Bitter Taste

The "Hey" came out so soft, and Chloe turned to see who desperately needed her attention. Only, it wasn't her attention being sought, but that of Darren, again.

She sighed softly. She was tired of waiting, and Rachael always made her wait. Today was the day of the long-awaited trip and she decided to be late.

She watched Darren speak to the handsome boy and her insides twitched. This was her best friend, but this was also her crush and it was a secret she had been struggling to hide for years. Of late, she had been losing it each time Darren was with someone else, it didn't matter who it was, it irked her.

Punching the screen of her phone for Rachael's number, she raised it to her ears, ready to pour out her frustration when she heard a familiar ringtone.

She turned around to see Rachael turning the bend, running with her phone held high above her head as she waved.

"I'm so sorry..." She muttered as she came to a halt.

"Where is your car?" Chloe's voice had a temper.

"Faulty. Would have taken so long to fix."

Darren had caught up with them. "Hey," she called, looking from Rachael to Chloe "I thought we had a car."

"We need to find another way," Chloe said. "I'll get an Uber."

She stepped away from the girls and watched them talk and giggle with her side eye while she pretended to be busy with her phone.

Twenty minutes later, they were in a taxi heading out of town. All three girls stayed in the back seat and talked about every and anything.

"Hey..." Darren called out to Chloe. "Any problem?"

Forcing a smile, Chloe replied. "I'm good."

"You sure?" Grey eyes cornered. "You've been quiet." She pushed on when she got no reply. "You can't still be mad because Rachael came late."

Chloe scoffed. She thought it sad that Darren had no clue.

"So, you're just going to ignore me?" Her lips closed into a pout.

This time, Chloe laughed. "I'm good, you're just annoying." She giggled as Darren rubbed her face over her sleeves. It was reassuring to Chloe, and she got disappointed when Darren pulled back.

"What's the plan?" Rachael interrupted.

"Simple, we get there, submit our application, and head out. Then, we cross our fingers." Chloe was smiling. "Then, we party!"

The academy was nothing compared to what they saw on the internet. It was huge, it was grand, and it was too busy for Chloe's comfort.

They missed bumping into people as they walked past, heading to the department where their future lay. Chloe could envision it all, the practical experiments, the learning, the experience. She knew they all had a fifty-fifty chance; everyone who thought through the stress of applying here was good, had to be good.

After scrambling and asking a thousand questions, they arrived at the office. Six other students were waiting but they didn't have to wait for long. They were called in one after the other and they handed their folders over. There was the option to mail the files but they had preferred the physical way, no excuses wanted. As they walked out of the building holding hands, they circled to hug each other. A lot was going on around them but it was a quiet moment for them. They knew what they had gone through to be standing there and they each said a prayer for one another. They prayed for success.

Chloe forced herself to remain in her seat the entire evening while Rachael and Darren danced with boys they had just met. Her eyes were fixed on Darren as she took occasional sips from the glass in her hand.

How could one person be so beautiful inside and out?

How could one person have everything she ever wanted in a person?

She grew up liking boys. She had been straight all her life until she met Darren. That day, everything changed. It was as if she had known nothing about life, about love until Darren. She always wanted to tell her, always wanted to let her know how special she was but she couldn't bring herself to do it. There was always something holding her back. The reason list was a long one, but most importantly, she didn't want to scare her away. She wanted her around, she couldn't imagine life without her.

"Two shots please."

Her attention was drawn to the booth close to her where the lady who called out the order sat. She tried to fit in but Chloe could easily tell she wasn't one to be seated there and it wasn't just her red hair that was styled in the most unique way Chloe had ever seen. Her cashmere was Louis Vuitton and her sneakers were of a class Chloe couldn't place. She did recognize they weren't second-class shoes.

The woman whispered into her phone and soon waved to another man who was just walking in. He saw her in no time and approached her, a smile on his face. They acknowledged each other with a nod and began talking just as her order arrived.

Chloe didn't know why she found herself interested in the duo. She suspected that whatever they were meeting for, it wasn't so good and that was why they chose that location of all places. The type of people they seemed to be shouldn't be in such a local bar, listening to local music, bumping into local people.

"Found someone you like finally?" Rachael said as she joined Chloe on the shredded sofa. When all she got as a reply was a scoff, she pushed forward. "Don't think I didn't see you staring at the cute guy over there." She motioned to where the elegant lady and very much elegant man sat.

Chloe chuckled. "You should know me by now. All I want is for us to get into the academy."

"You worry too much," Rachael said as she rolled her eyes. She took a sip from Chloe's glass. "Whatever the outcome, we'll do just fine."

"Where's Darren?" Chloe asked. Her eyes scanned the bar.

"I don't know, snuggling on a guy maybe. Who cares?" She sighed as she sipped some more and Chloe decided it was time to go.

"I'll go get Ren." She said. She walked away, searching for a hot girl in a green playsuit.

When she arrived with Darren clinging onto her like a life support, Rachael was nowhere to be found. She dialed her number twice and it was sent to voicemail. Confusion turned to concern not long before she saw Rachael through the glass window of the club, speaking to some guy across the street. She held onto Darren till Rachael came in through the door.

"I'm so sorry..." She said as she approached. "I needed a good pee."

"Outside?" Chloe asked. "I was worried."

"Bathroom was full." She stepped around and grabbed some of Darren's stuff. "Let's go."

Chloe stared at her friend from behind as they left the club. There was no reason why Rachael would flirt with a guy and lie to her about it. When she initially saw Rachael with the guy from the window, she had assumed that was the case. But that lie told her there was something more to it. A part of her wanted to confront her, to tell her what she saw but she thought twice.

When you have a heads-up, never give it to a thief.

The wine academy stood huge among the other buildings in St. Arches. Oenology required space and Fountain Academy was generous.

Blair Thompson walked the yard, nodding to the greeting students muttered to her as they passed. She loved making her inspection rounds, it was the highlight of her day. She smiled to herself as she inspected the beds where the budding grapes lay. The new students would be in soon and she knew the chaos would come with them, so she needed to enjoy the calm before the storm. It was like that every new school year; the yelling and repetition of instructions.

As exhausting as the whole process was, she loved it. She loved seeing students who couldn't make a simple cocktail graduate to own wineries, create wines that leave footprints, and climb high on the brewery leaderboard. She loved being part of their success story.

The list for this year was ready, and as usual, the students were much. The shortlist was always hard on the panel. She wished she could embrace the whole applicants, give everyone a chance, and let the world know oenology was magic, but they had to consider their capacity. She always had to keep that in mind.

She sighted May Davids helping two students on the harvesting field and her heart skipped a beat. She knew May was next, she knew the time for next was so soon, it was always at the beginning of every school year too. She wondered why they didn't notice.

Accidents happen, no doubt, but assuming everything is an accident is a big mistake; one Blair was never going to make. One she feared so much that made her do what she had to. It takes more than passion and a good heart to run an institution. It takes courage, dark courage. She reminded herself of this every day and felt good about it but each time she saw May, she didn't know how to feel good.

As if on impulse, May turned and smiled as she saw her.

"Hello..." She waved, then turned to issue out instructions to the students.

Her chest heaved as she watched May carefully move around the ridges and onto the sidewalk.

"Good thing I saw you, VC." She managed a smile as she approached Blair, holding a palm over her forehead. Her eyes were reduced to an unusually small size. "I was going to stop by your office after work."

"Good thing, I guess." Blair returned her smile. "What do you want?"

Her voice reduced to a whisper. "The fund account is not adding up. I've brought this to Harold's notice and he's not listening to me." She sighed. "The inspection team will be here any day and we do not even have a story to tell."

Blair looked at her in pity. There was a story to tell, only that the story involved her death and here she was, being bothered about the wrong thing.

"Submit the necessary files to my office. I'll talk to Harold." She fiddled with her phone as she could no longer maintain eye contact. "Anything else?" She knew May still had a lot to say but was taking it one day at a time and said no, there was relief all over her face, so Blair called it a good talk.

When she saw two other staff approach her, she was reminded of why she chose to stay in her office sometimes. Her secretary blocked out a lot of meetings and so in the field, everyone wanted to table their matters. She had no breaks but today, she was in a good mood so she motioned for them to hurry up. In a minute, two staff turned into three, and then they were six, and then eight.