"So, your ex is judging the pageant. Big deal."

A pillow hurled across the hotel room and slammed Isha in the face.

"What the—" she started to say, but her words were cut off at the sight of a second pillow hurtling towards her. She ducked as it flew into the open door of the bathroom and landed on the marble floor, soaking up the small puddle of water.

"—hell were you thinking?" Isha finished as she hurried into the bathroom and grabbed the pillow off the floor. Examining it, she cursed under her breath. "Great, it's wet!"

Nia snorted. "That's what she said."

She was sprawled on the bed, her hand clutching a third cushion as she stared straight at the ceiling. Her mind conjured up images from six years ago, and she mentally stuffed them all into an imaginary bin, one by one. This method of hers had always been effective to help clear her thoughts, but today, it was pointless.

Moist fabric made contact with her face as Isha dumped the wet pillow on her, and she sat up straight. "Asshole," she muttered.

"I'm the one who makes the that's what she said jokes," Isha said, rummaging through her closet, searching for something to warm her up. "You're the innocent girl who scrunches up her face whenever something remotely sexual comes up. Get it?"

Nia shifted on the bed, leaning against the headboard as she sat cross-legged. "I know it's no big deal, but it bothers me, you know," she said, tugging at the frayed ends of the blanket on her lap. "This whole Myles situation."

Isha turned towards her, fitting her arms into the sleeves of the fleece jacket that she'd just pulled out from the pile of clothes dumped in the cupboard. Once a mess was made, it stayed.

"Look," she said, rubbing her palms together, as she sat at the edge of the bed. "Let's take this step by step, okay?"

Nia nodded. Even with the heater in the hotel room, the three layers of clothing did little to help the chill that she felt at the thought of stepping out of the room and facing Myles.

"Today is the day for the promotional shoot," Isha continued. "Myles, Sarah and Alfredo will be busy with it in the afternoon. They have their own makeup crew, thank god, so there won't be a need for us to be present while they work.

"The shoot including the participants starts later this evening, so there's no way Myles and you will cross paths today," she paused and drew her lips into a smirk, wiggling her eyebrows. "Unless, you know, he is desperately dying to meet you."

A third pillow hit Isha in the face.

Isha grunted. "You've got serious anger management issues. You're going to be pillow-less by the end of the day if you keep throwing them around." She picked the pillow which had bounced off her and fallen to the ground and threw it back at Nia who caught it swiftly.

"Don't call him that," Nia mumbled, studying the hands of the watch strapped to her wrist. 11:38, it read. The four of them had to meet Colin for lunch at 12:00. He was always anxious when it came to the commencement of the assignments and he'd usually choose to instruct the artists over lunch.

Isha arched her eyebrow. "Call whom what?"

Nia looked up. "Call Myles my ex."

Isha rolled her eyes. "Last time I checked, ex is the word you use for someone that you used to date."

"We dated for just two months," Nia countered. "Having known each other since we were eight, we acted upon our suppressed feelings just two months before everything went to hell. Ugh, God, I hate to think about it."

Isha watched her for a moment; her dark eyes stared at her sympathetically. She placed her hand on Nia's and a sense of relief filled Nia's heart, knowing that her best friend had her back.

They sat like that for a minute until Isha chose to open her mouth. "He still qualifies as your ex, you know. Can't help it, Nia."

Using all of the energy that her exhausted body could muster, Nia flung the pillow in her hand at Isha who was now running towards the door, laughing. She hurriedly lifted her feet off the bed and struggled to move as her right leg went numb from having sat on the bed for too long.

Grunting, she tried to stop her motion, but it was too late. Just as Isha grabbed the doorknob, Nia tripped—her arms flailing in the air as her right leg betrayed her, falling face first onto the floor. She cursed under her breath as she rubbed her palm over her forehead which had begun to throb.

A second later, Isha's laughter died down. Surprised that her friend would stop laughing at her pathetic condition, Nia turned onto her side. She gazed up at Isha's form, her back facing her as her left hand gripped the doorknob tightly. She was staring into the hotel corridor; staring at someone. Nia's eyes trailed down and she saw the man's shoes.

Colin? was her first thought.

"You've got the wrong room," Isha stuttered, her right arm held behind her back as her fingers dug into her palm.

"Uh," came the man's voice, a hint of sheer surprise in his tone. "I'm here to talk to Nia."

Nia stilled.

"Again," Isha said, acting like her patience was wearing thin, "you've got the wrong room."

There was a pause. And then he said, "I can, um, see her, uh, on the floor."

Isha froze. She fumbled for words but failed to string them into a sentence.

"So I guess it's the right room then?" Myles continued, and Nia could now see him as he peered around Isha, looking at her, still spread out on the floor in an ungainly fashion.

The light from the corridor lit his brown hair with an incredible glow, or maybe it was some hair product that he'd used. Either way, he hadn't changed. Not one bit. The person that she'd called her best friend, stood at the door; his blue eyes lingered on her for a few more seconds before he looked away.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, Nia's mind repeated, trying to conjure up a smart thing to say.

But her mouth didn't comply. She squeaked.

Isha spun around at the noise. Nia could tell that she was trying her best not to facepalm, what with Myles standing next to her. One would assume that Isha would have responded to a celebrity talking to her with a bit more enthusiasm. But she just wasn't much of a fangirl.

She'd made it clear when during one of their assignments, they'd bumped into Adele—Isha's favourite singer.

She'd muttered an "I am a huge fan of your work." And that was that. No squealing like a little girl; no I can't believe I met Adele screams. That was what Nia did. And she'd only listened to Adele's more popular songs, unlike Isha who had all of her songs memorised.

So the first time that Nia had trusted her with The Myles story, Isha's reaction had been something along the lines of 'yeah, son of a bitch can't act for nuts'.

But Nia had always thought of Myles as a decent actor. So right now, when he wouldn't meet her eyes, she couldn't tell if he felt guilty or he was just acting like he was.

Isha jerked her palm in an upwards motion, and only then did Nia realise that she had been in the same awkward position for the last five minutes. Balancing herself, she stood up and tugged at her jacket to straighten it.

"What do you want?" she asked, hoping she would sound tough, but her voice came out no louder than a whisper. She cleared her throat and repeated her question. "What do you want?"

Myles opened his mouth to answer but he was interrupted by a tall, bulky man who appeared at the door and tapped him on the shoulder. He whispered something into his ear and Myles replied with a nod. The man who was supposedly one of his bodyguards, left, and Myles turned his attention back towards Nia who was mimicking Isha, by crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'd like to talk to you," he said and then glancing at Isha, he added, "alone."

Isha scoffed as she walked over to stand by Nia and shook her head. "I'm not going anywhere. Whatever you have to say, say it."

Myles' phone buzzed. He sighed as he pulled it out from his pocket and glanced at the screen, before stuffing it back into his coat. Addressing Nia, he said, "I'll come back later to talk to you." He added a curt nod and just as abruptly he'd entered the room, he made his way out.

"What a jerk," Isha whispered, incredulously.

Before Nia could stop her, her short-tempered friend was storming out into the corridor, after him. "Hey," Isha yelled and Myles stopped in his tracks. He turned around, slowly. Nia was too dumbstruck to say anything, so she just watched as Isha said, "If you think you can intimidate her or something, you're out of your goddamn mind."

Two of Myles's security personnel who'd been stationed outside the room now walked towards them, but Isha stood her ground. Myles held out a hand, and the guards stopped. An amused smiled formed on his face as he studied Isha. "I am not trying to intimidate her." He paused, and when he looked at Nia, his eyes softened. "I want a chance to right my wrongs. That's it."

Nia sucked in a breath as her eyes met his. She swallowed the lump in her throat as he took a step back and dropped his gaze. He motioned for his bodyguards and they followed him down the corridor.

Once he disappeared around the corner, Isha exhaled heavily. "That dude knows how to stir up some drama, damn," she said, flexing her arms. "I want to right my wrongs," she added, imitating him. "I mean, who even says that in real life? This was a scene right out of a goddamn movie."

Nia felt herself relax. Her breathing went back to normal and she finally found her voice. "What the hell just happened?"

Isha patted her shoulder. "It's okay. Take your time to process the fact that your ex-who-is-a-celebrity just happens to want to have a conversation with you."

Nia exhaled. "Well, apart from the fact that I was tongue-tied, this was super embarrassing," she muttered, shamefaced.

Isha started to chuckle which then turned into full-fledged laughter. "Oh my God," she said between breaths. "You have no idea how hilarious you looked, lying on the floor like that!"

Nia started to laugh too, shaking her head. "Why am I like this?"

Isha stroked her hand over Nia's head, as though it would console her. "Girl, you are a live example to the rest of us of how not to embarrass yourself."

"Thanks for making me feel better," Nia said, dryly.

Isha blew her a kiss as she stepped back into the room. Nia glanced over her shoulder, half expecting Myles to be standing there again. But the corridor remained empty, so Nia sighed and closed the door behind her.

Isha was slumped on the wooden chair next to the bed, as she flipped through a magazine that she'd picked up from the nightstand. "You know," she said without looking up. "When I said, 'Myles would be dying to meet you', I was kidding. But my words turned out to be true." She looked up and smirked. "What if I am the Oracle and whatever I say is a divine prophecy?" She straightened up in her chair and closed her eyes. Her voice deep and shaking, she raised her hands and said, "You shall marry Colin and have his babies. The Greek Gods approve."

Nia giggled, flopping down on the bed. "Do you even know what a prophecy is?"

Isha held a hand to her chest as she pretended to be offended. "Why do you treat me like I am a kid? I am just two years younger to you, Nia."

"Because you haven't grown up," Nia replied, pulling her knees up to her chin. After a brief pause, she murmured. "I don't know what to do."

Isha frowned. "About what?"

"Myles fucking Torres."

Isha bit the inside of her cheek. "You should talk to him," she said. "However creepy it seemed—him showing up at our door in the middle of the day—the guy doesn't give off creepy vibes. My creep detector did not bleep." She lifted her arms into the air, and in the same deep voice that she'd used earlier, she said, "Let the man right his wrongs!"

Nia couldn't help but laugh. "How have I never called you a drama queen?"

She shrugged. "Because I am not a drama queen. The Oracle inside me is. Wait, that sounds so wrong."

Nia nodded, a disgusted expression on her face and then glanced at her watch which read 12:00. With a panic-stricken expression, she said, "We had to meet the others for lunch at 12, Isha. Let's go!"

Grabbing their phones and handbags, they shut all the switches in their room before heading to the dining area three floors below. When they arrived, Colin was the only one sitting at a table for six. His black-rimmed glasses were perched on his nose as he examined some sheets in his left hand, holding a glass of wine in the other.

"Are you sure it is an appropriate time for wine?" Nia questioned, pulling out the chair from across him and sitting on it. Isha sat to her right.

Colin smiled. "Never a bad time for wine," he said but set his glass down nonetheless.

Nia took in a deep breath, trying to distract herself from what had happened earlier. But the image of Myles in the corridor, looking at her guiltily, clogged her mind and she shook her head to clear her thoughts.

"Where are Leo and Adrian?" she asked.

Isha grunted. "Late as always." She picked up the menu and held it up in front of her face, blocking Colin's view of her. She nudged Nia and mouthed a, "I am giving you guys privacy. Go on."

Nia rolled her eyes and quickly looked away. She had promised to not embarrass herself again, today. She planned to do that by not opening her mouth unless she was spoken to.

Colin raised his eyebrow when Isha sat like that for a whole minute. He looked at Nia and mouthed an, "Is she okay?"

Nia bit her lip to keep herself from laughing but shrugged at him. He cleared his throat but Isha did not move. "So," he said to Nia. "Did you talk to the guy from the airport?"

Isha quickly put the menu down and grinned—Nia could tell it was a fake one, but having practised it so many times, Isha made it look convincing. "The two of them are adorable."

This time, Nia wanted to facepalm. Miguel had texted her last night, but they'd had a very casual chat. No flirtatious texts. No let's go out sometime texts. After her conversation with Colin in the car, she'd decided that she didn't want to move on from him, after all. So, she'd kept her conversation with Miguel friendly. Nothing more.

Isha was just trying to get a reaction from Colin and she was successful. Because Colin lifted his glass of wine and put it to his lips, gulping it down. "That's nice," he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

Isha suppressed a laugh as she kicked Nia under the table. Nia winced, and Colin noticed the obvious move, but his questioning gaze was replaced by a disapproving one as Adrian and Leo entered and sat themselves down next to him.

"Late," Colin stated.

"We lost our way," Adrian said, running his fingers through his wet, blond hair, trying to make sure they stayed in place.

"Sorry," Leo added.

Isha rolled her eyes. "That is literally your excuse every time."

Adrian looked at her, the scar next to his lip widening a little as his mouth formed a smug smile. "You still hold it against me, don't you?"

Nia could tell from the way Isha's jaw clenched that she would give anything to have her hands wrapped around his throat. "It was a year ago, asshole. And she was straight. There was nothing I could do anyway."

A year ago, Adrian and Isha had been assigned a project together. At the time, Isha had found herself developing feelings for one of the clients. She'd planned on approaching her once the assignment was over, but Adrian had already asked the woman out which gave Isha the answer she was looking for—her crush was straight. After their short-lived relationship ended, Isha had mentioned to Adrian, in passing, about her crush on his ex-girlfriend, and now whenever she was pissed at him, he'd bring the you-liked-my-ex-girlfriend story up.

Adrian was still smiling when the waiter approached their table. There was a brief silence as everyone studied the menu card and recited their order. After the waiter left, Colin cleared his throat, reading out names from the top of the sheets that he was studying earlier and handed it to each one of them. Nia reached out for the sheet with her name written on the top with blue ink, and read the words typed on the single sheet of paper.

The sheet contained the details of three women—their names, hair colour, height, etc. She mentally read all the names: Jessica Shaw, Kelly Yang and Miranda Summers.

After she finished, she looked up, but the others were still bent over their sheets, their eyebrows creased in concentration. Colin was sat back in his chair, his fingers entwined as he waited for them to finish. His eyes caught Nia's, but he immediately looked away. She frowned but stopped herself from saying anything.

Once all of them were done, Colin started to instruct them. Even though this wasn't their first project, this was one of the very few projects that Colin had tagged along on, which meant it had to be extremely important. "Firstly, Gina called this morning. She said her father is out of danger now, and he should recover soon." There was a chorus of thank god and Colin continued, "Secondly, each one of you has been assigned three participants out of the total of twelve. The number of people you attend to is usually more than that but Glamorous wants us to do our best.

"Now, our schedule is something like this: the next two weeks, you will be working on Tuesdays, Thursdays and the weekend. Two elimination rounds will be held at the end of the fourth week—six participants will be eliminated at once depending on their performance of the month before. Now, in the third week, you only have to work the weekend because the participants will be on something they call a bonding holiday; they say it improves relations between the contestants when they vacation together. So that week we will be on a holiday, too, because they don't need makeup artists there."

Adrian whooped at that and the family sitting at the table next to ours looked at us with disapproval. Leo nodded at them apologetically and when the family turned back towards their meal, he smacked Adrian in the head. Adrian, in turn, ruffled up Leo's neatly parted red hair which caused Leo to kick Adrian under the table.

"Stop acting like kids," Colin said, his voice sounding tired.

Adrian and Leo were the youngest in the group; they were both just twenty-two and had joined the company a year ago. While Adrian was the high-school-bad-boy kind of guy, Leo was the exact opposite—quiet and reserved. Yet, they were best friends since day one and were shockingly incredible at their jobs.

"So, at the end of the four weeks, depending on which of the contestants stay, and which of them leave, you will be given further instructions. But for now, focus on the month ahead of you. There's a lot of work to be done, starting today, and I hope you do it well," Colin finished, raising his empty wine glass in a toast.

The rest of us looked at the table, and then not knowing what to do, hesitantly picked up our glasses filled with water.

"Okay," Colin said quickly, putting his glass down. "I need to order alcohol. You guys interested?"

Adrian and Leo raised their hands.

Colin frowned, wondering if it was a good idea. "Are you sure you can handle your alcohol? You need to work later."

Isha snorted. "I think the correct question would be," she held her hands up in an air quote, "Are you old enough to drink?"

Adrian glared at her and she glared back and the only thing that interrupted their staring contest was the arrival of food. Everyone ate in silence like they'd been starving for days. Isha and Nia had skipped breakfast because they'd woken up at ten-thirty. Reading up on what the hotel's special dishes were, they'd decided to satiate their hunger at lunchtime.

Once their stomachs were filled with roasted beef, Yorkshire pudding, and Shepherd's pie, only to be topped by the best strawberry cheesecake that Nia had ever had, the quintet made their way out of the dining area and into the corridor leading to the elevators.

"The ride to the location of the shoot should take us twenty minutes from here," Colin said, reading a notification off his phone. "And as you need to reach there by five, we will meet in the lobby at four," he paused to glance at his watch, "which is in two hours."

Adrian groaned. "I thought you said it's a twenty-minute ride?"

Colin nodded. "Yes, and I want us to be early on our first day," he said sternly which caused Adrian to shut up.

Just then, Colin's phone started to ring. He excused himself and made his way down the corridor and took an exit to the left, which led to the lobby. Adrian and Leo too, took their leave after waving a goodbye, as they rushed to the staircase.

Nia watched them leave with a frown. She turned towards Isha. "Are they racing up the stairs?"

Isha shook her head as she yawned. "You can never tell with those two."

Shaking their heads, they walked towards the elevators, wondering how they could spend the next two hours. Being their first ever trip to London, they verbally listed out all the places that they wanted to see.

But out of the numerous options that they were presented with—they finally chose to sleep.