Bit by bit

AVA

I blinked at my reflection.

I had always wanted to dye my hair but never had the guts to do it.

My caramel blonde was gone, and the woman staring back at me had long black hair cascading down up to her elbows.

I somewhat looked different. And honestly, I liked it.

I finally stepped out of the bathroom, and Tori let out a squeal of delight.

"I love it! You're absolutely more stunning than ever. My cousin would be drooling".

Apparently, I found it hopeless to tell Tori that the detective and I are not in any kind of relationship.

Besides, I never had the chance to say yes to his public proposal nor wear the ring. Furthermore, it wasn't me whom he had asked to marry him but Shay Zephanie, the real Shay Zephanie.

"First off, I didn't agree to dye my hair just to impress him. Second, I'm voting on the fact that he must be, after all that had happened, so confused right now".

Tori rolled her eyes. I'm starting to miss Stella.

How I wish I could visit her. But that would require me to cross zones.

I was, in fact, in an apartel in one of the zones. I was at Zone C7.

Tori had wanted to reside here when or if she finally decides that The Mesial was too much for her.

Gratefully, she had this place when I needed the help.

"Whatever. Anyway, Rafael will be here in a bit. I need to go back to work and stay in The Mesial for awhile. So, don't make too much of a mess you two, okay?" She said, giving me a wink as she crossed towards the door.

I shook my head.

She and Stella would be great friends, I bet. I could already imagine the kind of torture that they will be giving, simultaneously.

I grinned at the thought, watching her wave goodbye before completely disappearing from my line of sight.

I made my way to the kitchen table and sat on the chair.

The place reminded me of the same apartel I had shared with Stella even though Tori's place was an upgrade in comparison, having an extra room and a living room.

I blew out a sigh, realizing it has only been one day since Tori had saved my life. The wound on my left thigh was still aching from time to time.

But other than that, I felt fine.

Seemingly, being given a second chance to live had me thinking of my future.

I never had to before.

Well, I never thought that there was a way to revoke the poison though I knew my body would react differently.

When Marcus Zephanie put the poison in place, he had to be sure that it won't kill me instantly or just by a mere scratch.

He fortified my body to withhold the effects of the poison and delay my death. It would take 12 to 14 days instead of the normal approximation of 36 to 48 hours.

At that time, I appreciated his consideration of me, giving me enough time to prepare for my impending demise.

But as I thought about it now, it wasn't for consideration, and it definitely wasn't for me.

It was more about him and his creation.

He needed time to mentally ready himself to destroy his very own daughter's clone.

I think, at some point, he would see me as Shay. However, the real Shay Zephanie stands as a reminder that I was merely a carbon copy.

The sudden sound of the doorbell ringing startled me, gratefully getting me out from the self-pitying thoughts that I was starting to swim into.

For a minute, I had totally forgotten who was on the other side of that door.

When I finally remembered, my heartbeat quickened.

Aside from Tori's constant teasing, the detective and I had barely seen each other. This was the first time that I will see him after my confession.

I knew that I had kept my feelings for him at bay even though we had that moment back at the medical building before everything came crashing down.

It had been easy to play hard to get when I knew that I was dying anyway and saw no point in involving myself in something deep with Detective Oliver.

However, I wasn't dying anymore and he had somehow uncovered my identity.

I felt exposed and to say the least, I was hyperventilating.

Get a hold of yourself, Ava.

I took a deep breath before pushing the button to slide the doors open on the wall beside it. I braced myself.

But still, no matter how much preparation I coached myself into, it was no use.

"Detective Oliver." I managed to say, my heart almost jumping out of my chest.

"Hey." I was right.

Detective Oliver was in a state of confusion.

Apparently, he didn't know how to address me anymore.

--

RAFAEL

I had practiced all kinds of things to say to Shay Zephanie number 2 on my way to see her.

Sadly, no matter how much I had tried to prepare, I still ended up tongue-tied.

And to add, the last time that I was here, she was on the brink of death. I think I deserve a little flabbergasted moment.

Moreover, she had dyed her hair.

She looked different, and to be honest; I liked it.

"Ava." She said, breaking whatever spell I was helplessly swimming into. I looked at her, confused.

She smiled, genuinely.

"My real name is Ava." I mentally scolded myself.

"Right. Umm, may I come in… Ava?"

Ava. It seemed to suit her.

I watched her step aside, allowing me passage.

Then it was back to not knowing what to say or what to do.

Thankfully, I remembered the ramen, which I quickly swung by La Boutique.

I brandished it, smiling ruefully.

"I brought dinner."

"You remembered." I nod. How could I forget? It was the first thing that somehow attracted me to her. I gestured towards the kitchen which was adjacent to Tori's living room.

My cousin is a weirdo, but her weirdness had always been the thing that saved my ass on most occasions.

I do have a lot of debts to her. Saving Ava's life was now included, and which I had no idea how to repay.

I placed the still steaming hot packed ramen, one for each of us, on the table, handing Ava the other set of chopsticks that went with it.

"I never break my promises."

"Spare me your chivalry Detective. You did forget to bring the ring needed to seal a proposal, remember?".

I shook my head. I can't believe that I almost thought differently of her. I was an idiot for thinking that it would be weird with her being a clone and all that.

She was, after all, still a human being.

I made the right choice to bring some ramen after all. It seemed to have alleviated each of our discomforts.

"I thought we were past the point of you calling me Detective." She raised an eyebrow in my direction.

"I thought that was only for show. But if you fancy hearing me say your name, alright". I watched her take a deep breath, never breaking eye contact with me.

"Rafael. Happy?"

"Yes." I admitted shamelessly, a warm feeling settling inside of me.

I think there was no use for me to deny how I really felt for her. I may have been too transparent about it from the beginning without meaning to, and right now, there was clearly no point of telling her otherwise.

Besides, we did have that brief confession back at the medical building. So, I don't see any reason why I should hold back.

"You didn't just come here to eat ramen, did you, Rafael?" Apparently, she could easily read me too.

"You caught me."

"You're pretty much easy to predict."

"Ouch. And here I thought I was doing a great job trying to be unpredictable". She and I shared a laugh. I could get used to this.

Unfortunately, I wasn't here for mere chit-chat.

I took a deep breath.

"You told me that if I tell you something that you didn't know, you'll tell me your secrets." I had her full attention.

"One, by one. One thing in exchange for one secret".

"Right. Well then, I have one".

"Interesting, go ahead then, Rafael. Tell me about this one thing I didn't know".

This is where this gets tricky. I'm not entirely confident that she didn't know, but I would like to gamble and be wise about it too.

"Before that, in exchange for this, what I want to know is why, why did Marcus Zephanie choose to make a clone for Shay?"

"Deal." She said, almost immediately. I was surprised and at the same time, impressed.

And then I remembered that this woman wasn't a fan of stalling. She was being consistent in having that straightforward business.

Alright then. I took another deep breath before proceeding.

"The day your… I mean Shay Zephanie's parents were killed, you were the one who witnessed it". I paused, waiting for her confirmation. I watched her nod.

"And Shay Zephanie was supposed to be somewhere else. However, she wasn't. She was there too." I paused yet again, carefully watching Ava's expression.

"Though, I don't think she witnessed it as you did". I said, finally telling the end of my bargain.

I held my breath, waiting for her predicament.

"Wow, Rafael, I'm impressed." Dang, it was all for nothing.

I sighed in frustration.

I was so excited when I had the footage on replay last night, which I gratefully had saved a copy before it got stolen, since I couldn't sleep and saw a glimpse of a little girl peeking behind the parked car of the Zephanie's.

At first glance, it was easy to miss. I had to put it on replay a few times before I had drawn a conclusion of who it might be.

I thought I had found some leverage.

"You did it." I immediately looked at Ava, uncertain if I heard her right.

"What?"

"Marcus is trying to save her." I blinked, my eyebrows must have furrowed as Ava gave me a quizzical look.

"Why?" I was afraid that I had reached the limit. I was only entitled to one secret in exchange for one thing she didn't know. But then Ava let out a resigned sigh, giving me hope.

"I couldn't leave you in a cliffhanger, could I? Shay Zephanie is Marcus' real daughter. Does that answer your question, Rafael?"

Yes, but not entirely. However, it was enough to leave me speechless and with more freaking questions.