I leave the fitting room and head towards Marcus. " hey, the outfits are ready" 

" Is there any reason you're blushing like a maiden right now?" He asks, suggestively.

 I look around for anyone who might be listening to our conversation. Satisfied that no one is near, I lean in whispering in his ear "How do you know if someone's making a move on you?"

Marcus squeals, flapping around like a seal "Well first of all if you've noticed that they might be hitting on you then they are. Now the million-dollar question is, who are they? but then again judging from your pink cheeks I'd say it's the new cute model, right?" he says pointing to the fitting room then back at me.

"You can't talk to your boss like that," I reply smiling. Marcus and I have known each other since I was an intern. He's one of the few people I'm close to. Well, it's just him and Jenny, but still. Plus this is how he generally speaks to Jenny and me. He turns around quite a few times then back to me then smiles " Is the 'boss' here with us right now? And don't think your diversion is working. Is it or is it not Ayah who's making a move on you?" 

god, I hate how cocky he gets sometimes. I roll my eyes and reply " Yes it's Ayah but I'm not sure if she was hitting me or she was asking a genuine question"  

Marcus touches his chin then replies "Well, why don't you just flat-out ask her? Won't that be better than racking up your brain about it, the worst she can say is no" 

I take a step back and eye him up and down. '' Um, have you met me? I'm not that bold: if it's just a misunderstanding this could fall back on me badly. Imagine word getting back to Dad that I harassed our new model that would be a catastrophe" 

Marcus shakes his head in agreement "Okay, fair point. maybe you should test her then but like... in a subtle way"

 I scoff and fold my arms, how the heck am I supposed to do that I feel like this is gonna come back and bite me in the ass, like it always does. " I feel like at this point you're just making fun of me" 

"No, I'm being genuine here. Look, how about this, call Jenny and ask her about this whole situation cause we both know I'm everything but subtle" That's true.

"What situation?" both Marcus and I turn to see Ayah behind us. I turn to Marcus, he's just as shocked as I am. Ayah must've been like a ninja in her past life, I didn't even hear her footsteps which is weird cause she's wearing heels.

"  Oh, I was just telling Zuri over here that a friend of mine is being hit on and they aren't sure what to do. Tell me, Ayah, what would you do if you were this friend of mine?" Marcus says as he eyes me suggestively and smirks.

Ayah, on the other hand, moves closer to me " I would probably just ask this person if they're interested in me. what would you do Zuri?" She says as she grabs my hand and moves it to her back " Would you mind zipping this dress up for me? I couldn't reach the zipper."

"Oh, sure" I clear my throat and zip up the dress. Okay, so maybe it was clear then but it is now, she's hitting on me. So what do I do with this new information? Ah jeez, this is why I prefer to stay in my office or at home. 

" Ayah since you're all dressed up why don't you go to the other room for the shoot? they're ready for you" Marcus says as he points her to the room in question. As soon as Ayah says her goodbyes and leaves, Marcus grabs my hand and pulls me to the nearest sofa. "If you didn't pick up what she was putting down then you are more hopeless than I thought"

I'm still so shocked by what just happened that I just nod. " And do you think that you feel the same way she does or not?"

I sit back on the couch with my head hanging back, staring at the ceiling for a while. It might be years since I dated someone or even had feelings for a person but I'm sure of what I feel right now so I turn my head toward Marcus 

"Yeah, I think I do"