Luna gazed across the sea of people in the enormous room of the restaurant to find Ana in a fun conversation with the man she once met. They displayed their intimacy through their giggle, hand-holding, and tasting of each other's food as if they were in a relationship.
Not wanting to have bad thoughts about those two people's togetherness, Luna focused back on her food and chewed them with no more taking a single glance at them.
"I can see that you are thinking of something else. What bothers you?" Never did Luna expect that Felix would watch her secretly peering at Ana who sat at the corner of the room, far from their position.
Concealing her startle behind her flat smile, Luna stated her reason for admiring the restaurant; she had never eaten in this kind of huge restaurant before in her life which was not a lie indeed. How could she afford to visit this expensive restaurant?
"Thank you for taking me here." She ended the chat and resumed her eating while her mind was wandering to the girl, Ana, whom she peeped through the corner of her eyes no longer occupied her seat. The man with her was not seen among the crowds either; they had left. "Where are they going?"
Her murmur stopped Felix from shoving the soup into his mouth; interrupted by Luna's sudden mumbles, he reached the tissue and finished his lunch "Who are you talking about? Do you happen to recognize one of the visitors here?"
"No…no….I didn't say anything. You may have heard wrong." Felix talked no more, letting Luna drink her last drink instead.
They went outside of the restaurant ten minutes later and directly walked toward Felix's car which was being parked on the north side of the restaurant area. Ana followed Felix behind while scanning here and there to search for Ana's whereabouts.
The beautiful slim girl in her elegant yellow dress stood against the red luxurious car with a man his six-feet tall facing her; that man's hands softly held both of her shoulders and his eyes fell on hers. They soon united in a kiss, making Luna cover her mouth in shock. How could Ana betray Danish who adored her so much? Danish was even willing to do anything for Ana despite going against his grandmother.
"Luna….do you want to stand there forever?" Luna briskly turned to Felix who was opening the door of the car for her and slid into the car with her mouth shut.
***
Tangled with guilt in his heart for failing to get Luna back home, Danish could only scrutinize his sorrowful grandmother who had sat in her reverie for hours inside her study room from the doorway. That gray-haired woman didn't realize his presence at the entrance; her problem distracted her from everything around.
Danish, in his hesitance, took the initiative to amuse his grandmother to help her forget the things that had disturbed her for the last couple of weeks.
"Grandma… " That old lady gave him no response but her sour expression which led him to question her action. "Grandma…. Did I make a mistake that offended you?
"I won't talk to you until Luna returns to this house." She warned him and rose from her seat at the same time; the door gulped her body in a second, leaving Danish numb in his stand.
"Luna…where are you?" Danish whispered something which could only be heard by his ears. He rested on the chair her grandmother was sitting with the burden of losing Luna in his heart. It was not only his grandma who felt sad about her disappearance; he missed that girl yet he didn't admit that.
The door swung wide open; his mother, Sandra Li in her fancy tawny dress, emerged at the doorstep and approached with a smile on her lips.
"Don't take what she said seriously, Danish. I am sure she doesn't mean it with her warning. You are her most beloved grandchild."
"Mom…did you overhear our conversation?"
"I had to, honey." Sandra elegantly took a seat on the couch.
"Mom…it is not about the grandmother I was concerned about." The wrinkle on her forehead indicated that his confession surprised her.
"Please don't tell me that you are in love with Luna and care about her."
"Of course no Mom."
"That's good. I can breathe out of relief. You won't try to find her, will you?"
"Mom…for the sake of grandma, I have to."
"Stop that nonsense! You have read the letter yourself about that girl's deceit and betrayal. Who can you show your care after what she did to you and our family?"
"I can't see grandma in sadness, Mom. That devastated me."
"I am doubtful it is just your excuse to be able to meet that girl again."
"Mom…"
"Can't you just let her go?" Danish looked away with his blank stare. "How is Ana? I haven't seen her for a few days. Are you two in a fight?" Danish shook his head but his eyes only stuck where it was. "Do you think it is a good idea to invite her for dinner? Or you can ask her out for dinner?" Danish didn't demonstrate the same vibe of excitement as she did. His thoughts still consumed him. "I need to see her and thank her for ditching that village girl out of our life."
"What do you mean, Mom?" Sandra jolted in shock at her own words. She almost mentioned the secret of the agreement between Luna and Ana by mistake. "Mom…do you hide something from me?" Danish surged at his feet.
"What can I hide from you? You are my son."
"You are lying, Mom."
"Why should I lie to you, honey?"
"Please tell me what you and Ana have planned?"
"Danish…"
"Mom…please." Danish raised his tone of voice and regretted it in the next second. "I am sorry Mom. I didn't mean to raise my voice against you. But, please tell me the truth." After a long silence, Sandra opened her mouth and explained to him what Luna and Ana had agreed on.
"To save your grandma, Luna promised Ana to leave the Li family."
"What? What did you say?" Sandra and Danish moved their sight at furious grandma Li in aghast for her unexpected arrival whom they didn't anticipate.