Ayra's POV
I woke up because of the sunlight from my window. I still have to go to school. I got up and took a shower.
When I got downstairs, it was very quiet. Obviously, no one's around. That useless guy must still be sleeping upstairs.
I went to the kitchen and thought of something to cook. I saw a sticky note on the refrigerator, so I took it.
Ayra,
I went to school early. I already cooked.
I crumpled the sticky note and threw it away. I looked at the table. Indeed, he cooked, so I had my meal. After that, I took care of myself, and when I was done, I grabbed my bag and got in the car. I started it and stopped at the gate.
"Guard, what does the woman with Falcon look like last night?"
I know the guard knows this.
"Ah, ma'am," he stopped, recalling the woman's face. "She's fair-skinned, shoulder-length black hair and very dark."
"Does she have a mole on the side of her lips?"
"Yes, she does."
I was stunned for a moment because of his answer. Is he serious? Based on his description, it matches Kim.
I asked him again. "Does she often stay here?"
"Only last night. Whenever I see sir with a woman, it's always a different face. There's one woman he's always with."
Last night? What was Kim doing here? And who is Falcon's constant companion? Could it be Cassy?
"What does the constant companion look like?" I asked seriously.
He hesitated. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Sir never shows her face. But I'm sure you've seen her before. I'm also confused whether she still has the mole on her lips or not. They have the same body type."
I took a deep breath. "Guard, the next time you see that woman, just try to catch a glimpse of her face, even just a brief look."
"I will, ma'am."
I thanked him and started my car. While driving, I couldn't get all the information from the guard out of my mind.
What is Kim doing there? What's her purpose? Is the guard mistaken in describing Falcon's mistress? There are so many women, but Kim is the one with fair skin, shoulder-length hair, and a mole on the side of her lips.
Damn, why am I feeling so nervous? If she wasn't my husband's mysterious mistress, then who is she?
The guard said she was here last night. Did Kim and Bryx kiss? What the fuck?! But I don't want to jump to conclusions, especially when I have no certainty. She's my friend, and she's not even close to Falcon.
When I arrived at the university, I parked my car.
"Bad morning, Guard," I informed the guard.
He smiled, seemingly used to my mood. "Bad morning, ma'am."
I walked down the hallway towards Nicol's dorm. Instead of thinking about anything, I just knocked on my friend's door.
As always, Jean opened it.
"Hey, you're up early!" she said. "Did you bring a grumpy face as a gift for me?"
I rolled my eyes at her. "Come on. Where's Nicol?"
She laughed. Amused by my annoyance. "Nicol? She went to the library early because she had an assignment she didn't do well. She can't give the correct answer."
"Why don't we have an assignment?" I wondered.
"I think our strict professor gave it to her as punishment. Hahaha! Don't you like that? No assignment for us?"
I just nodded at her. "Let's visit Kim."
She grabbed her bag, and we walked to the second floor where Kim's dorm was. I want to observe her. When we arrived, Jean knocked, and Kim came up to us looking groggy. She was still rubbing her eyes, obviously just waking up.
"What's this?" she asked with her eyes half-closed.
"Are you a princess? Don't you plan to study?" Jean joked.
"Clown," she laughed a little. "Is there a problem?"
"We're just checking up on you, is that a problem?" I replied emotionlessly. "Get ready. We'll leave first. Seems like you just woke up."
I started walking ahead.
"Yeah, sure! Thanks for waking me up!" she shouted, and I heard the door close loudly behind her.
She couldn't be the one. She seems too innocent. She wouldn't do that to me. I accused my friend when I have a problem, I only rely on them.
"Did you eat?" I faced my companion.
"Not yet, you came early," she answered.
I smiled at her remark.
We went to the cafeteria.
Jean placed her order, so I just waited for her. She quickly got her food, and we started eating. While eating, I felt like someone poured water on me.
I didn't react immediately because I had no idea who did it. They're in college but still act like high school students.
I stood up and faced the woman with a cold reaction. She raised her eyebrows at me, clearly craving for my attention. Where did she find the nerve to do this to me?
"Enjoying the view, guys?" she asked the crowd, then she turned to me again. "Enjoying it, right?" I didn't answer her. I kept staring into her eyes. "Are you deaf?!" Again, I didn't reply. "Maybe you're wondering why I'm disrespecting you like this. Are you really studying? Do you have any dignity in yourself? You know what 'desperate' means, right? You know, but why do you still act this way? Come on, don't you plan to change yourself?"
Damn them. They keep using the word 'desperate.' Who is this woman? I don't even know her, but she acts like she has the right to talk to me this way. Where does she get the audacity? If she wants to behave like this and cause a scene, fine. I won't be stingy in giving her what she wants.
"Now it's your turn to speak," I ordered.
I held the woman's neck as she struggled to breathe. Her face turned red, and she couldn't speak properly. Some students stepped back due to what I did.
"Ayra, stop it!" Jean yelled at me, trying to pull the woman away from me.
I saw everyone in the cafeteria looking at us in disbelief.
"Get your hands off me," she managed to say.
"What's happening here?" a voice interrupted us.
I loosened my grip on the woman. The students crowded around, and I realized it was Falcon's voice. He and his friends were walking toward us. He was looking seriously at me, waiting for an answer.
"Is this your mistress, Mr. Falcon?" I asked and released the woman to Falcon.
She was almost choking, trying to catch her breath.
"You're getting into trouble again? Aren't you too old for that? Where are you taking your education?" Falcon said coldly.
"Trying to be self-righteous?" I retorted.
I could feel Ace's mocking gaze on me, and I wanted to ask him what his problem was. Laugh all you want, Ace.
"Ayra," Falcon caught my attention again as my focus shifted to Ace.
He gestured for me to face him. "I thought you left. I didn't realize you were still in front of me."
"We can talk about it in private so you won't feel embarrassed here."
I raised an eyebrow at his suggestion and scanned the other students, who were all watching us. It seemed like this guy standing in front of me was the subject of their attention.
"Such a scandal," I remarked. "You just arrived, right? You know what? You're the funnier one between us. You're the more embarrassed one because you're insisting that we have something when everyone here knows the whole story. You keep making baseless accusations."
He was taken aback by my words, and his friends were about to intervene, but he stopped them. They seemed to know Bryxwell Falcon well, huh? They must've known that he didn't like it when he was angry.
"Stay out of it. This is between me and my wife," he told them.
Oh?
What crossed this guy's mind to tell everyone that I'm his wife when he dislikes the idea himself? He doesn't want people to know. I don't either. I don't want them to find out that I married this kind of man standing right in front of me.
"Oh my god, are they married?!"
"Oh, they don't look like they get along! They're actually married!"
"Why are they married?!"
"Maybe Bryxwell is still joking around!"
"Can't you ask the 'are you deaf' question? It's just been said that I'm serious here. You're really dumb! Stop spreading gossip!"
"Idiot!"
"They don't even acknowledge each other at the university. Now we see them arguing, so we'd never think they're married. They have no respect for each other."
A guy's voice declared, but I ignored him.
"What are you talking about, Falcon? Don't create more issues, especially involving me. You don't want your girls to stay away from you, right? It's the same for me," I teased him. "I'm not your wife," I emphasized.
I would embarrass him now. If I act stupid in private, why would I do the same in public? I did it on purpose to shame him.
Traces of hurt and anger were evident in his eyes, but I didn't want to believe it, so I let it go.
He took a deep breath, running out of things to say. "Can you just tell what really happened?"
"It was a trip," I answered. "My hand was itching. I suddenly choked the girl. Are you satisfied now? You're so gullible to believe what I said."
"Because your hand was itching? You're in college, Ayra!"
"Damn, you're really gullible," I said.
When it comes to me, he's blind. Blaming someone else is enough for him.
I looked at the girl I choked, who couldn't move anymore. When she saw my gaze on her, she stepped back.
Crazy.
"You're—"
"Are you done?" I cut him off. "I shouldn't even bother arguing with you since your mind is closed. Didn't you consider that I wouldn't hurt anyone without reason? How could you think of such a thing when you have a closed mind?" I sighed. "Falcon here, it's like only his cerebellum is in his head. Unfortunately, he hasn't grasped the largest part of the brain yet."
He couldn't respond, and someone suddenly screamed.
"My god, what happened, Ayra?!" Nicol shouted, looking at my entire appearance. "Oh, you're wet? Did someone pour water on you again?"
I saw Falcon examining my appearance. What now?
"Stop the argument," Ace interjected. "Both of you are acting like kids. You're just embarrassing yourselves in front of everyone. It's ridiculous."
I got annoyed by what he said, not because it wasn't true. I've been annoyed by his presence since earlier, so I just wanted him out of my sight.
"Do you second the motion?" I asked him.
"Do you need an essay from me? I'll explain," he answered.
I smirked. "Looks like Falcon is jealous, so distance yourself."
I heard Falcon groan and storm out of the cafe without hesitation. It seems he's done arguing with me. Good. I'm also tired of his face. I got used to only seeing him at night.
"Can I sit here?" Ace asked when we returned to our table with Jean.
He was really annoyed. He was very aggressive because my husband didn't know he was my ex-boyfriend.
"Ace Grande, stay away from me. You're the only one enjoying what you're doing," I said with irritation.
He went back to his friends, pretending nothing happened. Annoying.
I ate.
Jean and Nicol sat down in front of me. The students returned to their own lives.
"It's your birthday tomorrow," Nicol opened the conversation. "Shall we celebrate?"
"No, tomorrow is Saturday. I'll stay in your dorm. I'm tired of Falcon's face," I answered.
"Celebrate your special day with your family. I knew it would be a party," she insisted.
"I don't want to."
She pouted and just agreed with what I wanted. I knew they just wanted me to be happy on my birthday, but I didn't want to celebrate. I didn't want to have a party.
"Jean, where's your necklace? It's a symbol of our friendship," Nicol noticed when she looked at Jean.
Jean checked her neck. "I forgot it in the bathroom. I'll get it later."
After we finished, we went to our room. The professor arrived, so we listened to the lecture. After a few hours, the class ended.
"I'll pass by the library," I informed them.
They didn't object. I wanted to finish my homework quickly so I wouldn't have anything to do at home.
I am now walking down the hallway to the library. It's far from our room. As I walk, I look around, thinking I might see Falcon with his new mistress.
I didn't see Falcon, so I kept walking. There were no students around. It seemed like everyone was in their rooms. To my surprise, someone pulled me into a corner and pinned me against the wall.
"What are you doing?" I asked angrily. I didn't want to show that I was surprised by him.
"Our conversation earlier wasn't proper, so I thought we could handle it this way."
Ace suddenly kissed me. He moved his lips, and I didn't know what to do. Should I push him away? Should I respond to his kiss? I thought about what to do, but eventually, I responded as well.
After a few seconds, I sensed a presence. I immediately felt nervous.
"Kim," I whispered, pulling Ace away from me.
"Ah, s-sorry. I didn't mean to."
There was a teasing smile on her lips. I didn't know what to say. Should I explain? What should I do?
I left Ace and dragged Kim with me.
"You kissed Ace?" she asked incredulously.
"Ah, yes," I replied hesitantly. "And it was wrong. I-I cheated."
"But you wanted it, right? And you don't even consider yourselves married to Bryxwell, so your marriage is meaningless. I don't even know if that counts as cheating or what. Let's call it payback to your husband, hehe."
"I don't need to seek revenge. I was carried away."
"But you kissed his bestfriend!" she shouted with laughter. "Gosh, the kissing scene was so beautiful—"
"Kissing scene? About what?"
We paused our walk as we bumped into Falcon and his friends. It seemed like they were heading to the library. He looked serious, waiting for an answer.
"Ah!" Kim thought of a reason. "I love Kdramas! I showed Ayra a kissing scene. You know? Kissing scenes are the... best?" She laughed awkwardly. "Girl's talk, Bryx. Just ignore us—"
Kim couldn't continue as Falcon
passed by her. They continued walking, and it looked like he wasn't interested in what my friend was saying.
"Your husband seems scary when he's suspicious," Kim breathed a sigh of relief. "Good thing I'm good at making excuses."
Hmm? She's right.
Continuation...