Gilbert came back very late at night. He thought she might have slept by then. Meanwhile, Rita, in her room, wondered, "Why am I not happy even though he apologized?" She stepped out to walk along the corridor.
Gilbert saw her. "Are you okay? Why aren't you in bed?"
Rita walked away without even bothering to reply. He followed her. "Hey, I'm seriously asking—are you alright?"
Rita said, "Why are you worried about me now?"
Gilbert looked straight into her eyes. "Yes, I am genuinely worried."
Rita, who had prepared herself for an argument with him, didn't know what to do when he showed care.
They both looked at each other silently as the cold air passed between them. Suddenly, he put his bag down, removed his coat, and placed it on her shoulders.
She got startled. She threw his coat away and ran toward her room.
Gilbert thought, "I know my words are fake, but I genuinely put the coat on her—it's freezing. Why did she throw it away?"
Rita tried to understand his behavior all night. "I know this is all fake, but I want to see how long he's going to keep acting," she thought.
The next morning, Gilbert placed breakfast on the table before she arrived.
Rita acted unbothered.
"How is it? Does it taste good?" he asked.
"Why are you asking? Don't tell me you made this."
Gilbert "Yes, I made it."
Rita "What do you want me to say?"
Gilbert "Be honest."
Rita thought, "I know it tastes good, but I can't say that." She replied, "I didn't ask you to do this. Where is the chef?"
Gilbert "I did this for you."
Rita "You can fool others, but not me. I've seen your true colors."
Gilbert "How much do you even know me?"
Rita "As much as I need to know—that's enough."
Gilbert "Oh God, why are you so difficult to understand?"
Rita "You're just a selfish jerk. Even now, you only care about yourself."
Gilbert "Then tell me—what should I do for you to forgive me?"
Rita "Why do you care so much about my forgiveness?"
They ended up arguing again. As Rita was leaving, Gilbert handed her a glass of juice. "Finish this—you didn't eat much. I'm going to the office."
He left without looking back, but Rita stood there still. Even Robin silently watched.
At the office, Gilbert worked continuously on his project without taking a break. By evening, he finally got free from his meetings. In his free time, he thought, "Even though I'm acting like an ideal man, she still doesn't believe me—why?"
He opened his computer and asked an AI, typing out his conversations with Rita to understand what he was doing wrong.
The AI replied, "First ask about her, then talk about yourself."
Gilbert had another meeting to attend. He ate some sandwiches, drank coffee, and left.
He came home very late again, feeling hungry. After putting his things down, he saw no one around. He went to the kitchen, found some fish and curry, heated them, and took out a beer.
"Hah… I used to wake her up to make dinner for me," he muttered.
He put some food on the table. "What should I do to convince her? If my project finishes, the first thing I'll do is divorce her. Then I won't have to act like this."
Suddenly, Gilbert felt like vomiting. He threw up whatever he had eaten and felt a sharp stomach ache. He went to his room, took some medicine, and fell asleep.
The next day, Rita came downstairs but realized Gilbert wasn't there.
Jenny said, "Madam, sir is still sleeping."
"Let him. I don't care," Rita replied.
After a while, Jenny said, "Madam, I think sir is not feeling well. I've been knocking on his door, but he's not responding. I think you should check."
"Why should I? It's okay—you can go. I trust you."
"Madam, I can't go like that." Jenny looked at Rita expectantly.
"Fine, stop looking at me like that."
Rita went to Gilbert's room. She knocked several times, but there was no response. She went inside, thinking, "What if he's dead? The police might blame me."
She saw him lying on the bed, looking pale. She went closer and pushed him. "Gilbert, wake up."
Realizing he was sick, she shook him harder. Gilbert woke up and saw Rita near him. "What are you doing here?" Then he noticed the time. "Oh shit! I have a meeting in an hour. Where is my phone? Why is it switched off?"
Rita looked at him, thinking, "Has he gone mad?"
She handed him the charger lying on the floor, which he couldn't see in his panic.
He plugged in his phone and saw 20 missed calls from his assistant. He hurriedly got out of bed.
"I think you need to relax a bit," Rita said. "It's okay—you can still make it in time. Go get ready. I'll ask Jenny to pack your breakfast. You can eat on the way."
Gilbert "But I have to practice before the meeting. I've prepared for this for so long."
Rita "Why are you so nervous? It's just a meeting."
Gilbert "You have to work in an office to understand this."
Gilbert was in such a hurry that he didn't notice her expression. But Rita had no expectations from him, so she didn't feel hurt. She never believed in his care anyway
She asked Jenny to pack his breakfast and prepare the car.
Later, Rita was walking alone in the garden when she saw Gilbert coming toward her.
"They've put all your things in the car, and your breakfast too," she said.
Gilbert came closer and said, "I forgot to say thank you."
Rita didn't know how to respond, so she stayed silent.
"And eat your breakfast," he added.
If we were in a normal relationship, I would have told you to take your medicine with you… but we are nothing—not even housemates.
He left for the office.
Rita thought, "His small acts of kindness will never undo the trauma he gave me."