Chapter 3
1032 Words
When she walked into the restaurant, she sat down. Then across the table sat Adrien and his "supposed" first love, Vivian, as their friends called her.They interacted so casually, so comfortable, as though there had never been a wall between them. She looked away. She told herself not to care. She reminded herself of her place. She was his wife in name. That was all. But then the realization came. The germaphobia, the distance, the constant sanitizing, the rules about touching, the five meters between them at homel. It suddenly made sense. He wasn't avoiding everyone. He was just avoiding her. The thought settled heavily in her chest, more than a year she had convinced herself that this behavior wasn't personal, that perhaps his fears had made affection impossible. But now she knew better. He had never been incapable of closeness. He had simply never wanted to be close to her. She lowered her gaze and quietly took her seat. Maybe, she thought, he would look at her eventually. Maybe he would notice her. If even for once his eyes would find her across the table. But throughout the entire dinner, he never did. Not once. He was only focused on Vivian. And then what caught her off guard was the smile. A genuine smile. This wasn't the kind of small smile she saw at his business meetings when he won a deal. This was a real, genuine smile. The kind that she had spent countless moments wishing she would earn. The kind that she had secretly hoped to see directed at her even if just once. For Vivian, he did it so effortlessly. She didn't have to earn it. She didn't have to wait for it. It simply belonged to her. So everyone at the table was teasing them. "The lovebirds"
"the high school lovebirds".
"Finally,"
They all teased. Vivian felt seemingly shy and embarrassed. While Adrian did nothing to hide his amusement .She sat quietly beside them, listening, watching, feeling more alone than she had ever felt in a room full of people. The whole atmosphere was suffocating to her and she couldn't take it anymore. Then she stood up abruptly. The sound of the chair scraping across the floor caught the attention of everyone. Every pair of eyes suddenly turned to her. She didn't explain. She just stood.
" I'll be right back"
. Her voice was steady. At least she hoped it was steady. Then she walked away. She made it to the restroom before finally allowing herself to breathe. She stood in front of the mirror and stared at her reflection. Her eyes beginning to betray her. She turned on the tap and splashed some cold water into her face.
Once,
twice,
again.
"Don't cry"
she whispered to herself. She refused to let him have her tears. He didn't deserve them. She took a few deep breaths until the ache in her chest started to loosen. And she carefully fixed her makeup to make sure no one would know what happened.
She stepped out of the restroom after making sure her makeup looked perfectly normal.
She wasn't going to let anyone know what had happened.
She adjusted her dress and took a few steps down the hallway, her handbag resting against her arm.
Then—
Thud.
She bumped into someone.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
Her things slipped from her hands and scattered onto the floor.
"Are you okay?"
A deep voice came from above her.
The stranger immediately crouched down, helping her gather everything.
She bent down too, but when she looked up—
She froze.
He was tall.
Very tall.
Handsome in a way that made her stare for a second longer than she intended.
His features were striking, but there was something familiar about him.
He looked at her.
Then his eyes widened.
"Wait..."
She blinked.
He smiled.
"Is that really you?"
She stared at him again.
And suddenly, she remembered.
"Aries?"
His smile grew.
"I knew it was you."
Her expression instantly brightened.
Aries.
Her old classmate.
Her deskmate.
One of the few people from school she could genuinely call a friend.
They hadn't seen each other in years.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, laughing softly.
"What am I doing here?" he repeated. "What are you doing here?"
She laughed.
For the first time that evening, it was a real laugh.
Not forced.
Not polite.
Real.
They stood there for a moment, catching up on the years they had missed.
Aries eventually glanced toward the restaurant.
"Are you free for dinner right now??"
She hesitated.
Then she smiled.
"Sure."
And somehow, that simple invitation made her feel strangely happy.
They went to another section of the restaurant
They talked about everything.
School.
Their old classmates.
Their families.
The things they had dreamed about when they were younger.
The things life had actually given them instead.
She found herself laughing more than she had in months.
Aries listened when she spoke.
He asked questions.
He remembered little things about her from school that she had completely forgotten.
And for once, she didn't feel invisible.
They ordered far more food than either of them could finish.
They talked between bites, laughing whenever one of them remembered another ridiculous memory from school.
At one point, she was eating when Aries suddenly looked at her cheek.
"Hold on."
She paused.
"What?"
"You've got sauce on your face."
Before she could react, he gently wiped it away.
She froze.
Her cheeks immediately warmed.
Aries simply smiled and continued eating as though nothing had happened.
She lowered her eyes, suddenly shy.
No one had ever done something so simple for her.
No one had ever noticed little things like that.
No one had ever made caring feel so effortless.
She smiled quietly to herself.
Maybe this was what it felt like to have someone actually pay attention to you.
Then—
BAM!
A fist suddenly struck Aries across the face.
Her smile disappeared instantly.
Aries staggered backward, completely caught off guard.
She shot to her feet.
"What the—?!"
She looked toward the person who had attacked him.
And her heart dropped.
Because standing there was Adrian.
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