2: Allea

two

"Good to see, you're no longer looking like shit."

"I thank Your Majesty for his appreciation."

The moment she entered the restaurant's room, Elijah's disparaging words reached her ears, Raising her brow, Allea responded in a similar tone, followed by a little toward him.

Elijah's cheeky smile widened, he proceeded to admit that he was complimenting her and at least she looked way better than the last time he saw her — three days prior when Allea came back and invited him to dinner. At that time she wasn't speaking much, eating food slowly and everything seemed uncomfortable to her, but despite the wrinkles of tiredness on her face and her body weighed with strain, the smile hardly left her lips as she heard the whole description of Kai's trip.

As Allea sat opposite Elijah, he spoke again, his voice held seriousness but his expression full of tantalization, "Started going to company so soon, I thought you were going to rest at least a week?"

While Allea got comfortable, she saw his expression but still offhandedly asked with a smile, "I can't tell if you are mocking me or you seriously thought I would take a week off."

"Yeah, I'm absolutely doing the former."

Allea raised her eyes and held his gaze, smiled, then dismissively waved her hand, responding that today was her first day back to the company after two months, "But the strangest thing is..."

Her later words turned into whisper and voice lowered, Allea's eyes moved away from Elijah to the restaurant's window which was showing the soundless hustle-bustle of the outside city, the whole room fell in absolute silence. 

Elijah had his eyes fixed on the emotions passing through his friend's eyes, although they were subtle, it was the first time he saw their traces —there were hints of relief and comfort entangled with the newfound complexity shining in the depth of her eyes.

Elijah's smile faded into one of the purer ones as he stared at Allea, he remained silent, giving her time to complete her words.

Her voice was barely above the murmur, "...I didn't miss being there."

Allea's mind flashed back to this morning's images of her stepping inside the company, meeting her people, stepping into that office where she works -has been working for the past five years. She never asked herself whether she missed that place or not, but this time she did, Allea asked herself whether this place's absence left any longing inside her. The office, the company, the work all she has done in past years, the most time of her life she has given to these things, but they never brought a feeling of fulfillment inside her or even a glimpse of happiness in her for returning to it.

In her past, the beginning of this life was because of her need for greed and power, and in this life, the beginning of this was caused by her obligation —an obligation she had to pay through her whole effort to make up for the things her past self did.

"Of course you didn't, I mean who would miss the boring life like yours."

Elijah's mirthful words brought her back from her realizations, Allea's eyes once again moved toward him and a chuckle left her lips as she shook her head and shrugged.

As their smiles faded, and they fell into their usual discussion, last time at the mansion when they met because of Allea's tiredness they hardly spent any time exchanging the words and asking things they wanted to know about each other.

Elijah raised a brow while questioning, "So, did you come after finishing all the work in Gaborone?"

"Pretty much, everything's on usual track again."