“I’ll go with you,” Her eyes narrow in shock as his words replay in her head. Is he joking with her right now?
“But I thought you are hanging out with your family?” She blinks her eyes multiple times, staring at him blankly.
“Uhm… Yes… I can stay back with you…”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll be fine with Alex,” with that said, she turns and walks down the hallway, while he stares at her until she’s out of sight.
Taking a deep breath, he runs his fingers through his hair as the thought of his crazy and annoying brother being with her later hits her hard.
“Are they so close now?” He asks himself, even though he’s not expecting any reply.
Taking a deep breath, he finally walks down the hallway and heads to the parking lot afterward. Going out with her would’ve been a very good idea, but it doesn’t look like he can do it now. His dad would need him around later, and he can’t possibly stand the man out there, right? Besides, he only came back home to get something and go back to meet them.
Driving down the road a few minutes later, the thoughts of Jeffrey and Shirley smiling together hits him hard, and he sighs for the umpteenth time.
“Can you stay focused, Max? You are married for fuck’s sake. You have a wife, have you forgotten?” He tries to caution himself, pushing all the thoughts to the back of his mind.
Arriving at the beach where Mr. Dante and Alicia have been waiting for him, he parks his car and walks over to Mr. Dante that’s just sitting on the lounger beside the beach, feeding his eyes with nature.
“You’re finally here. I’ve been waiting for you,” Mr. Dante says to him, as he sits on the bench lounger beside him.
“Sorry for keeping you waiting, dad. I had to attend to something important back at home,” He apologizes, taking his gaze to Alicia that’s coming out from the river, looking so hot in her bikini.
Staring at her, he sighs briefly and silently as many thoughts flood his mind. The spark he used to feel whenever he sets his eyes on her, the tingling feeling he always got is nowhere to be found now. Staring at her now doesn’t feel like before, but like he’s looking at a random girl. Is this the woman he was so crazy about? Is she the same woman he was so in love with?
“What are you thinking about, son?” Mr. Dante jolts him back to reality, and he glances at him.
“Nothing, dad,” He replies to him, and he slowly nods his head, even though he knows that his son is hiding something from him.
“I got a call moments ago that I need to be at a meeting in an hour. I need to go now,” Mr. Dante says as he stands up to his feet.
“Make sure you have fun to the fullest. Take good care of Wendy. You know she can’t stress herself since she’s pregnant. See you later,” Mr. Dante says, and with that, he walks away to get ready to go to the meeting.
“Hey, baby. Are you OK?” Alicia’s voice pulls him back from his train of thought, and he snaps his head to see her standing beside him, already dressed up.
“Yes, I’m fine. Are you done there?” He asks, avoiding eye contact with her.
“Yeah, it’s kind of boring. Why don’t we do something else? Like going to an amusement park, cinema, or even restaurant. It has been a while, you know?” She winks at him excitedly, and he just forces a smile. His mind is occupied with so many things, and Shirley is definitely the reason he’s like this.
“Are you OK?” Alicia asks for the umpteenth time, cupping his cheek in her palm, and staring into his eyes with a worried look on his face.
“I’m fine. Just a bit tired,” He lies to her, and she slowly nods her head, even though she’s doubting him.
“Come on, baby. I know of a restaurant. You’re going to love it, I promise,” She squeaks excitedly.
“Hmm. We should go there then,” He replies to her forcefully, before dragging his feet to the car, with her trailing behind him.
The drive to the restaurant took some time, but they arrive later, anyway.
Stepping out of the car, she stares at the building with a smile dancing on her lips, while he just stares blankly.
“This is my dream restaurant, you know? I have never been here, but I can see that it’s really worth the hype,” She confesses, locking arms with him, and he smiles at her which only lasts for seconds, and disappears immediately.
Stepping into the restaurant, the aroma of the sweet delicacies welcomes them in, and she can’t just wait to taste their food.
“Don’t you think this place is quite nice?” She smiles at him, and he nods his head after he glances around.
“Yeah,” He replies casually, and she frowns as she bites her bottom lip sadly. It hurts the way he treats her now, but raising an alarm about it is the last thing on her mind right now.
“Why don’t we go sit over there? I love the view from there,” She pulls him with her to sit on an empty set of chairs and a table close to the window.
“Welcome to Key To Your Heart restaurant. Would you like to place your order now, ma’am, sir?” The waiter walks up to them and asks politely while holding an iPad, ready to take their order.
“What are you going to eat, baby?” She places her hand on his hand on the table, while shining her set of white teeth at him.
“A glass of water will do,” He glances at the waiter, and says to him.
“Glass of water? You’ve not had anything since the daybreak, why water?” She pulls a puzzled look, and he sighs briefly. Can she just let him be for once?
“I don’t have an appetite,” He replies to her casually, and she slowly nods her head, even though she’s not happy about his sudden change of attitude.
“A plate of fried rice and meatballs is ok for me,” She smiles at the waiter politely.
“I’ll go get your order now, Sir,” The waiter says before he walks away.
An awkward silence assumes the air, as Max keeps staring out through the window with many thoughts flooding his mind. What if they are kissing now? What the hell is Alex doing with Ariel right now? But what is more disturbing, is why he’s feeling this way. What the fuck is his problem?
“You don’t seem OK today, is everything alright?” She asks again, even though she has asked a few times before and he claimed to be fine. He’s not expecting her to be fooled by his reply of being fine, yeah? It’s so obvious that he’s not fine.
“Yes, I’m fine. Just a bit tired,” Just like he had said earlier, he replies to her again, and she bites her bottom lip, trying to fight back the tears that threaten to escape her eyes.
“Hmm,” She slowly nods her head.
“What is wrong with you today, Kira? Look what you’ve done to the customer,” The manager suddenly snaps at one of the staffs behind them.
“No, it’s fine. It’s just a little stain, and I’ll be fine,” Hearing the familiar feminine voice, he snaps his head back to see Ariel and Alex sitting there like two lovebirds, and he feels his blood boils in rage…