Honey

Anastasia slowly blinked her eyes open in the unfamiliar quiet of a hotel room. The heavy curtains block out most of the afternoon light, leaving the room dim and peaceful. She blinked a few times, momentarily disoriented. Then, the memories of last night flooded back—checking into the hotel, turning off her phone, and finally finding some semblance of calm in the solitude.

Reluctantly, she reached for her phone and turned it on. Almost instantly, a barrage of notifications lit up the screen. Texts, missed calls, and voicemails all flooded in, each one demanding her attention.

A light sigh escaped her lips as she read the message from her mother, Marleen. She was just about to call her back when the phone rang. "Yes, mom."

"Yes? Where are you, Anna? I've been so worried!" Marleen's voice was a mix of concern and slight anger.

"I'm okay. There's nothing to worry about. I'm old enough," Anastasia replied, though her voice carried a hint of guilt.

"So you're old enough not to tell me anything now? I couldn't even sleep, Anna. You've never been like this before." Marleen's voice carried a note of frustration.

Anastasia rubbed her temples, knowing she was in the wrong but just needing space last night.

"You don't want to tell me anything? Are you really okay? What happened yesterday? Mind telling me?" Marleen continued, her voice softening as she worried she might push Anastasia away and end up with no explanation at all.

"I am okay, Mom," Anastasia repeated, her words measured and followed by a sigh. "It was just…" She hesitated, unsure if telling her mother would actually solve anything.

"It was just what? Where are you?" Marleen pressed, her worry growing. She had already called everyone she could think of, including Diya, but none of them knew where Anastasia was.

"I'm at a hotel. I just needed—"

"Hotel?! What are you doing there? Anastasia! You went to meet Ethan last night and ended up in a hotel?" Marleen blurted out, her worry overpowering her caution, unaware that her words might hurt Anastasia's feelings.

"Mom…!" Anastasia snapped, clearly annoyed. "I'm not with him. I just—"

"Then who are you with if not with Ethan?" Marleen interrupted again, not letting Anastasia finish her explanation.

Anastasia had thought she was in a better emotional state today compared to yesterday, but she was wrong. Every word, every mention of Ethan, seemed to poke at her anger.

"Do you perhaps have a boyfriend, Anna? Tell me," Marleen pushed, her words tumbling out in a rush without giving Anastasia a chance to respond.

Closing her eyes, Anastasia took a deep breath. "Yes, Mom," she lied, her voice edged with frustration. "I'm sorry I couldn't break this news in a better way, but yup, I'm with my boyfriend right now."

"Anastasia! Come back home now and bring him along!" Marleen's voice raised in anger.

As soon as the phone call ended, Anastasia let out a chuckle, realising the mess she'd just created. "Great! Now where am I supposed to find an express boyfriend?" she muttered, flopping back onto the bed with a sigh.

Anastasia stared at the ceiling, trying her best not to think about anything at that moment. But the aftermath of her lie kept popping up in her mind. "Diya!" Suddenly remembering Diya, she turned slightly to reach for the phone she had put on her side.

As if on cue, a message from Diya arrived:

Where are you?!! Your mom called me several times last night. And mayday! Your lovely boss is looking for you. When I told him you are on leave, he looked confused and said you applied for a leave starting tomorrow.

Anastasia jumped up, sitting straight away after reading the message. "I'm sure I applied starting today," she muttered, checking her leave request again.

"Ah, damn it!" Anastasia cursed, realising she had made a mistake by selecting tomorrow as the start date for her leave. She remembered that Sarah had been talking to her at the time, which made her forget to double-check before clicking the send button.

Calling Diya immediately, Anastasia bit her lip as she waited for her to answer.

"Yes, you're in trouble," Diya teased as soon as she picked up the phone.

"Ah, what should I do?" Anastasia asked, her frustration evident.

"He did not message you?" Diya asked.

Anastasia blinked in confusion. "Why? Did he say something?"

"He mentioned he tried to reach you this morning, but your phone was off," Diya explained. She was surprised when Daniel suddenly came to her desk; it was the first time they had talked.

"Will call you back!" Anastasia ended the call and checked all the missed calls and messages. Her eyes landed on a message from Daniel. "Arghhh!" She let out a frustrated yell. "What should I do? What should I do?" She bit her finger, trying to figure out how to explain to her boss why she wasn't coming in today.

After a few minutes of thinking, she dashed out of the hotel room. She needed to get home, change her clothes, and figure out how to handle the mess she'd created.

When she finally arrived home, she headed straight for her room since she couldn't wait to change out of her wrinkled clothes from the previous night. Just as she was about to pull out a fresh outfit, Bella's voice echoed from the hallway.

"Someone is too sad to go back home yesterday…."

The mocking words from Bella reached Anastasia's ears. She tried to ignore them as she continued changing her outfit, but then a knock came on her door. As she took a few steps to open the door, Bella was coming in unwelcomed.

"Bella, I don't have time for this." She walked toward the laundry basket and threw yesterday's outfit in there.

"Pathetic, isn't it? After shamelessly being rejected, I heard you went to a hotel with your boyfriend," Bella smirked, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed.

Anastasia froze in place. "Who told you?" she asked, certain it could only have come from her mother, the only person she'd lied to.

Bella shrugged casually, refusing to answer.

Anastasia sighed and turned toward her dressing table, trying to remain calm. "I really don't want to fight with you, Bella. You don't have to worry. As you heard, I have a boyfriend. So you don't need to be concerned that I'll take him from you." Her voice softened as she spoke, hoping to ease the tension. "I don't want our relationship to become like this."

Bella's eyes narrowed, but she remained silent, watching Anastasia rush to finish getting ready.

"Anything else?" Anastasia asked, feeling increasingly uncomfortable as Bella continued to watch her every move.

Bella's eyes gleamed with a mix of anger and disbelief. "You're really something, aren't you? Having a boyfriend but still going through with the wedding. And you tell me not to worry, when you're that cunning. If he hadn't rejected you, what would you have done? Dumped your boyfriend just to marry him?"

Anastasia clenched her jaw, trying to keep her cool. "Bella, it's not like that—"

"Save it," Bella snapped, cutting her off. "You've already shown your true colours." She turned to leave when Anastasia's phone rang.

Anastasia glanced at the screen and saw Daniel's number appear. With Bella's eyes still on her, she quickly grabbed the phone and answered, "Yes, honey."

There was a moment of stunned silence on the other end of the line. Daniel, clearly caught off guard, finally responded, "Honey?"