NINETY-THREE
"Back for some Santorini Sunset cocktail?" The bartender asked as Yalda settled down in the seat she had occupied yesterday.
She nodded once.
"Do you have something stronger though?" She asked him. Her voice barely sounded at all, her throat almost hurt from all the crying as did her head.
"You would like something stronger?" He asked, he was clearly not comfortable giving her something stronger. The look in his eyes told her that she wouldn't like the hangover tomorrow.
She nodded once more regardless of his unspoken warning.
"As you wish." He said before disappearing behind the counter.
Looking down at her fingers, she realized she had subconsciously been tapping them against her thigh; somehow, it lessened the anxiety that weighed on her. She had been doing it a lot lately, she would find herself tapping her feet on the floor, or tapping the armrests of a chair, or tapping her thighs.
She had changed so much in only a couple of days, so much that she could hardly recognize herself.
"One might as well think you're stalking me, Ms. Harris." Ioannis Andreas's voice spoke smoothly from being her as he came to settle in the seat he had sat yesterday as well.
She inclined her head to face him unernergetically and she found him staring at her, watching her, it made her even more anxious, it made her wonder if he could see all the secrets she was trying to hide. Unlike his usual outfits, he was dressed casually; sweatpants, a sweater, loafers. He looked nothing older than 30.
"Please don't call me that." She said quietly.
His brow arched slightly.
"A stalker? I apologize, I meant no disrespect." He said.
She shook her head.
"Don't call me Ms. Harris." She said almost bitterly.
She couldn't even think of her own name without her heart clenching painfully. His gaze flickered from her face to her tapping fingers before returning to her face.
"Well, good evening, Yalda." He greeted to steer the conversation elsewhere. "Enjoyed your day?"
She nodded stiffly.
"You're also staying here?" She asked him.
Her meetings with him were to frequent.
"At the moment, yes." He replied. "Hence, your opportunity to stalk me."
Her drink arrived at that moment, and she offered the bartender a gratifying smile before picking up the glass and taking a long sip. The taste was a mixture of bitter and sweet, she didn't like bitter tastes but she didn't care; she went for another sip, she wanted to feel numb as soon as possible.
"Oh dear, I wish I could read your mind." He said as he crossed on leg over the other. "I'm curious as to what aches you so much."
Her gaze snapped to his at once and her eyes flared with what seemed to be anger, hurt, irritation and everything caught in-between. He raised his hands in a gesture of surrender before she could speak. He could almost tell that whatever she was going to say wasn't going to be kind.
"Leave me alone." She said nonetheless.
"I'd do that if that was what you really wanted." He replied. "Something about your eyes tells me it's not."
She shook her head.
She couldn't do this. She couldn't deal with this; she couldn't deal with her her brain being picked right now. She pushed her seat back in an attempt to stand up but he reached out and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Don't leave because of me." He said. "I apologize for making you uncomfortable."
His words did nothing to calm her, they did nothing to make her feel better. She reached into her purse, fetched some cash and kept them underneath her glass. She shrugged his hand off as she stood up and began making her way out of the bar as quickly as she could.
Her heart pounded heavily against her chest with every step that she took, and her eyes stung with tears as she tried her very best to think of everything else except what really ached her. She tried not to be too obvious about the fact that she was almost having a mental breakdown as she made her way out of the bar.
Needing some air, she headed outside instead of going upstairs to her room. And the fact that Ioannis was following her upset her even more. She didn't stop walking, not even when she was outside; she wasn't sure where she was headed she kept on walking. It was quiet out here, almost everyone was inside and the grand compound seemed rather empty.
"Yalda." She heard him say her name.
She didn't stop, she didn't look back. She kept on walking until he quickened his pace and caught up with her.
"I'm sorry." He said.
"Just leave me alone." She choked.
She was breathing so heavily now and her body was trembling. It was cold out here and she wasn't particularly dressed warmly but she didn't care.
"Calm down, please." He tried to calm her.
She tried to walk past him but he wouldn't let her.
"It's cold out here. You should consider dressing warmly if you wish to take a walk." He told her. "You're shivering."
But she wasn't shivering, she was trembling; she was trying so hard to not breakdown. She tried making her away around him once more but he held her arms gently to stop her, and she couldn't hold herself together any longer; her tears broke free and she began sobbing uncontrollably.
"Hey hey, it's alright." He tried to soothe her, but she barely heard him at all. How could she hear him when Alexander's voice was still so loud and clear in her mind?
Probably realizing that she wasn't getting calmer, he guided her against his chest for a hug she hadn't known she desperately needed till now. He wrapped his arms around her, engulfing her in his warmth. He rubbed her back tenderly to soothe her as her tears saturated his sweater slowly.
"Alright, you can let it out; you can pour it all out." He said against her head. "No one's watching."
She did just that; she cried, but she could never truly pour it all out. And after what felt like an eternity, she caught her breath and tried to pull herself together, he didn't try to hold her back when she began backing away from him, and he didn't speak until he was sure she was calmer.
Her teary gaze flickered to his tiredly.
"Who hurt you?" He asked a question she hadn't expected.
She had cried so much that thinking about Alexander didn't make her want to cry at the moment; she felt raw and exposed. She felt completely enveloped in pain.
"I don't want to talk about it." She replied quietly.
He nodded consideringly before reaching out slowly, cautiously; he brushed a lock of hair from her face tenderly. She should have flinched away from his touch but she couldn't, she didn't want to; not, not after she had broken down in his arms and cried like the broken person she was.
"I understand." He said. "I'll be her when you want to talk about it."
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