Chapter 3

• Zenia’s POV
• “Shhh. She’ll go away,” he whispered in my ear and pulled me against his steel chest again.
• “Stop it EJ!” I said in a loud whisper, pulling away from him before rushing my palms up and down my dress, adjusting and smoothing it.
• “Hello,” Mrs. Hollen said again and another knock followed outside the door.
• “I’M IN HERE!” I yelled.
• “Zenia, is that you?” she asked.
• “Yes Mrs. Hollen, and I’ll be in here for a while.” My face flushed with embarrassment but I would have literally said anything to prevent her from waiting outside that door.
• “Okay sweetie. I’ll just use another one.”
• I heard the sound of her heels, clicking on the polished marble as she walked away.
• I heaved a long sigh and slide down against the bathroom door as EJ lightly chuckled like if the situation had been an amusement show to him.
• “It’s not funny EJ. What if you hadn’t locked the door and she had walked in on us?”
• “Well she would have saw her son being a man.”
• I narrowed my eyes at him deadly and stood up. I unlocked the bathroom door and peered out, making certain the coast was clear before stepping out.
• ~ I walked out the bathroom and walked directly into my sister.
• “I’ve been looking all over for you. Where have you been?”
• “Umm.. bathroom,” I stuttered to give a reply.
• Her eyes trailed above my head and stopped at a figure behind me. Her eyebrows raised with a questioning look on her face.
• I turned on my heel and forced a smile at EJ.
• “Hi EJ,” Jasmine said, waving at him.
• “Hi Jasmine,” he responded.
• He walked closer to me with a smirk on his lips. “I’ll see you outside,” he said softly in my ear. His manly scent taunting me as he moved away.
• ~
• “Are you and EJ involved?” Jasmine shook me from my trance.
• “What? No, we’re just friends.”
• “Zenia, please don’t be a fool. By the looks in that boy's eyes, I can tell he really likes you.”
• “I know that Jasmine but EJ knows where the line is drawn between him and I. We’re friends.”
• I moved passed her but her arm reflexes quickly and bought me right back to where I was standing. In front of her.
• “I’m not done with you as yet.”
• I mentally rolled my eyes.
• Sometimes, the bigger sibling could be such a pain in the ass.
• “What is it now?”
• “My son used some very 'colorful' words over dinner yesterday and I was wondering where on earth he could have heard such obscenities.”
• Oh fuck!
• "Oh really? What happened?” I asked innocently, fidgeting with the details on my dress.
• “We were having dinner and Jevan accidentally knocked over his food container. He stared down at it before saying Oh Fuck. Kill me. Have you been cursing around my child Zenia?”
• I tried by I couldn’t contained the laughter. I laughed until tears slipped out my eyes.
• After I finally managed to compose myself and got my breath back, I told her why he repeated those words.
• “I’m sorry, I had no idea those words were still registered in his head. I was using my digital notepad and some stuff got deleted by mistake.
• I used the ‘F word’ and then he started repeating it. I immediately scolded him. I told him that you’ll kill me if you heard him using that word.
• Then he started repeating ’Kill me. Kill me.”
• Jasmine cracked up. “I don’t know why but he has the tendency of picking and repeating foul words from a complete statement.”
• We threw our arms around each other’s necks as we walked back into the yard for the party.
• __________________
• My eyes scanned for EJ through the now thick crowd. It seemed like more people had arrived while I was locked in the bathroom with him.
• “Are you looking for him?” Jasmine asked beside to me.
• “Who?”
• “EJ.”
• “No.”
• “Would you stop lying to yourself and just try giving him a chance. He’s a really great young man once you get to know him.”
• “Jas, we’re just friends. I said that before and I’ll say it again. F-R-I-E-N-D-S. Friends.”
• “I can tell you’re guarded and your walls are built. But you just might push that guy away from you for good.”
• “And so what?”
• “Okay Zenia, Let’s just hope you don’t eat your own words.”
• She walked away and I watched the back of her head until she approached her fiance.
• I turned in the direction of the bar, removed my heels and walked up to the kind face bartender for a glass of wine.
• As I headed my glass, I felt the bass of music causing an effect on my hip so I began shaking to the rhythm and the beat of wobble wobble by V. I. C. The Disc Jockey had replay it again.
• I was so in tuned with the music that I didn't noticed EJ walking towards him. He touched my arm, catching my attention.
• Biting his bottom lip and making his eyes sparkled like if he had total control on making them do such, he sent a shiver down my spine.
• He was handsome. His V line T-shirt was pure white and simple. His black faded jeans made him look chilled and the white pair of sneakers completed his look. His gold Rolex stood out on his wrist and his overall look, actually proved he was worthy.
• “Hey,” I said, settling myself.
• His eyes roamed my body.
• “Where are your shoes again?” he asked as his eyes landed on my feet.
• “Somewhere over there.” I pointed in a direction I doubted my shoes were even in.
• “Shall we dance then?”
• “No EJ.” I gently pushed against his chest but he caught my hands in his and planted a kiss on them.
• He is such a romantic.
• After declining his proposal on dancing with him, he went over to Jasmine and Evan.
• My feet grew tired so I flopped down on a nearby chair on the lawn and strolled through my cellphone looking at clothing lines for inspiration.
• _____________After thirty minutes of sitting, my eyes searched for EJ again.
• The crowd had lessened and he was easily spotted talking with my sister and his brother with a young lady leaning against his arm.
• WHAT THE HELL !!
• "Who the hell is she?” I asked aloud, without the intentions of anyone hearing me.
• “Oh that’s Madison. She had been friends with EJ since preschool,” Mr. Hollen -EJ’s father answered.
• He was standing right behind me and I wasn’t even aware.
• “Oh,” I stupidly responded.
• “Maybe you should go over and say hi.”
• “Sure,” I answered.
• I emptied my glass of wine before heading over to them.
• Blood coming to a boil by the seconds as my feet carried me closer and closer.
• _________________