"What?" Jessica quickly swallowed her potatoes before it choked her.
"You love wearing red, so I bought you a red gown on my way here. You'll love it. I've already imagined it for you, so it'll fit you well," he concluded.
"You must be crazy to do that before asking me. Take the gown to your girlfriend as you go back to Korea. I'm not going to the reunion," she declared and stood her ground.
"But I'm going," Junho retorted.
"Good for you. Send my regards to them," Jessica told him.
"I'll also drive you there myself, so don't worry about anything," Junho smiled.
Jessica was going crazy. What does he want with her to keep pestering her?! She said she doesn't want to go. If he wants to go there so bad, then he should go and let her be.
"Why would you do that?" Jessica asked him.
"Why are you so scared to go to the reunion? I would be with you all the time too," he snorted.
"What are you? Tom Cruise?" Jessica laughed, but he didn't laugh.
"I'll pick you up by four, so be ready by then," he said with an unfazed tone and began to eat his food.
"Come, you'll take your car to the place without me in it," Jessica replied with indifference.
"That's fine. You can be on top of the car since that's what you'll love," he smirked.
"Junho!!" Jessica fumed with anger and stabbed her potatoes.
***
Leo cleared his throat for the umpteenth time that day.
He glanced at his wife, who was busy reading a romantic book. She had been in that position for hours without standing up. The house was silent. Everyone was busy doing one thing or the other. Dominic was asleep, while Logan and Cedric stepped out of the house to attend to some things. Matilda was indoors playing video games with Ophelia.
The two were not friends but had to relate to each other to pair up for the video game. Ronny was called home by his father for a serious discussion. At a time like that, Leo would have been bored, but he wasn't. In fact, he had been gawking at his pretty wife for hours and kept clearing his throat for her to notice him.
It was as if he was invisible to her, like he didn't exist in the living room. Abi finally dropped the book in her hand to pick up her phone, which was ringing.
"Yes, Julian," was the first sentence that came out of her mouth when she placed the phone to her ear. Leo furrowed his brow and wished he could hear what the bastard was telling her.
"Are you back?" he asked her.
"Not yet. I don't know when I'll be leaving here," she told him over the phone.
She paused when she couldn't hear anything from his end again. She realized her battery was flat. She heaved a sigh and got up from the sofa. Leo quickly shut his eyes and pretended to be meditating when he felt her eyes on him.
"Are you hungry?" she asked him, and he shot his eyes open immediately.
"Of course," Leo replied arrogantly. "You can't just be sitting in a place all day. You should be exercising once in a while, so my baby doesn't end up like you."
"Oh, please," Abi rolled her eyes and wore her flip-flops.
She dropped her phone on the table and walked into the kitchen. She bent over the slab and took a deep sigh.
She was jerked out of her subconscious when she heard a deep voice behind her. "What's wrong?" her husband asked.
"Nothing," she replied with a soft voice.
"Do you want me to help you?" he asked, and she quickly widened her eyes.
"No! Just wait for me outside. What do you want to eat?"
"Anything you cook would be fine," he replied and watched her chuckle softly.
"I want to eat popcorn and have a cold apple juice. I don't know if you would want that before we eat a proper meal," Abi reasoned.
"Why would your husband eat such?" Leo asked her with a stern tone.
"I don't cook for you anymore. The last time I cooked for you—"
"I was going to eat it," Leo cut in.
"Did you?" Abi scolded him.
"Did you know the time I got up to cook that food for you? I felt bad because you were eating noodles after such a long day at work and cooked the meal only for you to give it to your friends."
"I didn't give it to them. They took it," Leo corrected her.
"Whatever…move," she told him and stood on her toes to take the corn from the upper cabinet.
Leo watched her with a smirk and furrowed his brows when she wanted to fall. He quickly caught her in his arms and frowned at her. What if she had fallen when he wasn't there?
"Are you trying to turn into Superman?" he asked angrily.
"What do you want to take?" he asked her.
"The corn," she muttered to him.
"What?" Leo asked again. He heard her before, but he wanted her to cultivate the habit of speaking confidently when talking.
"The corn," she said.
"Speak up when you're talking to anyone. There's freedom of speech," he told her, and saw her roll her eyes.
"Thanks," Abi took the corn from him quickly and added, "I need some sugar and salt too."
Leo heaved a sigh and took the packet of sugar and salt for her.
"Brown sugar, not white," Abi told him.
"Not that salt. Granulated salt," Abi scolded him.
Leo could swear that she was having fun telling him what to choose and what to ignore. Abi smiled widely as she watched her husband obey her. She thanked him and turned on the stove.
"Why didn't you go on a date with your fiancée?" Abi asked softly.
"Do you want me to go?" Leo asked her back. "I have no right not to tell you that. She's your fiancée. You're keeping me here for the baby. It's not as if you have feelings for me; I can't—" Abi had to gulp her spit after seeing his face darken with displeasure.
"The popcorn will be ready soon," Abi said and took the oil.
She put a little in the small pot and put the corn in it. She then added the salt. She stirred it together and added some sugar to it. "Isn't the sugar too much for the popcorn? I don't eat sugar," Leo complained.
"Do you want to make it instead?" Abi asked.
"No," Leo replied. Leo had a good look at her and watched her expression carefully. He took his bottom lip in and leaned in to whisper into her ear, "How do you like last night's gift?"
Abi froze and pretended not to hear what he was talking about. "I'm busy," she gave an excuse immediately. She could hear the corn popping already.
"Don't you remember what you told me to help you with last night, Abi?" Leo asked her with a smirk.
"Jerk," she muttered under her breath.
"Jerk?!" Leo scoffed and replied, "You told me to help you…" Abi wanted to hear it so much from him, but he stopped. Why did he stop? She wanted to know, but she couldn't be the first person to talk about it. No! Never.
"Did you do it?" Abi asked him.
"Do what?" Leo asked.
"What I asked you to help me with?" Abi asked and stared at him. Her heart began to beat faster as she looked at him.
"Of course. I'm your husband. I should be the one to massage your breasts," Leo blurted out. Abi was shocked, and she began to cough immediately.
"Here," she quickly passed his popcorn and juice to him.
Leo watched his wife run away in the blink of an eye.
'She's so cute', he thought and smiled. He began to eat the popcorn after realizing it was just perfect. Yes, he doesn't eat sweets, but it was his wife who made it for him. Of course, he would eat it all.
He sipped his apple juice slowly as he remembered what he did to her last night. He chuckled as the picture of her soft breasts flashed in his head.
"Leo," Ophelia was already behind him. Leo frowned when he saw her. She was dressed indecently and was going to be stark naked soon. He knew that because she was wearing nothing underneath—a see-through gown.
The first hand of the gown was lying idly on her shoulder while she was already sliding the second hand down her shoulder.
"Stop!" Leo roared and looked at her angrily.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Don't break up with me, Leo. I love you," she cried and ran into his arms.
"I don't love you," Leo told her and pushed her away from him in disgust.
"I swear I didn't sleep with Santiago. He raped me!" Ophelia began to sob.
"That didn't look like rape. You were in your right senses when he was fucking you, Ophelia. I've never liked you," Leo told her harshly.
"Yes, loved!" Leo stated the obvious. "I like someone else now, and I have a family."
"Who's that?" Ophelia roared with fury.
"Have a good life," Leo patted her back and walked out of the kitchen.
"Aargh!!" Ophelia screamed and began to cry.
"You didn't see my sister, uncle," Ava pouted as she dragged her uncle's bag to his jeep.
"I don't need to see her. I can call her on WhatsApp to see her. Besides, she told me she doesn't want to see me yet unless I'm married," Uncle Wayne joked.
"Stop saying that, Wayne," Ava's mom scolded her brother.
"I'm joking, Whitney," Uncle Wayne laughed and hugged his sister
"You should have seen Abigail. When was the last time you saw her?" Whitney asked her brother.
"She's in France. I would have loved to see her, trust me," Uncle Wayne replied with a smile.
"Hm," Whitney hissed and watched her brother get into his car.
"Please take Ava to the supermarket at the junction," Whitney remembered and called for her daughter.
"Mom! I'm not ready to go there yet," Ava gave an excuse. She was waiting for Michael to take her on a date that afternoon. He had promised to take her on the date because she had been studying hard.
"C'mon, Ava," Uncle Wayne honked.
Ava reluctantly got into the jeep with a frown.
"Who wears such nice clothes to the supermarket?" Ava muttered with a frown.
"Ava Marshall," her mom heard her and replied with a smile.
"I'll text you the ingredients and food stuff to get before you get there. Call me if you don't get it. I may forget as soon as I go in," her mom said.
"Mom!" Ava yelled.
"I'll send it now," her mom laughed and waved at her brother. Uncle Wayne honked and drove away quickly.
Whitney held her stomach and shut her eyes tightly. Her lashes were shaking, and she screamed out in pain. She dashed into the room to take her medicine but slipped and hit her head on the glass table in the living room.
Blood was oozing from her head and formed a pool within seconds. She became unconscious within seconds, and the darkness engulfed her.
**
Ava bit her lips and stared at her phone like a fool. All the boys were gawking at her like she was their favorite snack. She told her mom! She told her mom!! She wasn't supposed to come to the supermarket yet. Not with the clothes on her body.
It was meant to be worn for a date, but to be worn to buy things at the supermarket.
"Hey," a guy approached her.
Ava knew he would come because he had been staring at her for some time now. He was the only one who looked like a decent guy among the rest of the guys who were already raping her with their eyes.
"Hi," Ava said to him.
"I'm Philip," the guy introduced himself.
"Ava," Ava replied.
Most girls would begin to blush after hearing his voice and realizing he was handsome, but not Ava. In fact, she was proud of the fact that she was indeed pretty.
"They could come!" Ava thought.
"Actually, I wanted to let you know that you were beautiful," he smiled at her.
"Thank you for reminding me of my beauty," Ava responded.
"Oh," Philip replied. He was aware of the fact that she knew she was beautiful.
"Are you single?" he asked.
"No," Ava replied. "I have a more handsome boyfriend. I will be going on a date with him soon."
"In the supermarket?" he laughed.
"Of course not," Ava was embarrassed.
"I had to run some errands for my mom," Ava explained.
"Then, how about letting me accompany you till your boyfriend comes to take you out?" Philip offered.
"Sure," Ava said.
She began to call her mom because she had waited for ten minutes. That's the highest level of her patience.
'Why the hell isn't Michael here yet?', Ava asked in her mind and hissed.
"I'm sorry," Ava apologized to Philip.
"I have to go back home now," Ava said.
"Are you sure it's not because I'm with you? Do I make you nervous?" Philip asked.
"Of course not," Ava liked his outspokenness. He was just like her.
They would fit so much, but too bad she already had a boyfriend.
"Then, allow me to drop you home. That way, you'll make up for the failed promise of yours," Philip said.
"Fine," Ava agreed.
"Great," Philip replied.
Ava was not surprised to see that he was a rich kid after she saw the model of his car. He had a Lambo, and he was so young.
Michael didn't even have a car yet. Even though she liked good things in life, she still loved her boyfriend. Love first, car later.
Michael had a car before, but his parents seized it after he crashed it on the third day after the day of purchase. Ava heard it was also a Lambo, even though she had never seen it before. She believed it because Michael was a rich kid too; he just doesn't show his richness.
"So, how far is your house from here?" Ava heard the guy ask.
"It's not far, trust me," Ava chuckled and entertained him with small talk. She didn't know she could feel so comfortable around him and began to tell him more about herself. They soon arrived at her house, and she stepped out of the car herself.
"What?" she asked when she saw him frown.
"It's my car. I'm supposed to get down to open the door for the princess," Philip pouted.
"Maybe another time, my prince," Ava bowed playfully and ran into the house.
As soon as she got to the living room, she let out a scream and staggered back. She rushed to her mother and called for an ambulance immediately. Her hands began to shake so much that she feared she would die soon. She began to punch in her sister's number and placed it on her ear.
"Where is the freaking ambulance?!" she cried in her head.
"I'm not yet home, Ava!" Abi roared from the phone. Ava had been disturbing her about coming over to see her.
"That's not what's important now!" Ava yelled back.
"Yes! Focus on your studies. That's what's important right now. Don't worry, baby. I've ordered many things for you. When you come over, I'll—"
"Mom has collapsed!" Ava interrupted.
"What?" Abi asked in shock.
"Blood is on the rug. I'm so scared, and the ambulance hasn't come yet!" Ava cried.
"Where are you now?" Abi asked.
"At home!" Ava replied.
"Don't move her, Ava. I'm on my way home now. I'm taking the next flight to the country. You'll see me soon," Abi hung up the phone.