“The place is nice, Sir,” Casandra said as she ate the steak. From her facial expression, it was evident that she had never tasted steak this delicious before. Back at the hotel, she only had grilled chicken.
Alexander nodded. “There’s no place like this in the city. Even if there were, I’ve been too busy to go anywhere. Besides, my wife is also busy.”
“In that case, it’s the perfect time to relax now, Sir. Don’t worry about work for a while. Just relax,” Casandra said.
Alexander nodded again, a faint smile adorning his handsome face. Seeing him, Casandra smiled too. Anything that made Alexander happy brought joy to Casandra as well.
After finishing their meal, Alexander and Casandra continued their journey to Casandra’s home. The road was very winding, even passing by the edge of a cliff. Driving on this road required carefulness, and overtaking other cars recklessly could have fatal consequences. It was dangerous enough to traverse this road during the day, let alone at night, which required extreme caution and avoiding rushing, as their lives were at stake.
Alexander had never been to the village before. This was his first experience heading to Casandra’s home, which turned out to be somewhat remote. Although the distance was quite far, Alexander thoroughly enjoyed the journey.
Finally, Alexander and Casandra arrived at Casandra’s house. Seeing a car entering the alley, some of Casandra’s neighbors immediately peeked, curious to know who was in the car. People in the village rarely owned nice cars.
Casandra became anxious. She didn’t want to become a topic of gossip among the villagers. After this, she would have to introduce Alexander to them to avoid any misunderstandings during their stay here.
As Alexander and Casandra got out of the car, several pairs of eyes that had been monitoring Alexander’s car widened upon seeing Casandra and him.
“Oh my! Isn’t that Casandra? Who is she with?”
“He’s quite handsome. Could it be that Casandra is now the mistress of a wealthy man? Wasn’t she just a maid in the city?”
“Hush! Don’t say that. We don’t know what really happened.”
“Pff, Casandra is beautiful, you know. Maybe she went to the city to seduce someone’s husband? Besides, what would a city person want with someone from the village? Especially someone poor like Casandra.”
Casandra’s ears caught the derogatory comments they made. She glanced at Alexander, feeling uneasy. It seemed her husband had heard what they were gossiping about. Oddly enough, he remained silent, as if he didn’t care about the malicious gossip surrounding Casandra.
Ignoring the busybody neighbors, Alexander invited Casandra to enter the house. Casandra’s face still looked sour due to being the subject of gossip. Nonetheless, she followed Alexander’s invitation, knowing her husband must be tired after driving from the city to the village.
Casandra’s house appeared deserted since her father was currently undergoing treatment. Actually, this was a good sign as Alexander and Casandra could have their first night together without any interruptions. Wait, what?
“I’ll take a shower and then sleep,” Alexander said, looking for a towel in his large bag.
“Um, Sir…” Casandra prevented Alexander from leaving, holding the edge of his shirt.
“What’s wrong?” Alexander asked, tilting his head to see Casandra’s trembling fingers. There seemed to be something bothering her.
“Um, did you not hear the neighbors gossiping about me earlier?” Casandra asked timidly.
“Yes, I heard it. So what? It’s not what really happened. Why should you worry about it? It’s better for you to stay away from nosy neighbors like them who enjoy gossiping about other people’s business. What’s the benefit of gossiping like that? They clearly have nothing better to do,” Alexander said with a dismissive tone.
Casandra nervously bit her lip. “I know it’s not what really happened. But it would be better if you could clarify the gossip a bit to maintain my good reputation. I don’t want my father to hear that I’m being talked about by the neighbors.”
Alexander fell silent for a moment, as if pondering something. Finally, he nodded. “Alright, I understand. What do you want me to do?”
Casandra smiled. She whispered something to Alexander.
That night, Alexander deliberately dressed very neatly. Casandra also deliberately wore her best dress to look charming. Seeing Casandra’s appearance, Alexander was immediately captivated. His wife was truly beautiful. Unfortunately, Alexander couldn’t openly praise her. He merely nodded with admiration, waiting for Casandra to carry out their plan to “clear” her name from the neighbors’ gossip.
Alexander and Casandra brought a gift of toasted sponge cake, which they had ordered beforehand. Indeed, they intended to use the cake as a “covert bribe” while introducing themselves to the neighbors.
The first neighbor they visited was Mrs. Lilian. Casandra knew very well that she was the biggest gossipmonger in the entire village. So, Casandra purposely targeted Mrs. Lilian first to clarify that she was not what the woman had in mind.
“Wow, Casandra. You look so beautiful. Just returned from the city, huh?” Mrs. Lilian greeted them warmly while glancing at Alexander. Surely, her mind was already filled with various gossips to share with the other neighbors.
“Yes, ma’am. I just got back. Let me introduce my husband,” Casandra said, pointing to Alexander standing beside her. “Oh, and here’s a little gift for you. Please enjoy it.” Casandra handed a box of toasted sponge cake to Mrs. Lilian.
“Your husband?” Mrs. Lilian’s eyes widened. She seemed completely uninterested in the gift Casandra gave her, although she accepted it, of course. “Oh, it turns out you got married in the city.”
“Yes, ma’am. My husband and I intentionally came here for a vacation. Um, excuse me, ma’am. I need to go around some more.” Casandra lowered her head slightly and excused herself from Mrs. Lilian’s house.
After visiting the other neighbors to introduce Alexander as her husband, Casandra finally completed her mission by eight o’clock in the evening. As she expected, Alexander didn’t talk much and only responded when asked. Fortunately, Alexander didn’t pay much attention to his family’s situation, as well as the reasons for their marriage, so there were no more strange gossips circulating about Casandra.
“I’ll change my clothes, Sir,” Casandra said as she entered the house.
Suddenly, Alexander grabbed Casandra’s arm, causing her heart to race like it was about to jump out of her chest.
“No need. Just wear that,” Alexander said while looking deeply into Casandra’s eyes.
Under his gaze, Casandra’s heart pounded again. Her cheeks flushed, a sign of her embarrassment. Meanwhile, as if nothing happened, Alexander simply slumped on the living room sofa. His eyes surveyed Casandra’s house with a clear expression of concern for its condition.
Like many houses in the village, Casandra’s house was old and not well-maintained. The wall paint was faded, as if it hadn’t been painted in more than ten years.
“By the way, your house… um, has it always been like this?” Alexander asked, his eyes fixed on the half-broken ceiling near the kitchen.
Indeed, it was broken. From the cracks, it seemed like the ceiling had collapsed due to the old wooden frame. It was very dangerous for anyone passing underneath it..
“That’s right, Sir. Actually, my father planned to repair this house, but the cost is quite high, so it had to be postponed.”
“Why is there a hole in the ceiling above?” Alexander inquired.
“Oh, that…” Casandra’s gaze immediately turned to the hole in the ceiling. “A while ago, there was a major earthquake here. Because this house is old, when there’s a big earthquake, the ceiling collapses downward. It can be quite dangerous, indeed.”
“It should be fixed as soon as possible. It’s a pity if someone gets hit by the falling ceiling,” Alexander quickly responded. He looked around the house again. “Actually, this house is quite nice. It’s just not well-maintained. I will make a note so that it can be renovated soon. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of the cost.”
“Really, Sir?” Casandra’s eyes widened.
“Of course. I don’t like living in a house like this. It can bring bad luck,” Alexander said with a hint of disdain, causing Casandra to grimace as her house was described as ugly. It was true that compared to Alexander’s super luxurious mansion, her house seemed shabby. But what could she do? Their statuses were different from the beginning, so it was understandable that in Alexander’s eyes, Casandra’s house was not suitable for living.
“By the way, should I ask for permission from your father before renovating this house?” Alexander suddenly asked, surprising Casandra who was daydreaming about her and Alexander’s status.
“Um, it’s better to ask for permission first. After all, I’m already married, so this house is not entirely mine, even though I still have rights to it. As a matter of courtesy, it’s better to ask my father’s permission first. You can do it when my father returns from the treatment.”
Alexander nodded slightly. Soon, he looked for a notebook and a pen to write down what he wanted to renovate in Casandra’s house. Of course, he would discuss it with Casandra first before making any decisions.
“I want this house to be painted in a sea blue color. Do you mind?” Alexander suggested.
Casandra nodded, not minding her husband’s suggestion at all. “I also like the color blue. But if possible, a light blue would be better to make the house less dim.”
“Okay. I’ll note it down.” Alexander now stood up and walked towards the ceiling near the kitchen that was broken. He looked up at the damaged ceiling.
“This is really bad,” Alexander commented with a click of his tongue. He then went into the kitchen area to observe the kitchen, which he thought didn’t suit his taste.
“Cas, I want this kitchen to have a minimalist style. Not like this. Do you mind?” Alexander asked again.
“Hmm, it’s up to you, Sir.” Casandra, who had been following Alexander from behind, entered the kitchen area. She opened the fridge and found her favorite pudding. A bright smile instantly appeared on Casandra’s face when she saw that her father still bought her favorite pudding.
“What’s wrong, Cas?” Alexander asked from behind.
“Ah, it’s nothing, Sir. It turns out my father still buys my favorite pudding. Would you like to try it?” Casandra opened the pudding, scooped a spoonful, and was about to feed Alexander.
Alexander’s gaze was fixed on Casandra’s glowing face as she was about to feed him the pudding. Alexander leaned in. Gently, he welcomed the spoonful of pudding, his eyes focused on Casandra’s face.
Realizing the intimate atmosphere, Casandra’s heart immediately pounded. From Alexander’s gaze, it seemed like he was going to kiss her. Casandra closed her eyes. At that moment, suddenly…
Squeak squeak squeak…
A mouse’s squeaking sound was heard near Casandra’s feet. Alexander immediately looked down. In an instant, he jumped back and screamed because he saw a mouse suddenly appear out of nowhere.
“Aaarrrgghhh… Mouse! Chase it away, Cas! Chase it away! I hate mice!” Alexander, who was afraid of mice, quickly hid behind Casandra.
Casandra sighed tiredly. Their romantic atmosphere was supposed to continue, and they were about to kiss. But all of that was ruined because of the mouse that disturbed their romantic moment. Goodness!