Wale had been surprised to see Cherry and Kind walk in together at his hideout. He loved being close to the beach so he had changed his location not far from where he had up met with Todo. He was basking in the sun by the private beach when he heard Cherry call him. She ran towards him happily almost almost tripping before Kind held on to her. She later pushed Kind away and continued running towards him. He embraced her of course, but his attention was more on Kind who seemed unhappy to have been summoned here. Todo had played him well, bringing his fiancé and Kind at the same time.
"I missed you so much, my love. Why did you just leave like that? We've been looking for you for almost a week now!" Cherry said after breaking their embrace. "I needed some time to think about a lot of stuff, and I missed the beach too," Wale replied, looking at her, to which Cherry smiled, reaching for a kiss.
"You didn't have to worry about me coming back. I was going to leave Swalha and return to you eventually," Cherry stated and asked to go inside, complaining the heat was making her dizzy.
As they walked towards the villa, Wale glanced back at Kind, who was busy mesmerized by the surroundings. Kind had always loved the beach from childhood, so of course he'd want to enjoy the sun a little more. Once inside, Cherry was glued to Wale, asking about his well-being and why they'd never come to that place before. "Is this one of your parent's properties?"
Wale hesitated before replying, "I leased it temporarily." Cherry stood up and scanned the place. It was a huge villa for one person to stay in.
"How long are you planning to be here? I can take an emergency leave and stay with you for some time until we return back to the city."
Wale stood up to reach for her hand, then gently pulled her back to sit down. "Kind is still outside, and you can stay here as I go get him."
"No need for that since I actually want us to talk privately. Honestly, I do not understand why you called for him instead of me. Are you, by any chance investigating him to check if he is still in contact with your family?" Cherry asked, still holding onto Wale's hand.
"Why did you bring that up all of a sudden? It's been five years since we last spoke about that."
Cherry panicked a little at Wale's question, blaming Kind for making her talk about it while on their way here. "I thought about a lot of things when you suddenly left, maybe your relatives kidnapped you, or they tortured you or flew you to some unknown location. There was no other reason why you would just leave like that."
Wale smiled as he gently played with her hair. He thought to himself how the past month had been rough on their relationship because of him and how much he'd begged her to return to him. She smiled back, reaching for another kiss, but Wale drew back. "I wasn't expecting you here, so you must understand my shock at seeing you. Though I'm glad you came meaning, you've forgiven me, and that makes me extremely happy. But since you are here, we can clear up a few things before you leave." Wale stood up, and after walking a few steps away from Cherry, he added, "I think we should break up."
His back was still turned to Cherry when she came behind him. "What is going on? If there is something bothering you let us talk about it and find a way to resolve it."
Turning back to look at her, it surprised him to find a calm Cherry. "I'll compensate you generously for wasting your time, Cherry. I don't think I can marry..." Before he completed his statement, Cherry slapped him. He stood without moving an inch; his face turned to the side.
Without facing her, he continued. "I don't think I can marry you."
"Then look at me and say it again," Cherry demanded, after which Wale did as she had asked. He watched her, and she was still calm or trying to hide her emotions. Anyone would be upset after being told that three times. "I don't accept what you have just said. I will leave with Kind. Maybe you need more time to think about our relationship." She walked past Wale, bumping into his shoulder on purpose. She wanted to get away from him as much as possible before breaking down. When she got to the door, she turned back to look at Wale and asked how she could get out of the place.
"The driver who had picked you two will come tomorrow morning."
"How dare you!" Cherry shouted. "Ten years of my life, and you suddenly made a decision in three weeks of being away?"
Wale took a step towards her to calm her down, but she demanded he stand where he was. "So what? Now you want to be with Kind? All of a sudden, you're gay?"
When Wale didn't say a word, she lifted her hands in frustration, turning to look outside. She couldn't face him. "Unbelievable! I was right all along. That was why you asked for Kind wasn't it?"
Before Wale could respond, she stopped him with a hand gesture. "Don't say another word. I don't think I can take it." She turned back to Wale again, looking all guilty. "You feel sorry for me now? Offering me money for the ten years you have wasted my life!"
"Cherry, please calm down. I'm sorry, I really am, but our marriage will be miserable, don't you see? Kind has not influenced my decision as you may believe..." Wale hesitated, "You are the one who made me begin to question my feelings towards him." He quickly closed the gap between the two of them and gently held her by the shoulder. "I always loved you. I never was dishonest with my feelings towards you, neither did I waiver and set my eyes on another woman. Then, you made me wonder what it would be like to be with Kind." Letting her go, he concluded, "I was confused, and that's why I left to think."
After a long silence which seemed like an eternity to Wale, Cherry finally spoke. "You will never be happy with him. He can't give you a family as you've always wanted. Are you willing to let that dream go?"
Cherry watched Wale brush his fingers across his face in frustration then flinched when he reached the tear under his nose and stopped. "Your driver punched you in the face, I presume, and I'm sure you deserved it." Without thinking, Wale informed her that he and Todo had had a fight.
Scoffing, Cherry walked back to take a seat. She felt nauseous and dizzy. Everyone seemed to want Kind. What was so special about him anyway? Kind was just a regular guy who was a pushover and worked a regular job earning a regular salary, but two wealthy and handsome guys were fighting over him. Over him! What did Kind have that she didn't have herself? Cherry covered her eyes briefly, trying to hide her tears before finally breaking down.
Upon realising, Wale quietly walked towards her and sat beside her. He didn't say a word until her muffled cries became less. "I still insist on compensating you."
Cherry shot Wale an icy look. Her face read utter despair, but she didn't say a word as she turned to gaze at the floor. She seemed deep in thought, and after a while, she let out a heavy sigh, lifting her head to look at the ceiling. She wished her tears would stop falling from her eyes, but she couldn't stop them. She continued to cry in silence. "I guess this is it. This is what ten years of a relationship looks like; miserable, and it really hurts."
Wale wanted to embrace her, but who would welcome a hug from the person that hurt them? Saying sorry again would just sound cheap. "This is why I wanted Kind to come alone. I was hoping to speak to him first before talking to you."
Cherry returned her teary gaze to Wale. She could barely see him from the tears that kept blurring her vision. "So you could cheat on me with him? Did you perhaps learn a thing or two about dating a guy, a few tricks in bed since you were planning on getting down with him here? Is that it?" Wale didn't deny it, and that made her laugh. "You are so shameless. That was a rhetorical question. You could have lied, at least."
Standing up, Cherry asked him for a place to rest, and he walked her to one of the rooms upstairs. He stood by the door for some time after shutting it, his hand on his chest. He hadn't realized he had been holding his breath for a while. He wanted to calm down first before going to see Kind. He'd hoped he was still by the beach and had not heard their discussion.
Walking to the shared balcony that was next to Cherry's room, he took a sigh of relief when he saw Kind a distance away, his jeans rolled to his knees, standing bare feet as he took pictures of the oncoming waves, then another picture of himself with the scenery. He seemed so carefree and at peace with himself.
A sound of someone moving behind him startled Wale. It had been Cherry. "Is everything alright in the room?"
Cherry ignored him and walked to the balcony, trying to find out what Wale had been looking at, then scoffed. "I hate him so much. He took you away from me even before I had you. I should have never ignored the signs." Turning her gaze to Wale, she forced a smile, her eyes red and puffy. "I wanted to tell you myself before your friend blurts out about me. I'm four months pregnant."