The sunlight stung, and it did nothing other than piss Andrea off.
She groaned, as her leg wrestled against the thick duvet underneath. Yesterday still had a sharp jab in her heart–the crumbling of the empire she didn't have the resources to enjoy, but all this stood apart from his blue piercing eyes.
Andrea sat on her bed, her head pounding–an aftermath of half the entire tequila the bar had, down her throat. She still remembered his voice, how her looked at her softly. Yesterday was trash, but somehow he brought her comfort through the memories she had of him.
Even thinking of his name made her heart race in a way she hated. He wasn't just wealthy — he was untouchable. A man carved from steel, appearing on the covers of CEOs Gossip and whispered about in exclusive circles. She'd seen his face before, plenty of times. But seeing him in person up close and personal? Hearing that low, steady voice cut through her drunken haze? It was different. Too different.
Her phone buzzed violently against the nightstand. Andrea flinched, dragging herself upright to squint at the screen.
Marcus. Again.
"Jesus. Why the fuck is he calling me?" She felt the anger that was put on hold yesterday, rushing violently through her veins.
She ignored it, and let it ring, as she walked to her almost empty freezer.
Nothing in there was edible, just rotten fruits, expired milk and mold filled bread. She slammed the fridge shut, as she lazied into her bathroom–another reminder that she was going down faster than expected, her shampoos could only last a day or two, the body wash, long buried and gone.
She didn't bother with all these, as she stepped into her shower, and ran the water, her life playing in her head.
Andrea remembered her childhood, growing up amongst three other children. She wanted to be the best, wanted so badly to be the golden child, and that made her do extreme things.She stole from her parents, her three older siblings, just to leave the hellhole–as she had always called their small two bedroom.
Being on overachieving teenager sure had a lot of dark sides, and the down side is, you realize too late what they are.
After the day she left her small town, she had never spoken to her parents nor her siblings.
Andrea turned off the showers, and scanned through her closets, the glamorous clothes just a little guilty comfort, she badly clung on too. But the situations that is staring her in the face, might force her to let go.
She looked at her sink mirror, splashing cold water over her face. The girl staring back at her in the mirror didn't look like Andrea Wilcox, cover star and runway queen. She looked… scared.
Finished. The word stalked her again. If the agency collapsed, if the sponsors vanished, then what was left? Who was Andrea Wilcox without her fame?
Her stomach knotted. She couldn't think about that. Not now. Then when?
By noon, she forced herself out of the apartment, oversized sunglasses hiding her bloodshot eyes. She went to a café two blocks down, where the coffee was bitter but the WiFi was free.
Sitting at the far end of the cafè, she began searching. If she knew the fate that awaited her, why keep stalling and land into bigger embarrassments like begging?
Job listings blurred across her screen — reception work, waitress positions, a marketing role that was really just selling overpriced skincare door-to-door. Every offer she saw, and the salary attached, she weeped on how careless she had been.
Despite the fact that she earned a very good pay, a pay above the normal rate, she was a reckless spender, because she thought, the money would always be there. Looking back, the brunette reluctantly admitted that maybe her fame might have gotten far up her ass.
"Miss, what would you like to order?" She glitched, the calm voice jolting her brain back to the present time.
"Nothing. Th…thank you" She looked away, sweat breaking on her forehead, before the waitress could identify her.
Relaxing back into her chair, with her eyes still trained on her laptop, her phone rang again on the table.
Andrea could feel herself boil once the caller ID popped up.
"What?!" The cold, icy tone made heads to turn her direction, but she wasn't really looking on relishing something that couldn't give her money.
"Hmm, well I'm not pleased to talk to you either. We've cancelled all your upcoming deals, and we are deciding to close the company earlier than the end of year. We–"
The sound of her phone hitting the table being heard, jerked yet again another set of eyes on her. She sniffed, as she felt her eyes water.
Was this the payment for her selfishness and greed? Andrea felt her heart constrict, she felt her bones give up. She was exhausted, mentally, emotionally.
Is this what they meant by those who are high up, have the hardest fall? She was feeling confused. How could she, Andrea Wilcox, walk into a store to ask for…for a job? The thought of that made her gag.
"Miss Wilcox?" Her breath hitched, but her heart drummed on. Taking deep breaths in, she turned slowly to the shadow looming over her. The sight of blue eyes, made her nearly topple over.
Kayden West. Again.
This time she wasn't drunk, or noticing him through the magazines, or seeing him ten feet across the room. He was standing next to her, like the night before.
Just that this time, she wasn't a drunk mess.
"K…Kayden" Her eyes widen at how she made his name sound so familiar, and he seemed to notice it too, with the way his head tilted slightly and an amused grin played on his face.
"Oh. Last name's out the the window, then" She couldn't talk, only observe. She saw the way those vast ocean of blue eyes swept across her face, and for the first time, she became self conscious.
She also didn't miss his gaze that flicked to her laptop screen, lingering just long enough to catch the job board before she slammed it shut. His eyes sharpened, but he said nothing.
Andrea's stomach twisted. She wasn't ready to announce to the world of her downfall, but now, one person she didn't want to look at when the news reached him, was sitting right in front of her, after seeing the big hole in her world.
Kayden leaned slightly closer, his cologne — something dark, clean, expensive — filling the space between them.
"Can I buy the Miss, lunch?" His voice sounded calm, almost like a plea. Their eyes hooked on each other for a moment, longer than a moment.
Andrea felt her heart somersault, and her palms sweaty. She opened her mouth to respond, but the ring of his phone interrupted.
"Excuse me" The annoyance on his face evident in his voice. Was he annoyed that someone interrupted them? Like him and her?
Her pulse raced. She didn't know if she was more humiliated, or intrigued. But one thing was certain—Kayden West had just stepped into her crumbling world, and nothing would be the same again.
But he also asked her for lunch. So maybe he thought she wasn't such a disappointing mess?