Dark Faïz ( Book 1 ) [ COMPLETED]

Chapters 3-7

There were not many people at the end of the afternoon in the cafeteria. I took the opportunity to refine my application, which I should send shortly to the press houses in Los Angeles in order to do an internship as part of my specialization as a journalist. The Friday night's ball was being prepared ardently. There were only four days left.

— "A cappuccino, please, ma'am!"

Immersed in my paperwork, I hadn't heard Lexy and Asarys arrive at the counter, although those two never went unnoticed. I served Lexy and then went to Asarys.

— "What do you want? Coffee, as usual?" I asked in a gloomy tone.

— "Oops, that's not the form, today," remarked Asarys.

— "I think she misses someone," Lexy whispered to her.

— "Ah!" Asarys said dryly, with an annoyed pout.

— "Can you explain the substance of your remark to me?"

Asarys observed the world around her. Except for a few people sitting far from us, the place was deserted.

— "What are you waiting for, Zoe? You think things happen on their own?" she persisted.

— "What are you getting at? I never complain!"

I had raised my voice unintentionally.

— "You're not complaining, but your mood is weighing us down! Yes, Faïz is in a relationship. Yes, he avoids you and that will not change. It's not up to us to pay for all this!"

— "Why are you hurting me like that? I don't deserve this."

I repressed the tears that came to my eyes.

— "Leave her alone, Asarys. What's the matter with you?" Lexy intervened, stunned.

She interfered in this lively exchange to prevent the tone from rising any higher. Asarys looked at me severely, straight in the eyes, and then added,

— "I'm your friend. Don't ever question that. You love him, you want him, so now you're going to move on or fight for him. You never get anything without anything. It's not by moping in a corner that you get something, Zoe!"

— "Well... All this in such a small body," Lexy said, surprised by her friend's behavior.

Unable to answer anything, I remained nailed to the place, totally numb, under the shock of her words.

— "David, do you mind if I leave early?" I screamed so he could hear me from the back. "I don't feel well."

— "Yeah, go ahead. I'll call you tonight, sweetheart."

— "Zoe, wait!" Asarys tried to catch up.

— "No, shut up. I don't want to hear anything from you anymore," I said in a furious voice.

I left angry, leaving my two friends at the cafeteria counter.

**

When I was getting in my car, I didn't start it right away. I thought back to Asarys' biting sentences. How could she judge my situation so badly? I hit my head against my seat several times in a row, mad with rage. Suddenly, someone knocked on my window. It was Ray. No, this is not the time! I sighed in spite of myself, before reluctantly opening my window.

— "Is everything all right?" he asked me in an anxious way.

— "Yes, it's okay," I replied in a slightly too bitter voice.

He leaned his head to the side, his eyes sarcastic. He walked around the car, opened the door, and sat next to me.

— "Go ahead, I'm listening."

At his insistence, the only way he would leave me alone was to tell him the minimum about my situation.

— "Nothing serious. I just had a little fight with Asarys. She was honest and it offended me."

— "So, was she right or was she wrong?"

I raised my hands to heaven and frowned.

— "Right," I cursed, "but I was not ready to hear the truth."

— "That's what friends are for, you know. She wants to pull you up, not keep you down."

— "Have you ever had a fight with...Faïz?"

He began to think for a brief moment, then stared at me in a skeptical way.

— "The argument was about him, wasn't it?" he guessed by shaking his head, a sign that he disapproved of all this.

— "Yes," I confessed. I was embarrassed.

— "There's something between you?" he murmured, worried.

— "No, nothing. It's just one-sided feelings."

— "Yes, I know that."

The intensity in his voice betrayed his disappointment. I felt sorry for him then. I knew that Asarys was the cause of this cold and empty look. I hoped that she would quickly make a decision about it. He pulled me out of my thoughts and added,

— "He's at home in his loft...alone. If you leave now, maybe you can avoid traffic jams and get there before he leaves."

My heart accelerated immediately. Finally, Asarys was probably right. I had to fight for him, tell him everything. Ray got out of the car, trying to adopt the least somber expression possible.

— "Take care of yourself," he said before closing the door. "You know, Zoe, you should get Faïz out of your head, because you might lose a lot."

Why was everyone telling me the same thing?

The discussion ended there. He moved away as elegant as usual. I started the engine, determined to confront Faïz.