Replay Of Shades

04

CHASE

I woke up the following morning, which was a Sunday with a splitting headache as a result of all the drinking from last night after I got back from the dinner I had with dad and Enid.

There was also the feeling of emptiness within me, and that was even worse than the headache.

No matter how much I didn't want it to be true, it was certain Enid was the girl from that night six years ago, that I know now.

At first, I had tried to ignore the fact that she had the exact same voice as Scarlett, also the same eyes, and then she had started hiccuping when she got herself tipsy from drinking too much of that alcoholic champagne while me and dad discussed, probably because of the guilt she was feeling deep down.

Scarlett had hiccuped too while drinking alone in my club that night, and I had noticed her because of that.

Despite the carefree guy that I was, I was beyond worried and had walked up to her to ask her what was wrong and if I could do anything to help but she had assured me it was no big deal. She had told me the hiccups happen whenever she drinks, alcohol specifically.

Dad had said the same thing about Enid.

I had felt a lump in my throat and a twist in my stomach at the possibility that all I had found out wasn't just a coincidence and that these two people could be the same person.

Joining the dots together from her going all stiff on seeing me, to her having that same feathery voice, to her leaving the room in a hurry and returning with a tear-stained face and her taking a step back in what I would call fear while at the door when I was going to go and look for her, then the hiccups, I knew there was no doubt she was the girl from that night.

She wasn't Scarlett but Enid, the same person who was my stepsister. She'd lied about her name to me that night, for a reason I couldn't think of. She mustn't have wanted me to know who she really was.

And right from the moment that I stepped foot into that room, she'd recognized me, but I hadn't because of this stupid disorder.

She must have thought I was pretending not to recognize her until dad told her about the disorder, but then, she had decided to do the same. To pretend.

Apparently, she wasn't taking the whole thing well too, seeing how shaken she was yesterday, but should I even care about how she feels? It was all her fault.

If she hadn't lied about her real name or if she had told me who her family were, what happened wouldn't have happened. I wouldn't have ended up being the guy who slept with his own sister in the past.

She was also not the one who hadn't been able to forget about the other person for years. She messed up my love life. My whole life, too.

I was heartbroken, beyond words.

Hate replaced whatever I thought I had felt for her in the past.

However, looking past all that I was feeling right now, I wouldn't say that all of the fault was hers. A one-night stand was never a good idea, but that didn't stop me from wanting to have it with her. We both made a mistake, and we were both paying for it now.

The headache deepened, and I quickly shut my eyes tight in pain. Knowing the headache wasn't going to subside anytime soon if I didn't take any painkillers, I weakly pulled the white sheet away and dragged my sore body out of bed.

I managed to take my bath and put on new clothes before getting back into bed to get some more sleep after I had taken the pills and finished a whole mug of the ginger tea that I made, hoping it would help with the hangover.

+

Seeing the time was a few minutes to twelve going to the afternoon when I woke up, I could tell I had slept for over three hours. I noticed that aside from my aching heart, the headache had dissipated.

It was also a relief that my head wasn't heavy anymore like earlier, when I got up to fix myself something to eat before I could get some things done on my laptop in preparation for work tomorrow including the video call I scheduled with my secretary.

Speaking of which, starting from tomorrow, there was no way I could avoid not seeing Enid almost everyday for the period that I would be here and pretending might just be the best thing to do to prevent whatever awkwardness that would follow if she were to find out that I had figured everything out.

ENID

I watched Maya's mouth form a big O upon seeing me through the mirror that was in front of me.

That was expected and if I hadn't come wearing a scarf around my head and putting on shades, everyone else who saw me when I arrived would have had the same expression on their faces just like the one she had on right now.

I was well aware of my gloomy self and my flushed face.

"Oh my God! What happened? You don't look so well." Maya cried out. Not long, she was standing right beside me, her eyes demanding answers.

Maya and I had been friends since high school. Both of her parents were lawyers, and being the first and only daughter, they wanted the same for her. That wouldn't have been a problem if she didn't detest studying but passionate about becoming a perfectionist hairstylist one day.

She had always been good at it, and it took going against her parents then for her to achieve her dream. They hadn't been on good terms ever since. However, she didn't stop hoping they would one day respect the decision she made.

Her first branch was forty minutes away from my place, but the distance wasn't an issue for me at the slightest because I preferred her service to any other person's.

She would also always go out of her way to attend to me herself no matter how busy she was, and on days when she wasn't in town, she would have her best hairstylist attend to me.

I sat up straight, more determined now. "I want you to cut my hair." I requested instead of answering her question.

"Uh..." Blinking more than once, she shook her head in confusion. "You haven't answered my question. What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, I just need you to cut my hair." I repeated, tired of the probing.

"Now that's a lie. You telling me to cut your hair says it all, you've always liked your hair long or..." She suddenly gasped, "Did someone die?"

I glared at her. "No." Was my short reply.

"Well, I hope not. I just thought some people do that when they're grieving." She tried explaining.

"I don't know about that. Just cut my hair, please." I felt like crying, and she wasn't helping at all with the questioning. I realized I could have avoided this if I had considered the idea of going to a different salon for today.

She was going to say something, but her hand flew to her mouth before she could. "You're crying." She pointed out wide-eyed. I didn't even know I was beginning to cry if she hadn't said so.

"I don't deserve to live." I burst into tears, and before I knew it, Maya had pulled me towards herself, wrapping her arms around me.

"Oh no. Why would you say that?"

I couldn't tell Maya what the matter, nor could I promise her that I would tell her when the time was right, knowing very well there was never going to be a time that was right.

I didn't want anyone to find out about what happened. It would be better if Chase didn't figure things out as well.

She was reluctant to cut my hair like I requested, but after so much pleading with her, she would only give me a neck length bob cut instead of the chin-length that I insisted on before I left there. Of course, that didn't do anything to ease my aching heart, but it would be a reminder of what I had done.

Having always loved my hair long like Maya said, this still wasn't enough punishment. No punishment was going to be enough.