‘Why don’t you quit?’ she suggested.
The question seemed so foreign to me. Quit for what? Because of a guy? If he had an issue with me working there, it was his problem. Giselle liked me enough, why should I leave?
‘You’re saying how unbearable it has become to work there, and Davian is responsible for breaking you and Abdel up. I wouldn’t want to work there if I were in your shoes. This Davian sounds like a scumbag,’ Ella went on.
I took a sip of wine. ‘I have bills to pay. I can’t just quit.’
‘I’m not telling you to quit without a job. Be sensible, you apply for jobs. When a position is offered and everything is agreed, then you slap in the notice. Anyone will hire you in no time knowing you worked for Giselle. I know Anthony found you the job, but he won’t hold it against you if you find something better. He’d do the same.’
***
I would have understood. I didn’t expect her to work there forever. It was only temporary until she got her feet on the ground. I don’t think she wanted to leave, not because she liked to work there, but because of Davian. She was a masochistic romantic who thought something would blossom between her and him. It’s worrying and disturbing seeing how deep her infatuation was.
As if Davian was going to leave the safety and security he has with Melissa and discard that familiarity to be with Lottie. She might have been my best friend, but to Davian, she was the unknown. I don’t think that Davian was attracted to Lottie. In his eyes she was just another pretty girl who had a crush on him.
Chapter Eighteen
Lottie’s funeral is going to be held tomorrow at 3:00 pm at Christ Church in Richmond. Her mum just called to deliver the news.
I sit on the chair and bury my face on my hands and let it crash over me. I tried to deny it, believe that this had been a bad dream, wake up from it, and she’d be alive. That she would show up and say I got you this time as if all of this was a practical joke.
***
Lottie’s Recordings. Clip thirteen
I had a few drinks across the street from the gallery before I built up enough courage to go in the exhibition. I got in with no hassle. The portraits hang on the wall, but I didn’t bother to stop and admire them. I had one thing in mind. To find the son of a bitch and give him a piece of my mind.
Oriental chill-out music played in the background, making the atmosphere as if I were in some exotic location. I spotted him looking pristine in a checked blazer, with not a hair out of place. He was talking to a couple and I almost changed my mind. What was I going to gain from this anyway? All I had to do was turn before he saw me and walk out. No, I’m not going to let him get away with it; he wrecked my relationship. I scanned the room to see if Melissa was there. She wasn’t. Weird, I thought, why she wouldn’t be there for her boyfriend’s exhibition to offer her moral support. I took a glass of wine from the passing waiter. Davian did a double-take. He said something to the couple and marched towards me.
‘What the hell are you doing here?’ he hissed.
‘You know why?’ I said, draining my glass and taking another from the waiter.
‘This is not the time,’ he said, his eyes darting across the room.
‘No? It’s never the right time, is it? You crashed my party. Now I’m going to crash yours.’
‘God damn it!’ he snarled.
‘How dare you? How could you?’ I said, now raising my voice.
‘This is so immature and stupid. Grow up, will you?’
A few heads turned in our direction. Giselle hurried towards us.
‘What do you two think you’re doing arguing in front of our clients? I’m trying to run a business here, not a circus!’ she said through greeted teeth.
‘She’s not supposed to be here,’ Davian said.
Giselle turned on her heel. ‘I’ve had enough of this. You two need to sort out whatever issues you have. Follow me now before I fire you both!’
We followed her to the lift. ‘It’s not the time or place to do this,’ Giselle said.
‘Just sack her,’ Davian said.
I looked at him. ‘I’d bet you can’t wait for that to happen.’
‘Stop this and behave like adults!’ Giselle said.
The lift opened and we were back in the offices. Giselle jiggled a set of keys in her hand as we followed her. She stopped in front of a white door and opened it, pointing her finger at the room.
‘In,’ she hissed.
It was an unoccupied office. There was a glass desk with an empty vase on top of it, and a large window overlooking the city skyline. Davian and I stepped in but Giselle stood by the door.
‘Now, if you kids will excuse me, I have business to attend to,’ she said, closing the door behind her.
‘You had some nerve showing up here,’ Davian said with a tone as cold as ice.
‘Why?’ I asked.
‘Why what?’ he said.
‘Why did you do that?’
‘I didn’t do anything. It was done by your hand. He saw with his own eyes.’
‘How can you stand there and say this? You made it worse!’ I was shouting now.
‘Look, I don’t have time for this,’ he said. ‘I have people waiting for me, and I would like to show my face in there.’
He turned to the door.
‘Shut the fucking door!’ I yelled, rushing over to block his way. ‘You are so arrogant; do you realise what you have done? You ruined everything.’
‘Then go and fix it!’ he shouted back.
‘How would you feel if I went to your darling Melissa and told her you are shagging someone else?’
He chortled. ‘She wouldn’t believe you.’
‘That’s not the point. How would you feel?’ I screamed at his face.
***
I don’t know what she tried to prove by doing this. Giselle could have fired her, going after her most respected photographer on the day of his exhibition. It didn’t fix things, and Abdel wasn’t going to change his mind. It was childish, immature and unprofessional on her part. Letting her personal emotions get in the way of her work. She should have done what Ella told her in the first place: quit and move on. Lottie didn’t tell me about this, but I’m not surprised. She had kept things from me, lied to me, so many times. Davian didn’t tell me about this either. Giselle must have done everything in her power to make this go unnoticed with the staff so they wouldn’t gossip about it: the photographer and the assistant in the screaming match.
At the time, I locked myself in the flat and mended my broken heart with work while Lottie tried to win the battle but not the war. I did confront Davian; like hell, I was going to let this one slide. I had a couple of drinks at a pub not far from his apartment before I went pounding on his door.
‘What’s wrong with you?’ I said after he opened the door. ‘Seriously, mate, what’s the matter with you?’
‘Are you drunk?’ he asked coolly.
‘No, I’m not drunk, but you don’t go around and tell people lies.’
His face remained expressionless. ‘Lies? I wasn’t lying. Everyone saw, mate.’
‘Yes, but what you said to him made it much worse! Not only did Oli break up with me, you made it awkward between Lottie and I. Abdel broke up with her. He thinks we are lovers, thanks to your big mouth.’