Fated To The Beast (English)

Chapter 14

BELLA had been frowning all day. And why wouldn’t she? No matter how much she refused her mom’s insistence that she go on this so-called double date with Mara, along with the disaster of her life, Beast, and her cousin’s ultimate crush, JG, she had no choice in the end. Her mom obviously perfected her trick on her. Knowing that Bella couldn’t bear to ignore her, she had said that if Bella didn’t go on the date, she wouldn’t speak to her and would be extremely upset.

Her mom could be so manipulative and act like a spoiled baby sometimes. She had a habit of always getting what she wanted. And because Bella loved her dearly, she always ended up having no choice but to give in.

"Of all the people who could go on a date with a handsome guy, you’re the one sulking," Mara remarked, laughing, as she finished fixing herself in front of the mirror. Meanwhile, Bella remained lying on the bed, showing no sign of getting up anytime soon.

"Heh! That’s because you’re happy since you’re going on a date with your crush!" Bella retorted, rolling her eyes.

Mara only laughed even more and finished putting on her makeup before approaching her sulking cousin. "You know what? Thank you, huh? If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be able to fulfill my craziness. You really are the best cousin ever!" Mara said sweetly before jumping onto the bed and tickling Bella.

"Mara! What the heck? Stop tickling me!" Bella complained, laughing as she tried to fend her cousin off.

"Alright, alright! You’re the best cousin too!" Bella finally conceded, pushing Mara away to escape.

"There, you’re smiling now. Don’t frown anymore, okay? Otherwise, the wind might blow on you, and your face will stay like that forever! Do you want that?" Mara teased, still laughing.

"Heh! Whatever! You say so many things. And to think you’re going to be a doctor—yet you still believe in that nonsense. There’s no scientific basis for it, you know?"

"And what does being a doctor have to do with that? Besides, you’re too serious!"

"Ugh, whatever! You’re so annoying!" Bella huffed, flopping back down on the bed, staring into space as she got lost in thought.

"Aren’t you going to get dressed and fix yourself? They said Beast would pick us up at five. It’s already past four, girl! Do you want your mom to scold you? You’re good at sweet-talking her, aren’t you?"

At that, Bella groaned before getting up and lazily walking to her closet, where her mom had chosen an outfit for this so-called "date." She put it on before heading to the mirror to fix herself.

She wore a pink off-shoulder maxi dress that reached down to her feet, decorated with floral patterns. She paired it with white strappy sandals that also had white floral designs. She left her long, jet-black, waist-length hair loose and applied only a thin layer of pink lipstick and powder as makeup.

Just as she finished getting ready, they heard a knock on the door. The two cousins exchanged glances before looking toward it. Bella grabbed her phone from the bed to check the time.

Bella frowned upon seeing that it was only 4:45 p.m. So early, huh? Don’t tell me that’s them already? she thought, turning to her cousin.

"You check who’s outside. I’ll just use the bathroom first."

Before Mara could respond, Bella had already walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She felt uneasy, as if horses were racing in her chest from sheer nervousness. She also suddenly felt like she needed to pee for no reason.

She had been in the bathroom for about five minutes when she heard a knock on the door, followed by Mara’s voice.

"Bella, Beast and the others are already in the lounge. The person outside earlier was a resort staff member. They said we should just meet them there."

When Bella didn’t respond, Mara knocked again.

"Hey, you okay in there? Or did the toilet flush you away?" she teased, laughing.

"Ugh! Just a second! It’s still early!" Bella shouted from inside. A few moments later, she finally emerged from the bathroom, shooting an annoyed glare at her waiting cousin.

"Are you that excited?" she asked sarcastically.

"Yes, absolutely! So, let’s go!" Mara said eagerly.

Bella scoffed and walked over to the bed before sitting down. "You fool! Listen, when you go on a date, you shouldn’t make it obvious that you’re eager. What would your date think? Let the guy wait—it’s fine," she lectured her cousin. "That’s the number one rule in dating."

"Wow! The way you give dating tips, you sound like an expert," Mara teased, giggling.

"And besides, what are you saying? Time is gold, you know? It would be rude to keep them waiting. This isn’t a normal date, anyway."

"I don’t care what kind of date this is—it’s still called a date, so don’t argue with me!" Bella said dramatically.

Suddenly, her phone rang, and she frowned as she glanced at it. Seeing an unregistered number on the screen, she frowned even more.

"Who could this be?" she muttered.

"Maybe if you answer it, you’d know?" Mara teased.

Bella shot her a glare before picking up the call.

"Hello? Who’s this?"

Her face instantly twisted in annoyance as she recognized the familiar voice on the other end.

"I’m excited to see you, my princess. I’ll just be right here waiting for you."

Beast?!

Even without the caller saying his name, Bella knew exactly whose voice it was. Less than five seconds passed before she abruptly ended the call.

"Where the hell did he get my number?"

Then it dawned on her.

"Mom!"

"Oh? Why do you look like that? Who was that?" Mara asked curiously.

"Ugh. I don’t know. Probably an alien," Bella muttered.

"Alien?"

"Ah, no. Wrong dial," Bella quickly covered up. After a few seconds, she stood up and headed for the door.

"Let’s go. We should get going."

"Oh? I thought it was okay to keep your date waiting?"

"Never mind! I don’t want him calling again."

Scratching her head in confusion, Mara followed her cousin without further questions. Bella was clearly in another bad mood, and Mara figured that even if she asked, she wouldn’t get any real answers anyway.