Gilbert ran outside to his car, thinking, What have I done? Flashbacks of the kiss kept replaying in his mind. He sat in the car and drove away. Finally, when he reached the ocean, he got out and tried to calm himself. Sitting on the sand, he could not understand the emotions he was feeling at that moment.
He sat there for six hours, watching the sunrise. A message popped up on his phone.
"I am already back. I told everyone something happened at the office, so you had to leave."
The message made his emotions even more unstable. He could not understand why she had to be so good to him. It only made him feel guilty.
When he reached home, he decided to maintain some distance from her for a while. He hurried to his room to get ready for the office so he would not have to interact with her.
He saw her sleeping quietly. He looked at her for a few minutes, and memories of last night flashed before his eyes.
He took all his things into the bathroom, got ready there, and left without even having breakfast.
Rita woke up very late. She checked the time—it was twelve in the afternoon. Then she looked around for Gilbert, but he was nowhere to be seen. She asked Jenny, who replied, "Madam, sir went to the office."
Rita thought that although it was Saturday, maybe he really had work at the office. She could talk to him in the evening.
But deep inside, she was nervous. Millions of thoughts were running through her mind. The way he had left her that night after the kiss—did he feel disgusted after that?
Three days passed. Gilbert left for the office early every morning and returned very late at night, by which time Rita was already asleep.
Finally, Rita decided she would not sleep until he arrived. She had to talk to him for her own peace of mind.
The doorbell rang. Rita thought, What if it's Gilbert? Maybe he came home early today because he cares about me. She ran to the door, but it was Archer.
He waved at her. Although she was a little disappointed, she was happy to see Archer, and she welcomed him inside.
Archer said, "I came here to give these documents to Gilbert. Grandpa sent them."
"Thanks," Rita replied.
"Okay, then I'll leave."
"No, have some tea first."
Archer hesitated for a moment, but after thinking for a bit, he said, "Okay."
Rita smiled. "I want to thank you for Friday. You dropped me home after the family dinner."
"No need."
Since Gilbert had also bullied Archer, Rita sympathized with him.
Rita asked Jenny to bring tea for both of them, and they sat in the living room.
"He is busy even on weekends," Archer said. "He must really be working hard."
"Yes," Rita replied. "He even comes home very late."
Jenny arrived with two cups of tea and placed them on the table. Rita passed one cup to Archer.
"Madam, what should the chef cook for sir for lunch?" Jenny asked.
"I cooked chicken for him. You can pack that," Rita said. She wanted to send him something he liked.
Jenny nodded.
Archer thought that either Gilbert really liked her and was avoiding her because of it, or he seriously did not like her and was avoiding her for that reason.
"Can I ask you something, if you don't mind?" Archer asked.
"Sure."
"Why did you marry him?"
Rita lowered her eyes. "I don't think it matters now."
"He bullied you so much. Why do you still care about him?"
"It's not like that. I don't care about him," she said quickly. She did not want Archer to know that she liked Gilbert.
"Because I don't think I could be nice to someone who bullied me."
Rita knew she could not defend Gilbert in this matter because Archer was right, and she could relate to him.
"He wants to change," she said softly.
Archer sighed. "People don't change easily. I just hope you don't get hurt."
Rita smiled faintly. "I know."
"I have to go now. I have office work."
"Okay, come again," she said.
"Sure."
At that moment, Jenny arrived again. "Madam, sir said he doesn't need lunch today."
Rita felt a little upset. "Archer, do you like chicken?" she asked, thinking, Why couldn't he send the message to me himself?
"Yes."
She asked Jenny to pack the chicken for him.
Jenny nodded.
"You can take this," Rita said. "This is the first time I made it, so I hope you like it."
"Sure. I'll give you feedback."
Meanwhile, Gilbert was sitting in his office with Ray, but he had not said a word. Exhausted, Ray finally asked, "Why did you call me here if you don't want to say anything?"
"I just wanted to see you."
"I'm not your wife. Tell me if you want to say something, or else I'm leaving."
"I don't know where to start."
"Start from anywhere, but please say something."
Gilbert hesitated before saying, "I want to sleep at your place."
"Why?"
"Because I want to spend some time with you."
Ray looked at him suspiciously. "Fine."
In the evening, they both went to a bar. There, they found Navid sitting with five women.
Navid invited them to sit with him, but Ray refused. "No, we're fine."
"Does he even work?" Gilbert asked while looking at Navid.
"Forget him," Ray replied.
A woman suddenly placed her hand on Gilbert's shoulder from behind. He turned around. "Ava," he said.
"Hi! Long time no see."
"Hi. How come you're here?"
"I came with my friends," she said, pointing toward them. "What about you?"
"I'm here with my friend Ray," he said while introducing them.
"We're having a school reunion. Are you coming?"
"I left that school in fifth grade. What would I even do there?"
"Others are coming too. Our old friends."
Gilbert thought, Why would she think I'd go there? Even in my dreams, I wouldn't associate myself with them.
"When is it?" he asked.
"Next weekend."
"Sorry, I'm busy. I can't come."
"How can you reject it so directly? Ray, you can come too."
Ray looked at Gilbert. "I'll see."
"I was your girlfriend in school. For that alone, you should come."
"Okay, I'll try. But now I have to go somewhere urgently, so we're leaving."
Gilbert grabbed Ray's hand and hurried out of the bar.
"What was that?" Ray asked.
"I don't want to go to any school reunion."
He thought, How would I explain to you that she and the others bullied Rita?
"Okay. What do you want to do?" Ray asked.
"Let's go eat something."
They went to a five-star hotel for dinner. The waiter took them to their table, where Gilbert noticed Archer sitting with his business partners. He ignored him and sat down.
"Isn't he your cousin?" Ray asked.
"Yes. Why am I only meeting people I don't want to see today?"
Ray handed him a bottle of water. "Relax."
They ordered chicken, seafood, bread, and salad.
While they were eating, one of the business partners stood up and approached them.
"Hello, Mr. Gilbert. I'm Kit."
"Hello, Mr. Kit." Gilbert stood up slightly to greet him. "I know you. We have a meeting next Wednesday."
"Yes, yes. I was just leaving. Please continue your dinner."
"Sure."
As Archer escorted Mr. Kit outside, his gaze fell on Gilbert's plate.
After dinner, Gilbert went to the restroom and saw Archer washing his hands there.
"Rita cooks chicken better than this place," Archer said casually.
Gilbert stopped in his tracks. "What do you mean?"
"Tell her I liked the chicken she gave me."
Gilbert asked furiously, "When did you eat it?"
"She's my friend. I can eat her food whenever I want. Why are you getting so agitated?"
Gilbert smiled coldly. "Don't tell me you're after her."
"Aren't you interested in someone like Laura?" Archer observed his expression before continuing. "Rita isn't even your type. You even called her the ugliest girl."
Gilbert interrupted him sharply. "You can try, but she will never choose you."
Archer smiled. "Do you know who dropped her home on Friday after you left her there? She even made excuses for you."
Gilbert listened furiously.
Archer continued, "Let me call her."
He pulled out his phone to dial Rita's number, but Gilbert stopped him.
"What is your issue?" Gilbert asked through clenched teeth.
"You shouldn't be so confident," Archer replied. "You bullied her, made fun of her looks, and called her ugly in front of the whole class. She doesn't deserve to be with someone like you."
Gilbert stepped closer to him and said through clenched teeth, "No matter how she is, she's mine. She only fed you out of kindness, but she will never leave me."