Listen to My Way by Ava Max

Stella Davis

"Stella Yoshida Davis! Where are you?" Chad's voice boomed through my phone in his familiar I'm-losing-my-shit-save-me voice.  Chad was my assistant in the office and best friend everywhere else.

"In the middle of nowhere!" I banged on the car horn a fine three times, cursing at the traffic. It seemed like a thousand rats were struck in a greasy drain line. Engines and horns were all I heard. When I didn't stop honking, the woman in the car in front of me flicked her middle finger.

"Stop fucking your horn," Chad said. "You know it won't do anything, right?"

"What do you want, Chad?"

"You. You're needed here right now. We're under crisis. Can't handle without you.  The website is acting weird today."

My back straightened at the mention of my fashion website.  "What? What's wrong with the website?" Ugh. Just when things were going fine...

"Website's not showing any of the new collection. Sales have been so low since last night, the world over. Only 293 in clothing and 76 in jewelry sold. No shoes. 11 in perfume.  The sales graph has dropped down to 13 percent.  I'm calculating the average loss for the last twelve hours..." He paused, clicking at a calculator, then his voice turned hesitant.  "I-I don't think you want to listen to the numbers now.  Just come fast, okay?"  

"Wait?  How much?" 

But the line already went dead.  

"How much?" I screamed into the phone nevertheless.  The drivers on both sides shot me puzzled looks. 

Sighing, my eyes fell on the mirror.  My smooth, dark face stared back at me frustratedly.  I'd inherited most of my features from my Nigerian father, but the beauty gene from my Japanese mom somehow established its forte on me. 

From the time I was six, I'd been called a pretty girl, a model face and a girl who'd grow up to break boys' hearts. Half the people I knew thought I'd become a proud model. But turns out I didn't have the heart for modelling. I ended up becoming a fashion designer and the owner of a fashion brand by the time I was thirty.  

When I felt the vehicles gaining speed, I rammed my foot at the accelerator.  I did not stop till I reached my office.

Stellar Fashion, my billboard announced in bold letters. I smiled at my achievement like it was a gold medal.  The office, the people inside that are working their ass off for me and the money this company brings.  This was my cherished possession.  

My phone rang again.

Chad Calling...

Oh, Shit! I had almost forgotten that I had to handle a crisis. I stepped out of the car, locked it and raced upstairs.

Let's go bust some problems.

It was just a small building with twenty employees and my parents gave me most of the incentive, but nevertheless, I was proud.

Chad rushed towards me, his usual poise disintegrating. His dirty blonde hair was a mess from running a hand through it continuously. A green tie hung loose on his neck and one side of his button shirt had come free.  But beyond the panic in his face, I noticed the dark circles and the sleep-deprived eyes.

"Chad. Explain." I ordered.

He pushed my usual morning coffee into my hand.  "Everything is fixed.  The website is fine now."

Relief flooded into my system.  Fanning my face with my hand, I tried to breathe.  The run up the staircase had me wheezing.   "What exactly happened?"

The light in his eyes immediately dimmed.  "Umm..."  While one hand scratched his chin, the other fiddled with his sweaty tie.  

I knew this side of Chad too well.  "What?  Was it your fault?"  I went straight to it.  He got all fidgety when he was guilty.  This was exactly how he behaved when he came out to me as gay(as if he had sinned).

His head hung low, hands falling to his side.  "I'm sorry..," he murmured in his smallest voice.  "We uploaded our new earring collection yesterday and I thought it would look more sparkly with a Dark Themed background. So I went to Settings to change that.  I must have deleted the entire collection then."

I fell silent for a moment, processing it all.  "Are you kidding me?" I asked, advancing over him.  I was barely an inch taller than him, but he quivered under me anyway, growing red on the face. My other employees had started forming a circle around us.  My blood boiled.  "Chad, do you know how much loss you've caused in one day?" I shouted. "I can't borrow any more money from my parents, okay? I just...I just want to stand on my own feet now. Why do you have to screw up now?"

He didn't reply.

"Are you listening to me?"

"Yes," he whispered shakily.

"Then say something." My words came out harsher than I intended.

"I'm sorry, Stella. I was going through something bad...and I was sleepy..."

"Then why the fuck don't you go fucking sleep?" I screamed. My breathing rate skyrocketed in anger.

His face rose to look at me in absolute shock. I doubted he was even breathing. I wanted to feel terrible for being harsh, but I lost so much for his irresponsible behavior.

"Can you be a little more responsible and not fucking get yourself fired?"  With a defeated sigh, I walked to my cabin. I heard pleasantries from all directions. I responded without a smile.  

Being the boss wasn't easy for me.  I was barely holding things together.  At times like this, I couldn't stop doubting myself.  

The coffee was too sweet to my liking, but I didn't have the heart to waste it.  I chugged it all. 

Tossing the cup into a dustbin, I dialed Chad's number on the telephone.  "Come to my cabin."

I motioned him to sit down when he entered, but he shook his head no, shame-faced.

"I'm sorry for shouting at you in front of everyone, okay?" I said.  As much as I hated him for screwing up like that, he was still my best friend.  To be shouted at by a boss is horrible, but when your boss is also your BFF, it is worse.  "Also, are you okay?  You look tired."

After a long sigh, he took a seat.  "I'm fine."

"No, you're not.  You're distracted.  My coffee tasted horrible," I teased, but it didn't seem to cheer him up.  "What's wrong?  Did you fight with Reji or what?"

He lowered his eyes, lips shut tight.  I didn't push. 

Reji was Chad's boyfriend.  Chad was amazing.  Reji was amazing.  They were perfect together.

"What do you do when you're sad?" he asked, finally looked up.  

I narrowed my eyes but didn't ask why.  I already knew my answer.  Pulling out my phone, I scrolled down my gallery to a photo from three years ago.  It was a simple picture of my neighbor and me, taken in a crowded bar.  Her long dark hair fell on her face as she beamed at the camera.  I, on the other hand, shamelessly gaped at her as disco lights cascaded on her skin.  

I had just moved into the neighborhood and asked her to show me around.  She took me to a bar and got her drink spiked by some jerk.  Seeing a smile on her face was rare, but that day, she couldn't stop laughing.  She ranted about how she hated her husband and kept repeating how happy she was to hang out with someone new.  I vividly remembered controlling the urge to push her against the wall and kiss the daylight out of her.  Just the thought of it filled my stomach with feathers.  Somehow, this hastily taken picture was the favourite memory of my life.

"I look at this picture.  Her name is Meera."

Please vote and make me smile!

Did you like the ending?  What do you do when you're sad?  I'm usually not a sad person, but I just cry into my pillow and feel better sometimes.

Question: Who is your favourite singer?

Also, the chapters following will be smaller than these so that it would be easier to follow all three protagonists better.  Since the first three chapters are introductory chapters, I couldn't make them any smaller.  Thank you for reading.