The rest of the day passed by without any interesting event and more importantly, Joanne wasn't there. When we are taking a rest, Sim and I usually check out the girls. We never really hit on them because Mr. Lee would kill us. We told him that we cannot help it if they hit on us. Mr. Lee rolled his eyes and bet us 5 ringgit that no girls would ask for our numbers. I did catch Sim giving his number to a fit girl but he begged me not to tell Dana. I promised not to tell her but told him that he owe me one.
On the last day of the fair, I had a stomach bug and desperately in need of the loo. Unfortunately, it was my turn at the cashier that day and since it was the last day of the fair, it was absolutely packed and Mr. Lee will never every single cashier open. I was left with no option but to beg Sim to take my place while I do my stuff. He was on rearranging duty today with Dana. I'll bet you any money that he actually spent more time snogging her than the books he rearranged. He reluctantly agreed when I mentioned about the girl he gave the number to.
My stomach was bursting by the time I got to do the toilet. I would spare you the graphic detail now. Anyway, I spent just about 20 minutes in the toilet and came out of there sweating. I took a breather under the air conditioner and cooled myself off. I was not in a rush since Sim was in my place. After a while, I decided to head back to my station and found Sim grinning with a smile so wide the ends of his lip can touch his ears.
"I thought you and the toilet had eloped." Sim said while carefully placing some customer's books in the bag. I reached out to help but Sim told me not to worry. "Go to the favorite spot of yours and see your girlfriend." He continued.
"Zara?" I frowned. "What is she doing here?"
"No, you moron. Joanne is waiting for you."
I stood there digesting the information for a minute before Sim shooed me off. "Get your move on. She has already waited for you for 10 minutes or so."
I walked slowly at first to buy time to think of something to say to her but the prospect of meeting her excites me and without me knowing it, I half walked half ran across the hall. I finally slowed to a walk after realizing that I might seem a little needy. I finally turned the corner and there she was, dressed in a white shirt and skinny jeans. "Hi, Joanne." I said nervously.
"You okay? Your friend told me you're in the toilet."
"Yea, I got a little stomach problem." I said. "Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Simmy said you might have eloped with the toilet." She laughed. I laughed too simply because it was contagious. Then, I noticed something. "You called him Simmy?" I asked. She nodded and asked why. "No one has actually believed his name is Simmy. Once, he tried to ask a girl but she wouldn't because she demanded to know his real name although he introduced himself a million times. Since then, he introduced himself as Sim."
"It's not hard to believe his name is Simmy." She remarked. I shrugged.
"What you doing here?" I asked out of curiosity. "I came to the book fair to find something to eat." She replied sarcastically. I frowned.
"I came here to pick up some books and asked you for advices on books. I couldn't find you so I walked around myself."
I cursed in my mind and swore to never eat in a food court ever again. "Then, your friend saw me and told me that you're in the toilet. So, I came here to wait."
"That's sweet of you." And to think that the first girl to come to my mind was my ex, Zara. "So, you wanna walk around and find more books now that I'm here?" I asked.
"Nah. I bought enough books already. If I buy anymore, I won't be able to board the plane tonight."
My heart sunk when I heard that. "Oh." Then, I realized her hair smells like roses and I wanted to touch it so badly. I would have looked like a creep if I did so I forced it down. I regretted that I didn't come running to see her just now. She noticed that I was silent and asked me what's wrong. I waved it away and asked when she is leaving to board the plane.
"Actually, right now." She said as she spied her bodyguard from the corner of her eyes. I turned around and watched as the huge tall man walked towards us.
"Hi, I'm Wa..." I reached out to shake his hands but he cut me off by saying," I know who you are."
"Okay." I put my hands in my pocket, suddenly aware of how I should place my other hand. "We have to leave now if we don't want to miss the plane." The bodyguard said.
"Give us a sec." Joanne said and the bodyguard backed away far enough to not overhear but close enough to watch over her. "So, this is goodbye huh?" I shuffled in my seats awkwardly.
"Maybe, but you know. With the technologies humans have, halfway across the world isn't too far away." She said, clearly hinting something. I didn't get it so we kept quiet for a moment.
"Are you going to ask for my number or not?" She asked. I was shocked by the directness but at least it saved me the blushes of being rejected by a celebrity. "Give me your phone." I handed it to her and she saved her number in my phone. "Promise not to give it to anyone else."
I nodded. We sat there for a couple more seconds before she again broke the silence. "Well?"
"What?"
"Never mind. I need to go now." She stood up. She was giving me her number a few seconds ago and now she turned her back on me. I do not understand girls. "Have a safe journey home." I said. She smiled and waved at me. I watched her walk away until she disappeared in the crowd with her bodyguard.
Suddenly, a voice beside me said. "Done wooing? Get back to the counter!" It was Mr. Lee. "Sim is covering for me."
"With the amount of people piling in, Sim is going to need all the hands he got. Now, scram." He scowled. I walked away with a happy smile and more importantly, her number.
