Book 2 Chapter 26
After an hour of sorting dusty folders, Nikos came to join her, apparently, Helen and Marina had him occupied so he's been unable to help out sooner.
“Do you need help, Ms. Harris?” he asked. "I'd have come sooner but Ms. Marina added to my workload."
She shook her head, she hadn't expected any help in the first place. In fact, she'd even managed to make a lot of progress all on her own. But he was truly so sweet for trying to help.
“No, thank you, Nikos. I can handle it.” she replied.
He looked disappointed.
“Are you sure? Because I can carry the heavy stuff. Or organize. Or… uh… anything.” he insisted. "It's really no problem.
Across the room, Yalda heard Marina scoff. She was beginning to think Marina was the one actually influencing Helen to be a bitch. Yes, Helen had been curt when she came along, but she had only turned to an actual bitch when Marina came into the picture.
She smiled warmly at Nikos.
"It's really okay. I'll let you know if I need help next time." She assured him.
He didn't seem particularly pleased but he let it be.
"Alright, Ms. Harris. Anytime." He said. "You know, we should be a pair. I could tag along and help out with everything you do, that way, I'd learn a lot from you."
Yalda hadn't even responded when Helen shot him a glare that could cut through glass, unable to stand his ground, he began backing away from Yalda.
"Just call me whenever you need me." He said, his voice loud enough for just her.
And she almost laughed at how ridiculous the whole thing was. Nonetheless, she nodded and gave him a brief thumbs up.
By late afternoon, she finally sat down again, her arms were quite weary from all the lifting and sorting. She'd spared thirty minutes to have lunch with Ioannis, he'd wanted her to stick around till the break was over but she'd insisted that she had a thing or thing to tend to.
She'd returned to her task and her mind was surprisingly calm. On starting the tasks, she'd realized it didn't matter what she was doing, it didn't matter if the tasks were meant to belittle her, all she knew was that she enjoyed being productive, it kept her grounded.
Soon enough, she'd go back to being her old self and then perhaps she'd have the energy to deal with all the drama.
At 5 p.m., Ioannis appeared in the doorway of the department, his presence filled the space instantly causing everyone to straighten up. It was the sudden hush and stillness that settled that made Yalda look up, their gazes met and a smile curved her lips.
The fact that he'd come to get her almost everyday made her heart flutter. It was like the highschool romance she never had.
“Ready to head out?" He asked her.
She stood, gathering her bag. “Yes yes."
She noticed Helen and Marina stiffen, Marina seemed to have held her breath completely. It was almost as though they thought she'd tell Ioannis what they've been doing. But then, if she wanted to tell him, she'd have surely done so at home, no?
Nikos stared at Ioannis like he was exactly what he wanted to become when he was older, and he looked like he wanted to say something but just couldn't muster the confidence to.
Yalda made a mental note to talk to Ioannis about him, she'd suggest he retained him when his internship was over and perhaps put him in a department with better leadership.
"How was your day?" He asked softly as she walked up to him. His hand settled on the small of her back and he led her out gently. "How are we feeling? Tired?"
"Mmhm." She replied.
He tskd.
"Let's get you home." He said.
And Yalda could only smile at how sweet he was, at ow novel all this was. She felt like she was the main character in a movie or a novel or something, and Ioannis was that supportive second chance love that'd heal her and make her better.
~~
The exhaustion had finally settled on her shoulders when she got into the car with Ioannis, she'd leaned against him tiredly while he loosened her bun and began combing his fingers through her hair soothingly. It was relaxing, and she was convinced she'd be asleep even before they got home.
But they had barely merged into traffic when her phone began ringing, the tune was soft but Yalda found it irritating. She groaned as she dug into her bag for it. A tight frown creased her temple as she she glanced at the screen.
Jaxon....
For a moment, she thought she was seeing things. Surely, there was no way he'd be calling, why would he even call? And why did she still have his contact saved? She hadn’t seen that name in months, not since New York. Not since the night he'd pulled that stunt.
He hadn't reached out when Alexander had passed away, and he hadn't attended his funeral either. It'd only just occured to him.
She pressed the phone facedown on her lap, refusing to answer it.
“Aren’t you going to get it?” he asked.
“No.” She replied, trying to keep her voice steady. "There's no need."
"Okay." He said sensing something was off. "Who's it?"
“Alexander's friend,” she muttered under her breath. "Supposedly."
The phone began ringing again, vibrating against her leg. It was ruining her moment of tranquil and she hated it. She ignored it again, pressing her palm firmly over the screen as though she could silence the anxiety crawling up her ribs. It wasn't that she was still mad at Jaxon or something, it was just that he reminded her of a past that ached her. She'd been so desperate to spite Alexander that she'd been foolish enough to fall for his games.
Or perhaps she'd just been desperate for any form of warmth and connection, not the detachment Alexander always had to offer.
“Alright. Why do you think he is calling you now?” Ioannis asked gently.
Yalda shook her head. She couldn't even begin to think of a reason why Jaxon would be calling. Perhaps he'd fallen into a deep sleep and he had only just woken up, that would be the only excuse he had for this.
“I don’t know. He didn't even reach out when Alexander passed. There's no way he couldn't have heard till now." She replied. After all, even Ioannis who was in another continent had heard of Alexander's passing and he'd attended the funeral.
She wanted nothing to do with Jaxon now, she wanted nothing that reminded her of the dark days. All she wanted to remember was her good times with Alexander, and Jaxon's call wasn't reminding her of that.
Ioannis glanced at her, concern flickering in his eyes. He could see the calm was visibly unsettling her. “But the call is bothering you.”
She didn’t deny it. Her silence was enough.
He exhaled, he seemed thoughtful for a moment before he spoke.
“I’m not getting involved between you and people from your past.” His voice was calm but grounding.. “But I also don’t want you carrying something alone that might end up hurting you.”
“I’m not hurt,” she whispered, though she didn’t sound convincing, not even to herself.
“Yalda,” he murmured, “you’re tense enough that I can feel it.”
She looked down. The phone lay still for a moment… then buzzed again.
“Maybe answer. Hear whatever he has to say. Then we decide how to handle it.” he suggested. "You can tell him not to call again if you don't want him talking to you."
She blew out a sigh. "It's just...I don't want any drama." She told him.
“And maybe there won’t be,” he said, although she knew he doubted that. “But avoiding him is clearly making you anxious.”
He was right.
"Besides, I'm right here. You don't have to worry about anything at all."
And that was all the motivation she needed. She answered and pressed the phone against her ear.
“Hello,” she said, keeping her voice even.
The voice that responded was too casual, it caught her by surprise.
“Yalda! Finally. I thought you’d never pick up.”
He sounded as though they were back to being friends, as though Alexander hadn't died, as though everything was fine.
“How’ve you been? I’ve been trying to reach you."
She felt her throat clench so tightly she could hardly breathe, and it was Ioannis's hand on her thigh that steadied her.
"Dont tell me you're still mad about what happened." Jaxon added.
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