Aileen
Dave walked away without saying anything else further. His face looked grim.
Why did he say those things, those sad things? I managed to hurt him without realizing again, huh?
Even though all we want to is care for each other, then why do we end up hurting each other in the process?
Next day morning, Dave left for work early so I couldn’t get a hold of him. My mind was preoccupied with the things that happened yesterday. All of this just seems like a hazy dream that I want to get out of.
Just because I was jealous of Mom marrying Dave, I tried to get into a relationship myself. And now, without realizing I’ve made a person fall in love with me. Does that even make sense?
If I didn’t find about the mate bond, then maybe surely….. if Marshall confessed to me like that, I would’ve given in considering how he is as a person.
God, it’s so awkward to face him right now. What should I do?
After arriving at class, I saw Skylar reading a book for the first time in college. He’s usually roams here and there with no connection to studies. What’s gotten into him now?
“Hey!” I placed my bag down on the seat beside him.
He lifted his face to look me in the eyes, “Oh, Aileen. Good morning.”
“Morning. What are you reading?”
“Hm…nothing, just a book about what goes through women’s heads, or what their personality is like.”
I was puzzled, sitting down. “Never heard of it. And why do you even need to read that? Are you into someone lately or what?”
“Uh….” He was at a loss of words.
“Am I right? You are so easy to read. So, who’s this lucky girl? Someone from our class?”
“Hm…. I can’t tell you that…..”
“Why not?”
“Cause I haven’t confirmed my feelings yet. But, I hope I can confess to her soon.”
“I’m happy for you. Hope she’s the perfect one for you. I’ll give you all my support!” I said, patting his back.
He smiled, putting aside his book. “So, are you busy this evening? Want to go somewhere fun?”
“Fun? Like where? And don’t you have to study for upcoming exams?”
“There’s an animal cafe nearby. You can see many types of animals there and get to spend time with them while having food. It opened recently.” He replied, pulling out his phone. “This is the place.”
He showed it to me on the map. It was close to the college.
“Oh…. it looks nice. When does it open though?”
“Morning at 10 am and evening at 5. Please say yes,” he pleaded, taking my hand.
I couldn’t refuse him, so I said yes. I’ll look for a gift for Becky on the way. I can’t shop together with Marshall but I can shop with Skylar. I’ll make sure to throw a good party cause she hasn’t done anything wrong.
“See you in front of the gate after college. I’ll be waiting,” he mentioned.
“Uh, sure.”
I had a hard time focusing on lessons, Dave and Marshall’s image kept flashing on my head.
I met up with Rosalia and tried to open up about my problems but it was hard. So, I gave up quickly. Can’t risk blowing my cover, just yet.
“You look a bit stressed. If there’s anything on your mind, I don’t mind hearing about it.” she replied, turning to me, “We are friends and quite a close one indeed. I hope you acknowledge that.”
She was serious. Her words held weight like no other. She managed to touch me with her words for the first time.
“Uh…. I……it’s not like I can’t speak about it. It’s just….. what if someone told you they like you out of nowhere even though you only them for a few months. How would you react? Mostly if I don’t see that person as a romantic object? How should I respond to him?”
“Someone confessed to you? Who? Is it from our class?”
“No…”
“I see…. well, if you don’t like them romantically just say no in the place. But, there’s no harm in dating if you don’t have a current partner at hand.”
She’s not getting into detail like who it is. That’s great.
“Mostly it depends on your wish. What do you wish to do? You want to try dating? Or keep him as a friend only?”
Me? I…. don’t mind rejecting him. But, I think that’s going to leave an affect on our friendship and the good relation we have.
But, accepting him is not the solution either. Why do I have to be in this mess?
After college hours, I waited at the gate for Skylar. I checked the time and he showed up a second later.
“Aileen, sorry to keep you waiting,” he apologized, wrapping his arm around my shoulder.
“You are late. Where were you at?”
“Uh, had to help the teacher a little. No worries, I’ll be paying for our food today. Will that make up for it?”
“Fine, include the cheesecake as dessert. Are we walking all the way?”
“No need, I called a taxi.” We walked out of the college together like that and suddenly a car appeared in front of us.
Both of us were shocked, backing away. The window came down and it was at that minute I realized it was Dave’s car.
Dave gave a disapproving look, checking both of us out.
Skylar flickered a gaze at me and turned to Dave.
“You? You didn’t inform me you were coming,” I stuttered, at a loss of words myself.
“Why are you not happy I managed to catch you on the act?” he retorted, walking out of the car.
My throat went dry out of nervousness.
He’s not in a good mood, is he now?
“Put down that damn hand of yours off her shoulder,” he remarks, glancing at Skylar.
Skylar immediately withdraws his hand, and looked a bit uncomfortable by his statement.
“Uh…I’m sorry.” He apologized, scratching the back of his head.
“I came here unannounced only to see you hanging out with your so called friend of yours huh? How many times have I told you to stay away from him other than college hours? Don’t you get my warnings?” Dave grunted, glaring at me.