Eve opened the fridge again and took a big gulp of iced coffee, the same one that Alex drank before. She still felt nervous, and this nervousness seemed to never end as she couldn't stop thinking about Alex and their future child.
When she thought of her child, she looked at the iced coffee in her hand and lost her mood to drink it, because it reminded her of that scumbag.
She put the coffee can on the counter and walked towards the storage room next to the kitchen. She sighed as she opened the door, and saw all the memorabilia that she had with Alex.
From all of his academic achievements in university, his paintings, and sculpture, down to the small knick-knacks that they bought on their budget trip across the states.
She might be angry at Alex, and resented him for all the lies that he used to manipulate her, so she would let her guard down and show her vulnerability.
She wanted to burn all of these memories of him, so she could truly move on from that lying scumbag.
But she couldn't.
There was something—like a nail in her heart that made her uneasy whenever she wanted to toss all of these remembrances away.
Thus, she kept them inside the storage.
"We were truly a thing, Alex," Eve muttered. "Why do you have to lie to me and ruin everything?"
She picked the painting of their handprints she had snatched from Alex just now.
She hung it back to the same spot and smiled thinly, as she stared at their handprints before reading what Alex wrote for her at the bottom.
This is the start before we build our dreams together in this big city, and I will be by your side no matter what.
From A to E.
"I guess you did fulfill your promise to stay by my side no matter what. Even if it's just a business deal in the end," Eve smiled bitterly, while caressing the painting. "But it's alright. I wouldn't want it any other way."
*
"Fuck! FUCK!" Alex yelled as he entered his car and slammed the door shut. He rarely cursed and was not the type to say vulgar things except during sex.
But the chain of events that led to a mere business deal with Eve was truly out of his control, and he couldn't help but rage out of frustration.
He wanted to slowly let Eve know that he was serious about her. He didn't care if Eve hated him, because he believed she would eventually soften her attitude when he showed his sincerity.
However, the moment she said that she'd leave right after the baby was born, his mind quickly recalled his own childhood, and his logic was thrown out of the window instantly.
Would he be cruel enough to let their child grow up without a mother just like him?
'If that's what will happen, then there is no difference between me and dad…' Alex gritted his teeth. He punched the steering wheel as his frustration started to make his chest stuffy.
Alex rested his head on the headrest, staring emptily at the parking lot in front of him, and imagined the life that their children would experience because of this selfish business deal.
'Should I just cancel the whole arrangement and let her handle Pierre's problem on her own?' Alex pondered for a second. He clenched the steering wheel because it only took a second to know the answer.
"No, I can't let her fight against Pierre and his family all by herself. She'd be chewed until there's nothing but bones left in her," Alex answered his own question. "I guess there is no helping it. I'll see what will happen next, but there is no way I'd let her go for the second time."
Thus, Alex had to swallow the bitter pill that there might be a chance for their child to be motherless, just like him growing up.
"No, I can't let that happen. I need to find a way to make her stay, even after the child has been born. I MUST make her stay."
**
"Ugh… ah… hah…" Pierre panted as he finally ejaculated after pumping in and out for two minutes nonstop. He rested right next to Julia, Eve's mother, who was only fifteen years older than her.
Julia was still beautiful even in her mid-forties. In fact, Pierre preferred Julia compared to Eve if only she was fifteen years younger.
They had similar-ish faces, but Julia had a more flirtatious gaze and smirk that would lure all men into her embrace, and Pierre was not an exception.
On top of that, she had that mature charm and laid-back nature that made her look like a lazy goddess. Unlike Eve, who was always uptight and disciplined.
'It's crazy how Eve looks so similar to her mother, but has a completely different personality. Where did it go wrong? Why can't she be more like her mother?' Pierre thought.
Julia turned her head towards the young man and smiled, "Do you like it?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah! You are fantastic!" Pierre replied excitedly. "W-what about me? Do you think I'm amazing too in bed?"
Julia smiled thin. She hadn't had any big reaction so far, even when they had sex, but she still praised him, "You are a good boy. You did great."
Pierre's lips curled up. He could barely contain his excitement when Julia said that, because Eve had never said that when they had sex.
With Eve, even sex felt obligatory at best. It was a once-per-week routine before she got busy with work as usual.
Julia was different. She would say sweet things that would make him feel masculine and strong. She would always approve of everything that Pierre planned and praised all small, mundane things he did, such as putting his dirty dishes into the dishwasher once or putting the dirty laundry in the laundry crate once.
Julia was everything that Eve couldn't be, but even the usually confused Pierre knew what he wanted very clearly.
"Ah, if only Eve is as good as you, Julia," Pierre commented. "It would be great if she could be a good housewife who would always support me no matter what. I wish she could be more like a woman."
Yes, even after everything that happened between him, Eve, and her mother, Julia, Pierre still preferred to marry Evelyn.