Egyptian Vanity

Alethiology

"Ella,"

I knew whose voice that belonged to. I don't think it was something I could ever forget. You'd think with four years of nothing but dreaming of him calling me, I would have a lot more to say but I did the only thing I could think of.

I hung up on him.

And all of a sudden it felt like all the progress I had made started to wash down the proverbial drain. In an instant, I was that 18-year-old girl again. The one that was devastated and heartbroken just a few short years ago. The one that felt like her whole world rotated around this man and here he was, finally making some sort of contact.

Part of me wanted nothing more than to call him back and give him a piece of my mind. But of course, the other, the much larger part of myself just wanted his comfort again. The only comfort I'd ever received in my whole life that seemed to put me back together again.

I had built myself up to be this strong woman, independent and resourceful on my own but I was anything but that when I was around him. Looking back, I relied on him to take care of me, emotionally, mentally, physically, and financially. Since the 'breakup,' I've grown up and the only person I've relied on to fulfill all my needs was myself. And that was refreshing. It was hard but refreshing.

Of course, the two parts of my brain were at war right now. The one side was begging me to call him back, to let down our walls and have someone else take care of us. While the other side was still very much against him. That side was much more prideful than the other.

Before I could even decide which part of myself I was going to side with, my phone lit up with a text message.

'I'm at Obelisk Hotel, leaving tomorrow morning. Someone will be waiting in the lobby until midnight to escort you to my room.'

Minutes passed as I stared at the text message, waiting for someone to tell me what I needed to do. This seemed like a decision I wasn't going to be able to make myself but it was clear, from my heart to my brain, what the obvious answer was.

I pocketed my phone and made my way down the sidewalk, letting myself get soaked from the rain. Way too many emotions were filtering through and above all else, I was just confused.

And maybe what I needed to get me through this was just some closure.

At least that was my justification as I pulled open the front doors to the Obelisk Hotel.

"Miss Cardenas?" A man in a hotel uniform asked, standing up from his chair. I gave him a nod in response to which he smiled. "Right this way, ma'am."

I followed him to the elevator and we stood in silence as it took us to the very top of the building. The elevator dinged and the doors slid open to reveal a vast, modern-style living room. I wasn't surprised at all by the all-out lavishness that was expected. This was Logan that we were talking about. If there was one thing to pinpoint about him, besides his good looks, it was his lavish aura he seemed to put off.

The lights were on and there was faint music playing from some radio so I knew he was here somewhere. I walked to the kitchen and noticed the empty pack of cigarettes lying on the counter and beside that, the clear cellophane wrapper from a new pack.

It took me a moment but I finally found the balcony and on the balcony sat Logan, smoking a cigarette and sipping some kind of liquid from a small glass. I watched him for a moment, making sure to calm down my heart and steady my breathing before deciding to talk to him again for the first time in four years.

While my appearance had gone through a few changes, he seemed to have stayed the same. The same tan skin, black hair, and troubled eyes that left me breathless since the first time I had laid eyes on him.