Get better!
It was tomorrow morning. Zax would meet Vega today. Funny, is it not? Meeting the person that the girl you love hates the most. He could never tell Phul how he felt though.
It really was such a waste; Zax was tall, he was a decent university student, was guaranteed a stable job, hit the gym once in a while and was fit, he had a gentle low voice and brown eyes, he never seemed to rage and never forgot to put on his cologne; many girls in his university had eyes on him, and everytime he would dress up and hit the streets, he was sure to get a handful of starry gazes from passerbys.
Yet he had fallen for a girl who never seemed to even dare think about love, what a waste.
Zax woke up, took a shower, put on his favorite cologne that had sort of rusty woody scent, put his camera and other equipments on his bag, and took his keys out. Before heading to his car, he left Phul a text. "Are you okay?" it said.
He knew she was not okay, but he hoped she was. He drove to Golden Meteor Entertainment, with mixed feelings. It was his first day at work there. He was assigned as the assistant photographer for the soon-to-debut new girl group TARA. What a coincidence, or perhaps the universe was mocking Phul.
Zax was a third year in an art university, and he was majoring in photography. He was a fairly good student and through his teacher's recommendation he was given a chance to present his portfolio to Golden Meteor Entertainment, and against his expectations, he was called in for an interview.
They were looking for someone with fresh ideas who could fit the fresh concept of TARA, and whether due to Zax's extraordinary skills or certain someone's recommendation from inside the entertainment company, though Zax guesses it's probably the latter, he managed to outwin the 52 candidates who applied.
He would be an assistant photographer for TARA under Golden Meteor Entertainment for every album and single TARA releases, until their contract ends, the pay was fairly good, and he hadn't even graduated. What an offer!
What an offer, but he was very unsure of what to do. He knew how Phul felt about Vega and TARA, and Phul was someone very important to him. Phul would learn about this someday even if he tried to hide it, would she hate him then?
He didn't want Phul to hate him. It was his dream to be a professional photographer, but TARA had destroyed Phul's dream and life, oh what a double-edged offer!
Tell me, what do you choose if the choice was between your dream and your love?
Zax was about to make a very foolish choice, but for some reason, he didn't. Phul would hate him more if he had sacrificed his dream because of her trauma. Zax was scared, but he calmed himself, and made a rational decision.
He accepted the job offer. He would tell Phul about it honestly, and be prepared for whatever reaction she gives, after all, he made that choice. And he was a man with pride, he made his mind up to own up any and every repercussion that this decision might bring in his life.
And so there he was, at his first day at Golden Meteor Entertainment, and he had to snap picture's for TARA's new single. There he stood, with a camera in hand, and Vega, Nayan and Rio were right infront of him, in dazzling costumes on a brilliant stage, with shiny lights overhead, "Ah, how pretty Phul would look if she was there too", he thought.
It was the first time he was seeing the rest of TARA after Phul was fired from the group. He had seen them before, and loved them when they performed with Phul as an underground band, but now he was unsure of what to feel.
The shoot began, and Zax began photographing them as the senior photographer and the director gave him instructions. He wasn't very close with Nayan and Rio, but he knew Vega fairly well.
As he photographed her, he would occasionally glance at Vega, but he was surprised at how professional she was during the photoshoot. She, and Nayan and Rio too, were truly sparkling, he could tell they had improved a lot since the last time he saw them.
The way they posed, the way they moved, the way they carried themselves, the way the camera loved them, what a spectacle, they were truly born to be stars.
As he photographed them and witnessed how good their chemistry was, a thought swiftly passed his head, and he cursed at himself for even having that for a sliver of a moment.
"Maybe TARA looks better as a 3 person group." he had thought.
The shoot was over, and the pictures turned out well. TARA recognised Zax and greeted him, then went to their dressing room to get changed. At that moment Vega approached Zax.
"Glad to know there's someone familiar in the staff." Vega remarked casually.
"The world sure is small, huh. But more importantly I'm amazed at how much you all have grown, it's like, it's a different TARA!" Zax said, still a bit uncomfortable at the sudden reunion.
He had said it lightly, but he could see Vega's face gloom, she turned her head down and mumbled, "...maybe because it is a different TARA."
Zax was a bit taken aback, but held his composure. Vega sighed and almost instantly changed her facial expression to a bright one, what a professional she was; Zax thought.
Vega brushed her hair, and rearranged her skirt, then asked, with a firm voice, "How's Phul?"
There it was, how was Zax supposed to answer it? A million thoughts ran through his head. Phul was fired before she even had the chance to tell TARA that she had developed stage fright, and due to the woman of pride that she was, probably didn't tell them after either.
Phul hated seeming weak before anyone, the only time she'd cry was when she was alone, or when she was with Zax. She started to hate Vega and TARA, so she probably didn't contact them after that either.
She couldn't sing anymore because of them, her whole dream and life came crashing down, and she was suffering everyday, because you didn't try and listen or help her back then, that's what Zax wanted to say. Instead all he could say was-
"Fine."
But Phul was anything but 'fine', especially after yesterday, and Zax knew it. So he made up his mind. If she wasn't fine, he could try and make her fine, even it's only for an evening. He decided that he'd get off work and take her to a nice restaurant with live music; Phul enjoyed listening to others even if she herself couldn't sing, he'd treat her to a nice meal, maybe buy a few firecrackers to light up with her and have ice-cream on the way home.
Yes, he would tell Phul that even if she had to fight her trauma herself, she didn't have to fight it alone.
He would plan a fine evening for her, and maybe if he has the chance, tell her about his new job. She'd understand, Zax was sure of it. After all, it'd been almost 5 years since he first saw her. He made his mind up, and before getting off of work, he texted her-- "I'll come pick you up at six, be ready. My treat, you can't say no."
And so he drove back home, and on the way bought some firecrackers. He put on his best black suit and went to Phul's apartment to pick her up, and sure enough, there she was, in a stunning yellow dress, loose curls and a simple makeup.
"What is this all of a sudden?" she said as she got into the car, and as Zax looked how her hair swayed when she moved and how she was both flustered and confused at this sudden date, he couldn't help but fall in love with her all over again.
"She looks so pretty I could die." he thought to himself, not realising he'd said it out loud. Phul blushed, but managed to calm herself down, she said nothing, she didn't want to embarrass him.
Truth be told, Phul did have somewhat of an idea that Zax liked her, though she thought it was just a passing crush and he'd move on soon enough, she couldn't dare be in a relationship right now. She enjoyed his company, he was her only friend, she didn't want to ruin that.
So she kept quiet. They were silent for most of the ride, so Zax turned on the radio. A soft ballad song was playing. Phul mindlessly stared out the window. The evening sky was pretty: hues of orange mingling with purple against the city lights, the soft breeze on her face, the pretty song on the radio- ah, what bliss! She closed her eyes, and exhaled a long breath, she felt relaxed even if for a moment. The song on the radio reached it chorus--
"and someday,
even I will be happy-
I'll smile my biggest smile yet
and you will see
everything the way it used to be-" Phul sang along, with her eyes still closed.
Oh what a whirlwind of emotions overcame Zax's heart! It was the first time in a while he had heard her sing, and though it was only 4 lines, he could feel how much she loved singing, how much passion she had for it. The lines she sang seemed to be sung just for him at that moment, as if it was just them both in this entire world, he was happy. So very happy. And then and there, he made another decision.
He would help Phul get better, and be able to sing again, no matter what.