Her cheeks are puffed up and eyes are narrowed. She glares at him and then, she looks back at the road. She huffs in silence and then, glares at him again. By now, he could guess why she is mad at him again. It seems that the cat was speaking the truth.
His little wife knows how to trick him. The cat might be on his side today, but he might not be on Eli's side in the future. She won't remember until spring. The cat can't speak who it is. How did his wife manage to attract a Fae's attention? Was it her scent?
"Are you okay?" She sounds a little anxious.
He takes a glance at her. "I am fine, my Nell."
"You were silent for too long," She replies with a casual tone.
"Do you miss hearing my voice?" He turns his eyes back on the road and grins.
"People notices unusual behaviour quickly," She mumbles. Her phone buzzes. She checks the text. "He is waiting for us at the restaurant."
Eli is curious who this 'he' is. She told him that 'he' is a friend from her university time and she hasn't talked to him for years. She did say once that he could have her house and she would move to this friend's place. Things are good between them now, but Eli is a little upset and jealous of someone he has never met. She and that friend are close enough that she could move to that friend's place even when she didn't talk to that person for years.
He stops the car. No, he won't act like a jealous husband. Nell is already his wife. There's nothing to be jealous about.
"Nell!" Eli hears someone yell. He gets out of the car and sees a man with brown hair running toward them. He scrutinizes the man -- a male who is about his wife's age, casual clothes, tennis shoes, tanned skin, and a joyous expression on his face.
He doesn't like this 'friend'.
His wife gets out of the car and frowns hard at the man who is trying to catch his breath. "You are so out of it, Michael."
"I thought that you would never call me." Michael looks up at his old friend and saviour. "You didn't pick up my calls after we graduated. How could you forget someone who had been in love with you for years?"
Eli walks around the car and pulls his wife behind him. He glowers at the man in front of him. If his wife wasn't here, he would have made this person disappear right away.
First, it was a dead boy who is supposedly better at kissing than him. An obsessed Fae is trying to steal his wife. Now, a human male is shamelessly confessing to his wife.
His wife is popular.
"Don't believe him." Nell pats his arm, trying to calm him down. "Michael likes to joke."
"I am not joking." Michael narrows his blue eyes on Eli. "Who is he?"
"Eli Sanguine, my husband." Nell squeezes Eli's hand. "He's a surgeon. We got married recently."
Eli's heart swells when he hears the introduction. It's short and precise. It hits right at the mark.
"You didn't even invite me?" Michael looks at her disbelief. "Nell, I thought that I was your friend. We spent four years together in university. I was supposed to be your bridesmaid."
Bridesmaid? Is it normal to have a male bridesmaid? Eli creases his forehead. Didn't this human male say that he loves Nell?
Nell sighs. "Does your restaurant have Sashimi?"
"Yes, it does. It's the best restaurant in the area, specialising in Asian cuisines" Michael gestures toward the restaurant. This is the first time when his old friend is visiting his restaurant. Her whereabouts her unknown to him for years. All of a sudden, she's in front of him with a husband. He looks at Eli suspiciously. Why did Nell choose this man?
"I read an article about it in a magazine." Nell walks beside Eli. She has noticed her husband's silence. She guesses that he's a little awkward around Michael. "Michael, I didn't expect you to open a restaurant after graduation. Why did you study so hard back then?"
"My father said that I could do anything as long as I gave him a college degree." Michael rubs his nose. "If I hadn't met you, I wouldn't have graduated. You were not even a management major, but you were better than me. I always wondered why you were studying literature."
The entire restaurant is empty. Nell doesn't show any reaction. She takes a seat, still holding Eli's hand. He sits beside her with a smile. He's a little relieved that his wife is showing affection in such a manner.
"Be comfortable." Michael says to them, "I will be right back."
After the human male is gone, Eli places his left elbow on the table and turns his head toward his wife. "I am a little jealous."
"I noticed." She lets go of his hand. "He's just a friend. Don't worry about him."
When Eli doesn't reply, she meets his gaze. "If I was going to fall for him, I would have fallen for him a long time ago."
Michael overhears her words as he walks closer to the table.
"Ouch!" Michael exclaims. "That's harsh, Nell Solomon."
"I am speaking the truth," She mutters. "You gave me a fake confession because you couldn't afford to pay my fees for tutoring you."
"You knew?" Michael's eyes bulge out. "But you slapped my face and then, tutored me anyway."
She clicks her tongue. "You can tell if someone is in love with you easily."
"How?" Michael leans forward. Eli's ears perk up.
"Eyes can't lie." She answers them both, "If you love someone, your eyes would follow that person as if he or she is the only one in the room."
Eli purses his lips. She's clever. Then, why didn't she notice that he's been love with her for two years? Was it because he was always hiding behind the shelf?
Do her eyes follow him?
"That is…" Michael gawks at her. "I don't think that it's applicable to everyone."
The waiters come with trays of dishes. They set up the table for them. After bowing politely, they leave. Then, Nell opens her mouth to speak, "Some people are better at hiding, but someone would notice the eyes anyway."
"Then, how did you two meet?" Michael stares at Eli.
"Book store." Eli doesn't feel like chatting today. He's envious of this Michael who can make his wife speak about things that she never says to him.
"This curry-rice tastes exactly like the one we had in the past," Nell observes.
"Thank goodness! I got the recipe from that store owner. That old man was quite stubborn. I pestered him for a year before he gave it up."
Michael presses his hand on his chest. After seeing his old friend who helped him graduate, he could say that it was worth it. He leans a little to his right, looking at Eli.
"The only time she showed some changes on her face when she ate at the curry store near the university. Everyone thought that she was a walking ghost. Her hair has some colour now. Back then, her hair was as white as snow. She would only speak when she had to. Mr Sanguine, she could destroy people with her words. Everyone was scared of getting closer to her. She had this 'do not approach me unless you want to die' aura around her. If she had not pinpointed where I was getting the problem wrong in the library, I would have never found out that she was a secret genius."
She graduated from university around four years ago. That was before he came to this city. Even when her parents died in the attack, she didn't stop going to university. Eli eats the salmon sashimi quietly. She must have told her friend to prepare this for him. He stares at her face. It's true. She is showing some delight in her eyes.
So, this dish is her favourite. That cat lied to him. He needs to get his hands on the recipe of this dish.
"You got it wrong so many times. I was wondering what was wrong with your head. You didn't even define the problem and started solving it like a rogue." She makes a face at him. "I wondered if you had eyes on the back of your head. The problem was simple, but you kept ignoring the facts. When it gets complicated, you just have to get the facts right. The problem unravels itself on its own."
Eli blinks. When it's complicated, he has to get the basics right. What are the facts though?
Baek Joon-Woo made a deal with a Fae to find out who Nell's biological father is.
Satyrs came to this world around nine years ago.
Four girls and a boy were taken to the Fae realm that night. The council never found them. One boy and one girl died.
Half of the satyrs' population was eradicated by the council. The relationship is bad between the council and the Fae since then. The watchers are strict. No Fae can come to this world without getting approval from the Council.
Someone tried to frame Nell for a murder. Mr Emerson was killed in the same way Baek Joon-Woo died. The cat was murdered gruesomely.
Then, a leprechaun was sent to her house with a special slave bracelet. A puppet messenger arrived. Before that, the puppet messenger didn't expect to see him and Siouxsie at Nell's house.
Evie was killed and turned into a puppet.
If that Fae wanted her to go to the Fae realm, why would he try to frame her for a murder and send her to prison? Why did he kill Mr Emerson and the cat when he could have sent someone to take her right away?
This part doesn't make sense to him.
***
Eli is deep in his thoughts. He has been playing with the slices of raw salmon with his chopsticks. I don't know whether he likes fishes or not. I saw him eat mostly meat -- cooked or raw. It's a little awkward to ask him what ghoul doesn't like to eat. I know that he hates vegetables with his guts.
He's a carnivore. I am a herbivore.
I guess I will ask his younger sister Belinda. She would know what he likes for sure.
"Let's not talk about studies." Michael shudders. "I get goosebumps when I am reminded of your lessons. You were so strict."
This guy doesn't know how to be grateful. If I wasn't strict, he wouldn't have graduated the university for sure.
"1000$ per lesson." I take a sip of the wine. "I gave ninety lessons to you in four years. You didn't pay me once."
"Nell, even the university doesn't charge that much." He wipes the sweat on his forehead. "Even if I sell my restaurant, I can't pay you back."
"I am just telling you." I shrug. He used to be an idiot. He's still an idiot, but not a successful idiot. "You have come far. I feel like I have raised a child into a man in those four years."
"I am not your child." Michael puckers his lips. He was a little childish back then. "If you want a child so much, make one with your husband. Stop thinking of a grown man as your son."
Children? I glance at Eli awkwardly. He still seems lost. It seems that he has a lot in his head right now. If a ghoul and a human have a child together, what would happen?
Maybe I am thinking too much right now.
"I am still unhappy that you didn't call me when you had a wedding." Michael lowers his head, dejected.
"We are going to have a wedding," Eli utters the words suddenly. I drop the spoon. A wedding now? Why do we need a wedding? It's fine like this.
"Then, did you have a flash marriage?" Michael gasps. "Nell, you are not pregnant, are you?"
"Nope." I dig into curry-rice, sensing Eli's gaze on me.
"Ah…" Michael sounds a little disappointed. "Then, when are you having your wedding?"
"The date is not decided yet," Eli answers Michael.
I say nothing. I knew that he wanted to have a wedding ceremony. He said it when we were registering our marriage. For me, it's not important whether we have a wedding ceremony or not. I don't have a family member. Michael is my only friend. But he has a huge family. Will they accept it? A human as his bride?
I should finish the curry first. I listen to them talking about catering services. I see the birth of bromance. The catering services and menu for the wedding are decided. Eli promises Michael that he could name our fifth child. I grab the fork.
Who said that I am going to have five children? Does he want to make a football team like his father?
Damn! Even the football teams only have 11 members on each side.