"Oh, shoot!" Emma almost spills her cup of capuccino before gathering herself, realising she has drawn the attention from the other customers.
Neva frowns. "What's wrong?"
"Girl~" Emma places the cup down on the saucer before reaching for Neva's hands, her
right hand halted midway, still clutching the fork.
"Were you at Floral Paradise yesterday?" Emma's eyes shimmer with a possibly delightful recollection that gives way to bubbling curiosity. "With Rhett?"
Neva blinks, caught off-guard by the genuine enthusiasm practically fizzing out of her friend.
"Were you?" Emma presses, her patience wearing razor-thin. "Are you guys finally, finally dating?"
Neva shakes her head. "We are not."
Emma withers at her response. "Why not? That man is head over heels for you! Poor guy walks you to your college and waits until your classes are over, and has been pursuing you relentlessly for a lifetime now! How can you be so heartless!"
"You're being too loud, Emma," replies Neva.
Emma gasps dramatically before releasing Neva's hands and leaning back with her arms crossed. "You really are something, woman.
If I were you, I would've melted long ago."
A chuckle escapes Neva as she takes a forkful of her strawberry shortcake, savouring its sweetness.
"I could've sworn I saw you and Rhett at the flower farm yesterday," Emma says. "But I only caught a glimpse, and when I looked back, you'd already vanished among the tall flowers and crowds."
"We did," Neva murmurs, trying to act nonchalant as she takes another bite of her shortcake,
if only to veil the warmth rising to her cheeks at the memory and mystique of yesterday.
She can still feel the warmth of him as they sat so close to each other during the Church service, the mingling sensations of calmness and shyness, which made it so hard to focus on the sermon.
After the sermon, she apologised to her dear Father for her lack of concentration on His word before they went to a famous Japanese restaurant in Vernellia.
She tried to like sushi, but she just couldn't with the raw salmon which had already been ordered out of curiosity. Maybe, she could've taken it better if the meat was cooked?
She didn't want to waste the food, but couldn't bring herself to eat another bite either. Thankfully,
he came to the rescue and suggested they exchange her sushi with his sweet and spicy Japanese vegetable and pork curry which she instantly loved.
He ordered himself another sweet and spicy Japanese curry, but she wasn't surprised, for he ate a lot and exercised even more.
And in that moment, butterflies fluttered within her as she caught a glimpse of what might be if something true and pure blossomed between them.
Looking back,
she's kidding herself if she hasn't daydreamed even for a fleeting moment of a promising future with him.
"You did?!" Emma exclaims, earning another round of irritated glances from the other customers, but she doesn't seem to care.
A grin etches upon Emma's lips as she leans in, hands clasped together as if in prayer for a wish to come true. "What else did you do yesterday?"
"We just went to a Church service, then visited a restaurant, and stopped by the flower farm, as you saw." Neva lifts her cup of latte to her lips for a sip.
Truly, what a wonderful experience that was, a sight to carefully weave into the tapestry of memories to hold forever, scented with flowers in bloom beneath the golden hour, a forest of pine trees, a lake looking through the many shades
of the coral-and-lilac sky, and distant blue hills.
And there was the man who kept picking flowers despite it not being allowed, until an employee had to approach him and explain that pre-made bouquets were available for purchase. Her heart melted when he innocently told her that he wanted to make a bouquet for her with his own hands. So, she accepted whatever he could make from the flowers he had already picked, which he had to pay for, along with another bouquet he purchased for her afterward.
Emma claps her hands, bursting into laughter. "Darling, I may not be very religious, but I know you so are.
At this point, just hand me your wedding invitation!"
Neva places a hand over her eyes as a waitress approaches their table. "Emma, you're
embarrassing me!" she retorts in a hushed tone.
"Excuse me, ma'am," the waitress says. "Could you please keep your voice down a bit?
We try to keep things fairly quiet for the readers."
"Yes, yes. I'm sorry. But we're leaving anyway, so please bring us the bill."
Emma glances at Neva. "You're done too, right?"
Neva nods. "I am."
The same waitress brings them their bill, and even though Neva insists on paying, Emma beats her to it before they step out of Glimmora, the warm, inviting book café nestled along the pavement.
"Now, where to?" Emma asks, looping an arm through Neva's.
"Home, of course," Neva replies as they begin walking along the sidewalk beside Glimmora's outdoor seating area adorned with flowers
and lit by the golden glow of lanterns and candles.
Emma grumbles playfully. "I finally get you all to myself after weeks of you ditching me for studies, and studies, and more studies. But you made time for your precious Rhett yesterday, didn't you?"
Neva smiles. "You had me today, didn't you?" Oh, she would never tell Emma how she spent her time away from lectures, or how, even during her studies, Rhett always lingered nearby, trying his best
not to distract her. But what did he even know?
"For what, like two hours?" Emma sighs. "Girl, you need to start enjoying your youth instead of burying yourself in depressing books!"
"I do enjoy my youth," Neva says. "In my own way."
"Hmm," Emma replies. "But let's go to one last place."
Neva shakes her head. "It's getting dark. I think we've had enough for today."
Truly, her feet are aching in her cherry-red Mary Janes, pretty little shoes adorned with tiny bows, but a hell to walk in for too long. Her lectures had ended at two that afternoon, an hour earlier
than usual after the last subject was cancelled.
Emma, who had been absent for no apparent reason, called her and discovered that her classes had ended early.
Seizing the opportunity, she suggested a little outing and dared Neva to cancel on her.
Neva agreed, and soon enough, Emma arrived at her apartment with a cab already waiting outside.
Thus began their little adventure through the city of Vernellia, from one shopping mall to another, where they spent most of their time
browsing and ended up purchasing almost nothing, before finally settling at the book café.
"Are you eager to ditch your best friend and run off to see your neighbour-lover?"
Emma asks, nudging Neva a little to the side with her as a young man passes by.
"Emma," Neva sighs. Well, Emma doesn't know that Neva had already called her apparent neighbour-lover to let him know her lectures had ended early, lest he come to fetch her at the
usual time, and that their time together would have to be sacrificed for her outing with Emma.
"I miss my boyfriend, too, alright?" Emma says. "But I miss you, too. Just look at you! If you're already like this, you'll be completely ditching me once you're together. And let me tell you something:
I'm jealous that it'll be your first relationship, and a perfect one at that, without any trial and error."
Neva raises her brows. "Trial and error?"
"Yes, yes." Emma lets out a sigh. "We have those foolish relationships in high school, don't we?
I've dated a couple of boys, and boy, do I regret it. I should have waited for my perfect honey-boo."
Neva chuckles softly at the pet name.
She has met Emma's boyfriend a couple of times at college, when he would occasionally come to fetch Emma. He's a kind, handsome young man, the same age as Emma and a year older than Neva.
Emma turns to her, her round amber eyes shining like a puppy's. "So, will you come
with me to this last place? Please, pretty please?"
Neva nods. "Okay."
A huge grin breaks across Emma's face.
She promptly hails a cab, and amid the bustling traffic, with headlights
casting a golden glow across the slick black pavement, a yellow cab pulls up beside them.
As the cab pulls away, the world is already darkened in a bluish hue, the city illuminated by streetlamps, car headlights, and windows of towering skycrapers.
Even the illuminated crown of the majestic Empire State Building, standing tall amongst the city's architecture gradually fades into the distance.
Still, the evening rush carries on outside the window, the silhouettes of wandering pedestrians softened by the amber light.
While their destination seems nowhere near, and Neva is almost dozing off when Emma taps her on the shoulder, rousing her from her drowsiness.
"We're here," Emma says.
Neva nods,
rubbing her eyes as Emma pays their fare before taking her hand and pulling her out of the cab.
Through a half-blurry gaze she reads the letters RevSync glowing in the signboard, a quite familiar name which her muddled mind can't remember, but she is sure she has never been here before.
Yet, the moment Emma pulls Neva into a sanctum of vintage luxury cars, their deep colours gleaming
as they rest in a loose, reverent arc, Neva realises what this place is, and who it might belong to.
Emma speaks with the man with bored eyes and an untrimmed beard, seemingly in his late thirties, who lounges in the red leather chair behind the table, leaving Neva to slowly take in her surroundings, the amber light glowing from industrial pendants and lantern-style
bulbs suspended from the rafters, casting warm halos across polished metal against the darkening world beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows.
"Where did you bring me, Emma?" Neva asks as Emma loops her arm through hers, guiding her toward the door branching off beside the manager's desk.
"You know it as well as I do," Emma replies teasingly.
Sharp scents of gasoline and must pierce her nose, the clatter of tools and grind of
machinery over the low hum of voices growing louder as they enter a large maintenance hall.
"Can you wait here for me while I say hi to Zed?" Emma asks as they approach a
lounge area tucked into a quieter corner across the hall. "Or do you wanna come along?"
"I'm fine here," Neva says. "But I want to go home."
"Neva, this is Rhett's workshop," Emma declares. "Don't you wanna surprise him?"
Neva shakes her head. "Who knows he's even here—"
"Sup, Emma!" a voice calls.
Neva turns to find a man striding toward them, moving past the cluster of cars, his grey eyes sweeping over her in an unsettling, unsafe way.
Emma's expression tightens with annoyance.
"Won't you introduce me to your friend?" he purrs, glancing at Neva with a too-easy confidence that sends a churn of instinctive warning through her.
"Is she new here? Haven't seen her around."
"Stay away from her, Alex," Emma warns, her voice hard.
Alex ignores her. Instead, he tugs off his oil-streaked green glove, much like the greyish-blue workwear that helps him disappear into the sea of mechanics.
"Name's Alex Mitchell." He extends a hand toward her. "And you?"
Emma takes Alex's hand instead, offering him a tight grin. "Back off, Alex. She's taken."
Alex smirks. "So what?"
"And she's dating your boss," Emma declares cheekily.
Surprise flickers across Alex's face as he studies Neva.
Emma raises a brow at him, but Alex only smirks, lifting his hands in surrender before turning to leave.
Neva gives Emma a bewildered look. "What was that?"
"He just wants to get into your pants," Emma says. "He only backed off because he doesn't want to lose his job."
Neva, tired of Emma's teasing and tactics, sighs. She just wants to go home, shower, and crawl into bed, weary from the day's labours. "Please, don't do that anymore. There's nothing like that between us."
Emma parts her lips to protest, but her gaze falls on someone behind Neva, and she clears her throat.
Neva follows her gaze, her heart stuttering as
she finds Rhett standing only a few steps away.
"Emma!" a familiar voice calls over the hubbub of the hall, coming from the man at the far end of the hall, brushing dust from his clothes beside a raised car.
"Babe!" Emma throws her hand up in an eager wave.
Panic cinches Neva's chest as Rhett approaches her. Has he heard her? He has. He definitely has.
Emma gives Neva's hand a brief, encouraging squeeze. "Girl, you take it from here," she murmurs before happily gliding toward her boyfriend.
"What are you doing here?" Rhett asks.
"Emma… she was the one who brought me," Neva mumbles. "I was leaving anyway."
"I'm off work, too," he says. "Let me take you home."
She shakes her head. "It's fine. I'll call a cab."
"Neva, I'm not a stranger," Rhett says, a soft smile tugging at his lips. "Let me."
Neva's lips tighten before she nods, wondering if she'd unwittingly messed things up between them again. Otherwise, why wouldn't he call her Angel?