The first day at Glamorous wasn't as bad as Nia had thought.

Out of the models that were assigned to her—Jessica Shaw was chatty; Kelly Yang didn't speak a word, and Miranda Summers spoke at length for ten whole minutes on how she'd love to go on a date with Myles Torres.

"You know, they say he doesn't date people from the industry," Miranda had said as Nia had worked on her concealer. "You think participating in the pageant makes me a person from the industry?"

"Uh—" Nia had stuttered before watching the twenty-year-old's expression drop at her hesitation. "No, of course not," she'd replied then. "I mean, you could always change his mind, you know?"

That had seemed to brighten Miranda's mood a little, and Nia had let out a sigh of relief. Her last job at a pageant had involved some extremely rude people, so she was glad that her current clients were friendly.

Once she'd finished her job and the models were lining up for the photo shoot, Nia stepped out of the green room and found Isha waiting for the shoot to begin in the studio. The white backdrop for the shoot had been placed in the centre of the room and several members of the crew were hurrying in and out of the exit to the far right of the studio. The lights were adjusted, the models were given their positions and the rest of the crew, including the makeup artists, stood in the corner of the room, watching.

Nia jogged up to Isha, hiding a smile that had been playing on her lips ever since she'd spoken to Jessica Shaw. The girl had managed to tell Nia everything going on with her, in less than thirty minutes, including the fact that she was bisexual. Nia hadn't ever felt that anyone was perfect for Isha but there was something about chatty-Jessica that had caused Nia to instantly grow fond of her—something that rarely happened. And since she never got a chance to play cupid for Isha, she did not want to lose this opportunity.

Nia nudged her arm to get her attention. Isha looked at her, questioningly. "What's up?"

Nia maintained a straight face. "You find anyone your type?"

Isha snorted. "You mean, did I find someone who isn't straight? Well, the answer is no."

Nia's face lit up as she smiled brightly. Isha arched an eyebrow and asked, "Why are you staring at me and smiling like that? It's creepy."

Nia giggled. "I found someone for you," she said in a sing-song manner, pleased with herself.

Isha scoffed. "Who?"

Nia pointed at the group of contestants in front of the cameras. "The blonde girl in the dark blue off-shoulder dress," she said in a hushed whisper.

When Isha's eyes landed on the girl Nia was talking about, she froze for a second but not before Nia caught her momentary surprise. She was thoroughly enjoying this. "Her name's Jessica Shaw," she explained to Isha, a wide smile etched on her face. "She's twenty-two and she used to work as a waitress before she auditioned for the pageant."

Isha turned towards her wide-eyed, her mouth agape. "Wait, did you ask her all these details, or did you stalk her on social media? Either way, you come out of this looking like a total creep."

Nia rolled her eyes. "She told me. She was talkative, and she seems like a really nice person," she said and after a pause, added as an afterthought. "Also, social media stalking isn't that creepy."

Isha crossed her arms in front of her chest as she stared at Nia with unblinking eyes.

Nia flinched. "Fine," she said, holding up her hands. "It is a little creepy. But if your profile is public, I can find out what I want to." When Isha didn't budge, Nia groaned. "I am a curious person, okay? It's not my fault."

Isha laughed at that. "You're adorable," she said, pulling Nia's cheek.

Nia jerked her head away as she rubbed the spot where Isha's fingernails had dug into her skin. "So? What do you think?" she asked eagerly.

Isha was watching the shoot intently. "She is attractive," she commented, her lips pressed into a thin line.

"That's it? She's attractive? What happened to Oh my God, she is amazing or thank you, Nia, she is perfect?"

"Okay," Isha said and brought her hands to her face, fake-gasping. "Oh my God, she is so hot!" she said in a high-pitched voice. "Thanks for saving my heart, Nia."

"Who are you talking about?" A voice asked, which made both of them jump. Adrian was now standing next to Nia, his eyes scrutinising the models.

"None of your business, Adrian," Isha muttered.

Adrian placed his hand on his chest and creased his eyebrows as if in pain. "You hurt me, Isha," he said. "If I didn't know better I would think you had a crush on me and your hatred was actually an act to hide your true feelings."

"Of course," Isha deadpanned. "You happen to be so damn likeable because you're such an annoying prick."

"The ladies can't resist it." He winked, and she let out a disgusted cry. Ignoring it, he continued to talk, "You know, I was planning to ask that girl out. Red-hair, white dress."

Nia squinted to get a good look at the girl who was standing right under the light which was blinding after the photographer had decided that the previous setting was dull. Once Nia got a good look at the girl Adrian was talking about, she blinked away the spots dancing in front of her eyes and her mind conjured up just one response, she is out of your league, Adrian. But she didn't say it. By Isha's smug expression, she guessed her best friend was thinking the same.

"Wasn't she the one who assumed you were gay?" Nia's head jerked towards the source of the words and she found Leo standing next to Adrian.

Adrian stood with his arms crossed and shook his head. "No, that was the other girl. The one in the centre in green." He looked at Nia's confused expression and rolled his eyes. "The girl thought all male makeup artists are gay."

"That's stupid," Nia said, and Adrian nodded his head in agreement.

Leo shrugged. "Works for me," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. This was the first time that Nia had heard him speak so many words at once. But what he said, surprised her nonetheless.

"Wait, you're gay?" she asked; the words left her mouth before she could stop them.

Isha raised her eyebrows in surprise. "How did you not know?"

Adrian and Leo were now both watching her like she was dumb for not knowing something that was so obvious. But she'd hardly ever spoken to Leo to know that he was gay, so she didn't understand what all the incredulous looks were about. She mouthed a sheepish Sorry and swallowed hard, embarrassed.

The photographer started to yell loudly about something so the boys turned to watch the scene and Nia quickly whispered into Isha's ear, "How was I supposed to know he's gay?"

Isha clucked her tongue and replied in a hushed voice, "I knew it from the start. You know, I can tell when someone's gay. Instincts. But to others who didn't know, it became obvious when his boyfriend started to drop him to work every morning."

"Wait. His boyfriend drops him to work every morning? How do I not know this?"

Isha continued clucking her tongue. "Because you're too busy dreaming up sexy Colin scenarios in your head."

Nia cringed. "Gross."

As if on cue, right at that moment, Colin entered the studio through the green room. Nia cast an annoyed glance in Isha's direction, who was now smirking.

Colin walked over to them, adjusting his glasses, and addressed Adrian. "They need you to redo Kiara's eye makeup," he stated.

Adrian gritted his teeth, pissed. "That girl just wouldn't hold still!" he complained. Nonetheless, he took in a deep breath, faked a smile, and made his way towards where the girl, Kiara stood.

Colin shook his head as he watched Adrian leave. "Poor guy," he muttered. He glanced at Isha who was the only one thoroughly enjoying Adrian's distress. "Why are you smiling?" he asked her, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Oh, I love when he's pissed," Isha replied, rubbing her hands. Colin still looked at her questioningly, as if her reply didn't answer his question. She shrugged. "If I had a choice to either spend my day with Adrian or the fourteen-year-old version of my sister, Nikita, I would choose Nikita."

"Oh!" Nia gasped and then raised her hand to high five. "That is a really good burn." Leo and Colin watched them as their gloveless hands met mid-air and echoed a loud clap. Some of the crew members turned to shush them and Colin held a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing.

"Hanging out with you and embarrassing myself too, just great," Isha mumbled.

Nia punched her arm. "Offensive."

Colin had a smile on his face when he spoke again. "I'll never understand why you and Adrian love pissing each other off," he told Isha, taking his glasses off and using his sleeve to wipe the lens. "Anyway, I was wondering if you'd all like to get dinner. There is a great restaurant right outside."

"Yes please," Isha answered immediately. "I'm starving."

She moved a hand over her stomach and Nia chuckled. "Yeah, me too."

"So, it's settled," Colin said, once Leo had nodded his head in response. "The shoot gets over in a couple of minutes, I'll see you guys outside," he finished, just as his phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket and without looking up from the screen, he made his way out.

They watched him leave and once he disappeared behind the doors of the exit, Isha said to Nia. "I just thought of something."

"What?" Nia asked, curiously.

Isha cleared her throat. "What would Colin be called if he's half naked?"

"Gross" was Nia's first reply. "What?" was Nia's second.

Isha raised her arms at her sides as if announcing the winner of some hypothetical championship. "He would be called semi-Colin."

Nia closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, she facepalmed. "That was so bad, I had to take a moment to recover from how terrible a joke you just cracked."

Isha was laughing. "It was hilarious. I am hilarious. And you know it." She winked.

"Your confidence stuns me," Nia replied and then noticed from the corner of her eye that the space next to her was clear—Leo had disappeared. She caught him with Adrian, standing to the right of the backdrop of the shoot. Adrian had redone Kiara's makeup and she now stood with the rest of the participants.

After another ten minutes of instructions and poses, the contestants finally finished the shoot and started to leave. When Nia caught Jessica's eye, she waved at her. Jessica waved back with a smile, before retreating to the green room.

Nia wiggled her eyebrows at Isha who seemed unbothered. "You like her, don't you?"

Isha bit the inside of her cheek. "If I admit it, will you please shut up?"

Nia bobbed her head fervently.

Isha shrugged. "Yeah, she's cute. Happy?"

"Very!" Nia squealed, throwing her arms around Isha.

"How do I keep forgetting that you're a hug person?" Isha uttered, pulling away.

"Because you love my hugs," Nia responded, pouting.

Isha shook her head. "That statement is false." She looked around at the people who were packing up their equipment and added, "The shoot's done. We should head out too."

Nodding her head, Nia gripped the strap of her handbag and joined Isha as they walked to the exit.

• • = •

What happened at dinner, was horrifying. Adrian was allergic to peanuts—there was a dessert mix-up at the restaurant—Adrian dove into the dessert—the dessert contained peanuts.

His throat had closed up and that was how they'd ended up in St. Thomas' hospital at midnight. They'd been lucky that the hospital was just around the corner because Adrian's allergic reaction had been severe. The doctor said that he was fine for now and that if they'd been delayed by a few minutes, his condition would have gotten worse.

The only person who was more frustrated than relieved, was Leo. And he did not try to hide it. "How stupid is he?" he yelled. "How could he be so fucking careless! He didn't even have his adrenaline injection pen with him. Fucking bastard!"

Watching the always calm-and-composed Leo, clutch his red hair, as he stood in the corridor of the hospital, caused Nia to feel a pang in her heart; she stole a glance at Isha who was fiddling with her thumbs.

"This is bad," Isha said, shaking her head.

Colin tried his best to calm Leo down. "Adrian is fine," he said, placing an arm on Leo's shoulder. "The doctor said so himself. Don't dwell on the what-ifs, Leo."

Leo glanced up at him and let out a slow breath. At Colin's words, Nia found herself relax too. He was right. Dwelling on the what-ifs wasn't exactly helping Nia calm herself down. But she couldn't push the thought aside. What if they hadn't reached in time?

The scene played in her head on repeat. Adrian digging into the dessert—Colin raising his hand to stop him because it wasn't what they'd ordered—Adrian's eyes widening in horror as his fork dropped and he couldn't breathe—Colin and Isha grabbing Adrian by his arms—Leo running ahead of them to get a cab—the English couple at the next table instructing Nia on how to reach the hospital which was less than a minute away. It all happened so fast, Nia didn't even know if she remembered everything correctly.

She shook her head to clear her mind. The doctor had said that Adrian would have to stay in the hospital until they were sure that he'd recovered. Leo wasn't willing to leave and as there was nothing else that could be done, Colin suggested that Isha and Nia return to the hotel and get some rest.

"But we don't have to work tomorrow," Isha countered, "We can stay."

Colin sighed. "Of course, you can, but if Adrian is kept here for more than a day, we'd have to take shifts on keeping him company," he explained, rubbing his eye. "Leo isn't planning on leaving anytime soon but even he'd be too tired by noon. And I have some work to attend to, so I won't be here around lunch-time either. You guys can get some rest right now and help with Adrian tomorrow."

Nia and Isha exchanged glances and nodded in understanding. Against all their protests, Colin offered to accompany them back to the hotel since it was too late, and it wouldn't be safe.

As they made their way to the cab parked across the street, Isha yelled, "Shotgun!" and jumped in before Nia could stop her. She maintained an innocent expression as Colin went around to the side door but the moment she was sure he couldn't see her, she wiggled her eyebrows at Nia who wanted to punch Isha in the face but refrained from doing it right now.

The ride was awkward at the start. Colin was staring out his window and Nia didn't know what could lighten the mood, so she didn't say anything. She expected Isha to speak because Isha never ran out of topics to discuss but today even her mind seemed occupied.

"So," Colin said, suddenly, breaking the silence. "What do you guys think about the plan for the break?"

Nia frowned, wondering what he was talking about, but then recalled the conversation they'd had over dinner; before they'd ordered dessert. The week after next, the contestants were going away for a week-long holiday, and it was a short break for the makeup artists too. Over dinner, Colin had suggested they take a trip to Paris which was a two-and-a-half-hour flight from London and everyone had agreed that it was a great idea. Isha had even kicked Nia under the table and mouthed the words romantic getaway which had caused Nia to turn red and spend the next couple of minutes staring at her plate.

"It's a great plan," Isha answered from the front, holding up her thumb.

"Yeah, I'm really excited too," Nia added.

Colin smiled. "That's good to hear," he said. Right then, Isha faked a cough and Nia resisted the urge to slap her. Isha would never lose an opportunity to tease Nia.

"Isha," Colin said, and Nia froze, hoping he hadn't caught the fake-cough. But he simply said, "You seemed stressed about Adrian. Thought you hated him."

Nia's shoulders slackened, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She'd almost thought Colin was about to ask Isha why she was acting so weird. And knowing Isha, it would be no surprise if she'd tell him the truth.

"Look," Isha started to explain, turning around in her seat, placing her elbow on the headrest. "I hated my sister too. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't worry if she was in the hospital. At the end of the day, she is my sister. Get it?"

Now it was Nia's turn to annoy the hell out of Isha. "Aww, that is so sweet," she said, faking a smile.

Isha glared at Nia as Colin laughed. "That is sweet," he said, before turning his attention back to the streets of London.

Nia suppressed a smile and inhaled slowly. For some reason, her thoughts made their way to Myles. She hadn't thought of him even once over the course of dinner and what followed, but now in the silence, he seemed to occupy her mind.

She wasn't afraid of meeting him, she was afraid of what she'd say to him. The anger that was present inside of her would come pouring out and she wasn't sure if she'd be able to control herself. She didn't want to cry; not in front of him.

She was still thinking of him when they reached the hotel. They stepped out and Colin waved them a goodbye as he made his way back to the hospital.

Entering the lobby and walking towards the elevator, Nia stayed silent. Only when they were alone in the elevators and Isha started to laugh did Nia stare at her like she was crazy. "What?" she asked.

Isha shook her head as she placed a hand on the wall of the elevator to steady herself. "The moment that I called shotgun, I was declared the best wing-woman to have ever existed."

Nia found a smile make its way to her lips. "You suck."

Isha pouted. "Now, do I?"

Nia didn't reply. Walking up to their hotel room, she could feel her eyes droop. She knew that the moment she saw her bed, her legs would give out and she'd be fast asleep. She didn't need to wake up early tomorrow—just the thought of it made her happy.

Unlocking the door, she entered the room and turned on the lights. As her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she saw an unfamiliar object lying on the bed. Frowning, she approached the bed and dropped her bag from her shoulder. When she realised what the object was, she rubbed her eyes, wondering if she was imagining it.

But it stayed there. The frame lying on the bed encased a colourful painting of a brown-haired and blue-eyed teenage boy. The sight of it brought tears to her eyes.

It was the portrait of Myles that she'd drawn as a birthday gift to him; fifteen years ago.