Sharmaine felt the need to stay still all of a sudden as Claire comfortably slept on her shoulder. Knowing that she was Carrie Lim did not bother her as she did not saw her a threat, thought doubt flooded her mind; her accent, voice, and how she acted all gave it away, but what really bothered her was the fact that the other woman was Alexandra.
A brief moment of silence passed when the faint sound of footsteps suddenly startled her; there couldn't be anyone else present at this time, so she started to feel worried, waking up Claire, who glanced up and rubbed her eyes.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Ms. Claire, it's just that—" The footprints stopped as she felt the presence of a human beside her. Slowly, she turned her head and glanced up, seeing Ivan in a slightly formal outfit.
She stared at him for a brief second before excusing herself to Claire, who was put out of range. After that, she felt the need to give Ivan a sharp glare after sighing. She wanted to shout, scold him perhaps, but couldn't even finish her sentence because of Ivan's interruption—a deep, lingering kiss. When Ivan pulled back, he smirked, triggering Sharmaine even more.
"Ugh, would you please stop kissing me?" He did not respond nor annoy her, but he diverted the topic as he looked at Claire.
"That woman." His voice was deep and hostile. Suddenly, Ivan grabbed Sharmaine's shoulders and started kissing her neck, pulling down her jacket. Luckily, Sharmaine had gathered up all her strength to push him back.
"What are you doing?!" she said, fixing her jacket up. Ivan made a pissed expression, which made Sharmaine confused; as a matter of fact, he found the sibling confusing than any other human being.
"I was just annoyed."
"Stop your nonsense." She prepared to leave but her wrist was suddenly caught by Ivan.
"I heard you were sick."
Sharmaine yanked his hand away. "I just had my allergies." She desperately wanted him to back-off.
"Go to a doctor."
"I do—"
"Just go!" Ivan sighed as his eyes were just locked to hers, slowly drifting down to her neck where he made a hickey.
"Whatever." She walked away with great speed as she caught on to Claire, apologizing as soon as she arrived.
"That's okay," Claire said with a smile. That smile of hers was nice, but deep down, Sharmaine felt because of her untold secret—even Ivan had noticed. She sighed as she took her back inside the building.
At the office, she saw Ms. Park leaving as soon as they arrived. It was the perfect time for her to say goodbye to Claire; Sharmaine thought that Claire was genuinely happy with what Sharmaine had done. She was too, but now that one information had been revealed, she questioned herself if she would want to fool her more.
Aware of her affectionate feelings, Sharmaine had just acted aloof. She was straight, and she was not about to fall for a woman anytime soon. What she needed was one more interaction; one more chance was all she needed to get her answers.
"I guess, we'll have to stop being friends when that time comes," she whispered as she went back to the office.