Dedicating this chapter to NocturnalLights for the beautiful banner on the side. I LOVE it <3

Awesome comments get dedications from the next chapter :D

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CHAPTER - 29

SUCH A MESS

"And then Christopher told me that he has never seen a model with such great poise and grace as me. I was so flattered. That's the biggest compliment ever, I mean, yes, I get this a lot from people but getting such a compliment from Christopher is surreal," Veronica gushed while removing the last pin from her hair and brushing them with her fingers. She looked at me through the mirror and asked, grinning like a Cheshire cat, "Isn't it amazing, Keith?"

I blinked and replied, "Yes, it is babe."

She twirled around, so she was facing me directly and laughed. "I'm so happy."

Chuckling, I told her, "I'm happy for you too."

She jumped on the bed where I was lazily lying in my pajamas, and crawled towards me. "They even told me that they are ready to fix the dates according to me so it won't clash with our honeymoon plans." Seeing her so damn happy, I couldn't help but smile back. "This is undoubtedly the best day of my life," she gushed and placed her head on my chest, snuggling close to me.

'Can't say the same for myself,' I thought but didn't say out loud.

There was silence from my side for a few minutes, while Veronica kept on sharing her excitement about her next modeling project. And all I could was nod and hear her. Yes, just hear, but not listen. My mind was not here. Not at all.

My mind was not at peace. It was being an aimless wanderer; a wanderer who kept going back to the party where I saw Kim arguing with the waiter, where I came to know that she was now engaged to none other than Josh Stark. The entire scene that happened in the balcony kept on repeating in my mind. Again and again.

"Can you believe that we're getting married in two weeks?" Veronica's voice was merely a whisper as she asked me this, effectively pulling me out of the wanderer state.

I chuckled in response and whispered back, "Yes, I can believe. I love you and isn't it the obvious step that is taken after a relationship and a live-in?" It was like my conscience was telling these things to itself. I did love Veronica; there was no doubt about that. She was gorgeous, sexy and wonderful. She cared about me and loved me. But then why the hell was I thinking about Kim when Veronica was here in my arms?

She lifted her head by resting her chin on my chest and looked at me with her gorgeous smile. "I love you too," she whispered with so much sincerity that I felt pathetic for even thinking about Kim. I couldn't do that to Veronica. I couldn't do that to us.

Eventually, after a lot more talking from Veronica's side and a lot of nods from my side, Veronica drifted to the land of nod beside me. But, I couldn't sleep at all. My mind was racing. It was at far from peace.

Shifting lightly, I pulled back from Veronica in order to not disturb her sleep and got up from the bed. With light steps I made my way out of our bedroom. Without paying any attention to where my feet were taking me, I allowed them to lead the path. I took in a deep breath when I found myself standing in front of the closed door of the study room; a room that had completely no relevance in this apartment as neither I nor Veronica was fond of reading. But she had said that a 'Study Room' puts a good impression on people of high class and it's a must to have this room in our condo. That is how, eight months back when Veronica decided to move in with me, we decided to use this spare room as 'Study Room'.

Opening the door, I stepped inside the room and shut the door behind me. The lights flickered open when I switched it on and made my way towards the desk in the corner. This room had too many books in it. Books whose name I hadn't ever heard of even. I was sure that neither Veronica had heard of these books when she ordered them and filled up the entire room with books, she just ordered what were always best-selling and were classics. She had said that it's impressive. Some things were beyond my understanding, so I stopped pondering over such matters.

I bent down to open the last cupboard in the shelf beside the desk and my eyes landed on the very familiar brown box. All I wanted to do was open it and so, I quickly took it out and sat on the seat beside the desk, keeping the box on the desk. A smile automatically made its way on my face when I opened it and took out the blue monkey followed by the letter she had given me.

The memories came rushing back to me; everything from meeting her at the grocery store in Miami to sleeping with her in my arms at her last night in Hendersonville. It all seemed like it happened just yesterday but the truth was it was not yesterday. It was five years back. Five long years back.

So much had happened in these five years, so much had changed. We were not the same Keith and Kim anymore, neither was this some summer or winter fun. Whatever place we were in at this day was for life. I was going to get married to Veronica in merely two weeks and Kim had her life planned with Josh. There was no point in thinking about her. It was true. There was just nothing in thinking about her now. Nothing.

Then why was my mind hell bent on recalling all the moments I had spent with her five years back? Why was my mind replaying the conversation I had with Josh in the balcony like a stuck up tape?

~~~~~~~~~

"You mean Kim?" I asked him, but it was probably the most useless question that I had asked in twenty six years of my existence. I was very well aware of who Kimberly Jones was.

A frown made its way on Josh's face and he clicked his tongue. "Yes, I mean her, 'Kimberly'. She'll be going to Miami with you." I nodded in reply as I swallowed the Texas sized lump in my throat. "And you're saying this in front of me, but don't call her as Kim in front of her. Kimberly gets worked up," he suggested me.

That was it! I couldn't take it anymore. Why the f*ck was he calling her Kimberly again and again? She hated that name. She had herself told me that.

'I'll punch him if he calls her Kimberly once more,' I pledged myself.

"Are you sure we are talking about the same person, Josh?" I asked, tilting my head to the side. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't help a slight irritation and sarcasm to form part of my voice as I asked him this.

Obviously, he sensed it and smiled. "A lot changes with time, Keith. I've known her for two years and I'm quite sure that you knew her from earlier than that. I don't know after how long you've met her today but I can assure you that she is not the same 'Kim' you used to know. She is my Kimberly and we love each other a lot."

Reality hit me again as his words settled in my head and I nodded my head. "Of course, you guys love each other. You're going to get married."

His smile grew bigger and much more genuine as I mentioned this. "Oh yes, we are," he stated gleefully.

I couldn't do anything about the slight irritation and anger that took birth inside me. There must have been so much that must have happened in these five years in Kim's life and I felt terribly sorry for myself as I wasn't a part of her life; Josh was.

"How did you guys meet?" I asked with slightly clenched jaw as my curiosity got the best of me.

Oblivious to my mood, he smiled a smile even bigger if that was even possible. For a moment, I was sure that his lips were going to pop out of his face.

"Two years ago, when I used to work with a different magazine, we had this special issue that focused on everything that is special in Paris. We shortlisted two students from one of the finest universities in England and gave them the task of compiling the best pictures for us. They were given the expenses, the tickets and everything. They had a week to complete the job and upon their return we had to select the best out of the two. The chosen pictures were going to get published and the trainee was offered a job with us." He kept looking at the distant place from the balcony. The parking area was distantly in view.

'And that is a very nice story. Good night.' I stopped myself from snapping at him. I was not interested in knowing sh*t about his previous job. I was just concerned about knowing how he met Kim.

He started drumming his fingers on the railing of the balcony and I crossed my arms across my chest. It was my attempt of stopping myself from hitting him. He was so damn irritating, or probably it was only me who was finding him irritating all of a sudden. He was a gentleman till this evening. Well, not anymore!

"Okay," I muttered, nodding my head.

He continued, "One of those students came back to New York within five days with the best photographs of the Eiffel Tower, Disneyland and every other tourist attraction along with the best designer places in Paris. There was no chance that I could say no to her. She was so damn perfect in her job and add to it, she was two days earlier meaning, she saved time and cost. Without giving a second thought and without even looking at the photographs of the other student, we hired her."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as something about this story didn't settle well with me. She didn't sound like the Kim I knew. Maybe she really had changed. A sudden heaviness filled my heart as I thought this. The Kim I knew and really liked had changed. Now, she was a person I didn't know.

My lack of response made Josh say further, "Two days later, when I was in a middle of a very important meeting, someone barged into my cabin and started throwing some very colorful words at me, from douche to a*s to d*ckhead and what not. My prospective client and I heard it all from that furious girl's mouth. At the end, she kept an envelope on my table and ran out of my office. When I opened that envelope, I found the most amazing photographs in which Paris could be captured. No, there was no Eiffel Tower or Disneyland. There were streets of Paris, the common people and everything that any tourist would actually see in Paris other than the already famous places. On the envelope it was written 'More than the places, it's the people that matter' and it was signed as-" 

"Kimberly Jones," I completed his sentence in merely a whisper.

His eyes snapped towards me and he didn't say anything for a moment. Eventually, he nodded and said, "One look at those brown eyes and I was a goner."

"What did you do then?" I asked, not wanting to hear how he was a goner and all. It didn't matter to me.

"We offered her the job after seeing her pictures but she was too persistent to accept it after her 'insult'. I literally begged her and finally, after a week she agreed. The more I worked with her, the more I fell for her." He smiled again and continued, "It took me exact three months and seventeen days to make her agree to go on a date with me. And the rest is history." He looked back at me when he finished and it was so obvious that he was madly in love with Kim.

My heart had suddenly become a home of unknown feelings. I had no idea what the f*ck was going through in my mind. I was so confused with my own thoughts and feelings.

"I'm happy for you guys," I told him honestly. Yes, I was happy for Kim. It was so damn obvious that this douche loved her and she loved him too. That was why she agreed to marry him.

"I'm happy for you and Veronica too," he said and these words brought me back to the reality in front of me.

~~~~~~~~~

With slightly trembling hands, I opened the letter in my hands and read the line she had written.

'Don't you dare give me that frown; a smirk would be just fine.'

No matter how much I tried, it had never managed to bring a smirk on my face whenever I had read this line in these five years. It had always managed to make me smile though. I opened the last fold of the paper and started reading the words written on it in her messy handwriting; the words that I remembered from heart; the words that I had read too many times to even count in these years; the words that I had read whenever I was unsure of myself; the words that had always managed to make me and yet somehow, break me.

I took out the picture of both of us from that box and grazed my fingers over her face. So much had changed. Everything had changed.

I was such a mess!

There was no place for my messed up thoughts in my life right now. I was with Veronica and I was, undoubtedly, happy with her. I loved her and Kim loved Josh.

Nothing was going to change with this trip of two days. It was a business trip more than anything. I gave one last glance to the picture in my hands and kept all the contents back in the box. There was no place for those memories in my life now. There was no place for anything related to Kim in my life now.

I had moved on and so had Kim. Ha, as if she was ever even stuck on me. 

 With a heavy heart, I closed the box and kept it back at its place. I promised myself to never open this box again in my life. It was of no use.

I kept telling myself that it was just a stupid trip and nothing would change because of it. I kept telling myself that Kim had changed and we would be nothing more than acquaintances on this trip. I kept telling myself so many such things that were eventually successful in making me calm.

But, why was there that little hopeful voice in my head that was continuously telling me that there's a slight possibility that I might be completely wrong?

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A/N

Please VOTE, COMMENT, FOLLOW & spread a word about this story if you like the story. :)

So, I'm back! Yayyy! I know you all expected this chapter to be the one in which they would be going to Miami, but this is a VERY important chapter. Keith & his messed up feelings had to be conveyed to you awesome people. They'll be going to Miami in the next chapter. All I can say is, don't lose hope on Keith & Kim. There is so much they have to sought out! Patience is a virtue. :)

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