Done Being Friends, page 5
He was jealous.
He had seen how Tim put his arm behind Faith, claiming his territory and he had gone nuts.
With Faith going on more mission trips, the time they spent apart was getting longer and more frequent. Before, he had always stepped back for Dylan, but it was getting difficult. The time he got to spend with her was simply insufficient.
Zac caught the thought and reminded himself not to be ungrateful. Friends don’t date friend’s girls. Then again, Faith was never Dylan’s girl. With his face still hidden by the menu, Zac let out a soft sigh.
Like it would make a difference. Dylan had made it clear that he wanted Faith, and he had never contested that. It just seemed way too late now.
Putting down the menu, he promised Dylan that he would call and cancel their dinner, but Dylan insisted on following his plan. Zac knew that if Faith were to find out the truth, it would really incur her wrath. However, his mood had already hit rock bottom and he wasn’t interested in arguing.
Faith was preparing Vongole when the doorbell rang. She continued cooking, knowing that George would get the door. She had gotten out early in the morning to personally pick up the ingredients, and had refused to let any of the maids help.
She didn’t have the habit of cooking. She loved to cook but would rather spend her time reading. Once in a blue moon, she would spend an entire day baking some muffins or cookies. Those days, the maids ended up suffering as they would have to spend the rest of the day cleaning it up.
She would have gotten part-time maids for herself, but her grandmother had insisted and arranged everything without telling her. It wasn’t until the day when they were arriving that Faith found out. Faith and her grandmother then went into an hour long debate with Faith losing the battle, not because of the lack of points, but the lack of stamina to continue.
She knew that her decision to move out of the house had shocked everyone. In an attempt to keep her close, her grandmother had bought a mansion in the nearest gated community, and gave it to her as a birthday present. Her grandmother had begged, guilt and eventually bribed her into staying at the mansion she bought.
Her grandmother had promised her that if she were to have moved into the mansion she had bought, the entire family would stay out of her love life for three years. Faith took the deal gladly. She was truly sick and tired of having to entertain those rich brats in their well cut Armani suits, thinking they were the most important people in the world. Three years were better than nothing.
After the agreement, her mother stepped in to decorate the house while Faith was on one of her trips. Though Faith had insisted she wanted nothing grand; just simple and classy, her mother had imported all the most expensive furniture from all over the world. However, She must admit that it was kept rather simple, and it was classy.
Her mother didn’t even try hiding the fact that she didn’t follow her ‘nothing grand’ instructions. Faith laughed softly at herself. You are such a pushover.
Thinking about her elders brought her mind to the charity dinner. Obviously, her elders were going to cheat on the stay-out-of-your-love-life deal. Thankfully, Zac was there. She did end up enjoying herself that night, and she would have stayed longer if she didn’t feel so guilty about the way she was treating Tim.
Her thoughts lingered on the warm sensation of Zac’s hand on her back. Time and again, his fingers would brush her spine, sending tingling sensations that warmed her to her toes. He had leaned in so close; Faith could feel the warmth radiating from his body and smell his aftershave. More than once, she had looked into his eyes and lost herself, almost closing in to kiss him.
She took in a breath, as though she could still smell his lingering scent. Something was different about the way Zac had treated her that night. She bit her lips as her heart pounded within her, beating hope into her system.
No, she needed to get real and stop dreaming. She shook her head and made herself get back to earth.
“Hey beautiful.”
Faith spun around, shocked to see who was there. Dylan was leaning by the wall in jeans and a white T-shirt. He had obviously gotten out of work early and changed before meeting her.
“Dylan! Oh, I didn’t....Zac didn’t tell me that you were coming, I didn’t prepare enough...”
Dylan strolled toward her and placed his finger on her lips. Instead of the rush she got whenever Zac came near her, she cringed ever so slightly, and moved back. Dylan either didn’t notice her reaction or he simply ignored it. “He is not coming.”
Faith tried to keep a smile on her face, but the disappointment made it impossible. “Why?”
“He was busy and he couldn’t get away so he sent me.” Dylan flashed a smile, thinking that would mollify her.
“Why didn’t he bother to call and inform me?” Faith wanted to sound angry and indifferent, but the question came out thick with disappointment.
Dylan shrugged and Faith turned back to the stove. She knew that she should let the matter drop and entertain her guest. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t Zac; she should still mind her manners. However, at that moment, all she wanted to do was to shove the pan into the sink and head for bed.
Manners.
Do not be rude. Faith thought to herself. She decided to stop being a spoilt brat and mind her manners. She rearranged her features and made sure that a polite smile was on her face.
Dylan wasn’t a stranger. They had been friends since forever. Like Zac, Faith had known Dylan when she was a child. The three of them had grown up together, going to the same school and even faculty. Both Dylan and Zac were dashingly handsome. Where Zac’s dark brown hair made him look dangerous, Dylan’s blond hair gave him the all American boy next door look.
The two however, were pretty similar in the way they went through their women.
She loved both of them and they loved her in their different ways. Zac had always made it clear that none of the other women was more important than her. Whenever she needed anything, she would call Zac and he would be there.
Dylan had been more like the overprotective brother, he tended to instruct more than listen. Sometimes, he behaved as though Faith belonged to him and she had never really appreciated that. Then again, she knew that he was just showing his concern in rather irritating manners.
Glancing around the kitchen, she gestured for one of the maids to take over the cooking. She knew she was being biased; Dylan was a great friend and deserved as much effort from her as Zac. Try as she might, the moment she realized that Zac wasn’t coming, her mood for cooking dissipated instantly.
“Vongole fine with you?”
“Of course.”
The night seemed to move slowly, not that she wasn’t enjoying herself. Dylan was being a great company, asking her about her latest trip and entertaining her with some silly stories about the restaurants, which did coax her into a better mood.
The only problem was the fact that she couldn’t help but glance over to her phone every few minutes, waiting for Zac to call. That certainly didn’t do anything to help the time to move any faster. It was rather difficult to concentrate when she couldn’t help wondering why Zac had called Dylan to come over without informing her.
The more she thought about it, the more her disappointment started to fade. Soon, the disappointment vanished and it was replaced by a brewing anger.
“You there?” Dylan moved closer to Faith on the luxurious deep gray sofa that Faith’s mother had imported right from Italy. On the coffee table in front of them, George had placed two steaming cup of Hacienda La Esmeralda coffee before them. Another expensive import that Faith’s mother had bought.
He caught me daydreaming. Faith tried to churn out an excuse, but when she failed to do so, she chose the honesty-is-the-best-policy route.
“Sorry, just wondering how come Zac hasn’t called. I’m thinking about all the things I could scold him with when he does.” She added in the last part to lighten the seriousness of her words, hoping that laughter would end the topic, but Dylan only looked at her with a slight furrow between his brows.
After a second or two, Dylan looked away and continued chatting as though the moment earlier had only happened in her head. Faith cocked her head to the side but was more than grateful to let it slip. She could see some frustration in Dylan’s eyes and she really didn’t want to keep dwelling on the stupid phone. Not even a message.
Argh, stop it Faith. She shut her eyes and pressed her hands to her temple.
Dylan didn’t miss the small gesture. He immediately stopped talking and bent down toward her face. “Are you all right? Having a headache?” he asked, almost in a whisper, as he lifted her chin.
Faith’s eyes opened and saw the worry he had for her. He was staring intently at her, truly concerned about Faith. She had almost forgotten how sweet Dylan was and silently reprimanded herself for being ungrateful.
With that, Faith smiled and shook her head, signaling that she was fine and at the same time, shaking Zac out of her mind. At least that was what she did for the rest of the conversation with Dylan.
“Good. Everything went rather smoothly in the end. There was quite a bit of a jam here and there, and I thought I wouldn’t be able to make it home in time.”
Dylan nodded and waited for her to continue, so Faith told him the summarized version of the problem she had faced when searching for retailers.
He shook his head throughout the story, and Faith could tell from the stern look on his face that a lecture was coming up.
“You shouldn’t put yourself through all these troubles. It was in a country where you were not familiar with how things worked and all. Next time, just stick to what the church plans,” Dylan chanted.
Faith forced a smile. That was Dylan, he was always nice and sweet to her, but had never really bothered to listen and understand how important these trips were to her. Perhaps having a new school or factory in their world wasn’t newsworthy to him, but it meant a world of difference for some.
Dylan took Faith’s hand in between his. “I know you love those trips, but you’re spending way too much time there. Take a break for awhile.”
Nodding, Faith answered, “I’m not heading out anytime soon.” Mainly because the frequent trips were tiring her out, and because the longer the time she spent away from Zac, the more she missed him.
After Dylan left her house, Faith washed up and plopped onto her bed. Leaning on the pillow, she tossed and turned around in her king-sized bed. Mentally, she came up with a list of excuses for Zac on why he had missed dinner without informing her. When she had exhausted all possibilities on that list, she turned her mind to building another list. One that included all the efforts that had gone to waste that day.
She closed her eyes, but knew that her mind would just keep churning out more possibilities and maybes until she got an answer.
Frustrated, she sat up to check her phone again. Nothing. Not one message. Not a phone call. She gave an annoyed sigh and threw, with more force than required, the phone to the table beside the bed.
Instead of the loud thud she was expecting, a melodious tune rang, causing Faith to jump. Thinking that Zac had finally called, she reached over to grab her phone, ready to unleash the peevishness that had built up within but the name across the screen wasn’t Zac’s.
“Mum?” Her mother didn’t usually call unless she wanted to force Faith to go to some ridiculous dinner to entertain ridiculously rich people.
“Your father! Your father!” her mother said between sobs and immediately, the worst thoughts ran through her mind.
“What is wrong?” She half yelled as she scrambled out of bed to grab her purse with her free hand. Clipping the phone between her shoulder and neck, she grabbed a sweater with the other hand.
“Your father had a heart attack! We are on the way to the hospital.”
Faith’s heart skipped a beat. No! God, please let him be all right.
Faith felt as though a car had smashed right into her. Her chest constricted, and she couldn’t breathe. It took her a few moments before she drew in a shaky breath and responded to the news.
Getting the details of the hospital they were heading for, Faith rammed the engine and sped away. That was when her phone rang again. Thinking it was her mother, she picked it up without looking at the caller ID.
Chapter Four
“Mum?”
“Um, no, it’s me.” Dylan, she recognized his voice immediately. She explained what had happened, and told him she was on her way to the hospital.
Tears started streaming down her eyes as she prayed and hoped her father was fine. She brushed off her tears with the back of her hand and forced herself to focus on the road. There was no use crying or thinking of the worst, neither of it would help.
When she finally got to the hospital, Faith didn’t bother with parking her car properly. She pulled into the parking lot and probably took up two spaces with her hazardous parking, but she couldn’t care less. They could tow her car if they wanted.
Getting out of the car, she sprinted to the emergency room. Despite the late hours, the emergency room was packed with people. She scanned the room and immediately, she saw her mother and grandmother pacing the hall. She gave them each a hug as they filled her in on the details of what happened.
Heart attack. He should have cut down on the red meat.
Soon, the doctor came out with a solemn expression on his face. “Mr. Preston’s condition is stabilized for the moment.”
All three of the Preston ladies sighed aloud, not realizing that they had been holding their breaths.
“However, our scans showed that his arteries are not in good condition. A heart bypass surgery will be necessary.”
Faith’s grandmother broke into tears and wailed while her mother buried her head in her hands and wept softly.
A nurse who was standing behind the doctor stepped forward and whisked Faith’s mother away for the necessary paperwork.
“We will take Mr. Preston to his room in a minute. He is under medication and will not be up until later in the morning.” Ending his sentence with a tight-lipped smile, he stepped away and continued on to the rest of the patients.
Faith stayed beside her grandmother until her mother came back. She stood silently while her grandmother continued to weep.
“Faith, you mentioned a Doctor Leran before. Do you think you can get an appointment for a second opinion?”
Faith looked up and saw how the past few hours of turmoil had aged her mother. She had gotten to know Doctor Leran, a world renowned cardiologist, during one of her mission trips. Being over fifty, Doctor Leran was like a father to everyone on the trip, and she was sure that he wouldn’t turn down her call for help.
“I’ll call him right away and see what I can do. The two of you should go home and get some rest. The nurse said he won’t wake up until later in the morning. Go home and get some rest.”
Both her mother and grandmother hesitated, but Faith refused to back down. “There is no point in having all of us sitting around in the room. Go home and get some rest.”
After her grandmother and mother left, Faith called Doctor Leran and he had graciously promised to see her father first thing in the morning and, if required, would personally see to his surgery. He even called his hospital and arranged all the necessities for her, letting her know the time when the ambulance would pick her father up for the transfer.
When that was done, Faith walked to a full length glass window and looked out. She wanted to be beside her father, but she needed a moment to herself.
She gazed out of the window and looked at the city that was aglow with light and the background noise of hospital movements reduced to a buzz as she stood there in a daze. Standing there and looking out at all the lights made her feel lonely and lost. She wrapped her hands across her waist and her fists curled up, grabbing onto the sides of her sweater.
The adrenaline that got her rushing here had faded; and now, a sense of emptiness loomed. Forcing her eyes shut, Faith refused to let the fear that was drumming in her system take hold.
No, he will be fine. He will be fine.
Looking down at the phone she held in her hand, she realized that her hands were shaking. Where are you, Zac? I really need you now.
Out of nowhere, a pair of arms hugged her from behind. She lifted her hands and gave the arm a tight squeeze.
Dylan. She had been around them long enough to differentiate between them.
Turning around, she leaned into him and sobbed. She had held in all her fears and concerns before her mother and grandmother. She had placed a brave front before them because someone had to take care of things.
Now that someone else was here, her fear exploded and the tears that she had managed to keep in check burst forth, streaming down her face, unabated. She really needed a hug; needed someone to tell her that things would be fine.
Dylan hugged her close and stroked her hair. “It’s all right. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”
Zac walked into the emergency room and scanned the busy room. Nurses and doctors scurried about while worried family members gathered in the waiting room. He strode briskly around the emergency room before heading over to the information counter.
“Is Jonathan Preston here?”
The nurse on duty frowned at the interference of her work but still, her fingers went into action, typing in the name before looking up to tell Zac that Mr. Preston had been transferred to a ward and gave him the number.
Zac half-ran to the ward; dodging people along the way. His heart thumped wildly, worried about what Faith must had been going through. Then, he stopped, not caring that he was obstructing a busy corridor.
He stood there looking at them - Faith, in Dylan’s arms. Her face buried in his chest and sobbing away.
How his heart ached when he saw that. When he saw how forlorn she looked, all he wanted to do was to go over and console her, to take her into his arms and tell her that everything would be fine. Yet, his feet seemed to be glued to the floor.
