Epiphany

Chapter 1

"Are you kidding me!?"
And there she was finally letting it out. Of course, why was she even expecting to get away from any situation without  drama to spice things up, her life was dramatic enough.

"I..umm no?" She said, looking confused, taken aback by the sudden outburst of the man standing in front of her and also the person for whom she had worked for over five years now. A person who provided her comfort, who offered her a cup of coffee everyday and chat with her on any topic she wanted. He listened attentively to whatever she had to talk about and even gave advice to her on things she needed advice on and all this despite of his busy schedule.

This was Henry Byrne, the famous fashion designer and the owner of 'Twilight' a growing fashion brand, who bagged the famous K-pop group 'SKZ' as its brand ambassador.

"And may I ask why do you want to quit? Did something happen? Is everything good? Is it your parents?"

Looking alarmed Everly immediately shook her head repeatedly.

"No! I .." opening and closing her mouth repeatedly, she finally sighed giving up on the eloquent speech she prepared and practised since this morning.

"I need a break Henry, to figure things out, things like what I want to do with my life. Live life by being adventurous, something that will give me that adrenaline rush so I can hear my own heartbeats. Don't take me wrong, you are great Henry this boutique is great and definitely more than I could wish for, but you see I... I just want to be spontaneous and put an end to this monotonous life." She went on, not knowing when to stop and when she realised the Shakespeare inside her was waking up she immediately stopped. Her eyes went wide and a sour expression graced her face. Then turning around and facing the nearest wall she tried, although poorly, to avoid the scrutinising eyes of her boss.

"And I remember you calling me the one with dramatic flair." rolling his eyes Henry continued, "You need a vacation. I can give you a week or maybe two."
"Turn around Ev." Everly turned back again, to face Henry, he was still standing next to the mannequin displaying a navy blue tuxedo, designed by herself, biting her lower lip she replied
"A vacation is not what I'm looking for Henry."

Defeated Henry asked "You are determined aren't you?" Walking to their designated coffee spot he continued "Okay I'm willing to loose a hardworking employee but, I refuse to loose a friend. You can do whatever you want, I am not going to stop you. Even though you sprang this on me" Trying to be stoic he continued in a soft voice "As a friend I can only wish for you to be happy, I'll always be rooting for you." Listening to him, Everly's eyes got blurry, she only had a few people in her life who truly cared for her. Henry and his wife Natasha, an enchanting woman were amongst them. They looked after her as if she was their child, even though they both were only a few years older than her.

"Thank you Henry. I'll be forever grateful to you"
Smiling gently Henry nodded. "Natasha will chew my head off after learning about this."
"I bet she will. Everly remembered how Natasha got worried and urged Henry to go look for her when she was late for work the other day and wasn't reachable as her phone was dead. She felt grateful for these small things that let her know she was cared for.

"And how are you planning to fund this adventure of yours?"
Everly shrugged "Lets say I have some savings and if it comes to it I'll freelance my designs. Anyway for now, I need a break from it all."
"For me." Henry interjected.
"Come again?"
"Freelance your designs for me I can't afford to loose your talent."
Making her smile Henry nodded his head as he gestured her to the chair in front of him so that they may enjoy their break together maybe for the last time.