Giselle

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12th of July

The soft morning sun filtered in through the spaces of the drawn curtains and cast their rays on Giselle’s face. She groaned and swung her arm over her eyes, blocking out the rays. But it was too late.

She was awake.

Rolling on her side, she yawned and sat up. She rubbed her eyes and looked at the digital clock on the bedside table beside her bed and groaned again. 7:34 am.

This was not the plan. The plan was to sleep in till 10 am, then have a late and very indulgent breakfast. Then, of course, prance around the house in her pyjamas, doing absolutely nothing.

But now, she was awake and she was angry. At herself and her curtains.

"I should have gotten the other ones. They were thicker," she mumbled to herself as she swung her legs off the bed. She reached for her phone on the table and spent the next five minutes browsing through various apps on her phone; social media, messages, emails and the sort.

Dropping the phone back on the table, she walked to the offending curtains and pulled them apart. The sun’s full vivacity hit her in the face, removing any vestiges of sleep. The heat was mild but she knew that the temperatures would shoot up as the day went on.

It was the middle of summer after all.

Giselle leaned on the windowsill, watching as people milled past her apartment, contemplating her life choices.

She had graduated from university with a degree in Economics at the end of May and had only begun to search for a job when she had received an email from the university.

The Economics Department had paired up with the biggest construction company in the country, Exner Construction and launched a scholarship program for fresh university graduates. The scholarship would sponsor the graduates through a Master's program, paying for their tuition and accommodation fees. Of course, on the condition that the graduates upon receiving their Master's degrees would sign a contract and become employees of Exner Construction.

The Department had recommended ten of their best students for the program and Giselle was one of them.

It was incredible news for the job-seeking young lady. She had always wanted to further her education in Economics but she had reasoned that she would delay it until she could afford it.

Who knew that Exner Construction would simply walk past and check all her boxes.

Master's, check. Job, check. Add that to the fact that one of her best friends, Jaden, had also received the scholarship offer, and it was an incredible turn of events.

She quickly renewed her rent and unpacked her boxes. She was staying.

The announcement had come at the beginning of summer. And Giselle knew she couldn’t slack.

The scholarship would cover the most expensive parts of her program but the miscellaneous fees would still be her responsibility and as a 22-year old and a university graduate, she didn’t want to rely on her parents anymore.

So she had gotten a job at one of the busiest cafés close to the campus. She worked tirelessly, day after day, saving up money. It was a harrowing job but she was quite satisfied with her pay.

Today, however, she didn't need to work. It was one of her rare days off. But nooo, her curtains failed her and here she was, awake before eight.

Giselle sighed and pushed away from the window. It was early but that didn’t matter much. She could still lazy about the whole day.

She would normally want to spend the day with Jaden, but he had travelled for the summer and would not return until next week. It had been two weeks since he had left and she missed him dearly.

They had been friends since pre-kindergarten; attending the same school and have been in the same class ever since.

It was unusual for them to be apart for any length of time. She walked to the table and picked up her phone again. She unlocked it and stared at the screen for a while. It was 7:47 am.

Giselle wanted to call but it was still early. For someone who travelled for a vacation s***h tour of the country and who had thicker curtains, it would be strange if they were up this early.

She was about to drop the phone and begin her lazy day when it shook in her hand with an incoming call notification. A video call.

Jaden.

Smiling, she swiped across her screen to receive the call and was met with the handsome face of Jaden Harold. The very handsome face.

It meant little that he had just woken up; Jaden could turn heads no matter the time of the day.

His hair was dark and thick, having a slight natural curl to it. His angular face was reminiscent of an ancient Italian statue. Perfection.

But for Giselle, his most attractive feature was his eyes. Black, intense and beautiful.

Raising the phone so it was level with her face, Giselle stared into those dazzling but sleepy eyes. “Hey. Good morning.”

“Heeeey,” drawled Jaden, rubbing his eyes, head on a pillow.

“You’re still so sleepy. Go back to sleep.”

Jaden sat up, the covers falling off his and revealing a sculpted body, and ran his hand through his dark hair. “Yeah, I’m sleepy. But I just wanted to say hi before you headed off to work.”

Giselle tutted. “I told you yesterday that today was an off day for me. Now, you’ve woken yourself up for nothing.”

Jaden's brows jumped up. "Really? Do you have off days? I thought you were trying to work yourself to death."

Giselle didn’t reply, annoyance bleeding into her expression. This was often a source of disagreement between the two of them. Unlike Giselle, who fended for herself to make up for what her parents didn’t have and couldn’t give, Jaden lacked for nothing. Rich parents plus an early investment in cryptocurrency made him a millionaire at 22.

And Jaden was generous. He offered to buy Giselle whatever she wanted and even to pay for her Master’s program. But Giselle had turned down his offers and would continue to turn them down.

It was not out of pride or anything. She just wanted to make her way, owing as little as possible to anyone.

Her silence seemed to reproach Jaden and he scrubbed his face with his free hand, looking apologetic.

“I’m sorry. I…I was just being stupid. I had a busy day yesterday and I’m just a little tense.”

Giselle ignored the apology, much like she ignored the comment. “So, what are your plans for today?”

“Nothing much. I want to rest a bit. Then, maybe go see the town. There are some beautiful views here.” Jaden rose from the bed, standing. He walked to the window and turned the camera around.

A beautiful sight of a lake nestled between two hills and a green, full plain made Giselle’s mouth drop.

"It's so…so beautiful," she gasped.

“Yeah,” Jaden said, turning the camera back, “I selected this hotel for the view. Waking up to this…it’s just fantastic.”

"It is but…" Giselle scrunched her brows, trying to remember something. "I think I've seen it before. I don't know why. It just seems familiar."

Jaden arched a brow. “Really?”

“Yeah. I can’t seem to place it though.”

Jaden shrugged. “Maybe we can visit later. After the Master’s and all.”

“That’ll be fun.”

“What are your plans for today?”

Giselle plopped on her back, hair splaying over the white sheets. “No plans at all. I just want to chill and rest and eat and watch movies and sleep.”

Jaden chuckled. “That sounds like a lot. No plans to go out? Stretch your legs? Nothing?”

Giselle tapped her chin with her free hand. “You know, maybe I should go out. Maybe on a date. It’s been a while.”

Jaden’s face tightened, his smile disappearing. “That’s not what I meant. I meant for you to go out and treat yourself. Maybe to ice cream, some fast food. I don’t know. Anything you want. I didn’t mean a date.”

Giselle plucked some strands of her hair, twirling it around her index finger. "Yeah, I understand. But it has been a while since I last went out. It might be fun."

Jaden stared at her through the screen, his expression unreadable. “Maybe if you think about the last time you went out on a date, then you’ll enjoy your day alone.”

Giselle thought about her last dating experience and had to admit that he was right. She had found out that her date stored dozens and dozens of polaroids of young girls, all who looked below twelve years, in a box under his bathroom sink.

It was seriously creepy. She reported the box and its contents to the police and had never seen him again after that. The worst thing about it was how he kept denying the incident, saying he didn’t have any idea how the box got there.

Thinking of the event still sent shivers down her spine. Jaden had become overprotective since then.

Giselle exhaled deeply. "You're right. Maybe I should stay at home. It is a rare day off. Better to enjoy it alone than to ruin it with a creepy date."

She watched as Jaden’s face relaxed and chuckled lightly. So protective.

“That’s better. If you’re bored, just text me or call me. Enjoy yourself.”

Giselle nodded but she had no intention of disturbing him on his trip. “Enjoy yourself too. Make sure you take pictures for me, okay?”

“Sure. Bye.”

Giselle waved at the camera. "Bye-bye."

***

To be fair, Giselle did spend most of the day lazing about, doing little or nothing. But then, she got bored. She picked up her phone and after surfing the web for an hour, somehow landed in Bumble, searching profiles.

“I’ll just go on one date. Not even a real date. Like just a…like…hanging-out type of date,” she whispered to herself as she scrolled. She stopped at a profile that looked suitable. Steve Barrett. He was handsome and looked like her type of guy. She clicked on his profile. “Better not tell Jaden about this.”