MARRIED TO THE MONSTER

CHAPTER2

The morning after Eva's meeting and contract agreement with Brian, she shuffled into her living room, still in her pajamas, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. It was Saturday, and she had barely recovered from the exhaustion of the previous night's work. Her muscles ached as she absentmindedly searched for her phone, which she had forgotten somewhere in the living room amidst the chaos of papers and magazines she had left behind. After a few moments of rummaging through a stack of magazines, she finally found it underneath one of them.

Relieved, she picked up the phone, but before she could even unlock it, a sharp knock at the door startled her. Glancing at the clock, she furrowed her brow in confusion. "Who could it be at this hour?" she muttered to herself. It was just past 7 a.m., far too early for visitors, especially on a weekend.

Curiosity piqued, Eva made her way to the door, already feeling a pang of annoyance brewing in her chest. When she swung it open, she was greeted by the sight of Brian, standing there with a wide smile, looking all too pleased with himself. Her irritation intensified. She hadn’t expected to see him so early, if at all.

"Brian?" she said, her voice edged with frustration. Her eyes trailed down to the travel bag in his hand, and her heart sank as realization dawned on her. It looked like he was planning to stay—possibly for a while.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. They simply stood there, a heavy silence between them until Brian finally broke it, his voice casual, almost amused.

"Can I come in, or are we just going to stand here staring at each other?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Eva blinked, snapping herself out of her thoughts. "Yes, you can," she muttered, stepping aside to let him in, although she wasn’t thrilled about it.

As Brian entered, Eva crossed her arms and shot him a glance, her tone slightly accusing. "You're here so early. It's just seven in the morning. Did you even sleep at home?"

Brian, unfazed by her irritation, chuckled softly. "I did sleep at home, but I didn’t want to risk being late again, considering the argument we had yesterday. I thought it’d be better to show up early this time," he explained with a shrug.

Eva sighed. "Well, it's great that you're early, I guess. You'll have time to familiarize yourself with the place. But let's make one thing clear again, Brian. You're only here for the act—nothing more. We're just pretending to be a couple while my mother is around, and once this is over, so is this whole arrangement. You're going to be compensated for your role, but it’s strictly professional. We need to keep everything discreet."

Brian nodded, his expression serious as he took in her words. "I understand. We're only acting for the time being," he agreed.

After the brief conversation, Eva led him down the hallway to show him to his room. They moved in silence, the awkwardness between them palpable. Once he had settled in, Eva went about her day, relieved to have some space.

Later that evening, Brian was working quietly in his room, focused on his laptop as he tried to finish a report for his job. The peaceful ambiance of the house was suddenly shattered when loud, upbeat music blasted from the living room, startling him. The booming bass thumped through the walls, making it impossible for him to concentrate. With a sigh of frustration, Brian pushed back his chair and stormed out of his room, determined to put an end to the disruption.

When he entered the living room, he saw Eva dancing energetically to the music, her body swaying to the rhythm in a carefree manner. She was wearing nothing but a casual shirt and a pair of bum shorts, clearly lost in the moment. The sight was striking, but Brian's annoyance at the deafening music overshadowed any other thoughts.

Without saying a word, he grabbed the remote from the coffee table and turned off the music, cutting it off abruptly. Eva, noticing the sudden silence, stopped dancing and turned around, her eyes narrowing as she saw Brian standing there, remote in hand. She was furious.

"Why did you do that?" Eva demanded, stepping toward him, her voice sharp with irritation.

"The music was too loud," Brian replied, his tone steady but firm. "You were probably disturbing the neighbors."

Eva’s eyes flashed with anger. "Who gave you the right to just barge in and turn it off? Dancing helps me relax and relieve stress after a long day. What gives you the right to stop me?"

Brian’s patience was wearing thin. He met her glare head-on. "What gives me the right? You were disturbing me too! I have work to do, and your loud, obnoxious music was making it impossible to concentrate. I don’t care if you want to dance, but keep it down so that you're not disturbing everyone around you."

Eva felt her face heat up with frustration, her fists clenching at her sides. "You could have asked me to lower it down instead of just shutting it off!"

"I shouldn’t have to ask for basic consideration, Eva!" Brian shot back, his voice rising. "If you want to dance and relieve stress, fine. But do it in a way that doesn't disrupt the entire house. It’s called respect."

Unable to handle the tension any longer, Eva turned on her heel and stormed away, heading to her room without another word. She didn’t want to give Brian the satisfaction of seeing her so rattled.

Brian stood in the living room for a moment, glaring at the now silent home theater system. With a frustrated sigh, he threw the remote onto the couch and stalked back to his room, slamming the door behind him.

The atmosphere in the house grew cold after the argument, both of them retreating to their separate corners, unwilling to bridge the gap between them. Though they had agreed to work together for a short period of time, it was clear that this arrangement was going to be anything but smooth.