Chapter 4 Not A Date

~Zoey~

"I-I can't believe my eyes right now"

My voice quaked even more as I stumbled backwards until my back met with the half shut door. Dad's lips trembled, tears welling up in his eyes while peering at me.

"I-I...It's more complicated than you seem"

His words wavered as he spoke, yet I couldn't seem to find a reason to excuse his actions. As for the lady beside him, her gaze oscillated between our faces, flickering with a guarded emotion, something unreadable but undeniably present.

"Let's not even talk about me...you've betrayed mum!"

"You've changed ever since we lost mum...you've become cold and distant, given in to alcohol and yet--"

I sniffled.

"Yet I haven't blamed you for any of it, until now...it's barely a year, and you've already moved on"

"Smashing with Marilyn Munroe here, on the matrimonial bed you shared with mum!"

"She's not even my stepmom yet, a total stranger!"

I yelled, my words sharp and raw. By now, his face was drenched in tears while the lady kept glaring at us with sealed lips.

He sprang up from the bed, quickly pulling a sheet around himself to cover his lower body. Her eyes widened, and she scrambled to pull the thinner sheet around her.

"Monkey, I--"

He approached me, his eyes glimmering with sincerity, and for some reason, that only fueled my rage.

"Don't call me that!", I spat.

I buried my sullen gaze downwards when his hands softly rested upon my shoulder, his voice calm and soothing:

"Honey, it hasn't been easy with me and I haven't been coping well ever since we lost her...I loved your mother so much, but she's gone now and we both need to move on"

"Besides, Lilian here is a good woman...and we're actually planning on getting married soon"

His face, soaked with both tears and sweat, flashed with a faint smile when he turned to the wh*re.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms, with lips ready to utter some words before his interruption;

"And, I-I'm sorry...we should've told you earlier before this mess"

A scowl spread across my face and I growled, pulling myself away from his gentle touch.

"It's barely half a year, that's unfair and disrespectful!"

His face instantly crumpled into a tight frown, and his voice thundered:

"Your mother's gone and she's never coming back to us!"

"So it's high time you grew up and faced the reality of it"

My throat tightened and I lowered my gaze, feeling the sting of his words in my chest. A wave of emotions washed over me, tears gushing from my eyes uncontrollably while he stood there in silence.

"I hate you", I murmured under my breath.

"Monkey, pl--"

I shot a narrowed gaze at him, and my cold words rang like a bell in his ears as I munched them again:

"I said, I hate you!"

"You're the worst! Shame on you!"

Anger flashed in his eyes, and suddenly, his palm struck my cheek in a swift motion, sending me backward a few inches. The sharp sting struck my cheek, and its force sent a ringing through my ears. I gasped, mouth wide open as I caressed the sore area.

My eyes, while glaring at him in silence, burned with a mix of fury and disbelief.

He shivered, realizing what he'd just done. Sighing, he looked down and slowly reached out for me, but I bolted out of the room, my heart racing.

"Zoe, wait!"

His voice echoed from behind me, yet I played deaf until I stormed into my room.

The door slammed shut with a heavy thud, interrupting his repulsive voice.

I grasped the neckline of my dress and sank to the ground, quivering, tears streaming down my face, while he kept knocking on my door.

A few hours slipped by, and the pounding on my door eventually faded into silence. I sank against the door, drawing my knees to my chest, my breath coming in shallow gasps as I tried to calm down. My eyes felt sore as I rubbed my fingers against them, heart still racing from everything I had experienced.

The stench of sweat mixed with sour smoothie and tears clung to every inch of my room, a reminder that I needed a long bath and proper hair wash.

So, I sprang up from the ground and slid out of my dress, swaddling myself in my purple towel before sauntering into my bathroom. I froze while standing in front of the vanity, my sunken eyes glaring at my reflection in the round mirror.

The dull pink stains of soured smoothie had already began to blend with my copper hair, and it came to my realization that I looked messier than I earlier imagined. Running some fingers through my hair, I noticed how tangled the ends had become.

'This is gonna take some time', I exhaled.

Reaching for my steam blower which hung beside my mirror, I pressed its power button and a soft hiss of steam began to escape from the nozzle. I directed it toward my hair, its warm mist helping to loosen the dried smoothie residue with each pass.

A few more minutes after I managed to smoothen my hair, I filled the bathtub with warm water and dipped myself in. The water enveloped me, its soothing heat seeping into my body until my I felt calm.

"Alexa, dim the lights and play lovely by Billie Eilish"

The lights softened, casting a gentle glow across the bathroom. I leaned back, exhaled and shut my eyes, drowning myself in the beautiful melody of 'Lovely' as a thousand thoughts zipped through my mind.

In one second it felt as though my mind was at peace; but then, suddenly, the memories of everything I had just experienced hit me at once. Hot streams of tears began trickling down my face, followed by shivers and hushed cries.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

My eyes popped open upon hearing strange tapping sounds against my window pane, the rhythm unsettling, almost like tiny stones bouncing off glass. I slipped out of the tub, wrapping myself in the purple robe from the wooden hook by the door, then hurried out of the bathroom.

Peeping through the window slides, my eyes met with a figure whose hands kept waving at me until I realized who it was.

***************************

"Asher?"

"What are you doing there?"

I yelled, attempting to mask the sadness in my voice. He tilted his head upwards, shooting his usual nerdy smile at me;

"Thank heavens, Zee....I thought I was gonna stand here for as long as possible"

I heaved a sigh and adjusted a few stray curls of my hair.

"What do you want?"

My voice sounded cold, almost as though I wanted him gone instantly...well, I wasn't even in the mood to speak with anyone, especially the nerd who just sat there and watched me get into a fight without attempting to help.

"Um...Since we're bestfriends now, I figured we could maybe, hang out--"

I knitted my brows into a mild frown when he reached into his rear pocket and took out a single red rose, holding it up in the air with a vivid smile.

"I-I...just get out", I barked.

"You don't like flowers?"

"According to studies, eighty six percent of women love to recieve flowers from men because it makes them feel special"

Gosh! He sounded more nerdy than ever, and I scrunched my face into a tighter frown and yelled:

"Get lost, you nerd!"

His smile vanished, and the glimmer of joy that sparkled within those innocent eyes disappeared upon hearing my words. He withdrew the flower and lowered his head, his words heavy...

"I apologize for the disturbance, goodnight"

I threw my gaze off him, slid my window blinds shut and headed for my mirror. Few minutes later, I still couldn't shake my mind off what I did to him. My chest felt tight as though a thousand bricks laid upon it, and nothing I did helped ease my rapidly beating heart.

'Poor Asher...he was probably trying to help, and I pushed him away'

I shot a long stare at my phone while it laid on the bed, frozen while a thousand thoughts zipped through my mind.

'F*ck'

I hesitantly made for the bed and picked up the phone, glancing at my homescreen.

"7:49pm"

'There's still time...I should call him', I thought.

Unlocking the device, my fingers scrolled past a seemingly endless list of contacts, until I came across an unsaved number with his picture beside it.

I sighed, tapping the green call button and listened while it rang.

"Hey, I'm sorry for being rude...can we still meet?"

I picked my words, hoping they would reflect the amount of sincerity I felt.

"Oh wow!...it's absolutely alright"

"Geez, I haven't gone far...meet me at the park, I'll wait for you"

His voice bubbled through the phone, bright and unrestrained, causing me to heave a relieved sigh.

Without wasting much time, I dashed towards my closet and picked out a pink sleeveless dress from the stash of clothes it held. Since it was a casual evening outing, I pulled my hair into a slightly messy bun with two curls dangling up front and smeared a red lipstick on my lips.

With eyes fixed upon my reflection in the mirror, I forced a soft smile;

"Not bad, I guess"

Clutching my phone, I darted out of the house, my breath hitching when I nearly collided with Asher standing calmly at the front door.

His eyes beamed and a big smile appeared on his face upon my arrival. As for me though, I gulped, my eyes peering in utter disbelief when they met with his outfit. How could anyone wear a white shirt and green bowtie underneath a sleeveless plaid vest?!

Holding out the rose in front of me, he said, "I appreciate the fact that you've had a change of mind"

I forced another smile as I shut the door behind me, placing a hand over his to lower the glossy red flower, even though it matched my lipstick.

"One thing though..."

"What's that?"

He smiled sheepishly, his eyes beaming with both excitement and expectation. However, my voice was stern, almost as if it were a warning to him:

"This is not a date"