Page 112 of My Lucky Star
Chapter 41
Aria
WHEN SOMEONE POUNDEDon the front door, I’d been crying for three days, two of them within the confines of my stuffy apartment. I dragged myself out of bed, pushing away Kerim’s takeaway containers, glancing at Burcu’s candle holder with its burned-out tea light. My flat had transformed into a wallowing central.
I paused at the door, then dashed into the bathroom to examine my face. Swollen eyes, messy hair, dried food on my tank top. I tried to scrape it off with my last remaining fingernail.
Who was at the door, anyway? I hadn’t ordered anything or told anyone I’d returned. That had been my only solace upon landing in Napier – four days of wallowing in peace before anyone expected me to join the living. I didn’t have to answer phone calls or explain my puffy, red face.
Another knock. The hope I’d tried my hardest to extinguish hit me like whiplash, whispering Cem’s name. I so desperately wanted it to be him, I didn’t even care about how horrid I looked, or what my apartment smelled like. Okay, I cared a little, but I had no time to fix anything. He’d have to take me as I was.
A third knock. I drew a deep breath, shivering from head to toe, and yanked the door open.
Felix.
The gust of air from my swinging door made him sway so hard he stumbled backwards, nearly losing his footing.
My stomach dropped and eyes welled. How long would I keep torturing myself?
Felix stared at me in shock. “Are you okay?”
I rubbed my eyes, turning away. “Um... sure. Allergies.”
“You don’t even react to that privet hedge at the back of your parent’s house, it’s—”
“Fine. It’s not allergies.” I spun on my heel to face him again. “What do you want?”
Felix took a half a step back, baffled by my tone. “I came to pick you up for coffee. You said Tuesday?”
“Did I?” I blinked, trying to rearrange the chaotic timeline of the last couple of weeks. “Didn’t my mom tell you that I went... overseas?”
“Overseas? When?” His eyes widened.
Mom hadn’t told him? Maybe they weren’t quite that buddy-buddy, Felix and my parents. I found the thought somehow comforting.
“So, you wanna go?” Felix asked, tilting his head toward the stairs.
I let out a sad chuckle. “You want to take this girl out for a coffee?” I pointed at my kebab-sauce-adorned top.
He stared back, clueless. “That’s why I’m here.”
To Felix’s credit, he didn’t seem to notice much difference in me. And, he wasn’t leaving, just swaying at my doorway, waiting for an answer.
“Okay.” I sighed. “Give me a minute.”
A cup of coffee wouldn’t kill me. I’d have to leave the house eventually. I’d have to stop watchingAskta Sansliand replaying every word Cem had ever said to me. I had to get out of my memory palace and let those memories cool down. Maybe after a while they wouldn’t hurt so much.
After five minutes, I’d washed my face, thrown on a slightly cleaner T-shirt and sat in Felix’s van, heading downtown.
“Where did you go?” he asked. “Australia?”
“Istanbul.”
