Love in two worlds

The Cost

AURELIA’S POV

I head straight to the bar as soon as I get into the club.

“Hey, give me a double of the strongest whiskey you’ve got, no ice. And keep ‘em coming.” I say to the handsome bartender as soon as I sit, shooting him a dazzling smile, the opposite of how I’m feeling.

He gives me a curious look and glances down at my outfit, but he doesn’t say anything. I look out of place here, I note. I’m the only woman wearing a suit.

Suit in a nightclub, way to go, Aurelia.

“Tough day at work?” The bartender asks casually as he places two glasses in front of me.

I ignore him and grab the first glass. I attempt to throw it all down my throat, but it ends up being a huge gulp. It feels like my throat is on fire. Water stings my eyes.

“Geez, woman! You don’t throw back whiskey like that.” The bartender pats my back as I cough violently.

“f**k!” I wheeze, sitting back upright.

“Not much of a drinker, are you?” I ignore his annoying look of sympathy and pick up my glass again. I try again, this time a little sip. It burns the back of my throat, but it’s not bad this time.

“Keep ‘em coming,” I tell him before turning my attention to the crowd of bodies on the dance floor.

I stare longingly at young couples covered in sweat and California glitter, grinding against each other, lost in the music, looking like they have no care in the world, and I wish I could join them.

I take another gulp of my drink, carefully, and I can feel my head get lighter.

Perfect.

Now I just need to wait for the loud music to drown out my thoughts. I don’t leave the bar till after midnight, but even before then, Evans, the bartender, had decided I'd drunk enough for the night and gave me water instead.

Holding my purse, I stagger to the door. I let out a dramatic sigh of pleasure when the California night breeze hit my face. It’s that time of the year when everyone leaves their windows open.

My phone vibrates in my hand, and I giggle for no reason. The driver I called for is here.

I rummage through my purse, still giggling as I head to the spot where I parked my car.

I need to find my car keys.

Oof…!

I stumble backwards as a body collides with mine.

Tingles, like tiny charges of electricity, cover my exposed arms, and I almost purr. I must still be very drunk. I look back at whoever bumped into me, not even having it in me to be annoyed. All I see is the back of a very tall man, and then he is out of sight.

“Should I help you up, miss?” My head turns to the person standing in front of me, and I nod. He is wearing a black suit, just like the man who bumped into me. Which, now that I think about it, is rather rude. But the tingles. Damn.

“I need to sober up,” I mutter to myself as the young man helps me to my feet. I wobble, and he grabs my shoulders again till I’m steady, then he picks my phone off the ground.

I don’t feel the tingles anymore, and my eyes instinctively look in the direction the rude man had gone.

“Are you good now?” He asks.

“Yeah, yeah,” I replied.

“Thank you so…” I look up from dusting myself to see him gone. I look around the empty street, and I catch a glimpse of him at the other end of the street before he disappears into the dark, in the same direction the rude man had gone.

I stare in disbelief for several seconds, and I start to feel myself sober up. All the emotion I tried so hard to expel comes rushing back.

Great. Now I’m taking my pretty ass home with both a broken heart and a broken phone.

It isn’t until I get home, in the secure walls of my bathroom, that I finally let myself cry.

***

I wake up by noon the next day with the worst of headaches, but what makes me get out of bed is the numerous vibrations from my phone, which I dumped at the other end of the room last night. I blink through the pain as I check what the noise is all about.

“Auriella Snow, CEO of a fashion startup who recently signed a massive contract with L’orve fashion magazine, faces the threat of bankruptcy as a friend and investor pulls out after she’s caught trying to steal her friend’s man. Sources say she…”

Alarms go off in my head as my vision turns red.

“What is this?” I choke out, my voice barely audible. I stumble backwards, gasping for air, my lungs convulsing in sudden pain and agony as the weight of the betrayal crashes upon me like a tidal wave.

Nausea coils in my stomach, and I feel bile rush up my throat. I almost don’t make it to the toilet bowl on time before I empty all the contents of my stomach.

My face scrunches in irritation at the acid taste in my mouth, but that doesn’t hold a candle to the pain of my heart being torn apart into tiny pieces.

There’s only one person who could have done that. But why would she…?

I’m out of my house in the next fifteen minutes. I see about three reporters with cameras as I walk towards the street to my car, trying and failing to look normal. I hastily put on a pair of sunglasses, feeling momentary relief from the harsh glare of the sun. I push my hair to cover my face, and I get into my car, starting it immediately.

I try not to pick up my phone as more notifications come in. Everything’s a mess and turning into a full-blown scandal, and with the media, there’s nothing I can do to stop it.

I already feel awfully hungover, and my stomach is twisting in hunger, but that is nothing to the feeling of dread, threatening to numb my entire body as I speed down the highway to my office.

My stomach dips when my phone rings. I look at the caller, and I immediately pull over beside the road.

I knew this was coming.

Ms. Lee.

The name flashes viciously on my shattered phone screen, mocking me as I try to think of what to say to the design manager of L’orve fashion.