Tonight, after getting off work, Sean decided to make a stop at Pacific Place. Earlier, after returning from visiting Veronica, Deasy had invited him to have dinner together.
It’s unusual, thought Sean. Normally, Deasy only invites him to meet on weekends or holidays. Sean thought there might be something important that Veronica’s friend wanted to convey, which is why she suddenly invited him to have dinner outside like this.
“In what context do you come back from work and immediately take me out to dinner?” Sean asked when he had arrived at a Korean restaurant. In front of him, Deasy was already sitting, sipping on a glass of soda.
Continuously stirring her drink with a straw, Deasy glanced at Sean. She took a deep breath, muttering with an expression of annoyance.
“I’ve been so frustrated since yesterday, Nath.”
“Why are you frustrated again? Did Mr. Chandra give you a lot of work deadlines or something?”
Sean had always known that Deasy often complained about her increasingly heavy workload. Especially after the Division’s leadership changed from Veronica to Chandra Pradita, who was known to be strict and a bit of a perfectionist. He wanted everything his team did to be 100% perfect without any flaws or mistakes.
This burden had been a source of complaint for Deasy. She said work was no longer as enjoyable and relaxed as before. Well, it’s different leadership after all. Behavior is bound to be different too.
“This has nothing to do with Mr. Chandra the Old Bachelor at all,” Deasy said firmly.
This time, she spoke while enjoying the corndog on her plate.
“Then, why are you frustrated? Your face looks all crumpled up.”
“Just so you know, I’m like this because of your rival,” Deasy revealed. This statement immediately furrowed Sean’s brow.
“My rival? Who?”
Deasy sighed. Could it be that Sean didn’t understand the person she was referring to? There was only one person who was currently a real rival to Sean Galael.
“Who else but Darwin Walters,” Deasy said emphatically. She emphasized it. “That annoying guy who is now the husband of your soulmate, he scolded me at the hospital yesterday.”
Sean chuckled softly. His ears tingled hearing what Deasy had just said. As far as he knew, Veronica’s friend was a carefree individual. He never paid attention to what other people said about him.
“Darwin? He scolded you?”
Deasy nodded repeatedly. She confirmed Sean’s question.
“Yeah, yesterday I intentionally called Veronica. I wanted to invite her for lunch. But turns out she ended up in the hospital due to an accident. I panicked, you know? And then when work was done, I took the initiative to visit her.”
“What does this have to do with Darwin?” Sean wondered.
“Listen first. I haven’t finished telling the story, Sean.”
Once again, Sean laughed. He nodded, allowing Deasy to continue her story.
“So, at the hospital, Veronica mentioned how Darwin scolded me because I told you about her six-month marriage agreement with Darwin. Veronica asked me not to talk about anything to you next time. Yeah, I was surprised. So, I asked her why she didn’t want to talk to you, and if she was starting to like Darwin,” Deasy recounted, mimicking the words she had said to Veronica.
Sean furrowed his brow again. He was a bit confused by what Deasy was saying.
“Then what? Why would you be frustrated with Darwin?”
Deasy sighed. Slowly, she explained to Sean once more.
“Well, because of our conversation, Darwin suddenly showed up. He came into the treatment room and started scolding me. I don’t know if he heard everything Veronica and I were talking about or not. But he got really angry with me.”
“Oh, really? So, Darwin got angry?”
Deasy nodded repeatedly. She put her hands on her hips.
“Do you know what he said at that time?”
“What did he say?”
“Why does it matter to him if Veronica likes me? What’s it to him if Veronica likes or dislikes her own husband? Besides, you’re just a friend, so I’m asking you not to get too involved in our household matters, especially trying to push Sean to Veronica in various ways,” Deasy explained at length. She intentionally imitated what Darwin had said to her at the hospital.
Instead of feeling sorry, Sean burst into laughter at what the woman in front of him had just said. Irritated, Deasy even pinched Sean’s arm several times.
“Annoying!”
“Sorry… sorry…” Sean chuckled, still laughing. “I just find your frustrated expression amusing, Des.”
“And yet, I’m on your side, Nath. I defended you so fiercely. And you’re just laughing at me. How rude!”
Sean laughed again. After a while, he took a sip of the mocha float he had ordered earlier and then continued the conversation.
“It’s understandable that Darwin would be upset. Back in Malaysia, he didn’t like me being close to Veronica, even though it was still work-related.”
“Then, aren’t you afraid that Veronica might actually fall for Darwin or that he might steal her away?”
Sean shook his head confidently.
“I don’t know why, but I’m confident that Veronica’s heart is only for me, Des. Besides, Darwin already has a girlfriend he cares about a lot, right?”
“Veronica says that, but who knows? If he didn’t deeply care, how could that annoying guy even end up cheating on Veronica? Even though they’re clearly married.”
“Yeah, I know,” Sean agreed. “You also told me how Darwin had a long-distance relationship with his girlfriend in another country before. And when he came back, he still returned to her. So, I’m sure Darwin’s being caring and sweet right now because he’s consistently keeping his promises to Veronica. There’s no other intention beyond that.”
Deasy smiled wryly. She felt that what Sean said was just empty words.
“Don’t be too confident, Nath. Human hearts are unpredictable. Six months is quite a long time.”
“What do you mean?”
Once again, Deasy chuckled softly. As she had guessed, Sean truly didn’t understand what he had just said.
“Let alone six months, even one or two months, if they have an intense and comfortable relationship, Darwin and Veronica could gradually fall in love. Especially since they’re living together and for six months they have to act like a normal married couple. Are you really not afraid that Veronica might change her heart?”
Sean fell silent. What was once relaxed had now become contemplative. There was some truth to what Deasy had just told him.
“Do you know why I often tease you about getting back together with Veronica? Or the other way around? Teasing Veronica to get back together with you?” Deasy continued.
“Why?”
“Because I can’t stand the idea of a kind person like Veronica having a jerk like Darwin as her husband! It’s clear that they’re married, but he still has the audacity to cheat right in front of her eyes. Veronica never went into detail, but in the beginning, I was convinced that she also experienced violence from Darwin.”
Sean was taken aback. He had no idea about this. But there was a slight feeling of disbelief hearing that Veronica was mistreated by another man, even though he was her own husband.
“Did Darwin really do that?”
Deasy nodded repeatedly, trying to convince Sean with what she had just told him.
“I’m serious, Sean. I’m not making this up. When they returned from their honeymoon, Veronica once called me while crying. She said Darwin was sharing a room with his girlfriend in Bali. Not only that, after they came back from their honeymoon, I noticed bruises on Veronica’s face, and I’m sure it was because of Darwin.”
Sean’s jaw clenched. The more he heard about what Deasy was saying, the hotter his ears felt.
“But now Darwin isn’t like that, right?”
“Well, who really knows. Veronica says he’s changed. But I still don’t believe it and I can’t stand it! That’s why I insist that you keep drawing Veronica’s attention so that her heart doesn’t waver toward Darwin.”
Sean nodded in understanding, digesting what Deasy had just said and carefully considering it. Suddenly, he found himself pondering the possibility that Veronica might someday change her heart. Then, what steps should he take to prevent that from happening?
***
“Ve, it’s late. How long are you going to watch TV?”
Darwin was already very sleepy, but his wife was still engrossed in watching television. Besides, it was already 11 PM, and it was about time for Veronica to rest.
“Just a bit more, Win. The show I’m watching will be over in 10 minutes. After that, I promise I’ll go to sleep.”
Darwin nodded. He got up from his seat and walked over to the nightstand. He grabbed a bottle of medicine and a glass of water, offering them to Veronica. He thought it was better not to forget, so she could take the medicine prescribed by the doctor.
“Watch while taking the medicine, so you don’t forget.”
Veronica complied. She took the pills Darwin gave her and swallowed them all. Then, she got ready to lie down.
However, before she could even lay down, Veronica winced. She had felt a sudden pain in her ankle, which had been previously sprained. This immediately made Darwin concerned.
“Why? Is your leg hurting again?”
Veronica nodded. She gently rubbed her ankle with her hands.
“Suddenly cramped up. Earlier, the pain had mostly gone away.”
Darwin lowered his gaze. He looked closely at Veronica’s painful leg.
“Should I help massage it? Maybe the pain or cramp will lessen.”
“No need, Win. It will be bothersome. Let it be. It will probably go away on its own soon.”
“It’s okay. It won’t be a bother. After all, it’s like this because of me.”
Darwin reached out his hand. Slowly, he began to rub and gently massage Veronica’s ankle.
He spent quite a while massaging both of Veronica’s legs. After ensuring that his wife was feeling better and more comfortable, he slightly shifted his body forward to help guide Veronica into lying down.
“How is it? Feeling better?”
“Much better,” Veronica nodded with a smile. “Thank you so much. My legs aren’t hurting anymore.”
“In that case, it’s time for you to sleep now.”
At the same moment, Darwin helped cover Veronica’s body with the blanket, dimming the lights. Then, he walked around and picked up a pillow before heading to the sofa.
“Why are you going, Win?” Veronica questioned when she saw Darwin sitting on the sofa with a pillow in his hand.
“I’m going to sleep. What else would I be doing? I’m really tired, Ve.”
“Well then, why sleep on the sofa? Why not sleep in your own place?”
“No problem. So that you’re more comfortable and not disturbed.”
“What’s this? Don’t be overly dramatic, Win. In Malaysia, we shared a bed just fine, right? So what’s the difference now? Come on. Just move here. Don’t pretend to sleep on the sofa and everything.”
“I really don’t mind sleeping here,” Darwin declined.
“If you sleep on the sofa, I’d rather go back to my room.”
“Don’t!” Darwin protested.
“Exactly. So hurry up and move over here,” Veronica commanded, patting the bed beside her.
In the end, Darwin complied. He got up and dragged his feet to the bed, pillow in hand.
“I’ve followed your request. Now, let’s go to sleep. I’m really sleepy.”
Veronica nodded. It took only 10 minutes before she fell asleep. Leaving Darwin still awake.
Instead of joining her right away, he intentionally watched Veronica as she slept. He observed her quietly, gazing at her face as she slumbered. Unintentionally, a smile formed on his lips.
“You’re beautiful even when you’re asleep.”