FIVE YEARS LATER.
SYBIL POV.
"You really need to try to smile more".
"I already agreed to follow you to this stupid resort, so I don't think you should be complaining about my smile or the lack of it" I snapped, and increased the car's speed.
Kushi grabbed at her seatbelt, her eyes darting between me and the road. "Hey, slow down, we'll get into an accident at this rate, and if we are dead, we won't be there for the welcome party, you know that right."
"I couldn't possibly care about that kushi. I didn't want anything to do with the resort in the first place, which FYI, is in the middle of freaking nowhere".
"Well, it's not literally in the middle of nowhere, and your GPS is one of the best," she said showing me the map on my phone that she held. "We are on the right path, so you don't have to worry about us getting lost..."
Her voice sounded like a buzzing in my ears as I remembered the last time I drove like this. It was when I and Dian had gone on a road trip together. He'd cheered me on all the way. We'd been living life recklessly as if we would never die. It had been just us, against the damned world... My vision fogged up.
"You are scaring me, Sybil, you need to slow the fuck down!" Kushi yelled and I stepped on the break without thinking. The terrible sound of screeching made me flinch and it was only by a miracle that the car did not flip over.
The car stopped, and I gasped as we were flung forward, the only thing that held us back was the seatbelt.
Kushi looked at me, her eyes blown wide out of proportion. "You are freaking never driving me anywhere, ever"
"I'm sorry... " I started to say when I noticed that my phone was no longer in her hand. "Where is my phone?" I asked, the amount of panic that crept up my chest almost choking the little air I was getting in the first place.
Kushi looked around. "I don't know. The window was rolled down, and everything happened so fast, it might have flown out of my hand".
I wanted to scream. I yanked my seatbelt off and shoved the door open. Grasses flagged both sides of the road. The car had veered into the bushy path during the accident.
Kushi came out. "What are you doing?".
"I am looking for my fucking phone" I choked out, my eyes fogging up as I searched blindly among the ankle-length grasses, the ache in my chest growing to the point of pain.
******
It was getting darker, yet I couldn't find the phone. I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream.
"We need to leave Sybil, it's getting darker. Let's just forget about the phone. We can use my phone's map. It is also good".
My gaze snapped to those of Kushi. "I know your phone has a GPS Kushi. I just need my freaking memory card. This isn't about the phone" I forced out of my throat.
Kushi scratched her neck then kicked at the sand, then gasped, bending down to pick something up. "I found it" she yelled, her voice filled with exhilaration.
I was snatching the phone from her in a blink. The screen was utterly trashed, so I just dismantled it and got out my memory card, got a flash drive, and placed it inside.
Kushi watched me, the question in her eyes burning into my skull, but I avoided her gaze, not in the mood to dig through my feelings. I already spent hours doing that with my therapist every other week.
We both got into the car. I turned on the ignition. The engine started, then died almost immediately. I tried five more times, then hit the wheels angrily, and resisted the urge to smash my head against it too.
"You were a lot calmer five years ago" kushi voice reached me and I refused to meet her gaze.
"Well people change. I am not a doll with no emotions".
"I didn't say you were, but these days, it's like you're on a short fuse. You explode to the littlest of provocation. Your doctor said you needed to rest... "
"Which is exactly what I'm trying to do, but since we are stuck in the middle of nowhere, I don't see that happening anymore" I gritted, then flinched as the sky rumbled all of a sudden. "Great, like we didn't have enough problems".
Kushi sighed. "Stop being so pessimistic. I am sure we'll be fine".
My fingers gripped the steering harder. "And how are we going to be fine? Look around you, there's nothing but grasses for miles, and we haven't seen any car since we got on this cursed road."
Kushi pushed the door open.
"Where are you going?" I got out, my voice laced with panic.
"We should take some of our stuff and look for a gas station or an auto shop. There is no cell service here" she said looking at her phone.
"It's going to rain. I think it's better we just stay in the car".
Kushi rolled her eyes. "You used to be so adventurous. Well, stay here then, if you want to. I'll go get us help".
I sighed, picked up my bag, and got out of the car. Kushi grinned at me, and as much as I wanted to return the smile, I felt too raw to do it. The wind picked up, the cloud getting gloomier.
We'd walked a mile when we saw a car approaching. Kushi went crazy, yelling and screaming for the car to stop.
I sighed in relief when it finally did. It was a beautiful black limo, so I guessed it was one of those rich guests that were heading to the resort.
The door opened and the interior looked so cozy it was insane. A pretty lady smiled at us.
"Are you heading to the resort? Was that your car a mile back?" She asked, her gaze fixed on me.
Kushi rushed forward, almost elbowing me in the process. "Yes, that was our car. It just suddenly died on us and now we are stranded. My feet are freaking numb already".
"Well, you can ride with us and when we get to the resort I guess the management will find a way to get your stuff. I'm Helaena by the way" she introduced as she waved us in.
Kushi turned to seek my consent and then went inside when I hesitated. I followed her into the car. It was not as if we had a lot of options anyway.
"You are so nice. You're practically helping us when you don't even know us".
"Well you both look pretty harmless" she replied vaguely. "Also, we recently invested in the resort, and we want only good reviews about it, and we won't get that if our guests are stranded with no means of finding their way."
I exhaled tiredly. Helaena touched my thigh and my gaze snapped to hers. "Do not worry about your car. It will be taken cared of".
Kushi scoffed. "She was planning to trash the car and now that it did this, I'm sure Sybil won't be riding it ever. She hates things that fail her"
"Kushi" I called in a warning and she gave me an incomprehensive look. I turned my gaze to Helaena. "You keep saying we. Who are you referring to?"
"My boss. I'm a glorified assistant" she joked but I was too stressed to even smile.
"Where's your boss?" Kushi asked, and Helaena pointed to a covered figure beside me. I jumped, for the first time noticing the body sprawled beside me. "Jesus Christ! What the hell" I got out, my hands clutching at my ribs.
Helaena shushed me, a serious look on her face. "Please, don't yell. He doesn't like to be disturbed when he's sleeping".
I looked at the figure, then at Helaena. "But we've been talking since we got in".
"Earbuds" she explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
I stared at the figure, unable to draw my gaze away. The body shifted, the blanket slipping a little to reveal a tattooed hand, and my gaze snapped back to kushi who was still talking animatedly with Helaena.
I rubbed at my face. What had I been expecting? His hands... they were almost the same proportion as Dian's, just that he was more buffed up, and there was the tattoo. Dian didn't have any. His height... It was exactly like Dian's... How could I tell tho since he was literally covered up? I needed to stop before I drove myself insane with both anger and longing.
It's been five years, and no matter how much I wanted answers to all my unanswered questions, I knew they would never come. Dian was gone. He'd disappeared never to return and I had to deal with it. I had to move on, because it was either that or drive myself insane and do something like looking for him, then shooting him in the chest with an automatic weapon before he even had a chance to plead his case. Gods, I hated him so much, yet, I couldn't stop obsessing over him. This had to end. I was going to end this. Once and for all.
SYBIL POV"You look like you need to sleep for five days straight," Dave said with a worried smile on his face as he stared at my image.I forced a smile and dropped my laptop on the table, so I could speak with Dave while also putting away the rest of my stuff. I stepped away from the laptop to get all my work drives. This way, I could at least tie up some of the loose ends at work. Once I finished, I sat back down at the edge of the bed and really took a closer look at Dave's face. "Yeah. Well, you look like you need to wash whatever that is off your face" I motioned to the ash face mask he was wearing.He smirked. "This is how I get all the girls, boss. I'm already ugly enough," he paused and I raised a brow waiting for the question I knew he really wanted to ask. "How's Kushi doing?""Why don't you just call her and find out".Dave sighed then inhaled deeply, his smile slipping. "No way. She'd say I'm a stalker and all that. Don't want a lawsuit. Hey, what happened to your phone?
SYBIL EAGAN POVMy heart galloped as I rushed down the stairs. Why had I shoved him so hard, or fled as if he was a serial killer who was after me with a sword? There was also the fact that I didn't know if he had been trying to kiss me or not. I'd just panicked when I saw_or felt him suddenly closer. I wanted to yank at my hair from all the thoughts whirling through my head, and it got so bad that I didn't see the person coming right in front of me until I bumped into them. "Hey, be careful" Helaena's voice sounded frantic as she steadied me with her hand. "You look like you are being chased by a ghost. Are you ok" Pushing her hand from my arms, I forced a smile on my lips. "I was... I just..." I stuttered, my brain scrambling to find an excuse.Helaena touched my arms, something I noticed her doing often, but at least it made me feel a bit calmer than I normally did when other people touched me."It's ok. You do not need to explain anything to me... I understand".I nodded. "I hav
SYBIL POVIt had been two days, two days of me hiding away in my room to avoid the cringe of bumping into Seth Rodriguez after how our last meeting ended.It was utterly mortifying that I'd freaked out just because I thought he was going to kiss me, when he might have just been leaning in closer to get a closer look, but who in their right mind did that? And I just had to shove him so hard. I tugged at my hair, then dropped into the sofa as I'd come to do every passing minute. Why was my life such a freaking nightmare? My phone pinged alerting me of a video call and I answered once I saw who it was."Guess who just dropped in!" Zach gushed and just seeing his face immediately put me in a good mood. He was one of the few people who had wormed their way into my life by being there when I started having problems with my parents."Don't tell me Kushi convinced you to come to keep me company" I gasped, my eyes widening as I saw the familiar setting behind him. He was definitely at the re
DIAN ANGELO POV "Are you even listening to what I am saying..." I could only vaguely make out the sound of Helaena's voice. My fist was clenched so tight that my knuckles hurt and when I glanced at them, they glistened white with the amount of pressure I exerted.It didn't do justice to the anger that burned through my chest, a wave of anger that should not have been there in the first place, especially not because of Sybil Eagan. I'd thought I would never see her again, I'd made sure we never crossed paths but I guessed the universe was fucking messing with me. Watching her laugh, her voice booming across the space would have been bearable, but watching her touching another man, and the said man touching her like he had a right to made my chest go tight with white-hot anger. She'd moved on just like I knew she would, and it pissed me off. But It was absurd. I hated Sybil, she was nothing to me so why did seeing her affect me so much? Of course, her betrayal was enough for such a
SYBIL EAGAN POV"I honestly do not understand this switch, Sybil. You were ok just some minutes ago" Zach worried, his eyes trying to catch mine. "Are you mad that I talked with Miguel for so long, because if you are, I don't even know what to tell you right now"?I stared at the liquor I'd poured for myself, my gaze boring into the liquid that I hadn't quite worked up the nerve to drink. "I just saw Dian" Zach choked on whatever he wanted to say, took a pause, and I finally met his gaze. He looked dumbfounded."What?" He finally gasped, a disbelieving look on his face. "I'm not sure I heard you right...""I said I fucking just saw Dian" I yelled, then grabbed the glass in front of me, but Zach smacked it out of my hand before I could drink it. Staring at the shattered content, my gaze snapped to Zach and I glared, the anger in my chest urging me to pour out all the fury I felt onto him, but Zach looked furious too."And what if you saw Dian, what the fuck does that have to do with a
SYBIL EAGAN POV.The roaring sound in my ear felt overwhelming, the nostalgic feeling hitting hard as the familiar sound of his voice reached my ears. They were just as I remembered, even deeper now than they had been before.He'd changed a lot in five years, and it was not just his Aura. My hands turned sweaty as I forced myself to appear unaffected as his gaze burned into mine. It was intense, the way he stared at me and my heart rate kicked up until it felt as if I was on the verge of a heart attack.His eyes had always been beautiful and they could always make me feel calm whenever I was derailing, but right now as he stared at me, all I wanted to do was run and hide away from his fury because he looked majorly pissed.Running was not an option tho. I'd already made a decision and I was going to stick to it even if it killed me. It was time I buried our memories and move on with my life. I gazed at him, pasting a puzzled look on my face."I'm sorry, but do I know you" I got out an
SYBIL EAGAN POV."Just let it go Zach" I murmured in a low voice, feeling a little bit out of it as Zach continued to fume. "Why did you let him talk to you like that, ugh! I should have punched him, that ass" Zach yelled, and I could literally see the steams coming out of his ears. "The nerve of that guy, after what he did to you"."Enough already!" I yelled, my hands reaching up to cover my ears. Zach rushed toward me, worry, the most prominent feature on his face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to go on about him like that. Are you ok".I stared at him, then looked away. "I'd be lying if I said I was so I won't. What was Dian going on about Zach... I don't understand why he will accuse me like that... I was literally a virgin when we were together, and he didn't even have sex with me, I was with no one but him, and after the wedding, I didn't go out with anyone, so why was he saying that horrible stuff about me" I asked, my gaze snapping back to Zach's as if he was the one who held al
SYBIL EAGAN POV.Holy freaking hell! I stared at him dumbfounded, unable to get my heart rate to return to normal or even form a sentence. His gaze burned through my skull as he stared me down. It was as if I was some filth under his shoes. It was an odd reaction considering he was the one who just freaking kissed me without my express permission. Dian turned to face Seth. "Did I interrupt your painting session? I should apologize but I have nothing to be sorry for since Sybil and I have a prior appointment before she wandered off and met you" he said with a condescending voice. Seth glanced at me, and he had a sort of disappointed look in his eyes that tugged at my heart. It was like I'd broken his heart without even knowing I had the power to. "Is he telling the truth?" He asked and Dian scoffed, as he grabbed me by the wrist."She doesn't have to answer that question. You're nothing to her anyway," he got out in an antagonizing tone, before he glared at me, his eyes daring me to