Work sucks, just so you know. So enjoy the young teenager life while you're at it!

What's your favorite fruit?

Chapter 9.

You are just a passing second in my life.

~~~

Olivia was sitting on the bed, looking at her phone. Tears streaming down her face.

She hiccupped as she tried to stop the overflowing thread of tears, she didn't succeed, it only resulted in her crying even harder than before.

Alesha came from the washroom after her bath, shocked to see her friend on the side of the bed, sobbing and wailing as if someone in her family had died. Dread filled her stomach and the worst scenarios started to cloud her mind.

She ran to Olivia, kneeling down in front of her, eyes filled with concern. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Olivia looked away wiping the tears with the back of her hand. She hiccupped and shook her head. "Nothing."

Alesha looked at the familiar puffy red eyes and sighed heavily, realization slowly dawning on her. "Did he cheat on you again?"

Olivia's lips trembled and she started crying again, thrown back into the abyss of heartache. Alesha shook her head in exasperation, standing up with a loud huff. "Just dump him, Olivia. It's a toxic relationship. He is an asshole and he doesn't deserve you."

Olivia wiped her nose, sniffling loudly. "But I love him."

Alesha wiped her hair with a towel. "And he doesn't love you, don't you get that? How many more times does he need to cheat to finally make you leave him?"

Olivia licked her lips, staring at Alesha with hopeful eyes. "He can change, people are capable of change."

Alesha rolled her eyes, clenching her hands into fists to stop herself from smacking some sense into her friend. "Sure, I mean he hasn't changed in over a year but now he can change. Yes, great idea!"

Olivia twisted her lips at the evident sarcasm. "What should I do?"

"Dump him!" Alesha insisted, she had been saying this since the first day Olivia had told her of his arrogant and playboy ways. Bad boys only look good in books, not in real life, Alesha had told Olivia. "He isn't going to change, Oli. Men like him never do. He is just playing with you, you see that and yet you don't do anything about it. You don't need him. You don't deserve this pain. Be with someone who values you."

Olivia didn't reply, she only blinked sadly at Alesha.

"With whom did he cheat on you this time?"

Olivia swallowed hard. "Some random girl, he says he was drunk." With shaky hands Olivia passed her phone to Alesha who took the phone, pressing the play on an open video.

It was a video of Olivia's horrible boyfriend – Jeffery kissing a blonde girl in a club. Even with the dark flashy club lights, faces were clearly visible. Alesha whistled softly, her eyebrows shooting up as the video played. "Well, there's definitely some tongue involved in there. Whoa, that's a lot of tongue."

Olivia whimpered like a broken puppy and promptly started to cry again, louder this time.

Alesha cursed under her breath and threw the phone on the bed. She patted Olivia on the back, thinking of ways to console her. "It's clear that he doesn't miss you as much as you miss him."

"Alesha!"

"Sorry." Alesha chuckled forcefully. "Who send this to you?"

"His best friend."

Alesha sighed, not knowing what to tell a girl who was stupid blind in love. She could see that Olivia is infatuated to the point where she truly believes that her love can change Jeffery's behavior and, in that faith, she has failed to see all the prominent red flags he keeps waving at her. She is trapped in the vicious cycle of hope, denial, and excuses. And unfortunately, this will lead to scars that may take years to heal.

Alesha also hated Jeffery who continued to use poor Olivia as an excuse to not get serious with other girls. He could have just broken up with Olivia but no, he liked the attention and empathy she kept giving him.

"You know he's not right for you." Alesha told her friend. "I mean, he has slept with other women more times than he has slept with you."

Olivia scowled at her, her ego bruised now. "No, he has not!"

"Come on, Olivia. Do you really believe that? You are looking at the proof with your own eyes. You know that he has cheated before but you have no idea how many times. He is toxic, he is a big bad walking red flag and you really need to dump his ass."

Olivia's lips thinned and twisted. She wasn't sure what to believe, her heart that said Jeffrey deserved another chance or her head that told her to forget his mere existence. "I hate him."

"We all do." Alesha muttered under her breath.

She patted Olivia's back comfortingly. "Stop talking to him for a few days, at least do that. Let him come to you, let him beg for your attention, let him regret what he has done. You need to stay strong. You need to show him that you can live without him."

Olivia wiped her tear-stained face with the back of her hand and gave a meek nod. "For a few days? How many days?"

"Three weeks." Alesha said.

"Two weeks." Olivia argued back.

Alesha groaned in frustration. "Twenty days. That's final."

Olivia sighed in defeat. "Twenty days, without him." Olivia looked at her phone screen that was a photo of her and Jeffery. "How will I survive?"

Alesha rolled her eyes, standing up and getting ready. A part of her couldn't believe how a strong woman like Olivia could tolerate a scum bag like Jeffery. "I am sure you'll manage. You did survive 23 years without him. Happily, might I add. And since being with him, you have cried at least once a month. That's not a good sign."

She passed Olivia a white face towel. "Go, wash your face. We have to meet the witch downstairs and you definitely don't want to know her thoughts regarding your swollen eyes and tear-stained cheeks."

"Is it that bad?"

"No comments."

Lima Fox or as they called her, the witch, was sitting in her room on the Queen-sized bed. Her arms were folded under her chest and her eyes were glowering at the bald man in front of her.

She was wearing the yellow knee length dress she had bought a few days back, during her shopping spree with Rishit. Sunshine, he had said when she had tried it for the first time. But right now, she felt like kicking the man in front of her where the sun didn't shine.

"What did you say?" She breathed out, giving Mr. Pence a chance to change his last sentence.

Mr. Pence lowered his head, after over 10 years of working for Ms. Fox, he knew exactly what ticked her off. And this was certainly on the top of that list. He took a step back, away from the reach of her high heeled kick.

"Benny called. He's coming to stay here." Mr. Pence repeated for the third time.

Lima closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as if that would calm her down. "Why?" She yelled into the air.

"He says he wants to know why you have been ignoring him."

Lima clenched her jaw and then her fists. "Well, did you tell him that he is a rotten reptile who deserves to be killed slowly and burned until he is turned into ashes?"

Mr. Pence cleared his throat awkwardly. "Not in those exact words."

Lima leaned forward, her eyes dangerously close to shooting daggers. "Then in what words?"

"I said that you were busy."

"There's no space. We have interior designing work going on here."

"I did tell him that. He refused to budge."

Lima shook her head slowly. She clicked her tongue in aggravation. "Well, I suppose that's the worst that could happen this week. So, when is he coming here?"

"On the 24th."

"And when's that?"

"Tomorrow."

Lima stood up promptly, shock and horror evident on her face. "Tomorrow?!" Her voice rose higher than last time.

Mr. Pence managed a small apologetic smile. "Yes."

She gritted her teeth sharply and she scowled at Mr. Pence. "Fantastic. How joyful! I can't stop dancing with merriment. Christmas has come early this year!"

Mr. Pence bowed even lower. "He'll be staying for three days."

"Three whole days?" Lima's tone raised an octave. "What the hell does he think this is? A bloody resort!?"

Mr. Pence knew it was time to get out of the room before she combusted into fumes and started throwing vases at him. "I'll clean a room and get it ready for his stay." He told and walked out hurriedly.

Lima stared at the empty space with surging vexation. "That stupid old man." She screamed. Her hand reached for the nearest thing, a pillow - she threw it at the open door. "Why the hell do I even pay you? To let anyone come and stay in my house? Why don't we just call my home a 'A Witch's Castle' and start a hotel business like Transylvania?"

Lima stomped her right foot on the floor, whispering curses under her breath. She looked at the yellow flared dress, slapping the flare away. She certainly felt nothing like the color yellow, it didn't match her emotions and so she changed into her patent black maxi dress with a side slit.

The sound of her black pumps echoed as she walked downstairs.

Olivia, Alesha, Rishit and Viaan instantly straightened up, feeling slightly nervous.

Lima came into the study room and gave them a sharp acknowledging nod with no emotion.

"Ms. Fox." Alesha greeted, smiling.

"Whatever." Lima grumbled with a scowl. She sat on the empty chair, her hands resting on the table. She looked at the spread-out papers and files. "Remind me who was doing what again."

Alesha cleared her throat, a little upset by the offhanded reply to her greeting. She pointed at Olivia. "Olivia is taking care of the kitchen, living room, study and library." She pointed at Viaan. "Viaan is handling the left side of the first floor." She pointed at herself. "I am handling the right side." Her hand landed on Rishit. "Rishit is responsible for the second floor."

Lima nodded. "Fine, let's start with the kitchen."

Olivia swallowed, standing up. Her mind was still preoccupied by the recent events concerning her cheating boyfriend. Her treacherous brain kept replaying the video of Jeffery kissing another girl and she just couldn't stop thinking about it. She licked her lips, trying to concentrate on the task at hand.

She spread out her papers, a blueprint and design of the current kitchen. "So, currently the kitchen cabinets are right next to the window and there's a table in the middle of it which takes up a lot of space. So, I was thinking we could remove that entire table and instead have a curved table adjacent to the base cabinets."

She showed her hand drawn design. "It would look something like this. The layout now is an Island modular one, we will remake it into a G-shape layout. There will also be hanging lights at the dining area to give that candle light dinner an easy and better feel. We will go for a crown modeling support and change the color to shades of grey."

Olivia cleared her throat. "Um, and." She scratched her neck, forgetting the other things she had planned. Once again, the devasting video popped up in her mind and she lost track of her words.

Lima glanced at her impatiently. "And?"

Olivia licked her lips, she wondered if they did more than just kissing and then gasped, stumbling back at her own train of destructive thoughts. She fumbled with the next words, trying to say something. "Um, we could also change the washing machine area."

"There is no washing machine in my kitchen."

Olivia looked at the designs and pictures, mentally kicking herself. "Right sorry."

Lima sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Well, that was a waste of time." She stood up, the chair scarping against the floor, creating a screeching noise. "Are you sure you are fit for this job? Should I just fire you all?"

Olivia bowed her head in embarrassment.

"Why are you looking down? Look at me when I'm talking to you." Lima barked.

Olivia's head snapped up. Alesha and Viaan also trembled in their seats at the loud booming tone.

"If you can't do your job properly. Get the fuck off my property." Lima bellowed. "And if you want to stay here, prove that you are good enough. I am paying you millions for this, so I expect the best results."

Lima paused, letting her words sink into their souls. "You have three days, three days. I want the perfect design so the work can actually start. Three days."

Without another glance, Lima marched out, her heels slapping the floor just as her words did.

Olivia burst into tears, sobbing into her hands. "I am sorry." She mumbled with humiliation.

Alesha and Viaan patted her back soothingly. "Relax, it's not your fault."

"Yes." Viaan nodded. "She's just like that. She's a witch, she has to be evil. It's what she does. Don't take it to heart. We know how she is. You did well. It's not your fault."

Olivia continued to cry, her tear ducts refusing to close. She didn't know if she was crying due to Lima's threat or Jeffery's cheating behavior, possibly a mix of both.

Rishit looked at his tearful sniveling friend and scowled. Lima didn't have to be so rude, there was no reason for her to shout and threaten them. Just when he was starting to think that she wasn't as bad everyone thought she was, she'd do something like this to prove him wrong.

Rishit rubbed his forehead, contemplating his choices. He wanted to go and check on Lima, maybe even yell at her but he didn't trust himself to be alone in close proximity with her. She was a ticking bomb and he feared he'd be too close when it went off.

And yet he couldn't help himself, his feet moving inevitably as followed her upstairs. She was almost near her bedroom when he grabbed her by the wrist, turning her around.

Lima glared at him. "What?" She snatched her hand away quickly, tucking it behind her back.

Rishit narrowed his eyes at her. "Why did you do that?" Lima shrugged innocently. "Do what?"

"Shout at her. Yell in her face like that." Rishit pointed downstairs, towards the study room where the low sound of silent wails could still be heard. "She was doing her best. Do you know what she has been through today? Her boyfriend cheated on her and then his best friend sends her a video of that. Can you even imagine how devasting and painful it must be for her? It was already a horrible day and then you had to go and threaten her. She's crying, Lima."

Lima took a step towards him, looking straight into those hazel eyes. Her lips thinned and her expression didn't waver a bit. "And how is that my problem? If he cheated, just kill him and move on."

"It doesn't work like that. The solution to all problems isn't killing. And she was preoccupied." He defended his friend. "So, she fumbled a little with words. She forgot a few details. What's the big deal? Everyone has their off days."

Lima scoffed, titling her head. "Do you think this is a game? Some sort of a fun retreat that you all are on? A fancy stay on the hill in a lavish castle? This is work, this is her job. If you can't separate your personal life from your professional one, you shouldn't have either."

"That's easy for you to say, you don't have feelings." Rishit snapped back, his nose flaring at the selfish and spiteful words.

Lima gave him a tight-lipped smile and took a step back. "Exactly. And are you forgetting that you are also just an employee here? I could just as easily fire you for speaking so rudely to your client." She reminded him.

"I know. You are the boss and you love that power. But you can still be kind."

"That word is not in my dictionary."

"Well then, add it!" He exclaimed in exasperation, his hands spreading in a disgruntled gesture.

Lima's glared narrowed even more. "Don't you dare tell me how to live my own life."

"Someone has to. You clearly aren't doing a good job off it."

"I am rich. I have money. I can bloody well buy your sorry ass."

"Money isn't everything. Your soul is rotten, your heart is ruined and your mouth is aggressive."

Lima didn't dare show how much his words pierced her ruined heart. She gave an exasperated sigh. "Who the hell do you think you are? You are here for 5 months, 6, at the maximum. Just because I went to the mall with you and bought a few clothes of your choice, doesn't mean you are anyone special to me. It doesn't mean you matter or that I care about you and your silly friends. You are just a passing second in my life, a meaningless memory."

Rishit staggered back a step, blinking furiously at her virulence. "You are right. I am not special. I am just someone who is sorry to be here." He pointed a forefinger at her. "But remember you are also not so special. So, learn to be compassionate towards others if you don't want to die alone."

Lima scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I have lived my entire life alone. I have no issues in dying alone too."

"As you wish." Rishit took another step back, bowing his head. "We'll have the final design ready in three days." After a pause, he added. "Ms. Fox." 

This was the first time he had called her by the last name instead of her name. He was showing that he had distanced himself, that whatever it is they had, was now over. The professional line was drawn again, bolder and brighter than ever.

Lima didn't blink but her lips parted a little. "Mr. Smith." She responded, for the first time not calling him by his name or lemon cheesecake.

Rishit didn't wait another second, he turned around and waked downstairs without a backwards glance. Lima waited with little hope, her eyes following him until he had disappeared from her eyesight.

She looked away, taking a deep breath, inhaling slowly and then exhaling from her lips. She straightened her shoulder and lifted her chin, pretending like her last interaction with Rishit didn't surround her with an air of melancholy. She entered her bedroom, slamming the door shut behind her. The frames on the walls shuddered at the impact.

Then she fell on the bed, face first. "Should have just pulled out their tongues so they couldn't speak." She muttered into the soft gray bedsheet.

She didn't cry, especially for not such silly reasons. So why did the simple act of Rishit calling her Ms. Fox seem to torment and perturb her so much? She didn't understand the science behind it but she knew she hated it. She had become fragile, vulnerable under those honey eyes, bright smile, charming words and handsome body. She had lost a piece from the wall she'd spend years building around her and she'd be damned if she let him break more of it away.

No, she had to repair it, stronger this time so no one could get in.

And sometimes you wonder, if it is really worth it, building those walls around yourself, putting your heart in a prison so it wouldn't escape and only ever feeling rage through your veins.

Is it worth it?

Or would a little love, a little care, a little touch, make a whole lot of a difference?

~~~

Lima is something else, huh?

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