Page 15 of What Happens in Dubai

‘Oh my god! This is not funny,’ I whispered. ‘When will your dad go to bed?’

‘Fuck knows. Chill out. We could watchThe Chaseup here. See if the Vixen’s on?’

I shook my head in astonishment.

‘Fucking chill I said. I’ll roll us a joint?’ Luke slid to the end of his bed and pulled out a small tray of marijuana from underneath. I took a minute to examine his bedroom and sat back down on the bed questioning my last-minute decision. His small bed was pressed against the wall and his TV stacked on top of his uni books. PlayStation games took up the majority of the space around us, and Luke seemed to have a thing for collecting McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, which were piled up in an old washing basket in the corner of his bedroom. I was squashed to the edge of the bed, allowing Bob Marley extra elbow space to roll his doobie with a substantial amount of concentration.No, no no. What the fuck am I doing here? I need to leave.

‘Luke, I’m sorry, I really need to go. I’m literally going on holiday in a few hours.’ I glanced at my watch. Almost 2 a.m.Shit.

‘But my da’s downstairs,’ he snapped back. My toy boy seemed pissed, but I wasn’t prepared to hide like fucking Anne Frank all night at one stroppy teenager’s request.

‘I’ll quickly run out when a taxi comes. He doesn’t have to see me. I seriously need to get home.’ I had the fear and a pounding vodka-induced headache on the way.

I lifted my phone from my jacket pocket.

Six missed calls from Ashley.

Fuck. My stomach ached with anxiety. I had to pick Ashley and Raj up for three-thirty to catch the flight and had at least a half-hour drive home. I discreetly swiped onto the Uber app and ordered a ride, not wanting to piss off my date further by phoning in and making extra noise. Thankfully Luke’s joint seemed to be doing the trick as his eyes were gradually getting heavier and slowly closing over. After ten minutes of pacing the floor of his two-metre dungeon, I heard a car horn peep outside, and I gently shook his shoulders.

‘I’m off, Luke. That’s me. Can you walk me to the front door please?’

He began nodding his head, barely rousable, but with another lively shake he hesitantly stood up, pulling a pair of shorts on from a pile of laundry at the side of his bed. We quietly crept downstairs, reminding ourselves that his dad was in the living room.

‘So, when will I see you again, Zara?’ Luke whispered, tapping me on the shoulder from the step behind.

‘Oh god, who knows? I mean I’d love to make arrangements, Luke, but I don’t know when I’m going to be back from Dubai …’

The lies once again rolled off my tongue so effortlessly.

‘What!’ he roared. ‘Are you having a fuckin’ laugh? I didn’t know it was fucking permanent, Zara! You didn’t fucking tell me that!’ His voice was getting deeper as I felt his eyes pierce me from behind. He stopped on the stair and began rubbing his forehead aggressively.

I watched on, confused and unsure if I should console him when he suddenly punched the wall angrily.

What the fuck!

I let out a squeal and soared in fear, running past the living room towards the front door. Luke dropped to the step, rocking himself back and forth.

The living-room door swung open, and instantly I felt relief as I saw a large male figure belt out, observing Luke perched on his naughty step.

‘Is everything all right, son? What’s going on?’

I stood still, watching the commotion unfold.

‘Fuck. Aye. I’m sorry, Da. I just had a bit of bad news. Dad, this is Zara.’ He pointed towards me still witnessing the drama.

His dad turned round to greet me. At first, I felt relieved that he was there to intervene in his son’s tantrum.

‘Oh, hiyaaa.’

My heart paused.Wait.

‘Zara?’ It was William, and he recognised me. ‘What are you doing here?’

My whole body froze in disbelief as I watched the penny drop for him. His head twitched, then shook, glaring between me and his son as his face grew in horror.

‘Wait,’ he said. ‘Oh no,tell me that wasn’t you who was … Oh god, NO!’ His face twisted in disgust as he continued to waggle his head aggressively.

From outside, the Uber driver beeped the horn again.Saved by the fucking bell.

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