Aftermath

POV Erin

By the time I see Zach, he's at the bar swallowing down a shot. 

Without approaching, I attempt to calm my racing pulse. The nerve of styles. Who does he think he is. And what's more, how are we meant to sit together without causing a commotion. I mean if him and Zach's interaction was anything to go by, I could hardly see it ending in anything other than a fight.

By the time my date notices me, he walks in my direction. I step out to greet him with a soft smile, not really sure of what I'm to expect since his expression is cool and unreadable.

"Told you I wouldn't be long," I say.

His eyes roll slightly. "What'd he want anyway?"

My eyes scan the room quickly as I say, "he wanted to say hi. I'm sure it was to put his mind at ease. I guess he wanted to know where we stood.

"You know what, let's not waste any more time talking about your ex."

"He wasn't really my ex," I tell him.

Sometime later, after Zach and I are shown to our table, I'm surprised to see two empty chairs. I wasn't sure if Zach had something to do with it or whether Styles had decided to leave. either way, I found myself very unsure of how I felt about it.

I wrap my scarf around my neck and toss my backpack over my shoulder as I exit my last class for the day. The smell of wet grass is strong as I leg it along the undercover walkway, surrounded by other students. We all hurry along the path with purpose—a deadline to meet, a shift to start or a professor to see.

Normally, I'd cut across the lawn and head toward my parked car. But since a down pour is upon us, water overflowing and splattering from the gutters, I stick to the cement pathway that runs alongside the building.

The sight of two females dashing across the lawn with their backpacks over the heads, laughing, has me shivering and pulling my coat around myself. Rather them than me. They'll be soaked within seconds. As it is, I can hear the splash and slosh of their shoes hitting the mushy ground as they run towards the library.

Besides all that, it's too cold to get wet. Knowing my luck, I'd end up with the flu and unable to work. And I need to work.

By the time I arrive at my block of flats, I'm soaked and shivering as I run up the 3 flights of stairs. It's hard to believe it's been 11 months since Simone, and I found this place. As tired as the old flat is, we'd been excited when we signed our lease. It's far from a posh pad, let me tell you, but it has everything we need and is within walking distance to a variety of shops.

It's no longer just the two of us anymore; not since Simone and Mia started dating. They're a cute couple. And Mia is also Zach's sister; that's how I met him. He'd just arrived back in Sydney after six months in Amsterdam making music.

While I soak in the tub, I sip on a cup of hot tea, pulling up pictures online from that music event in Sydney I attended. I'm still finding it hard to believe I was there.

I swipe through the pics of Nichole and Keith, who I never saw.

Then a picture of Margot Robbie and her husband fill the screen. Next is Tame Impala. My heart jumps as Ashley and his blonde date appear. You see little of them (only their profiles) as they ignore the photographers.

The caption beneath the picture reads: heir to the giant SIP mining corporation Ashley Styles and Dutch model Coca arrive late.

With a huff, I keep swiping until my eyes pop when a picture of Zach and I appear on screen. I sit bolt upright, wearing my tea and creating a water wave that laps the tub and splashes over the tiled floor.