***TALLY/HONEY***
"Hello my darling little girl!" Zayan coos as he hugs me when I arrive at his store.
"Ugh, I have missed you! I hate that I can't talk freely on the phone with you and I have news. Big news, Babe. Let's go to the back and sit down." We snuggle together on a velvet loveseat. "I have like five juicy things to tell you, but I'll start off with the most shocking. Liam Bennet--"
"'Jaanu.' You're talking about my Jaanu. How is he doing? When do I get to meet him in person?" Zayan interrupts me.
"Patience, I'm getting to that. Liam-- Wait. Why is he 'Jaanu?'" I always seem to let Zayan sidetrack me.
"I can't call him Oppa or Hyung now that he's not in Korea. So, this is a more culturally appropriate alternative."
"What does it mean?" I tilt my head like a curious puppy.
"Nothing much, it's just a term of endearment for your friends in one of the Indian languages. It's like 'dear,' don't worry about it."
I have a feeling it's more than that, but I need to get back to the point. "Stop distracting me and hold onto your hat. Liam Bennet... issss... William Hazen."
Zayan bolts upright. "The fuck you say?" His voice lilts high on the last word.
"I know, right? Liam turns out to be a William, no explanation needed. But a Bennet becomes a Hazen when that's your mother's maiden name. She's Patrick Hazen's daughter. Whoever called Dad to set up the date purposely used 'Hazen.'"
"Well I guess that solves the mysteries of where the money 'Liam Bennet' uses to pay for your college comes from and why none of the 'William Hazens' we found online were the right one."
"Yeah, but that's not the end of the story." I clear my throat. "You know what I decided to do the other day, right? To propose to Carter Hazen?"
Mimicking dramas of yore, Zayan puts his fingers up to his mouth as though he's going to bite his nails and nods his head.
"Well, I diiiddd..." I pause for the effect I know Zayan loves.
"Go on, go on."
"Then out of nowhere... Liam shows up and drags me away from the table!"
"No!" Zayan hits me.
"Uh huh! But I was all like 'Liam Bennet, go back home and live your life, I've got this under control.' And he's like 'Carter's a terrible husband, at least give the cousin a call.' So I do. And you know what?"
"What?"
"The phone in Liam's pocket rings! I was like 'weird coincidence' and then I hear his voice saying 'Hello Tally, I'm William Hazen.' I argue with him a bit about keeping secrets, but the next thing I know, he proposes to me!"
"EEEEE!!!" Zayan squeals at a pitch I didn't know humans could make. "What did you do?!"
"Well, I forgave him for hiding the truth, but I didn't exactly answer him."
"Girl! What is wrong with you?!"
"Nothing! I'm trying to save him from himself! But he's determined to get dragged into my mud so without breathing a word to me, he shows up at my house for breakfast and announces that we're engaged!"
Zayan proceeds to hit me several times with a little throw pillow. "You should have rushed your ass right over to tell me this!"
I hold up my arms to block him. "I know, I know. I'm sorry, but I'm swamped and under heavy scrutiny."
He swaps from hitting me to kissing my face, speaking between smooches. "My poor baby. My poor baby who's getting married! When do we go dress shopping?"
"Hold your horses, Z. I'm not going to let it get that far. It's not fair to Liam."
"Oh no, here you go again." He sighs dramatically. "You're in such deep denial about your feelings for that man and what kind of relationship you have with him."
"I'm not in denial. I'm a realist and you have wishful thinking."
"And he followed you all the way here from Korea and asked you to marry him simply because he's your flatmate slash boss slash friend-with-benefits." His sarcasm is thick.
"Don't say it like that." I scrunch my nose. "He's a fiercely loyal friend with a stubborn streak that won't let him quit something until the very end. We're not in love, but he'd never be able to handle a divorce on his record and he's too conscientious to cheat even if he met the woman of his dreams. Even if she came back to him."
Going against my principle of not telling others' secrets, I'd shared the story of Liam's true love with Zayan long ago when he started trying to encourage me to go after Liam in a romantic way.
"I think you don't know either of you as well as you claim." He crossed his arms.
"Enough of this," I say wearily. "I don't want to argue. I've got to go. There's tons of stuff on my to-do list."
That wasn't strictly true, plus I haven't told him about my promotion, the arrest confession, or the return of our so-called friends. The thing is, that once Zayan starts in on my feelings for Liam, he doesn't tend to let it go quickly. I stand and run my fingers through Zayan's hair. "I love you," I sing-song.
"I love you, too, you idiot."
Tugging his hair slightly in fake punishment for the insult, I laugh then escape from further love talk.
But leaving the shop turns out to be like stepping out of the frying pan and into the fire. Trying to avoid the flames, I dash to the small recess by the door that leads up to the apartments. It's too late, I've been spotted. By Ashton.
"Honey!" he calls to me.
My eyes are closed as if that helps, but I can hear the heavy footfalls of someone running and the slight skid of shoes on pavement when he reaches my unsuccessful hiding spot.
"Hey! I can't believe I ran into you. Do you live here?"
"No, this is Zayan's store." I point to the big window behind me. "I was visiting. What are you doing?"
"I'm here looking for a studio space to surprise Emily with. Oh, um, yeah. Can you not tell her that you saw me?"
I scoff. "I may have reached a level of maturity I lacked when the two of you left me in the airport, but I have no plans to let Emily back into my life. So, don't worry, your secret is safe with me."
He looks relieved and pained at the same time. "Do you have a bit of time? Will you have a coffee with me while I'm between real estate appointments?" He sees the reluctant look on my face. "Please? We've been friends since middle school. Just one coffee."
"Fine, there's a nice shop about a block away, across the street."
We settle into upholstered chairs in a back corner of the shop with our drinks.
Ashton is the first to break the silence. "So, we didn't really get to talk much either time I saw you before."
"No, we didn't."
"I guess you're not still dating that guy I saw you with at the restaurant last month."
"What makes you say that?"
"Emily says you're dating Liam now."
I look away from him. "I told you both at that fundraiser that I wasn't. I don't know where she's getting her information."
"She knows you too well, Honey. She saw through your denial. She said you were afraid that she'd want to steal him away from you like you believe she did with me."
My head snaps back in his direction to look him in the eyes. "That's not something I made up. That's a fact."
"It wasn't like how you are picturing." He reaches out and places a hand on mine. "If you would just talk to her, really talk to her, she could tell you the whole story."
"I'd get a story alright." I move my hand out of his reach.
"Honey, don't be like that... I want you and Emily to be friends again."
I pull a face at him.
"Just listen. Emily was really mad at me for a long time for what I did at the airport. She didn't know I was... going to pull that kind of surprise."
I give him a blank look.
"She hardly made any friends in UCLA. I think she missed you too much."
"Or the people she met just weren't as naive as I was."
"I feel like you're projecting some of your anger towards me and what I did onto her. I was the one who didn't properly break up with you. I was afraid we couldn't be friends anymore if I did. You were, are, such an important friend to me. It was cowardly to go after Emily behind your back like that."
There's nothing for me to say.
"Part of the reason I showed up at the airport back then was to out us to you. I didn't want to keep it a secret any longer. It wasn't fair to anyone."
Needing to shut out everything to process, I close my eyes for a moment. How could that have possibly been unfair to anyone other than myself? But I'm not interested in questions whose answers are merely justifications. Opening my eyes to face him, I ask something I almost don't want the answer to. "How long had you been together at that point?"
"I don't want to talk too much about the past. Let's just move forward with new friendships."
Him trying to evade the question makes me determined to hear the answer.
I insist, "How long?" I set my mug down a little too forcefully.
He shifts uncomfortably in his seat, fiddles with the handle of his mug, and turns his head to the side before he speaks. "We started flirting and spending time together on New Year's Eve of junior year." Looking at me once more, he hastily adds, "But we didn't sleep together until the Christmas party," as though the time gap makes it less hurtful. When he's hit with the realization of what his confession really means, his head drops in shame.
"Oh. I see," I speak through clenched teeth. "So while I was searching for my best friend and boyfriend after getting my heart ripped out in front of a huge crowd full of people I'd known my whole life, they were off stomping on the remains while hooking up?"
"Honey, I'm sorry. I've always felt really bad about that. We weren't there when you needed us and well, because of the information you got that night and everything that happened afterwards, I just couldn't bring myself to tell you about us."
"Sure, because all those months before that didn't count." I take a deep breath and exhale some of my anger. "Fine, whatever. She had a boyfriend then too, but I guess birds of a feather and all that."
"I was her only boyfriend when we started sleeping together."
Managing to turn derisive laughter into a scoff, I don't bother stopping my eyeroll. Emily had told me a few days after Thanksgiving that year, a couple of weeks before the gala, that she was officially dating a man a few years older than us who owned a business. Sounds like Ashton didn't know that though.
"Are you sure about that? I know for a fact that you were aware of her relationship with someone else by the time we graduated."
He looked down at his hands. "She didn't start seeing him until after her birthday and I always knew about him. We had an open relationship."
I scoff again. "Maybe, but I'm confident in saying that only Emily was seeing other people. She used you like she uses everyone. Me and that other guy included."
"No, it wasn't like that." The desperate undercurrent in his voice is unmistakable. "If it makes you feel any better, we've been monogamous since June of sophomore year."
"Why would that make me feel any better? Not for me or for you. You ditched your whole life for her and she made you prove yourself for two years before she committed to you?"
"I didn't ditch my whole life for her. I'd accepted my admission to both Alaris U and UCLA to begin with. That's how I could leave suddenly like that."
"So now in the middle of grad school, you're leaving the production mecca that is Hollywood, to come to Alaris, which I grant you is the second best spot for films, but because of what? Of some plan she's concocted?"
"I didn't come here for the movie industry. I switched my major. I went for a double in architecture and engineering. I'm joining Dad's firm."
"Oh Ashton." My face falls. "That's the last place you wanted to be."
"No, it's good," he insists. "Emily got interested in interior design and went into the architecture program, too. This way we can work together and I can help her out."
"So the aspiring doctor and the aspiring director both heard the same siren song of building design? Ashton, she's pulling you around for her own purposes."
"That's not fair, Honey. I am the one making choices. I'll do whatever I have to do to make her happy."
"But you shouldn't-- You know what? I don't care. I really don't." I get up to leave.
"What about you and your dreams? I'm not the only one who has changed and left things for myself behind. You wanted to be an artist." He takes an accusing tone with me.
"Yeah, but the difference is I'd always planned to join my family business." I take a few steps away from the table.
"Doing something related to art. I thought you'd take over your mother's gallery or join the marketing department in graphic design or something. But I hear you're in management. VP in training. Do you think you're any happier there than I will be in my Dad's management program?"
I wheel around to glare at him. "The difference is, I changed because my mother left and my brother died. There was no one else to take their places. I'm doing what Quillon can't, but I still paint. Are you still making movies?" There's acid in my words.
"I'm sorry Honey, I shouldn't have said that."
"You have a real talent for saying the things you shouldn't and not saying the things you should. Goodbye, Ashton." I leave quickly before the burning sensation I feel in my eyes becomes the tears I know are about to flow. I dial Liam.
***LIAM***
"Do you think I should ditch my plans and be an artist full time?" She sniffles.
"I think you should do what makes you happy." I soothe Tally who I can tell is holding back from crying. "What's going on?"
"I just happened to meet up with someone from my past and we had coffee together. It just brought up some stuff."
"Are you thinking of quitting Savis?"
"Would you be mad at me if I did? You left Korea and agreed to be my fake fiance, you've done so much for me. Given up so much."
"Nevermind what I've done. I'm still taking care of my own business, just from a distance. I haven't given up anything for you. I haven't needed to."
"And I'd never ask you to. Are you sure you want to go ahead with the engagement thing?"
"Yes of course."
"Thank you," she says softly before the strength returns to her voice. "I don't want to quit. I need to make sure that what belongs to my family, stays with my family."
"Bethany will be your family soon enough. Plus, you have a younger brother."
"A much younger half brother. I don't intend to take what is his, but I also don't intend to let his mother get her hands on it first. Like through a divorce settlement a year or two from now."
"I know. I just wanted to remind you that your father might not see your efforts in the same light."
"I don't want to talk about that now. It's the weekend. What are you doing?"
"I'm on my way to pick up my girlfriend to take her on a jog through the park so she can get her mind off her worries."
"Are you kidding? It's way too cold to jog in the park!"
"Then meet me at the gym and we'll get on the treadmills."
"Okay, that I can do. Text me the address."
Tally and I exercise and eat a light dinner at the athletic club. I drop her off at home then go back to my own place. I stop in the lobby to pick up a package that's waiting for me at the front desk.
"Liam?" a man calls from the direction of the elevators behind me.
"Ashton."
"Funny running into you after I ran into Honey earlier today."
Guess this is the person from her past that she mentioned. "Ahh, yeah, she told me about that."
"I didn't mean to upset her. We were each other's first love and I still care about her."
My face hardens.
"Shit. Sorry. She told me I keep saying things I shouldn't say. You didn't know that, did you? That we were once in love."
"Of course I did, but I don't like hearing it out of your mouth. You didn't show her much care when she needed it most. Do you have any idea what she's been through since then?" My eyes narrow for a moment. "Actually, I should thank you. If it weren't for you, my life would be very different right now, probably miserable."
"So, you are together. I knew Emily was right, despite Honey's denial. I hope you really love her. Be good to her, don't do what I did back then. She deserves respect."
"Your guidance is unwanted." It's only out of respect for Tally that I don't fill him in on the past and present ways he's being betrayed.
"Sorry, of course not, there I go saying things I shouldn't again. Listen, Liam, I want us to get along. We might end up seeing each other quite often."
"I can't think of a reason why we would need to see one another."
He might be sincere, but I'm not giving an inch.
"It might happen anyway. You live here don't you?" He points to the package I'm holding.
"Yeah, why?"
"So do I. Emily insisted on getting a place in this building, but the only one that went on the market since we started looking was in rough shape. I've just come down from checking on the renovation progress. The structural and systems work is done so Emily can get in there and work her design magic. She's really excited."
"I bet she is. We can be cordial, just stay away from Tally."
"Tally?"
"Honey to you. She's always been Tally to me."
"Oh, I see. You even have a special nickname for her, that's nice."
"Good night Ashton."
"Bye neighbor."