Chapter 3

　　~ANYA POV~

　　I woke up to blinding light. Not "morning sun peeking through curtains" light. No……this was middle-of-the-day, 'you have-overslept-your-life-away' light.

　　The wall clock confirmed it: 12:30 p.m.

　　So much for church in the morning. I rolled over with a groan, deciding I'd just go by five in the evening instead. Church was always open, and honestly, I wanted the place to myself.

　　Last night replayed in my head like a movie on loop. The men. The blue-eyed stranger. The cab pulled up just in time. Everything could've gone horribly wrong if that ride hadn't shown up.

　　The thought made my chest tighten.

　　For two years, Athena and I had walked that same road to the bus stop, drunk on laughter, heels clicking, sometimes even singing. Not once had we run into anything like 'that'.

　　I dragged myself out of bed, trudged down the short hallway, and locked myself in the bathroom.

　　When I first joined Athena in London, she'd been living in a cramped one-bedroom. After a month, she got me a spot at her job, and we pooled our money together to upgrade to this two-bedroom apartment.

　　Quiet neighborhood. Good area. Neighbors so rich and posh they might as well be ghosts.

　　Athena claimed the master's bedroom without a second thought—privacy for her "gentlemen callers." Fine by me. After a month of seeing strange men parade half-naked through her old apartment, I'd had enough.

　　Don't get me wrong, I'm not some untouched nun. Please. I 'know' styles….moves that could humble pornstars. It's just… lately? It's been too long.

　　Like the Sahara Desert levels of long.

　　I brushed my teeth, showered, threw on shorts and a T-shirt, and shuffled back to the kitchen in search of food.

　　Athena's voice drifted down the hall, cracked and raw like she'd been crying. When I stepped in, she spun so fast she nearly dropped her phone. Her eyes went wide, mouth falling open.

　　She let out a tiny scream.

　　"Are you….are you 'dead'?" she stammered. "Oh my God, you're dead. You've come to haunt me."

　　I blinked at her, biting into an apple I'd snagged from the fruit basket.

　　"Breathe, Athena," I said flatly, reaching for eggs.

　　"Breathe?" she shrieked. "I get a text from you last night that sounds like a death note, you don't pick up your phone, and you just stroll in here telling me to breathe?!" Her voice cracked higher.

　　"I just hung up on Blake Higgins because I thought you'd been kidnapped….or worse….DEAD!"

　　Her face crumpled, and she started bawling. Full on snot and tears. I counted under my breath.

　　One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

　　But she kept going.

　　"Was this some kind of prank? To make me feel bad for leaving you?" Her voice shot up another octave. "'Cause if it was, that's selfish, Anya!"

　　Six. Seven. Eight—Fuck it.

　　I slammed the knife onto the counter and spun toward her.

　　"You wanna talk selfish? How about leaving your best friend to walk home alone in the middle of the night because you wanted to hook up?!" My voice rose sharply, my hands flying. "I almost got killed last night because of you, Athena."

　　Her face froze.

　　"And I'm tired of it. Tired of your slutty ways. You have a boyfriend, for Christ's sake. You don't need to jump on every guy with a pulse. Get your act together. Stop being such a…" I sucked in a breath, forcing the word out.

　　"Whore."

　　Silence. Athena just stared at me, eyes huge, lip trembling. Then the tears spilled again, softer this time.

　　"I'm so—so sorry," she stammered. "I shouldn't have left you. I didn't think….."

　　My anger fizzled. Guilt crept in. I sighed, dropped the knife, and pulled her into a hug. She clung to me, crying into my shoulder.

　　"I'm glad you're okay," she whispered, voice muffled.

　　"Shhh. I'm fine." I rubbed her back. "Besides, I might've guaranteed Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome won't be walking straight for a while."

　　That made her choke out a half-laugh, half-sob.

　　We stood there in the kitchen, wrapped up in each other. Through the storms and chaos, it had always been the two of us against the world.

　　"Alright," she sniffled, pulling back. "But for real, we'd better laugh or the neighbors will think someone died."

　　"Yeah, well…" I smirked. "If you rubbed your snot on me, I'm haunting you."

　　She giggled, wiping her nose. Then, of course, she eyed my boobs when I peeled off my shirt to change.

　　"Gay," I muttered.

　　"Not gay," she shot back. "Just… aesthetically appreciative."

　　Typical.

　　We made toast and coffee, then sat together while I replayed the events of last night for her—the men, the stranger, those electric blue eyes. Athena leaned forward like it was the juiciest gossip she'd ever heard.

　　By evening, it was time for church.

　　Shocking twist: Athena actually wanted to come. After thirty minutes of waiting, she finally emerged dressed head-to-toe in black.

　　"We're going to church, not a funeral," I deadpanned.

　　She gave me a once-over, nose wrinkling. "And what are you wearing?" I looked down at my green floral dress, white block heels, and little purse. I looked cute. Period.

　　"I look exceptional," I said. "You look like Men in Black, female edition."

　　Her crooked smile was all sarcasm. "Five minutes. Tops."

　　"Nope. No more delays." I grabbed my bag and walked out. "See you in church, Athena."

　　By the time I reached the elevator, I heard her running, heels clicking. She slipped in beside me just as the doors slid shut.

　　We rode down together, picking up three other tenants along the way. They chatted in Chinese, shooting us sideways glances and whispering like we couldn't tell. Honestly, the whispering was pointless—none of us understood them anyway.

　　At least they weren't stupid enough to shout insults in a language the other person secretly understood. Learned that lesson the hard way.

　　Finally, the elevator chimed on the first floor. Six stories down. The doors opened—Athena gasped. Loud.

　　I followed her gaze.

　　My heart skipped.

　　Parked outside, gleaming under the evening sun, was a Rolls-Royce Boat Tail. Midnight blue, sleek, flawless.

　　"Oh sweet baby Jesus," I whispered. "That's a Rolls-Royce Boat Tail."

　　Athena blinked. "Explain in Athena language?"

　　"One of the most expensive cars in the world. Twenty-eight million dollars."

　　Her jaw dropped. "What's a twenty-eight million dollar car doing here?" I couldn't answer. My chest tightened. All I knew was simple:

　　It didn't belong here.