Chapter 5: That Night

Hailey just rolled her eyes at me as if my words were treacherous. Suddenly, she ended the video call while we were presently talking. I always noticed that when it comes to her, she really doesn't want to talk about her mistakes. She wants everything in her favor. That's one of her traits that annoys me most of the time. However, I couldn't hate or dislike her just because of that. Maybe it's because our personalities are not far from each other, or maybe I'm used to her character and her rough behavior already.

I called her again, and what greeted me was her smiling, pleased face. Hailey knows me well. Even though I'm getting fed up with her awful behavior, I still can't stand her and leave her alone. My conscience will swallow me alive when I think that of my only friend.

"Why did you end our call? Are you sulking now? I'll go with you, won't I? You don't have a reason to do that, Hailey."

She ignored my question. Hailey is always behaving like that. When I talk about things about her boyfriend, she seems deaf. But she never gets tired of complaining to me about her lover. I understand her sentiment, but occasionally it was confusing on my part. Maybe she just wants to rant, and she doesn't need to be lecture about it.

"Wait for me there, Cathy. I'm leaving!"

Rather than answering my question, this is her response. I didn't force her to go back to that topic. It just won't get along with us, and we will definitely end up in a fight. I don't want that to happen especially tonight.

"I'll come to your apartment now to pick you up. Let's go together. We will only bring one car."

Her apartment is only a few blocks away from mine. At first, we thought of sharing an apartment together, but since we have our own revolts in life and need privacy in our relationships, we decided to live separately. And one more thing: I also don't want to be with someone who will stop me and control me from doing things that I want to do. We both don't want that, and I can say that when it comes to this matter, we understand each other. I'm a typical office girl, while Hailey is one of the famous event organizers. She works for their own company, while I work for someone else's company. My family was not well off; I just happened to get a decent job.

"Alright, come faster, Hailey. I'll wait for you just outside the gate of my apartment. Hurry up, and I might get bored; you know I'm short-tempered when it comes to waiting."

"I know; don't worry, I'm on my way now, Cathy. I'm just putting my heels on my feet."

The camera on her phone began to move. It was a sign that she was now walking out of her apartment. I chuckled and picked up the leather sling bag that I was always carrying. I also went out of the door of my apartment to wait for her outside. I turned off our call and gradually put my phone inside my sling bag.

I didn't wait there long for her. After a while, Hailey's expensive car stopped outside the gate of my apartment. She lowered the passenger window of the car only to wave at me. She told me several times that until she did that, I should not just walk out the gate. We are not youngsters anymore, but the way she cares for me makes me feel like a teenager. Maybe because there are cases of kidnapping in that area, that's why I need to see her first before I can go out.

"Don't be offended, Cathy. I am just taking care of you. You are beautiful, so it's not impossible for someone to be interested in you. It's better to be careful than to be sorry. Do you understand?"

"Why would they do that? My family is not rich, so they can't get anything from us. It's impossible for them to do that because I'm beautiful and sexy. They need money, Hailey, and not just anything as beautiful as me. You should be careful because, between the two of us, if anyone wants to be kidnapped, it must be you. They will choose you because of your family's wealth, not because of your appearance. Don't make me laugh."

She just rolled her eyes at me. This is her signature reaction whenever I interrupt her with all the things she always advises me on.

"That's why I have a bracelet tracker on my body, right? In case I unexpectedly disappear and they cannot contact me through my phone, my family will know through this where to go to find me."

"Alright, you are lucky in this life that you have a family like theirs. You lack nothing, Hailey. You are one of the fortunate children of an influential family, so behave yourself."

Sometimes, I can't help but envy her. She seems to have everything compared to me.

"I am also not happy that I came from a wealthy and influential family, Cathy. You know what I mean. My movement is limited. Unlike you. You are free to do whatever you want without any hindrance. There is a standard that our family follows. There are restrictions and laws. Once I came home late, the calls I received from my family members were terrible. Yeah, I was alone in the apartment, but still, numerous eyes were watching me secretly."

I don't know if I can feel sorry for her, but for me, she is still fortunate compared to other people. And I'm glad that she became my friend and let me into her life. So that is why I also have an attachment to her, even though sometimes I don't like her behavior or the shape of her tongue. No one is perfect. Everyone has hidden weaknesses.

"What? Are you going to continue staring at me? Aren't you going to get inside the car? We are in a hurry. What are you waiting for? Do you want me to go down and carry you on my back to get inside the car, Cathy?"

I couldn't help but laugh and giggle as soon as I opened the gate to my apartment complex. At any time, Hailey displays a rather rude temperament. She does not pick and choose when to act ruthlessly against me based on the time of year or the weather. I'm used to it. I don't feel bad for her either because of it.

"I'm here; I'm currently going out, alright? Can't you see? You are hurrying up once more as if there is no more alcoholic drink available at the bar when we get there later."