" Why do you smile like that?", his voice was cold , presumably laced with a small hint of anger, I looked up at him, I couldn't depict my reaction to him, he could easily read me just like he just did, " it's obvious they are mocking you...but you still smile", he sounded frustrated, a hint of disbelief, could I tell him that smiling had become a sort of coping mechanism to me in that way no one could actually see how broken I was, it sounded insane but there I found myself smiling again, it seemed to annoy him, " I don't understand what you mean..., so if you would excuse me ...", I said as I wanted to leave but he grabbed me by my arm, it wasn't harsh as his words , it was gentle, restrained , I looked at him, he looked frustrated but you could see a hint of concern in his eyes, " Rhea", he called my name so softly, even after ten years the way he called my name was always the same , that soft tone that could make one melt, I clenched my jaw, why was he doing this to me and how did I end up in this situation.
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Four hours ago
The phone was buzzing repeatedly, the windows shut, the blinds closed, the room was a total mess, a figure laid in bed , soft rustling sounds could be heard as she sat up, it was obvious that she had not been sleeping but the constant buzzing of the phone had woken her up from her slump, her hair was dishelved and she was dressed in an oversized sweatshirt. She looked over at her buzzing phone , an unidentified number lighted up her screen, could it be her mother?, was she using another phone to try and reach her, she sighed heavingly, she just wanted to stay in bed at this point, the phone finally stopped ringing , she had over ten missed calls from that same number, she reluctantly stood up from her bed and strodded to her bathroom , she bent over to the sink and splashed water on her face as she looked at herself on the cracked mirror, the person looking back at her was the definition of her problems .
She heard that buzzing , her phone was ringing again, she closed her eyes and sighed in frustration, she slammed her hand on the sink as she walked angrily and yanked the phone from the table , she didn't know what she was planning to do once she answered this call, what would she say?, would she somehow back out once her mum spoke, she will be a coward then which she was already.
After clearing her thoughts she finally looked at the callers ID, it wasn't that number instead it was from a person she had saved as agent, she picked the call her expression unfazed, " hello", she spoke , her voice coarse, not a hint of flatter, not a hint of reluctance , " Rhea.....we tried speaking to other publishing agents..., they are not willing to take on your book....", there was a long silence from the other side of the phone, " hello.....hello Rhea.....hell..."," it's okay.....if you have not...", " Rhea....we will also like to discuss with you about your books..., will you have time today.....?",he asked , his voice calm, Rhea already knew what she was going to say, " can't you say it on the phone.....", she said as she dug her hand into her hair, " no Rhea, it's something we should discuss face to face...", his tone was serious, calculated as if saying the wrong thing would put him at a disadvantage.
There was silence for a while before Rhea finally spoke, " okay....., just text the place and time and I will be there", she said before cutting the call, they were also going to drop her, she had started with them and now she was ending with them, at least she was glad that they had not abandoned her first, her reputation was tanked , the star author Rhea Clayton was accused of plagiarism by her fellow author, the said author almost drove herself to suicide claiming that Rhea was shining in her light, Rheas ex fiance backed up the author's claim telling the media of how manipulative and controlling Rhea Clayton was, currently those two are engaged while Rhea Clayton is greatly despised both nationally and internationally. Headlines hit faster than words , a genius writer turned thief, memes , dragged and trolled by social media, she couldn't even defend herself , the debts were piling up , endless calls from money hungry family members, it was all too much , today she decided she was going to end it all, she was going to end her miserable existence.
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I looked at my phone then at the large resturant sign " Le Anore'", I followed the words through , it was fancy, the golden lights, elegant tables and chairs and bright chandeliers ,I never thought I would come to such a place again, I opened the door ,it was obvious I looked out of place , everyone was in their fancy get up compared to them I looked shabby, I turned my head looking for the person I was suppose to meet, people gave me weird looks, others looked at me with disgust , they knew who I was , I wanted to get out from here as soon as possible, I looked over and spotted who I was looking for, I bent my head low to avoid anymore condescending looks and I approached the table, you could easily tell that he was on the phone, I planned to sit quietly but that was immediately let down as soon as I heard the words from his mouth, " yes we will let her go, her reputation is tanked anyway, having her around will just be a burden to the company....", then he laughed , it was so casual, so smooth like what he had uttered from his mouth meant nothing, " if we had dropped her earlier we wouldn't have.....", he stopped talking as soon as he turned and saw me , that smug smile on his face fell immediately, he was shocked as he opened his mouth to say something but I didn't give him a chance, " if this was all you wanted to talk me , why didn't you just say it through the phone...?", he quickly stood up, he looked anxious, " Rhea...it's not what you think....", I have heard this from multiple publishers that had dropped me but hearing him speak like that broke me but I still remained calm, it was something I was use to so I won't let him see my weakness.
" Then what should I be thinking?.....,I already knew you were going to drop me , you should have just said it over the phone..., instead you told another person behind my back, at least if it had been from anyone else I would have taken it but why you too?", I made sure my voice never wavered, it never shook, I clenched my fist and turned to leave , it's okay, this humiliation is the last I will see, I was more determined more than ever to end my life, I briskly began walking away, my gaze felt heavy and I felt the sounds get louder , it all felt surreal, all of a sudden I felt someone bump into me , " oh my God ,...watch where you are going", she yelled, I didn't bother to look, I bowed my head to apologize but....," Rhea?", that voice so familiar, I slowly looked up to meet the woman's gaze , " oh my...., it's you Rhea .....", she smiled broadly, I recognized her, Ashley, all of a sudden I felt her log her arms in mine, we were never close before, why was she suddenly behaving like this, " I didn't know you were coming to the reunion", she said with a broad smile on her face as she waved her hand in the air, " reunion?", I repeated that word as I looked around and to my shock there they were , how had I not noticed when I came in, a huge banner with the words " celebrating the tenth year anniversary of Regal high", the table was long and they were all seated, Reunion ... .?, but I had not seen any message in a reunion, I didn't want to be involved, I didn't want to meet them but it was too late as Ashley dragged me in, Ashley's voice rang in the restaurant,she was still loud just like in highschool, " look who is here everyone....", she said smiling widely as if she had won a trophy.
" Oh my..., Rhea...., long time no see", it was Claudia, we never spoke in highschool I wonder how she recognized me, the faces I was seeing right now they all looked like strangers and it was obvious that they didn't want me here, before I knew what was happening Ashley had sat me down on a chair then she sat beside me , their stares were intense and it felt suffocating, then they began talking about their lives, Thay all led decent lives unlike me , Ashley was a sports lawyer, she talked about the sports legends she had met and the cases she had taken in, Claudia was a fashion designer and she recently opened a boutique, the others that I didn't seem to remember their faces like Ronah and Daniel were married and had two kids , they were both estate developers , they all spoke about their lives, it felt awkward as I listened to them and I knew it was wrong but I felt jealous , how well their lives were going while mine just crumbled , I didn't want to he here.
" Is Denver not coming?", Becca asked , " I don't know ..., he has to come though, we sent the invite on the group chat", said Ashley as he took a sip of her wine , group chat?, they had a group chat , so I was never meant to be invited, they had no intention of ever inviting me , this realization made this sickening, my presence here felt unwanted. " Ahhhhh....., I wonder what he had been up to...., u have not heard from him since highschool", said Claudia, " tsk..., none of us has,he never even spoke on the group...but....", Claudia turned to me with a grin on her face , " Rhea should know where he is ....", I looked up at her, Denver , I didn't know what to say, " Denver?...", " tsk c'mon now we all know how close you were with Denver, he was the only one you spoke to in school", said Claudia, she was drawing attention to me as all eyes were automatically turned to me , I was uncomfortable," I haven't seen him too, we haven't spoken since high school....", Ashley snickered, it didn't sound sincere, the way that all looked at me , I clenched my fist under the table , Rebecca scoffed , " it would be a shame if he does not come, I miss his pretty face .....", she said as she looked at me , " by the way...., I heard about what happened to you..., it's bad that such a thing could happen to you...., I mean everyone knows how good of an author you are", my throat went dry, they heard about it, they didn't invite me to catch up, I was just a subject for gossip, I was never wanted here in the first place, I needed to smile to get myself out of this situation, I wanted to do just that when all of a sudden I heard gasps , everyone was wide eyed and I heard mummurs, " I can't believe he came , oh my God he is still so handsome...", he was here, my skin felt prickly, I didn't dare turn, didn't dare speak, I held my hand to stop myself from trembling, he walked to the only available seat, everyone was mesmerized, he had not changed, he was still so handsome , he stood firmly, his gaze covering everyone , he smiled warmly, " it's nice to see you all again", he said, his tone unchanging, it felt warm and kind, the whole place began buzzing, endless compliments but his gaze remained on me, those deep hazel orbs penetrated my soul like he could see through me.