I never had fun like this with someone since... I can't remember," I shrugged, pulling out the scarves around my neck.
"You're kidding? Not even with Abs?"
"Abs is different. He is there by default," I leered.
"You're a wonderful person to hang out with, ZJ. People would die to have you as companion," she commended and made a beeline to the kitchen while I followed.
"I doubt they would. I'm not like you, Milla. You're gorgeous and I'm out of your league. Other people would agree the same," I objected.
"You don't have to beat yourself up, ZJ. You've inferiorities because Abs made you this way," Milla retorted. "Get that out of your system, for goodness sake."
"Well, Abs' mature," I defended. "And I'm not mad at it. Mature guys are gentlemen."
"Abs' a gentleman? Bollocks! He's putting on airs and graces makes me wanna chunder!" she scoffed.
Her disapproval shook me gobsmacked as I watched her flung the fridge door open, took out a bottle of unopened Orangina and reached for a couple of drinking glasses from the drawer.
"But you and Abs hit it off so well at the bar the other day," I probed.
"ZJ, love. He's into himself, flexing like he's some kind of a celebrity. He could at least be true to himself," she grimaced pouring each drink into glasses.
"Oh, he tried to woo you in," I reasoned out.
"Come on, he's fake as fuck! All that shit talking wasn't for me, it was for him," she vented out. "I don't mean to offend you because he's your mate. But I don't like the way he addresses you either. That's no gentleman, that's a pretentious jackass. I have to deal with people like that every day and it really sickens me."
I held back my tongue, relieved that she detested him. She handed me the drink and watched me sipping it carefully as she downed hers.
"How about Nick?" I shot another question. "Is he one of them?"
"What about him?"
"Does he hurt your feelings the way other people did?" I elaborated.
Milla leaned her bum against the counter and took another sip before answered, "Nick has his own issues. He's not his actual self recently. But he doesn't pester me around like groupies, either."
"And you like him for that?" I probed further to which she nodded hesitantly.
"I admit I do like him a lot until I don't anymore. The spark just went off between us. He was just a conquest to my accomplishment which made me realised that I became those I hated to be around with."
"What sort of accomplishment?"
She stared at me blankly and went on, "To conceal everybody about my sexuality."
"You're gay?" I guessed from the way she occasionally checked up on my bum.
"I'm a bi," she admitted after finishing her drink. "Yeah, predominantly homo."
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I'm keeping my chapters shorter moving forward. What do you think?
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