This is not in accordance with the plan. Clea thought that by living with Justin, she would have more opportunities to get closer to him. They could eat at the same table, watch Netflix series together, and go to work together. However, the opposite happened.
Clea sat with her knees bent on the living room sofa. She hadn't seen Justin since waking up until coming home from the office.
The doorbell rang. Clea ran to the living room, hoping it was a sign of Justin's return.
A servant opened the door. Clea's happy face turned gloomy when she saw her hope fly away. It was not Justin who came, but his assistant, Eric. Only Eric.
"Where is Justin?" Clea asked, checking the front.
"He is still at the office, Miss," Eric answered as he walked away from Clea.
"Is he working overtime?" Clea asked again.
"Uh, yes." Eric told the maid to fetch Justin's suit while he was busy avoiding Clea.
"I heard Steven will announce his candidacy this afternoon. Will Justin come?"
"Uh, yes. Of course," Eric answered.
Shortly after, the maid came with several bags of clothes. She handed them over to Eric.
"What is this? Why did he ask you to bring so many clothes? Is he leaving town?" Clea sneered.
"It seems so," Eric said. "Mr. Justin asked me to give a message to Miss, that he has prepared a hotel room for her. Here's the room key."
Eric handed Clea a card. Clea looked confused and felt dumped.
"I will excuse myself now, Miss. Please help pack Miss Clea's clothes!" Eric ordered the maid.
"Yes, sir," the maid answered.
Eric left the house. Meanwhile, Clea was still silent. She felt very unhappy with Justin's attitude, which seemed like he didn't need her.
"Just wait, Justin! Someday, I will make you beg me," Clea vowed.
Finally, Justin and Bella met at the apartment. They sat on the sofa, which was considered the best place for an intense conversation. Although actually, Justin preferred the meeting to take place at a fancy restaurant.
Bella told him about her first day in the courtroom. Including the moment when she met Kheil. That case made Justin understand why Kheil couldn't be reached for several days.
"Did not he tell you about this issue?" Bella asked.
"Uh, no. Our relationship has been a little strained lately," Justin said.
Bella gave him a strange look. As if accusing him of something inappropriate.
"Is it because of me?" Bella's question clarified her suspicion.
"Don't get me wrong! He and I are just close friends," Justin denied.
"What do you think I'm thinking? I'm just asking because he said he doesn't like seeing me with you," Bella explained again.
The apartment suddenly fell silent for a moment. Bella felt that there was something odd with her statement.
"Are you sure he also thinks that your relationship is only limited to friends?" Bella asked later.
"Of course! Kheil couldn't possibly think our relationship is more than that. We are honorable men," Justin defended Kheil and himself firmly.
"Thank goodness then," Bella said with a big smile.
"Why else? Your smile is suspicious," Justin said.
Bella approached Justin's face. Then, she said, "Nothing. I'm just grateful that my co-worker is a functioning man."
Justin grinned. "Shouldn't you be wary of that? I might be dangerous to you."
Bella spontaneously withdraws and covers her chest with both hands. "Don't you dare touch me or I'll break both of your hands!"
"How sweet," mutters Justin.
"What?"
"Forget it!"
The doorbell rings. Justin stands up, straightens his jacket, and says, "Change your clothes! We are going to Steven's press conference."
"Oh God. Are you always like this? You never give me time to make decisions," protests Bella.
"Because you are paid for it," Justin replies curtly.
"Hey, I have not even had a chance to spend your money yet."
Justin opens the apartment door, welcoming Eric as if it were his own place.
"That is your problem. Thank you, Eric." Justin accepts the paper bag from Eric.
"No problem, Sir. I will wait in the car," Eric replies before leaving the two of them.
"Wear this dress!" Justin hands Bella one paper bag, while he takes the other to the bathroom.
Bella rolls her eyes, looking annoyed at Justin. "I'm starting to hate him."
Both of them look harmonious in matching light brown outfits. This time, Bella lets her hair down and doesn't put any decorations on it. However, the natural color of her makeup makes the simplicity look perfect. Justin is the same. He doesn't need to bother with his hair at the salon just to attend an event that is considered unimportant. Justin combs his hair back and straightens both sides.
They leave the apartment building with confidence. The attitude continues until they arrive at the designated building for Steven.
As they get out of the car, they are bombarded by journalists and blinding camera flashlights. Almost all the journalists ask Justin's opinion on his father's candidacy. Suddenly, someone realizes Bella's presence and immediately bombards her with questions related to their relationship.
"Is not she Bella Aveline, the prosecutor who once caught Jofran? What's your relationship with Bella? Are you a couple?" the female journalist asks.
"Does this mean that Mr. Steven has the support of the CatWell district prosecutor's office?" another journalist asks.
"Please give us your answer, Mr. Justin! Are you dating?" the journalist presses again.
None of them answer the questions. The journalists start to become pushy. Bella feels cornered. Justin quickly embraces Bella and leads her into the building.
The unwelcoming reception for Bella apparently doesn't stop there. Inside the building, she meets people who ruin her mood. Jofran and Clea sneer at her with unpleasant facial expressions. Although she already anticipated their presence and predicted the attitude she would receive, Bella still feels uncomfortable being there
Steven's speech had begun. Justin and Bella stood side by side on the stage. There were also several officials and high-ranking executives from some companies around them. Bella observed each one. Possibly, those faces were members of the R-Eyes organization.
"Hey." Justin's fingers caressed Bella's cheek. "Actually, I also want to escape from this place. Hold on for a little longer!" Justin whispered.
Justin withdrew and smiled, as if he wanted people to think he had whispered a romantic sentence to Bella. Bella responded with the same sweet smile.
She then took Justin's hand and leaned her head affectionately on his shoulder. Then, Bella whispered, "You really understand how I feel. If I had to choose, I would choose to sit at a Chinese restaurant table, enjoying a bowl of spicy noodles, rather than facing that bastard and your mistress."
"I kicked her out of my house," Justin whispered.
"Why? Was her service unsatisfactory, Hon?"
"Yeah. She is a bad player."
The sound of thunderous applause filled the air. Bella and Justin, who were clueless, joined in the excitement. The press conference ended, and Steven stepped down from the stage, greeting everyone, including them.
Justin walked ahead of Bella, following Steven. In the meantime, Clea positioned herself beside her.
"You two look so romantic," Clea praised.
"Thank you, although I know that is not a compliment," Bella replied.
Clea smiled. "Is it that obvious?" Clea stopped in her tracks, crouching down to face Bella. "I want to give you some advice. Before you fall too deeply in love with him, you'd better let him go. Because in the end, he will be mine. Rather than getting your heart broken later, is not it better to stop now?"
Bella grinned. "Thank you for your advice. However, it seems that advice is more suitable for you. Justin and I have a strong connection. It's better to save your hopes before reality throws you off the cliff of imagination. Oh, that must hurt a lot," Bella joked.
Clea glared at her. Firmly, she said, "We will see! Who will shed blood tears between us?"
"Who is afraid?" Bella replied, full of confidence.
After attending the event, Bella and Justin went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. They ordered the same two dishes, a bowl of spicy noodles and beer. Bella was happy, and at the same time, she did not expect Justin to fulfill her words earlier.
"Have you found any suspicious murder case files yet?" Justin asked.
"Not yet. I haven't had the chance to look for it," Bella lifted her chopsticks while sighing. "Ah, I'm so busy today. You know, I just entered my new office, but Jimin has brought me a mountain of work that needs to be completed this week."
"Jimin?" Justin interrupted.
"Um, he hi my new assistant," Bella explained as she continued eating. "What did the prosecutor actually do before me? He probably came to the office to sleep and watch Netflix all day."
Justin couldn't stop smiling as he listened to her rambling.
"Do you have the Oximell employee data? Ludwig confiscated all my files."
"I will send it to you by email," Justin replied.
Bella's phone rang in the middle of their conversation. Jimin called to inform her of a discovery of a dead body on the riverbank. Bella hurriedly left her dinner. Justin followed behind. They drove to the location of the body's discovery.
Upon arriving, Bella immediately met with Jimin. Without any small talk, Jimin escorted Bella to the riverbank, while Justin could only wait behind the barrier.
“Oh, my God!”
Bella was shocked to see the terrible condition of the man. Both hands and feet were tied up. Tape was stuck to the victim's mouth. The body was full of wounds, making it difficult to identify by sight. There was no identification. The police took him for autopsy.
***