Chapter 20

For the first few seconds, the air around that area of the club seemed to freeze. Amara couldn’t move nor say a word, all she could do was stare at the group before her, more specifically, the man who had once held her heart and soul in his hand. But as frozen as the atmosphere was, it quickly thawed and was replaced with something cold, bitter and hateful. The very same hatred that had grown between the two, Amara’s own being newer and hotter. For a second, the tension nearly became unbearable as neither of them wanted to look away, refusing to end the silent war of glares going on. “I think it’s best if we just find another spot.” Melanie said at last, trying her best to defuse the tension that had settled around them. Her words were what snapped Amara out of her trance. She looked away from Tobias, a deep frown on her face, and followed after her best friend when Melanie tugged her in the direction of a new table. As she moved, she could feel Tobias’s eyes following her, staring at her back as she walked, but she refused to turn around and look, she was better than that. When they arrived at their new table, a waiter quickly appeared to take their order. “A shot of tequila and a bottle of whiskey.” Melanie eagerly stated, wanting to kick the night off as soon as possible. Once the waiter was gone, she turned to face Amara, a smile settling across her face as she asked. “So? How was your first day at work?” “Tiring.” Amara answered honestly. “Did those nasty work bitches give you a hard time?” Amara thought about the executives. Some of them had given her a hard time, but not the way Melanie was thinking. They were just a little too talkative and curious for her liking. “They’re not really a problem, Mel.” She replied. “Nothing I can’t handle.” She assured. Melanie nodded. “And the work itself? How was it? Nothing too tough I hope?” “No,” Amara shook her head. “Surprisingly, I was familiar with everything.” Picking her glass of whiskey after the waiter had returned, she took a shot before continuing. “I that studying I did during my married years must be paying off.” “That’s my girl.” Melanie cheered and raised her glass. “A toast, to not being a useless housewife!” “To not being a useless housewife!” Glasses clashed and alcohol was chugged down. “Ah, I can feel it loosening me up.” Melanie sighed happily and leaned back against the soft material of the couch. “This is exactly what I needed. It’s been a long while since I’ve had the chance to chill.” “I feel the same.” Amara agreed. “I mean, between work, my father’s messy affairs and my brothers, I’ve barely had time for myself. So this is really what I needed. Cheers!” She raised her glass once again and chugged the rest of the contents down. “Mn.” Amara replied, mirroring Melanie’s actions and swallowing the content of her glass. Just as she placed her glass down, someone occupied the seat beside her. “May I seat?” The stranger asked, his gaze locked on Amara’s. She frowned, wondering what a person would be asking a question like that, especially when he had already sat down without waiting for her to answer. “If I said no, would you stand up?” She asked, a bit annoyed by the man’s audacity. The man smiled and shook his head. “I’d just ignore your response and seat.” “Then I guess there’s no point in me answering your question.” She said and turned away, taking another sip from her drink and ignoring the obvious look Melanie gave her. “Can I…buy you a drink?” The man asked. Amara raised a brow, but kept her gaze fixed elsewhere. “I’m not alone.” The man’s smile widened at her answer. “I know.” He waved at Melanie, who happily returned the gesture. “I don’t think your pretty friend over there minds my presence. So, can I buy you a drink?” Finally, Amara looked the stranger in his eyes, but her gaze was dull and uninterested. “I think I’ll pass.” She said, passing along enough of a hint for him to get the message and leave her alone. Thankfully, he was smart enough to catch the hint and with a defeated sigh, he stood up from the seat and took his business elsewhere. “Ah, you spoilt the vibe!” Melanie jabbed her straight in the ribcage as soon as they were alone. “I was hoping you would entertain him. He seems fun.” “He seeming ‘fun’ wouldn’t change the fact that I’m not in the mood to deal with men. Urgh, men.” Melanie cackled at her friends expression. “Come on Mara, not everyone gonna be a bad experience. I mean, take that gentleman over there for an example,” Following the direction of her hand, Amara’s eyes landed on the man in particular. She meant to look away the moment she noticed it was Helios, but Tobias’s glaring eyes from beside Helios caught her attention. Her gaze shifted from Helios to Tobias and for a little while neither of them wanted to back down. Only did Tobias look away when one of his buddies tapped him for a drink. “He’s the type of man who would definitely sweep a girl off her feet.” Melanie finished, sighing dreamily as her eyes remained on Helios. “Oh yeah, I bet.” Amara sarcastically said as she looked away, but not without allowing her gaze to meet Helios’s once more. “Look Mel, I’m not really in the market for men right now. I think I’d much rather focus on the company.” “Urgh, the company,” Melanie groaned. “How is my friend ever going to find happiness if she’s married to her company?” Shaking her head, she added. “I won’t stand for that. We need to find a way to loosen you.” Melanie wiggled her brows in the process of saying this and Amara just could tell that she was up to something mischievous. However, before she could even get the chance to speak, Melanie had bolted up right at the sound of a familiar music tune playing in the background. “Oh my God,” She gasped. “This is it! That one song!” She said while tapping Amara’s shoulder rapidly. “W-what one song?” Amara asked, confused. “The lyrics! You wrote them! Oh, you’ve gotta sing this. Up! Get up!” “W-what? No! I’m not singing!” Amara refused, trying her hardest to stop Melanie from forcing her out of her seat. But being the smaller of the two best friends, Melanie had successful pulled her out of her seat with one big fat yank. “Why not? You’ll sound so good, I know it!” Melanie insisted as she pulled her towards the stage and in seconds, she had gotten in front of the microphone. “Everyone! Everyone, can I please have your attention!” She called, tapping the mic to get everyone’s attention. She succeeded in doing this and immediately, a sea of eyes landed on the duo. “My name is Melanie and this over here, is my very beautiful and very, very single best friend, Amara, and tonight, she’s going to be performing a song for us. Would you all like that?” She asked the crowd, who replied with loud cheers. “You heard them, sing!” Melanie urged, handing Amara the mic and giving her a shove. Amara could only curse herself inwardly for forgetting how crazy Melanie Woods could become the moment she had alcohol in her system. Taking a deep breath and knowing there was no backing down, she turned to face the crowd who were waiting for her to begin singing. ‘You got this.’ She mentally told herself and when she felt ready, she parted her lips and began to sing. The song was an original and Amara was sure, that if she ever went through with releasing her music, this would have been the first track in the album. So, as the music played and the beat kicked in, Amara’s voice rang true, clear and crisp. She poured all her emotions, feelings and thoughts into the words she sang and within a minute, the entire club was in an uproar, jumping along to the lyrics of her song. This gave Amara enough confidence to be more free and before she knew it, she had closed her eyes, her head swinging to the rhythm of the music. This lasted for a while until the chorus was reached. “Cause the devil doesn’t need to use his hands to destroy a woman, oh no. All he needs is words and I was the proof, a living testimony. So, don’t go around pretending like you’ve never met the devil. He’s closer than you think and he’s coming to collect his due." When she finished singing the song, the entire club broke into a round of applause and cheers. Amara smiled, her heart fluttering happily. She had nearly forgotten all that had happened in the past month, until her eyes did a sweep through the crowd and landed on none other than Tobias Larsen, who stared at her with a look she couldn’t quite decipher. Whatever it was, it wiped the smile off her face. She couldn’t be bothered with the applause, not with him there, not when the look of surprise and amusement swarm as clear as day in those damn dark orbs of his.