Now that Maya fully understood the situation.  She felt even worse . Never in a million years would she guess that Gia would go to such extremes for her .

Again,  she wasn't surprised.  Gia took her in after everything,  she even got her into therapy and paid for all her expenses and when she finally got her restaurant and was able to pay for it , she gave Maya a job and kept supporting her financially till she was able to stand on her feet financially. 

In a way, Gia had always protected Maya however she could and this was just one of those times . The only difference is , Gia might have signed her life away. And that was a guilt Maya was going to carry .

As if sensing what Maya was thinking, Gia  carefully placed her hand on  Maya's shoulder. 

"Maya, this isn't your fault.  I was in love ....head over heels.  I still am . When he asked for what I wanted in return for my silence,  only that dirty scumbag came to mind . And I wanted to make him pay for what he did to you.
I didn't think Carlos would go as far as killing him."

She nearly choked on the words as she spoke them.

"I won't lie Maya , I knew Carlos was a powerful man . And frankly, when he said he'd take care of Sebastian,  I thought he was sending him to jail or something.  Not this ....Maya ...not this . I became his accomplice. And between the love I had for him and our agreement , I just couldn't.  I allowed myself to fall for him deeper.  I thought,  my life would be nothing without him. "

Gia kept explaining herself  and in the process,  she realised that regardless of everything,  she still loved and wanted Carlos.

Their conversation was cut short  as their employees filed in one after the other, exchanging pleasantries and clocking in with their IDS.

The chef approached Maya and Gia and asked how Gia wanted things to go this year  . He wanted to know if they both wanted to make certain changes or they were satisfied. 

Maya confidently suggested a few ideas and Gia approved all of them . The chef then nodded and called for his subordinates and briefed them about all the changes . Soon, everyone was busy with  work.

Customers were filing in as expected.  Orders were flying here and there , the chef was yelling orders and preparing the dishes as fast as he could,  Maya and Gia were tasting samples before they were sent out to the customers,  it was simply a busy day .

Gia and Maya had both forgotten why they loved work so much. It was the only place they could completely immerse themselves in lots of activities and they would forget about all their troubles.  They both felt relaxed for a while .

When the rush had died down , Maya quickly changed and Gia helped her with the make-up.  Maya did the same for Gia and they prepared to start the show .

In addition to being the managers , Gia and Maya also sang at the restaurant.  They did this whenever the rush had died down .

Gia decided to call on three people every night and make them request a song from tiny booklets handed to them and she and Gia sang to entertain her guest.

This act , kept the customers thrilled and eager with anticipation.  Every night was a banger , as every customer went there in hopes that he or she would be asked to pick a song .

This was in fact the secret to the restaurant's success . And she felt very happy with this aspect of her job.

They both rushed to the stage and the crowd went wild .

"MARRY ME MAYA!!!!!!!!"

One customer screamed and Maya cupped her face in astonishment.  The two friends laughed and Maya blew a kiss to the customer who had asked her to marry him. He flashed her a satisfied smile .

They finished their stage preparations and Gia chose the first customer.  A lovely brunette woman who was sitting with her husband and kids . The lady beamed with excitement and accepted   the booklet from a waitor.  After a few minutes,  she decided. 

"I would like you to sing...Dusk till Dawn . Tonight's our 10 years anniversary"

The woman said and locked her fingers with her husband's .

"Very well then, Happy anniversary guys."

The couple nodded in appreciation and the other customers gave a round of applause . Gia and Maya begun singing in turn . Gia sang Zayn's part while Maya sang Sia's.



They both got lost in the song . And they passionately performed it so well, the woman who had requested the song started to cry.  The room was filled with emotion and pure attention and admiration as they listened to the duo sing. 

When the song came to an end , they both bowed gracefully,  and Gia decided to give the couple , a free strawberry and coconut flavored cake as their present from the restaurant.  The man and woman gave a warm smile and the man mouthed 'THANK YOU' while the woman blew the duo kisses . The crowd applauded again. 

When all was settled,  Maya called on the next customer this time . She picked the man who had asked her to marry him, obviously.  The man did the same as the woman , and after browsing through the booklet,  he asked the duo to sing DANDELIONS .

Maya flashed a graceful smile and she and Gia started to sing . This time , Maya sang the first verse , Gia sang the second and the both harmonised and sang the third verse



After their wild and emotional performance,  the man who  had requested the song gave the duo a standing ovation,  absolutely satisfied with the performance. 

For their third performance,  they both decided to call on a young black skinned girl who looked like her date had stood her up.  The girl was hesitant at first but Maya and Gia cheered her on after obtaining her name and soon,  the entire restaurant was cheering her name.

"CHANTEL , CHANTEL, CHANTEL,  CHANTEL , CHANTEL!!!!"

They kept cheering and the young lady started to smile and shed joyful tears. Though her boyfriend had stood her up , these strangers managed to brighten her day. Finally,  she requested UNBREAK MY HEART.

Gia almost wished they hadn't picked that girl . She could feel knots forming in her belly . But regardless,  she kept it professional and graceful.  She and Maya sang the song perfectly. 




Somewhere during the  performance,  Gia could feel herself drift away . Memories  of she and Carlos came back to her . They all felt real . For an instant he was right in front of her with his arms opened and asking for an embrace . She run into his arms , but just as soon as she got into his arms, a force pulled them apart and he was gone.

She felt an unbearable amount of pain and she expressed it all through the song. It was only then, that everyone in the room felt how powerful her voice was. Even Maya was stunned, but she kept composure and together,  they harmonised their way through the sing till it's very end.

As soon as their performance ended , all customers got up,  as If they were being controlled and they gave a 5 minutes standing ovation.  The young girl who had requested the song dashed on stage and hugged the duo like she had known them all her life.

They affectionately hugged her back , and after taking their final bows they went to the changing room .

As soon as they got there, Gia threw herself into Maya's hands and cried her heart out . She admitted to Maya that she missed Carlos and that she hated him at the same time . She hated herself more for not being able to get over him as she should. 

"I see him everywhere Maya "

Sniff .

"I see him in my dreams, in my imaginations , everywhere. "

Sniff Sniff. 

"Everything reminds me of him.  How am I supposed to move on when he torments me every second. I want him back Maya...but I hate his ass so much . I don't think I can ever forgive him . Why does it hurt so much ? Why me? Where did I go wrong?  What....what did I do to deserve this?"

Maya only tightened their embrace and allowed her friend to cry till she felt okay . She assured Gia that none of this was her fault and that she had only fallen in love with the wrong guy,  and that he didn't deserve her .

It took a while for Gia to calm down and collect herself,  but when she did ,she was thankful she  had Maya by her side . The two quickly changed into their normal outfits and went back to tasting duty. 

Finally,  it was 6: 30 pm and they were done for the day.  They made sure everything was in place and that all employees had clocked out before they locked it up for the night .  They both hugged each other said their goodbyes before going separate ways .

Gia couldn't help but exhale loudly when she finally got home . Today had been really tough and she couldn't wait to  get in the shower and rinse all her troubles and stress away .

She fished through her bag for her keys and  opened her door . The moment she went inside,  her heart skipped several beats. What the hell? Just when she thought all her plights were over

Even though she hadn't turned the lights on , she could tell she wasn't  alone. She didn't need the light to know who it was .

His fragrance had filled the room . A mix of sandal wood and just the right amount of strawberry and roses with a slight touch of mint. She knew it all too well now. She had grown to love his feminine yet manly scent. That scent always turned her on and she loved how she smelt a bit like him after making love . Her knees went numb and her heart threatened to jump out of her chest, her breathing quickened now and she froze  .

She felt him move from the chair and he made his way behind her.  He softly wrapped his arms around her waist and gently nibbled on her ear sending little sparks through her before quietly whispering.

"Welcome home My Gia . I missed you ".

With that , he aggressively dug his face into Gia's neck and kissed it passionately.  Gia quickly let out a moan she had tried to suppress.  And as it dawned on her that she missed him too and regardless of everything she had told herself about getting over him , she still wanted him, she begun to cry and he hugged her from behind so tight as Gia broke down all over again.

This is the end of this chapter.  I hope you liked it.  Don't forget to vote and comment.  💓💓💓

Stay tuned for chapter 5 .


© The-labyrinth-within