CHAPTER 37

“What?” Is he acquainted with my father?

“Captain Jenkins was a former colleague of mine. In our spare time, he frequently speaks about his wife and only daughter,” he stated. My lips parted in surprise as I glanced at him. I took a quick look at the embroidery on his tuxedo.

Admiral My father was a chief of police. I knew that Admiral was the navy’s highest rank; was it conceivable for them to work together?

“I haven’t seen you before. Are you close with him?” Curiosity welled up throughout my entire existence because of what he stated. I’d never met daddy’s co-worker back then.

“Not excessively. He has a large circle of friends, and I’m not sure if I’m one of his closest confidants. However, I admire his courage. He deserved that position.”

I suddenly felt proud; even though daddy was no longer here, there was still someone who admired him. If he were here now, I was sure they’d be great buddies.

“Are you aware of why I allowed my daughter to stay with you and did not notify your mother of your whereabouts?” He had re-attracted my attention; he was smiling as if he had remembered something. Why did he let Iris to live with me? If he was a friend of my dad, he would very certainly report me to mom.

“That is because your father will do the same. I remember how he told us that he’ll do everything to achieve your dreams, make you happy and be contented in life. I allowed my daughter to live with you because this is the first time Marguerite has met another friend. I was initially taken aback when I discovered you were Captain Jenkins’ daughter. When she told me that, I agreed immediately.” He chuckled as though it were one of his fondest memories.

“May we call Mr. Mateo Lopez? Kindly proceed to stage.” When the MC called him to the front, he tapped my shoulder and left me there.

I was alone again.

I was surprised that my father and Iris’ father knew each other. Was this a coincidence, or were Iris and I truly fated to meet?

Whatever the case may be, destiny was not real.

I sat calmly and observed what they were doing in front. Iris’ father left a message; Iris took no action but listened casually. I was curious as to what Iris was thinking right now. She only sees her father on rare occasions, so I believed this was new to her.

Or perhaps she had been touched by his father’s message? She informed me her father was the person in this world in whom she had the most trust. Even if they didn’t spend the most of their time together, they had a deep friendship since they trust one another so much.

I was suddenly jealous, and I genuinely missed my father.

“May we call Ms. Aurora Jenkins? Please come forward.” When I heard my name, my heart nearly leapt out of my chest. What? Why? Iris never mentioned this to me.

When Iris and I locked gazes, I gave her a sharp look. She only smiled, as if to tease me. This wasn’t planned!

I rose to my feet and walked to the front without speaking a word. Why would they call me in the first place? Nobody knew who I was here; they might even be confused why was I here.

The MC handed me the microphone and walked over to Iris. I cracked a rough smile as the flashes of the camera welcomed me.

“U-Uh, I’m not sure what to say...” I bit my lip in embarrassment, a few people laughed, but I couldn’t shake off my uncertainty. I returned my gaze to Iris and laughed when I noticed her eyes were already wet. I had not yet spoken, yet her tears were on the verge of dripping.

“I’d like to wish you a happy birthday, love,” I began.

“Uh, you’re nineteen already. You may be rude at times but I don’t mind. You may be too nosy at times but I don’t mind. You may be too flashy and cocky all the time but I don’t mind. You’re my very bestfriend, my love, and my soulmate. And uh... I wish you the best. If I die, please don’t kill yourself to be with me. Just be happy instead because you’ve earned another protector from heaven. Uh, I love yo—” Even before I finished, she immediately hugged me. She began crying on my shoulders, sobbing like a child who didn’t get to buy her favorite candy.

“T-This is my first and last birthday with you; why would you have to leave so soon? I’m irritated...” She nearly gasped for air from sobbing. One more touching word from her and I was sure I’d cry as well.

I was not allowed to cry today since I was so well groomed; I didn’t want to ruin it.

“At the very least, we met; I’ll always protect you, my darling.” I released the hug and wiped away her tears. Her makeup was a little smudged, but thanks to her waterproof mascara, it was not too messy.

“What is this, our birthday celebrant’s make-up is messed up. Aurora gave a very moving message, as if she were about to say goodbye to the world,” the MC added, laughing out loud.

I quietly smiled, knowing that if he knew I was truly about to die at any minute, he would be unable to laugh like that.

Before returning to my chair, I kissed Iris’ cheek. As soon as I sat, the MC declared that we might begin eating. I was the last to deliver a message earlier; I thought there would be another one.

I did not rise first, as the line at the cater was still quite lengthy.

After a few minutes passed with the queue being unchanged, I began to feel hungry.

I raised my eyes to the wine in front of me and was about to take a sip when I heard a baritone voice.

“Eat.”

I looked at the food on the table, then looked up to see who the man infront of me. When I saw Pierre’s emotionless face staring at me, my heart seemed to leap. I lowered my eyes and surveyed the food; the plate was brimming with food, as if I were about to face a death penalty later.

“I’ll just go to the line,” I said but he drew me back. He would not let go of my hand until I was seated again on the chair.

“Eat.” Frowning as he stared at me, he appeared to understand what I was thinking. I took my hand and grabbed for the spoon without speaking a word. I sighed quietly and continued to ignore him.

A few seconds later, I felt his hand beneath the table. He intertwined our fingers and held it tightly. I didn’t remove it cause it seemed that he had no plans to let go of my hands.

He sat in the same spot as Iris’ father had previously sat. We were the only two people at the table, but we said nothing.

“I’m sorry,” he said. My eyebrows raised in surprise as I looked at him.

“For what?” Our most recent conversation was fruitful. I waz actually the only issue, because I hadn’t been paying attention to him since last Thursday. Why would he apologize if he had committed no wrong?

“Did I—”

“Hello, may I sit down? There were no vacant seats at the student council table.” Pierre couldn’t finish what he was saying as Alyssa appeared unexpectedly. Despite that we did not permit her to join us, she sat and placed the meal on the table.

Didn’t she see Pierre and I conversing here? What a scumbag.

“Hello, Aurora! Your message a while ago to Iris was heartwarming; I wish I had a friend like you!” I smiled cautiously and remained silent; what should I say? If I was to be questioned, I wanted her to leave us alone.

I couldn’t care less if others think she was a wonderful person; I disliked her.

“Pierre, how’s our life? You’ve been drowning in paperwork, huh? How’s lovelife?” Pierre stared at her, remained motionless for a little minute before responding.

“I’m fine.”

That was, after all, what he had been doing for the last few days, huh? It was fortunate that he was preoccupied with paperwork and not with other women. I locked my gaze on Alyssa as she smiled sweetly at Pierre.

I’d heard Aly was rather fond of Pierre; didn’t she realize Pierre liked me? With Pierre and I being PDA most of the time, was it possible for her to remain unaware of our relationship? Did she really not have an idea or just didn’t care?

Alyssa began speaking in ways that I could not relate to. Only the two of them were conversing, and I got the impression that Pierre was forcing himself to respond in order to avoid appearing impolite.

“Remember that? You were so amusing back then!” Aly smiled and patted Pierre’s arm lightly. Pierre’s fingers remained firmly gripped around mine. I was going to pinch even the corner of his finger if Alyssa laughed one more time.

Hello? Why was I even here?

I was not sure why my annoyance was at an all-time high right now. I wanted to order them to simply move to another table, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to be impolite; I was afraid I’d cause a scene and ruin the celebration. I would not going to act like a jealous girlfriend when I was the one who kept ignoring him in the first place.

I was thankful when I finished eating. It served as an excuse for me to leave them there.

“I’ll simply return this,” I said, letting go of Pierre’s hand. I didn’t wait for their response and went right to the table where the used plates were placed.

“Drinks, ma’am?” the caterer offered. Despite the fact that I was not permitted to, I took a drink and immediately drank it.

I was irritated; did they forgot that I was still with them? I was sitting there like a rock, listening to their chat.

When I saw Pierre walking towards me, I hurriedly returned the drink to the waiter. As long as I could, I should avoid him. Particularly now that I was irritated.

I entered the house despite that I had no idea where was my destination. The maids were all preoccupied that they didn’t even notice when I entered the house. I continued walking till I reached the living room, which was also being cleaned by a few maids.

I inhaled deeply and sat in one of the sofas. Some of them smiled at me, while others simply stared at me. I leaned back against the sofa’s backrest and took a long breath.

I hoped he wouldn’t follow me here, I was already exhausted from walking.

After several minutes of silence, I felt my body float. I opened my eyes and met Pierre’s piercing gaze.

“Put me down,” I stated quietly. I would not going to cause a scene here; people might think he was hurting me. Well, as if they were going to listen to me if I asked for help. Pierre was the one who grew up here; he was the one they would follow. That was for sure.

“I said put me down,” I hit his chest, but he acted as if he didn’t hear me. When I was powerless to do anything but remain silent, I tightened my fist. If I finally break free from his arms, I would hit him hard.

I was unaware that we had reached the second floor. We were already in a room when I opened my eyes. The jet black paint on the wall covered the entire room; just a few areas were painted differently, and the others were gray.

Was this a mafia’s room?

When Pierre lowered me on the bed, I immediately rose to my feet. I was about to left the room when I heard his baritone voice.

“Where are you going?” I came to a halt but did not glance at him.

“I’m leaving; what am I going to do here?” I asked cruelly. I received no response but silence. After a few seconds, I felt his presence behind me; practically all of my hair raised as he parted my hair and planted soft kisses to my neck down to my collarbone.

“Where are you gonna go? Iris is preoccupied with her father’s visitors, and you won’t find anyone else to converse with there.”

“Why do you care? Were you not with Alyssa earlier? You were both talking as if you were the only people left on earth! I wonder why she didn’t follow you here too!” I could no longer restrain myself from letting out all of my resentment. He was talking like he didn’t make me feel out of placed earlier. Wasn’t he aware that they were the reason I had to leave the garden in the first place?

“Alyssa and I are just friends. Why are you acting like this, hm? Are you jealous?” He was about to hug me from behind when I pulled his arms away and turned to face him.

“Jealous? What? I couldn’t care less about you two! Even if you kiss in front of me, I don’t care!” I was on the verge of bursting into tears out of frustration. His brows were still wrinkled, as if he couldn’t comprehend why I was behaving in such a strange manner.

“Oh, you’re unable to speak? Is it because you want to kiss her as well, don’t you? You’re fantastic—”

“Baby, what is this all about?”

What?

“You are no longer a child, Pierre, and I know you understand where my rage is coming from. Don’t even try to pretend that you don’t know what I’m talking about!”

“Why are you acting this way? Didn’t you avoid me for a few days? Why are you acting this way all of a sudden? We haven’t even talked yet, and there’s another quarrel again. What happened? Did I do something that you didn’t like? Did I do something that made you mad? Baby, I’m confused.”

I gave him silence as a response.

I took a deep breath while maintaining a negative attitude toward him. He had a valid point; why was I acting this way if I was the one who was trying to drive him away in the first place? What kind of behavior was this, Aurie? What were you talking about? Had you lost your mind?

“I-I’m just going to go home,” My voice trailed off. My tears streamed down my cheeks as I turned away from him. I was in such a state of emotional turmoil right now that I was not sure I’d be able to speak effectively due to my frustration.

“No one’s coming home. Come here, we’ll talk,” he said as he pulled my hand toward him. I didn’t say anything. He tapped his thigh, seemingly saying that I should sit on his lap.

When I remained still, he picked me up and stacked me on top of him. I remained bowed and averted my look; one more shove and I would burst out crying.

“What happened?” he asked. “Please, tell me, my love; I’ve been thinking about this for a few days; why are you keeping me away?” It was a trigger, and I began sobbing once more. I attempted to wipe away my tears despite that it didn’t matter because he had already seen them.

“Shh,” he hushed me as if I were a baby. Even though he had no idea why I was crying, he did not asked a thing.

“U-Uh, family problem; I don’t want to talk to anyone for days...” I lied. I had no choice but to tell him that, as I had no other conceivable reason.

“You did talk to Seven.”

“He is the one who informs me of what is happening in our family; I will not know unless I speak with him as well.”