The coffee shop bustled with people in a rush to grab their drinks before starting their day. Sarah sat at the farthest table and her expression blank as she observed the crowd.
Snapping from her thoughts, her friend Weyna arrived, breathless and flustered.
"I'm sorry I'm late," she panted. "It's just Damien…he insists on following me, but he's taking forever to get ready." Damien stood next to Weyna with a big smile on his face.
Sarah gave him a polite nod before turning her attention back to her friend. She smiled, the awkward one as she looked at her one and only best friend, Weyna. Being friends since kindergarten, their friendship had lasted until this moment. "It's okay," Sarah said. "I'm just glad you're here."
"How are you?" Weyna asked, happy to see Sarah again after a week. Yes, it had only been a week, but they used to see each other much more frequently before. However, since Sarah had been dealing with her court matter, she had started to isolate herself more.
"I'm doing good," Sarah replied. Her face looked brighter these days after her court case had settled. She wished her relationship with her late boyfriend had ended alongside the court case. "As I told you on the phone… I had an interview at Teda Group today." She smiled, but her eyes suddenly caught Damien, who had been looking at her intensely. It was so awkward she immediately averted her eyes.
Weyna stood up from the table. "Ah yes, I'm really happy for you, Sarah. But hold on a moment, I need to go to the bathroom. I've been holding it for a while now."
"Sure, take your time," Sarah replied, fidgeting in her seat. She seemed uneasy and her eyes darted around the coffee shop.
"Sarah," Damien said, reaching out to hold her hand.
Sarah pulled away, a look of discomfort was all over her face.
"Excuse me, Mr. Damien," Sarah said, moving her chair slightly away from the table. "I respect you as Weyna's boyfriend so please remember to respect me as her friend."
"Sarah, please understand that I only started dating Weyna because I have feelings for you," Damien said, repeating the words he had told her before, which had angered her.
"That's even more disrespectful, Mr. Damien," Sarah spoke up, cutting through the tension. "I love Weyna, and if you had this intention from the beginning, then leave her alone. Otherwise, I will make sure she leaves you."
Sarah looked around the coffee shop, feeling increasingly uncomfortable as people began to stare at their table. She didn't like being the centre of attention and wanted to escape the situation as soon as she could.
Standing up, she decided to not stay longer but Damien didn't let her as he held onto her hand.
"Let go of my hand," Sarah demanded, pulling away from Damien's grip. "I said, let go."
"I'm sorry, Sarah. I didn't want to do this, but I really love you. Can't you give me a chance?" Damien refused to let go of her hand, enjoying the attention they were getting. He hoped the pressure would make Sarah agree to be with him.
"Not a chance," Sarah said firmly, gritting her teeth. "Please stop being disrespectful towards me and Weyna. It would be better if you explained this to her and never showed your face in front of me again."
"Explain what?" Weyna asked, approaching the table. She was surprised to find her boyfriend holding onto her best friend's arm and received the attention from all the other customers in the coffee shop.
Sarah was stunned and felt like she had done something wrong, even though she hadn't. "Weyna," she stuttered. "I don't feel well. I think I need to get some rest before heading to my interview."
"Wait, explain what's going on first," Weyna said, looking at both Damien and Sarah. "Don't leave me hanging like this." She came back as she forgot to take her phone, but never expected things to go like this.
"You're right, Weyna. I need to tell you the truth," Damien said, turning to face her. He paused, glancing at Sarah, who was starting to look pale. "I want to break up with you."
Weyna was taken aback, her eyebrows raised in surprise. She looked at Sarah, then back at Damien. "Just like that? Suddenly?"
"I'm sorry, Weyna," Damien said, his voice softening. "The truth is, I approached you because I'm interested in Sarah."
Sarah's hand shot out and connected with Damien's cheek, causing a loud smack. She was speechless with anger and frustration at Damien's audacity to admit he was a liar and a cheat in front of so many people.
Sarah was breathing hard as she held Weyna's hand. "Can we get out of here? It's hard to breathe," she said.
However, Weyna was still stunned by the whole situation and didn't respond immediately. Her eyes were fixated on Damien, and she looked ready to pounce on him. "So..." she began, taking a step forward. "You're dating me just because you're interested in her?" she scoffed. "And you think you'll succeed?"
Damien didn't like the look on Weyna's face, and he frowned. "What's with the look?" he asked.
"You won't succeed, even if you were the last man on earth," Weyna whispered in Damien's ear.
Suddenly, Sarah let out a scream as Damien swiftly moved his hand to wrap around Weyna's neck. The latter struggled to breath as she slapped Damien's hand in an attempt to release herself. Strangled coughs escaped her throat, her face starting to turn blue.
Panicking, Sarah reached forward as well, attempting to pry Damien's hand off her friend's neck
Damien smirked. "Oh, come on. She's fine," he said dismissively, gesturing towards Weyna who was still coughing and gasping for air.
"Fine? You choked her! You're hurting her!" Sarah shouted, tears streaming down her face. She was shocked and never expected he would stoop that low.
"You know I'm joking…" Damien smirked.
Just as Damien was about to continue with his twisted words, they were interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming from behind them.
Noah, the man who looked smart with his office attire suddenly poured a glass of coffee right on top of Damien's head.
Noah, who had observed the whole scene earlier, felt so annoyed. His morning coffee was interrupted but what made him interested in the whole thing was, the woman, Sarah. The woman, who he had been keeping an eye on.
"Oops, I'm joking," Noah copying Damien's earlier words with a sly grin on his face.