Chapter 19
Not Pretty Enough
"I just wanted to be friends with you, but you're bullying me." He said to Ara while frowning, how dramatic. Ara thought amusedly. "Don't take it seriously, Jonathan; I'm just kidding around, okay." That lightened up his mood, "Really? so I'm not an ugly monkey?" Ara gave him a look.
"Still, you are." Maddie and Cat laughed harder again. Ara can be savage sometimes. This is the first time they saw her tease someone, and that's Jonathan. Okay, what happened when they were alone here? They wondered.
"That's really harsh," he said and pouted. "I'm not helping you anymore." Ara chuckled dryly and raised an eyebrow. "Sure, Maddie and Cat were here already. We don't need your help." Cattie walked closer to Jonathan and tapped his shoulder.
"Don't push your luck on her, Nathan. She got a long day, so don't bug her." His brow furrowed, "What happened?" he asked curiously. Cattie shrugged her shoulder; he didn't know what to say, and Ara didn't mention it to him. So, she has no right to tell what happened.
"Cattie was right. Don't bug her today, Nathan." Maddie agreed and tapped his shoulder as she moved past him. She walked closer to Ara, who was silently cleaning the plates now, but she knew she was listening to them.
"Okay, okay then. Since you guys had a rough day, I'll cook for you all. Did the three of you take your lunch?" Cattie's eyes widened in excitement.
"Actually, no, we got stuck with our work, so we didn't get the chance to have our lunch," Cattie answered. Jonathan was one of the chefs of the palace, one of the best, actually. He really cooks so well.
"Mrs. O'Neil wasn't mean. Did she let you work late? And even skipped a meal?"
"This is our punishment for disobeying her, that's it, you know now the reason. Can we stop talking and work?" Ara said and looked at him. Ara lost it; this man won't give up seeking answers to his questions. It's quite a little annoying.
"Punishment for what?" Ara glared at him; he was throwing a lot of questions that shouldn't be asked.
"Don't tell me, you don't know what happened earlier?" Maddie asked him, Jonathan think deeply, what happened a while ago? After he had helped cook, he left the palace and went to the City to buy something. Did something happen?
"No, I went into the city and just came back now." He answered. "Oh, I see. If you don't know it now, you'll know later." Maddie said; Jonathan nodded his head in understanding.
"Okay, I won't talk any longer now then; it will just delay your work. I'll go and cook for lunch." Finally, he realised that. Ara murmured. She saw him remove the gloves in his hand and plastered a big smile.
"Thank you, Nathan." Maddie and the cat thanked him. That's so kind of him, while Ara just gave him a nod and resumed what she was doing. "What a cold lady," he thought before leaving.
'I heard that, idiot.' Ara wanted to say that, but she forbade herself from doing so. If he knew that she could read his mind, it wouldn't be fun anymore. She admitted this guy could make her smile. She's comfortable with him but not attracted.
"He's really kind; I wish he were my mate, but he's not. Anyway, let's do our job." Cattie said when Jonathan was finally out of their sight. Maddie chuckled softly, "Silly girl, don't rush everything, Cat; you'll find your mate at the right time and place." She advice.
'You'll find your mate in the right time and place?' Ara wished that's what happened, but it's definitely not what happened. She found her mate at the wrong time and place; he's not even the right person for her. How? How will she love the person who killed her family? How will she go to love the person whom she loathed the most?
Forgiving and forgetting will never be an option. She'll never forgive him. Ara tightened her grip on the plate she was holding; Maddie saw that. "Ara? Are you alright?" She asked her worriedly.
"Yeah, I'm fine." She answered and smiled a little. They continued washing the dishes until they finally finished it; they were drying the silverware using a clean towel.
"We should hurry up, I smell the delicious food coming from the other room. Geez, I'm really starving. What time is it already?" Cattie said while frowning. Clearly, she was really hungry. Ara glanced at the wall clock: quarter two in the afternoon.
It's really late.
"You're always hungry. Are you really a vampire?" Maddie questioned her with a grin playing on her lips. Cattie frowned even more, "I am; I'm always hungry because I'm single!" Huh? Single? What's the connection?
"Come on, Cat. Are you hungry for food or love?" That's a straightforward question, Ara thought amusedly. Cattie's mood suddenly changed; she sneered widely.
"Both, haha. Okay, what I mean is, I don't have a lot of restored energy in my body."
"Not enough energy?" Ara asked her. This is the first time she heard that vampires are known to have superhuman strength; they don't easily get tired.
"Uhm, yeah. I'm not really a full vampire. My father was full-blooded, but my mom wasn't; she's a dhampir. They were mates and fell in love, and then they had me and my brother. So, that's why I easily drain my energy." She explained. Ara nodded her head. She understood it.
"I see; you're an uneven hybrid." The first time she saw Cattie, Ara said Cattie looked more human than a vampire, so that explains why she looked like one.
"Yeah, but that's alright. I'm still a vampire, though, and that matters." Ara smiled and glanced at Maddie. "I'm just a normal vampire with a beautiful face and personality." She immediately answered. Ara chuckled. She's not asking anything yet, but Maddie said that.
"Wow, a beautiful face and personality? Where is that? Why I can't see it?" Cattie teased her. Maddie playfully glared at her, "Oh, Cat, my dear friend, are you blind? My beauty was from here to here." Maddie touched her head and toe, then winked at Cattie.
"Not a blind but also not a liar. You're not that pretty, Maddie." She continued to tease her friend. Maddie was pretty. Cattie was teasing her. Ara's smiling face turned blank when she heard the sentence, "You're not that pretty."
She remembered her mate said that, it's freaking terrible to hear.