🎶 Anytime we together feel so right (So right)
You the girl I been lookin' for my whole life 🎶

Chapter Twenty One

•Severin's Dream (although it actually happened — he just kept replaying it in his mind at night) •

I don't know what they want from me
It's like the more money we come across
The more problems we see

I don't know what they want from me
It's like the more money we come across
The more problems we see

"Here's your Chardonnay, just as you requested," Severin told Solana, pouring it into a glass and she thanked him.

It was about 3:30AM in the morning yesterday, with Severin and Solana spending the night together in the sitting room.

They were watching music videos from an old school music station on TV and now they were playing More Money, More Problems by The Notorious BIG.

They had been doing so a lot lately over the past few days, as in spending a lot of time together in the sitting room.

This was because both of them were suffering from insomnia so they had therefore found it hard sleeping.

Solana had commented about how good the drink was with Severin smiling, then she switched off the TV.

"You know, Severin, I never thought that we'd have so much in common," she confessed to him. "We both love getting tipsy. We have the same music interests. Sometimes I wonder how I ended up with Jordan Francis and not you."

Severin had stared at her blankly, not saying anything.

He wasn't frowning though.

But he wasn't smiling either.

Solana had realised what she had said, freaking out.

"Shoot! Did I just say that out loud?"

"Nah, it's fine," he chuckled. "I was actually thinking the same thing strangely enough."

He didn't seem too happy after he had said that even though it was kind of true.

Solana had realised the sadness in Severin's eyes, becoming concerned about his well being almost immediately.

"Severin?"

He didn't take his eyes off of her.

"Now that we're alone because everybody else is sleeping — can I.. can I ask you something?"

He didn't reply for a long time.

But then he nodded.

"Are you happy?"

He titled his head to the side and stared at her again.

"In what context?"

"Like, with Serayah. Does Serayah make you happy?"

To be honest no one had really asked Severin that question before.

Heck, Severin hadn't even asked himself that question before.

He had truly appreciated her concern but now he was kind of worried that she was going to tell Serayah.

"No, I won't tell her. This conversation is just between you and me, I promise. I just want to know."

He shook his head.

"No," Severin admitted, wanting to cry right in front of her but he didn't. "I'm not happy with Serayah. At all."

Then Solana wanted to know why, and Severin had explained everything.

As of lately especially, it kind of seems as though we've been doing nothing but arguing and that drives me insane.

She's heavily obsessed with Instagram and trying to pretend we have the "perfect" relationship on there. But our relationship is far from perfect and I admit that.

When my credit card got declined, which was the main reason for Serayah and I's downfall, she didn't speak to me for a whole day because of that.

Especially how I flaunted my money. I told her I could buy her anything. So inevitably she took advantage of that but then I realised to little too late that I didn't have enough.

No matter what I did and said to that girl to tell her I was really sorry for my credit card declining and for us being a laughing stock now... she wouldn't accept it.

And that's the next thing! It's so hard for me to please Serayah! Sometimes I feel like I have to walk on eggshells just to make her happy. And at first I was okay with it.

Not anymore. She's literally like "help me now else I'm taking you down" sometimes. As in, if I don't help her with her problems, she'll leave me. But she doesn't always help with mine.

You see where I'm going with this?

Solana nodded.

"But then... if she makes you unhappy, then why don't you just break up with her?"

"I can't," Severin sighed. "I may dislike Serayah but I don't hate her that much to make her homeless. She'd literally have nowhere to go if we split up. I live with my sister Layla Grace."

Solana hugged him and vice versa.

Now Severin wanted to know if she was happy with Jordan Francis.

She...

Wasn't.

Severin was beyond surprised.

"Whoa. You're not happy in your relationship either?"

She shook her head.

"But why? You guys seem lovely together. Serayah and I kinda resent you."

She had smiled a little bit at that, but in all honesty there was nothing for them to resent.

Solana wasn't happy with Jordan Francis because they didn't argue enough.

Severin was beyond confused.

"No offence Solana but I exactly don't see how that's a bad thing...."

"We agree on almost everything, Severin!" She whined. "And that's kind of boring! We're not even alike at all. We're completely different. It's like we have nothing to stand for."

Severin wanted to know when their last argument was.

It was five days ago when Solana and Jordan Francis were at JF's house and Solana was trying to be someone she wasn't.

Before that, about four months ago.

"Whoa. You and Jordan Francis didn't argue with each other for four whole months?"

"Exactly. We agree too much. I'm getting bored, and I don't even have grass is greener syndrome. Also his parents are by far too strict. I cannot live up to the expectations that they have of me."

Severin wanted to know if Jordan Francis knew this.

He didn't.

Solana wanted to know  the same thing but with Severin and Serayah.

She didn't know either.

"You should tell him."

"You should tell Serayah."

Severin had freaked out at that.

If he had told Serayah that he was unhappy, she might not have taken it very well.

"Maybe after the retreat," he promised. "I feel like you understand me. Not many people do. Not even Jordan Francis and DeVante. And I'm super close to them now."

Even though he had only known them for five days, it had left like five years or months at best.

Solana had thought the same thing and there was silence between them for a while.

Severin had woken up when the silence had gotten so much that they had almost kissed.

Now he was panicking.

Right now, it was 4:25AM, and he had put on the lamp.

There was no way he could have talked to Jordan Francis about this. He was literally dreaming about his wife.

So he talked to DeVante.

DeVante was sleeping right next to him, with Severin tapping him continuously.

"DeVanteeeeee!!" He whispered, going over to him. "Come on, DeVante! I really need to talk to you. Help me now else I'm taking you down!"

He didn't wake up even though Severin had been calling him a lot of times and when he did, he was ticked off because it was almost half past four in the morning.

"Severin, what the hell, man?!" DeVante groaned, rubbing his eyes and sitting up straight. "Why are you waking me up at half four?"

"I had a nightmare and I need to talk to you about it. Please."

DeVante really wanted to tell him no because he wanted to go back to sleep but he didn't.

"Ugh, I'm tired of getting involved in people's problems all the time."

"Just this once. And if it happens again then I'll deal with it myself or if I can't do that then I'll ask someone else to help me. Not just you all the time."

Rolling his eyes, DeVante had told him okay then they had left the room after DeVante had very reluctantly gotten out of bed.

Something was off though.

"Do you want me to wake up Jordan Francis as well?"

"No!" Severin had whisper screamed. "Jordan Francis cannot know about this at all!"

He had to eventually.

Just not now.

Suspicious, DeVante wanted to know why Jordan Francis couldn't have come with them.

And realistically speaking Severin wanted to lie about how he was planning for his birthday but Jordan Francis' birthday was in July and it was April.

Plus he said he had a nightmare not a happy dream.

"I ain't leaving without JF 'cause you know he's one of my best guys."

"I have dirt on him," Severin admitted, which wasn't actually a lie. "And obviously I can't tell you that in front of him. But I can over a cup of water or even tea or something in the living room."

DeVante had gone with him and when he did, Jordan Francis had woken up.

Right, they totally forgot that he was a light sleeper.

He wanted to know why the light was on and Severin had told him that he was going to the toilet.

"With DeVante?" Jordan Francis questioned, frowning. "Plus there's a toilet in the room."

Severin had had a go at DeVante because he told him to hide well and he didn't.

"We need to get water."

"You just said you need to go toilet. Water makes you go toilet more."

"Forget we said that, just...." Severin sighed. "We're going to get water. We'll be right back."

Jordan Francis wanted water too, with Severin unintentionally yelling and saying that he would have gotten it for him.

He was still pretty drunk from last night. Severin had forced him to drink as Jordan Francis would have never done so himself.

There was a barbecue.

Severin had dashed with DeVante to the living room, closing the door behind him and panicking.

"You okay?" DeVante fretted. "What's the dirt on Jordan Francis?"

"His mother is a self obnoxious she devil who had completely ruined the family dinner that Solana went to," Severin mentioned.

But JF didn't tell him that she didn't like Solana as she had reminded her of the woman his first husband cheated on.

And that they made up.

They had bigger problems.

"That's not why I brought you here though. I have a problem, DeVante."

"What?"

Severin had gently grabbed him by the shoulders and he had to promise not to tell anyone this otherwise he was dead meat and he meant it.

He promised that.

"I think I have a crush on Solana." He explained. "That's why I couldn't tell Jordan Francis. They're married."

I mean I don't blame him, Serayah is a handful
Jordan Francis is gonna be so upset and/or mad if he finds out 🥺😞

Jordan's pretty protective over Solana so if he finds out that her and Severin have been spending a lot of time together then he might get the wrong impression.