"Get your hand off me! Don't push me!" Leena turned back and snapped. She didn't care who Louisa's father was. She was an independent career woman who didn't rely on anyone, including Louisa's family. She wouldn't grovel to them.
"Are you going to hit me? Claire, do you see the kind of woman she is?" Louisa raised her eyebrows, not afraid at all if Leena hit her. She used to be as rebellious as a gangster before she went abroad.
"Yes, I do. I'll tell my parents what a horrible person she really is and she won't be able to be a part of my family any longer." Claire jutted up her chin with a complacent look on her face, as if imagining how embarrassed Leena would be once her parents found out who she really was.
Leena looked up at the sky and let out a long breath. They were in a public place. She didn't want to make a scene. But these two women didn't seem to let her go easily.
"Leena, at the end of the day, you are nothing more than a cheap bitch. You know Kevin doesn't love you and that he is in love with someone else, but you won't leave him anyway. Don't you have any shame at all?" Louisa said, viciousness in her eyes. She knew her words would provoke Leena. That was exactly what she expected. She wanted to see how Kevin would react when he saw her getting attacked by Leena.
Slap! Leena turned around and smacked Louisa hard. It stung, but as she had expected, Kevin saw the slap and stopped in his steps, a stunned look on his face. She thought the pain was well worth it.
"Oh my God. Leena, how can you be such a savage woman? Even if we are wrong to follow you and my brother, you could have just told us not to follow; how could you hit Louisa?" Claire hadn't seen the smack coming. She was astonished because Leena had always seemed to be such a sweet girl. However, as soon as Claire saw her brother hastening toward them, she started accusing Leena.
"Why should I put up with someone who has a potty mouth? Louisa, you deserve it." Leena looked at Louisa disdainfully. She hated anybody who used the word 'bitch'. Louisa had touched a nerve. When she turned back, she saw Kevin standing in front of her with an ice cream in his hand. He seemed shocked. Leena moved her lips and attempted to explain everything, but she couldn't say a word and walked past him. The ice cream dropped on the ground as she walked by and touched his arm by accident. Her heart quivered and her eyes watered when she heard the ice cream drop, yet she didn't stop and walked on. 'This is what those two women wanted,' she thought. They had been trying to ruin her date with Kevin and make trouble for her. Now they got what they wanted. They must be gloating.
"Kevin, have you seen how horrible she is? We were just talking to her and she hit Louisa for no reason!" Claire complained. At the same time, she was amazed at how clever Louisa was. She understood that she was trying to cause misunderstanding between Kevin and Leena, but Claire was surprised that Louisa was willing to hurt herself to achieve her purpose.
"I believe Leena. She wouldn't have done that if you two hadn't crossed a line." As much as Kevin was shocked to see the scene unfold, he knew Leena and believed in her. She wasn't a bully. On the other hand, Louisa and Claire had been provoking her all this time.
"What? Kevin, you saw what happened. How can you still trust that woman? Why are you always on her side? Did she drug you or something?" Claire gaped at Kevin before she uttered the words. She had thought he would come to his senses and seek justice for her and Louisa. Instead, he was calm, as if nothing could be more natural and fairer than a slap in Louisa's face.
"What 'that woman'? She is your sister-in-law. Show some respect! Louisa, no matter who is right, and who is wrong, since my wife hit you, I apologize to you on her behalf. She shouldn't have done that no matter how angry she was." Kevin sounded impartial and composed. In actuality, he was worried about Leena. She had walked off in a rush.
"That mean woman isn't my sister-in-law! She never will be, no matter what you say!" Claire raised her voice willfully. She was frustrated to see her brother had chosen to believe Leena instead of her. He had seen her slap Louisa, still he thought it was their fault. How could he be so biased in her favor? He was her own brother. How could he treat her like this? She wouldn't take the blame.
Slap! It was so loud. This time it wasn't in Louisa's face, but in Claire's. Suddenly, silence fell among them, as if even time had forgotten to tick by. Touching her stinging cheek, with her eyes wide open and face deathly pale, Claire stared at Kevin in shock, as if the man standing in front of her was a total stranger instead of her own brother. All her life, she had been the princess around whom even the world seemed to revolve. But now, her own brother had hit her for another woman.
Kevin, you hit me, for her! Is she more important to you than your own sister?" Claire asked loudly, biting her lips. The pain in her face aggravated as she spoke. She frowned and promised herself that she would make Leena pay for this sooner or later.
"Claire, you should know why I hit you. It was not only because of your rude remarks, but also because your conduct is unbearable for anyone with a conscience." Kevin closed his eyes in disappointment. His heart ached as he hit her. After all, she was his sister, no matter how wrong she was. He turned to glance at Louisa and said,
Louisa, you'd better have come here just because you wanted to catch up with Claire. Once I find out that you have an ulterior motive, I'll deal with you too, even if you are the daughter of the Commander."
"Kevin, am I so unworthy in your eyes? I am the one who was hit, not Leena. Even though she is your wife, you should be impartial to us instead of protecting her." With her hand on her face, Louisa thought of giving up. On the other hand, she felt she was unable to take this kind of outcome peacefully. But Kevin's words were harsh. If she kept pestering him, it would seem humiliating.
I didn't say she was right to hit you. But I also know there must have been a reason. And you two know better than anyone else what the reason was." Kevin didn't believe Leena raised her hand for no reason. She had always been rational. They must have said something to irritate her.
"It is easy to find a stick to beat a dog. You just want to find something to blame us for, don't you? Do you really think you know her? Wake up! Ask around. We all saw how malicious that woman was just now. Believe it or not, nobody provoked her. If you really think it was our fault, then I am speechless, but I still have faith in justice." Louisa managed an innocent look on her face, as if she was the victim and Leena the guilty one.
Huh! Justice! I hope you understand what that word means." Kevin glanced at her coldly and turned away. He walked swiftly in the direction Leena had left, assuming that she was crying in some corner. He had seen her moist eyes when she passed him by.
Watching Kevin leave, Louisa bit her lips. The hatred in her eyes increased. She cursed inside, 'Leena, you are lucky this time, but pray for yourself, because your luck won't hold forever.