The Flower You Didn't See | Mystery

Chapter 18

It was like he was waiting for someone to ask him to calm down, so that he could act upon his instincts. Lee threw his own guitar onto the sand and ran towards Ruby who was walking ahead with Laksh. He pulled her guitar out of her hands in a swift move, and broke it over his knee into two pieces.

Needless to say, Ruby and Lee had finally broken up.

After watching her guitar being broken, Ruby first lunged forward and slapped Lee right on his left cheek. Then she returned to the hotel room, packed her bags, and had immediately left back to college. Laksh had tried to stop her from leaving, outside the hotel but in vain.

When Laksh, Lee and Sara had returned to their room that night, they found that Ruby had poured bathroom cleaner into the contents of Lee's bag, cleaning his clothes among other things.

In spite of this unforeseen circumstances, Lee, Sara and Laksh had, however, stayed for the rest of the surf festival. Lee was ecstatic as he could play his guitar everyday without Ruby trying to put him down, though Sara and Laksh didn't want to hear him play anymore.

After they had returned to college, things were far from how it had been before. For a whole week, there was no news from Ruby. Everyone had started noticing the absence of one person from the group. And since it was Ruby who was missing, everyone automatically assumed that Lee and Ruby had in fact broken up. Lee strongly coming onto random girls may have also aided in confirming this speculation.

Laksh had tried to get hold of Ruby, but Ruby had never responded.

"Good," said Lee, "Kick her out of the group."

Laksh was lying on her stomach on the grass, while Lee lay on his back. Sara sat on a towel, leaning her back against a tree, reading a book.

"Don't be an idiot Lee," Laksh said going through the pictures she took at the festival, wondering which ones to post in her social media account.

"Yeah. She'll be back soon. Instead, we should kick you out for what you did," said Sara as she flipped a page in her book. "I really doubt if she'll return until he apologizes and fixes her guitar," Laksh pouted.

Lee cackled. He said, "That's never going to happen." He rolled into his stomach and looked at Sara. He remembered something she had said while at the beach and said, "I don't understand how you can be so calm about creating a clone of yourself."

"She is not a clone. She is an original. I just want to help perfect her," replied Sara, not taking her eyes off the book.

"You mean like a project. Playing Clueless are you? You'll regret it once she backstabs you and turns out to be more perfect than you are," said Lee.

Sara stiffened and Lee noticed the change. He continued, "She has fans without even trying. She had fans even before you began working your magic on her. I had known her before we had officially met her. Why do you think I paid her so much attention the minute she came to me that first night at the party?"

Laksh was listening carefully to his words. Sara was too, but she continued hiding her face behind her book. Lee continued, "Unlike you, she is talented as well, as both of you have been rubbing on my face."

He paused for effect. He knew Sara was intently listening to him, though she was pretending not to. He said, "I can imagine already. Ruby Rose. Perfect, just like Sara. Only, just a little better."

"That's enough. Stop irritating her," Laksh interjected as Lee rolled to his side, laughing.

As Sara walked to her class, Lee's words still fresh on her mind, she heard someone call her from behind. Already in a hurry, as she was late for class, Sara didn't want to waste any more time. Hence she ignored the call, and increased the pace of her steps.