CHAPTER 2 - "Oh, my. Meredith."

KENDALL

The walk back home was the longest I've ever had. The memories of the good times we spent together kept recurring. We talked about almost everything. We shared goals. Wins. Experiences. He's expressive, and everything I want in a man. I wanted forever.

We were happy.

Amira turns to me as I walk in, and I smile.

"What happened to you?" She panics. Her small self makes a swift move to get to me.

My baby is all grown, and all it took, is a broken heart to realize it.

She pulls me into a hug, one I didn't realize I needed.

The tears no longer fall, I must have dried up my tear glands.

I stay in a hug with her for a while before pulling away.

"Water?" She says.

"Yeah. I'd appreciate that."

"Happy birthday, pretty girl," Jayla squeals but halts when she sees me. "What happened?" She says softly.

Amira hands me the glass of water which flows down my dehydrated canal.

"He broke up." I say flatly. Both gasps before turning to look at me. All I see is pity, and I hate it.

"Don't do that, you guys. Don't do it." I say. I walk back to my room, and fall on the bed.

"Happy birthday, Kendall." I whisper.

ALAIN

"She had a green jacket on." I say to the doctor.

"I didn't see anyone, Mr Arsenault. The ambulance brought you here." He says, then hands the discharge slip to me to sign.

I sign the slip then pick up my phone. "You should rest well." The doctor adds and I nod.

I walked out to see my driver already parked on the driveway.

"To the mansion." I say as I got in. My brother better be ready to swear he isn't behind what happened.

I may have been a bit vulnerable yesterday, if he couldn't get rid of me then he'd never be able to.

And I will make him pay.

The car halts in front of the mansion. My parents stand at the entrance, probably expecting me. I'm sure they heard.

"Are you okay? Does it hurt anywhere?" My mom says touching my face.

"I'm fine." I say.

"I'm glad to see you're okay." My dad says and I only nod.

"I believe I'm the happiest you're alive." I hear. The rage in me seethes through.

Fucking Romain!

"So am I. So happy to be back home, and running the company." I say as calmly as I can.

My words clearly hit a nerve. "Whatever!" He turns to walk away.

"You and your brother need to stop being on each other's neck." My mom says softly, taking my hand into hers.

I pull away almost immediately, not enough to hurt her. "We will be fine."

KENDALL

"It's past wake up time, Ken! Up! Up!"

The light from outside is blinding so I keep my eyes closed.

"Stop it, Amira." I say sternly and she does.

"I brought you something to cheer you up."

My head feels so heavy. I think it might fall off. "What is it?" I ask, and almost immediately the aroma gets into my nose.

Spicy chicken always has a way of getting me in and out of my feelings.

The smile on my face widens as I stare at Amira. "I love you." I say with open arms and she dives right in.

"Me, more."

The spice was just the right quantity. The tears. The feeling.

The ringing sound of my phone is so loud.

Oh. Shit. I have an appointment with Meredith.

I walk into my studio, and there's an angry looking Meredith.

"I'm so sorry! I had a really rough day yesterday." I start to rant

"I know. Birthday girl living her best life." She cuts in.

"I wish."

"Don't tell me you worked all day yesterday."

"I" I trail off as my eyes caught sight of someone familiar. Romain Arsenault.

"Oh, my. Meredith." I whisper.

"What?" She whispers back and I almost let out a laugh. Dramatic asshole.

"Don't make it obvious but you see that hot guy over there?" I say. "Don't look!" I add quickly.

"How am I supposed to know?" She whisper scream, and I can't hold it in any longer so I let out a loud laugh gaining the attention of almost everyone in the room. And of course, the one I was trying to avoid. Romain.

"You make me look stupid." Meredith says, sending daggers with her eyes.

"I'm sorry. Let's get to business." I say, dragging her into the showroom.

Meredith has always been a hyperactive mundane. Dealing with her drains me.

The most beautiful thing about my work is being expressive. With colours. Fabrics.

I walk out to meet a stunning Romain. He was arguably the hottest senior in college. An ex-crush of mine.

"Hi," I say, trying to sound as normal as possible.

"For a moment I thought my eyes were playing me." He laughs. "It's really nice to see you again after a long time. Kendall?" He asks.

"Yes. Kendall. It's nice to see you." I play politely, refusing to show the fact that his little memory loss hurt my feelings. Not that it means anything. "How may I help you?"

"My sister," he points at the lady metres away who was being attended to by another designer employee of mine. "She came to meet a certain designer for her dresses." He adds and I smile.

I remember a Shantelle Arsenault fixed and appointment for today too. How nice of her to bring her brother along.

"I'll attend to her then."

Riley turns to me immediately as I walk in.

"She has been waiting for you." She whispers and I let out a chuckle.

"Hello, Miss Arsenault." I say holding her gaze as she looks me up.

"You are so beautiful." Is the first thing she says, and God! I feel hot!

"I did not expect that. Thank you." I say with a silly smile.

"See how beautiful she is, Romain? I told you she's the perfect choice for me." Shantelle says leaving me a bit confused.

"I didn't know you were the famous fashion designer she talks about every time." Romain says, staring at me intently. For a moment I see what looks like admiration in his eyes.

"What can I say? I do what I love the most."

"I get it you two are familiar with each other?" Shantelle chips in.

"Yeah. Same college." Romain says. He smirks right after. This man.

"This reunion is over before it even starts. Let's go Miss Kendall." Shantelle says, and I lead her to my personal work space.

After hours of being all selective, Shantelle finally found what meets her taste. She chose her best design from the one I quickly sketched, and fixed a day for delivery.

"It is really nice to finally meet you. I've been waiting for this." She squeals and I laugh. For a moment one would think she's really happy to meet my person. All she wants is a pretty designer dress. That's the reason for the excitement.

"It is nice to meet you too. And you too, Mister Arsenault." I say turning to Romain.

Shantelle heads out while Romain stalls.

"Hey. Are you free later today? We can grab coffee or dinner." He stutters.

"Yeah. Sure. We can." I say. He hands over his business card.

"Text me when you're free."

I can't help but scoff at his attitude when he walks away.

It's always the man who asks for the woman's number. Now, I have to be the one to text him?

A pang of emotion is all I feel. It hits hard this time. I stare at the business card before dipping it inside my jacket.

I need a break from everything that concerns investing so much emotions.

I miss him. Drey. I'd call to tell him about my day and hear about his.

My face grows hot as the tears start to stream down. I make my way to the restroom and splash a handful of water on my face.

"You need to pull it together." I say to myself, staring at my reflection which stares right back.