Whimsical Perfection

13. Surprise

"Our doubts are traitors,
And make us lose the good we oft might win,
By fearing to attempt."
  –Lucio, Measure for Measure

~♤ ▪︎ ♤ ▪︎ ♤~

"She doesn't mean anything, girl. Why are you losing your mind over a random idiotic girl?" Aaliyah exclaimed for the hundredth time in the past hour, and now I was sick of hearing the same thing again and again.

"Yes, I get it. Can we please drop the subject?"

"You do? You don't look like you do." She said, skeptically searching for any signs of discontent on my face.

I tried my best to keep my face neutral so that she could be convinced for now, or else I knew she wouldn't let go of it until I was 'properly healed'. She just didn't know when to give space to someone.

"By the way, where is that date of yours? She got up to go to the washroom and hasn't returned since." I asked her, effectively changing the subject.

She sighed, "She left, obviously. Couldn't even understand the difference between a lover and a friend."

I snorted. This wasn't the first or second time one of her girlfriends has mistaken our relationship. Just because she was interested in women, doesn't mean every other woman in her life would be her partner. Humans thought that they had evolved greatly in mentality, whereas they were still superficial when it came to simple, everyday relationships. We had the innate ability to complicate the simplest of things, which in turn, made us miserable for no reason at all.

"What will you do once you find someone who won't be suspicious of our friendship?" I asked her curiously, waiting for some dramatic ass remark, which I got successfully.

"I will go down on one knee and beg her to marry me immediately. There couldn't be a better woman in the world than someone who accepts you into our world willingly."

I smiled softly and nodded my head. "I agree. She will have to accept me if she wants to love you."

"Exactly."

After an hour of mindless chatting and gossiping, we left the cafe and hopped into my car. I was in a much better mood and it was all thanks to Aaliyah. God only knows what I would have done had she not been by my side every time I went through such issues. The panic attacks weren't so frequent now, now that some time had passed since the last time I was around such triggers.

But ever since I had met a certain someone, all my insecurities, vulnerablitites and anxiety had come back to bite me in the ass. I was attracted to his handsome looks and sexy, God-like aura, but hated him for his arrogant, invincible personality. He was capable of making me question everything I had created for myself with just a single glance – talent, qualifications, and confidence. And I knew that wasn't good news. Still, every time I saw him, I wanted to choke him to death, and then revive him with a mind numbing kiss.

Shaking my head out of disbelief, I turned my attention to Aaliyah, who was now getting off my car at her place.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot to tell you in this frenzy. There's a family dinner planned by my dear parents this Saturday, so you have to join us. No questions, no excuses."

"Hey, you can't drop a bomb on me just like that! Also, what part of family will be attending this time?" I asked, hinting towards the one person I couldn't bear to see, yet I was yearning for a single glance of him.

"Everyone. Family, close friends of family. Everyone. I don't want to be bored in there, okay? And you need to be there for me. Please??" She asked me again with her signature puppy dog eyed stare, making me huff annoyingly.

Why am I cold towards the whole world but then she asks me something and suddenly I find myself unable to say no?

Nodding my head, I drove away from her house, her loud cheering still ringing in my ears. Thinking about the dinner, I was positive I would have to meet Isaac again and I honestly didn't know how to feel about it. Do I feel happy? Or frustrated that even though I have been Aaliyah's friend for years, suddenly there's this brother of hers I can't run away from. No matter where I go, I see him.

At this rate, it won't be a surprise if I gradually got used to having him in the same room, but I had no idea that soon, something else would be extremely surprising for me.

Soon, I didn't know that this tempest would get worse and more complicated to survive in.

~♤ ▪︎ ♤ ▪︎ ♤~