NEW ALLIES

"Ajay?" I call in shock.

Actually, I am in a mixture of joy and shock right now. I thought something bad happened to him after his disappearance. The fact that nobody wanted to talk about him almost convinced me that I would never see him again. I started counting him as one of the victims. But he is alive! Ajay is alive! It has always been my prayer for him to be alive, and I am so relieved knowing that he is.

“In the fresh! Hi, Gia." He greets her with his usual smile.

Aside from his fondness for me, this smile is one of the reasons why he got into trouble with Ejay. As if that moron owned me! Ejay got it all wrong, and as the psycho that he is, he took it out on Ejay. I honestly thought he killed him. "Hey." I hug him slightly. "How have you been? I was worried sick, you know, thinking that that lunatic did the worst to you." I add.

"Well, the only thing he wanted was to separate me from you. He thought I was stealing you away from him, even though you were not his. But, well, I am glad to see you again, but I hate to say that I'm not happy that this is where I am meeting you again. And in the condition you are in, You look terrible, Gia. Why? Why come back here?" He asks with concern in his voice and face.

"It is a long story, Ajay. All I can tell you right now is that I need help." I motion for them to sit on the bed, and the three of us sit.

"What do you need?" Ajay asks the moment we sit down.

Bernie grins bradly. She is behaving kind of weird. And the way they keep glancing at each other? They are giving me goosebumps. "The classy lady, Ejay's special girl, is her sister. They got separated somehow, and they saw each other again just last night. The problem is that Scarlet is mad at Gia, and she doesn't want to see her. Gia needs help figuring out where she can find her. She wants to try talking to her again." She explains. The way her eyes are glowing every time she looks at Aajy is dubious.

"I can find her room with ease. But wait, how do you know she is your sister?" They both look at me.

"Well, Ejay told me." I know they can be trusted, but there are things I just need to keep to myself at the moment. They look at each other and chorus together, as if their minds are communicating.

"And you believed him?"

"Well, there is no reason not to believe him. And besides, I might have lost my memory, but I am not dumb. We have some common features. Her expression when she saw me wasn't faked at all. I just want to try and talk to her again."

"We understand you. I will help you the best way I can." Ajay says, and they look at each other again. And Bernie, what's that look on her face again?

"Thank you so much, guys. I really appreciate your help." I say to them:

"It's nothing, Gia. It's an honor to help a celebrity like you." Bernie joked.

"That reminds me, Gia. You are going to put your career on hold again?" She adds.

"There is nothing I can do about it. Ejay is determined to punish me for betraying him. He knows how much music means to me, so I bet that is the first thing he will take away from me. I will stop dreaming about music for now, if I can. I will just kill myself with stress if I do." The sadness in my face can't be hidden.

I remember how happy I was those times I walked to the stage and how much fulfillment the music brought me. How perfect I felt in the world of music! But it won't be long. I know it. I can feel it.

"But won't people start talking again? I mean, you reappeared for just two months and then disappeared again." Ajay queries, and Bernie nods her head.

"I can't do anything to prevent that from happening." Before another investigation kicks off, I will have gotten out of this damned cell and taken you along with the other girls with me. Besides, I have people out there helping me. People like Deep. Yeah, Deep and Paul, together with Mayleen. There is hope at the end of this tunnel.

"Alright Gia. I will go know." Ajay says, standing up, but I force him to sit back.

"Not so fast. What's going on between the two of you?" I ask, pointing between the two of them, and Bernie's blush can't be hidden.

"Are we that obvious?" Ajay asks.

Seriously? Are they that obvious?

"Not at all. You are so good at hiding it, which is why I noticed it. Are you kidding me? Look, Bernie's cheeks turned red the moment she opened the door for you. And you, Ajay, do you know how long your hand has been resting on her thigh?" He takes his hand from her thigh, where it had been resting for a long time. "And the way you are stealing glances at each other? Come on! Ajay, start talking. What's going on?" I ask.

"We are just trying to find happiness in this place full of suffering." He looks down. They both do. Wait, I am happy, but that's all?

"That is it?" I query, starting to feel disappointed by them.

"Gia, we are never leaving this club; that's a fact. So we are trying to make the best out of all these." Ajay says it again.

"What I want to understand is what you two feel for each other. And Ajay, Bernie is a minor; do you know that?" I ask.

"Yes, Gia, I know. But, you see, in this place, you need to find something to keep you sane. Something to give you a reason to wake up the next day. For me, that reason has been Bernie ever since she came to this place. I tried so much to control myself over time, but I just couldn't any more. I love her, Gia. I don't mind her age; I can wait, but for now, I just want to have her by my side." I understand him.

As for me, my reason for waking up each day is knowing that all of this is coming to an end soon. I will be seeing Deep again, and together we will... wait, what am I thinking? The guy just came out of a horrible breakup. I'm not even sure if he sees me as that kind of woman. Ouch! Why does it hurt just to think that I am not his type of woman?

"Are you okay?" Bernie asks me.

That thought about Deep made me zone out for a while. For whatever reason, I have to see him when I get out of here. "Yeah. You both be careful, okay? Love is a rough road with so many ups and downs. You will face so many challenges and difficulties along the way, especially in this particular place. You must be willing to fight every battle together if you want this to work." They both nod their heads. "Alright. You can go now. I need to get ready." I dismiss them.

I don't need to get ready, no. I want to be alone and think about this deep thing. I mean, this guy, Deep. Is it possible to be attracted this much to someone you just met?

"Okay. Bye. I will let you know when I find her room." Ajay says, and I nod my head.

"See you, Gia. Well, I will be popping in your room anytime I feel like."

I smile at her. "You are most welcome anytime, Bernie." They turn to leave. "Ajay?" I call when they are about to open the door, and they turn to me. "If you ever hurt her, you will face the full force of my wrath. You know that, don't you?" I warn.

"I know, and I promise, she is never going to get hurt." I nod, and they open the door, Bernie smiling like a kid; oh well, she is a kid after all.

A kid who is in love. If we were not in this damn place, I wouldn't have organized it at all. I mean, she is so young. But I know how it feels to be hopeless. You wish for that one thing that can bring even a brim of hope. If this is what will make them go on, I won't deny that. Besides, what hasn't Bernie seen and done in this club? Poor kid!

I was about to smile at them as they walked out, but when my eyes spotted Ejay standing at the door when they opened it, the smile faded away. Was he eavesdropping? What a cheap way for a man to think he is, imao! They walk out, bowing their heads down for the fearful devil, and he matches in, like a king walking in his palace. What the heck does he want again? He kicks the door shut with his leg, scanning the room as if the scene were new.