CHAPTER 42

When I was finished with my makeup, I wasted no time and left my room. I bid mommy goodbye before getting into the car.

I was traveling alone with my family driver, so... I should avoid collapsing later.

The entire trip was lengthy but silent, with the exception of the radio, which I could hear throughout the car. I put my head against the window gently; the sun should have been high by now, but the surroundings were still quite dreary.

I almost fell asleep during the trip; however, I was able to fight off the tiredness; otherwise, it would have continued and our driver would have had a tough time rousing me.

I stayed with the driver in front of the condominium; it was a little further than the entrance ‘cause we couldn’t park the car exactly infront of the building. Additionally, if we were far apart, Pierre was less likely to see me.

Today was Sunday. This was the time when he would go out to purchase something at a nearby convenience store or perhaps went for a jog. He frequently paid me a visit in our home on Sundays.

Minutes stretched into an hour of waiting, and I didn’t even see Pierre’s shadow.

Why was he not coming out?

“Ma’am, I think you should go inside? It appears that he won’t leave that building,” the driver suggested. I inhaled deeply and examined myself in the rear view mirror.

I looked good; I didn’t need to touch up my makeup.

“I’ll go inside alone; please wait here.”

“Ma’am Aliana warned me not to leave you alone since you could pass out at any time; we’ll both be reprimanded, ma’am,” he added, scratching his head, as though unsure whether or not to obey my instructions.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got a cellphone with me; if something happens to me, I’ll call you. Just wait here; don’t follow me further.” I didn’t wait for his response and exited the car. I adjusted my clothes before entering the building.

The guard didn’t stop me when I entered, I had been here frequently before and he was most likely already familiar with my appearance.

I looked around, and there were quite a few people inside. The majority of them were dressed in gym clothing, perhaps fresh off a workout. Others had evidently just awoken and made their way down to the lobby for coffee.

I moved over to the side table and sat down. This was all I could get in; I’d just wait for him to emerge, regardless of whether I had to wait till nightfall.

Even when I was alone, I waited patiently. Numerous staff members were staring at me because I’d been here for an extended period of time without doing anything.

I couldn’t care less what they think of me; I was not doing anything wrong or causing any inconvenience.

I waited there for a minute, staring at the elevator where people were coming out. I was sleepy and hungry, yet I refused to leave. I was about to stand up to eat when the elevator opened again, and I felt as if something had stabbed my heart upon seeing Pierre came out. I hurriedly took up the magazine on the table and pretended to read it out of nervousness.

Finally I licked my lips as I stood there watching him move to a table. I wished I could approach him, but I maintained a strong sense of self-control. I was certain he would never let go of me once he saw me.

My palm trembled when I noticed him seated at a table alongside a woman. I wasn’t sure who it was at first, but as she cocked her head slightly, I knew it was Alyssa, the student council’s vice president.

Why were they together? Were they romantically in a relationship? I felt as if I were being stomped on my chest repeatedly at the thought. They were already a couple? That quickly?

Pierre appeared to be in good health; he didn’t appear stressed in the least. If you see him now, you could believe he hadn’t had any problems in recent weeks. He was dressed in his customary simple hoodie and pajamas. The only thing that had changed was that he was no longer wearing glasses.

I stood there for a few moments more before choosing to leave. This was fine with me, knowing he was fine without me. Even if I was not the reason he was doing well, I was happy.

I’d die at peace knowing that he would live his life the way it used to be before me.

I stood and walked away silently. I was ready to exit the lobby when someone hit my body. I almost screamed because of the impact of that collision.

“Oh my gosh, I’m sorry,” the person who collided with me exclaimed. I raised my eyes and saw a large man. He was clearly a foreigner, as evidenced by his accent. He extended his hand and assisted me in standing; he appeared to be soft, but his large bulk was not, as I nearly spat earlier when he hit me.

I simply looked around; nearly everyone was staring at us. As I remembered, trembling crept into my chest. I instantly looked around Pierre’s table to see if he was looking at us too.

When our eyes connected, it was as though a few volts of electricity crept through my body. His eyes suddenly changed expression as he realized who he was currently seeing.

“I am so sorry, miss. I did not intend to—”

I no longer waited for the foreigner to continue speaking and exited the condo immediately. I hoped he wouldn’t bother to follow me. He should merely stay at Alyssa’s side.

When I exited, I glanced around many times but couldn’t locate our car. Where did it go? I immediately opened my pouch and unlocked my phone. I received a message from our driver.

‘Ma’am, I parked the car in the condominium’s parking lot. The guard told me that we were parking on a private property. Call me if you’re done.’

I was not sure how many times I cursed in response to what I read. Really? The distance between the parking lot and this entrance was considerably too great; I had to pass through a doorway earlier in order to go a short distance to the parking lot.

I irritably stuffed the cellphone inside the pouch and was about to walk away when somebody stopped me. My body tensed in amazement; I was familiar with his scent, his touch, and every aspect of his body. I was certain that this was him.

“Where are you going?” he said in a calm yet deep voice. Even though I was on the verge of passing out from nervousness, I mustered all my courage to confront him. My knees almost trembled when our gazes locked; one of the things I missed most about him wss his stares that appeared to be peering into my soul.

“I have to leave; someone is waiting for me,” I lied. My eyes were drawn to his jaw when I saw it clenched. I bit my lip when I saw him examine my wholeness.

I was wearing a purple long-sleeved dress that completely covered my legs due to its length. Only my heel prevented it from touching the ground.

I was sure this was the first time he had seen me in this type of clothing; at home, I usually only wore a t-shirt and sweatshirt. Every time Iris and I leave the house, all I wear was a crop top and jeans.

Did I now resemble a literal white lady?

“Where have you been?” he asked, frowning. I attempted to pry his grip off my hand, but he didn’t have any plan to let go.

“Get off of me; I have to leave.” He didn’t appear to hear anything, as he drew closer to me.

“Let go, Pierre.’”

“You’ve been missing for more than a month. You simply vanished like a bubble, and even Iris had no idea where you went. Do you believe I’ll let go? No. What have you been?” What could I say here? I averted my eyes and bit my lip.

“I love you so much. Where have you been?” I was not sure if my ear was damaged, but I heard his voice shake. When he forcefully hugged me, all I could do was close my eyes. He buried his face on my shoulder before I could hear him sob.

Was he crying?

I confirmed that he was crying when I felt the dampness on my shoulder. No matter how hard I bit my lip, the tears continued to pour from my eyes.

“Pierre, I need to leave,” I murmured hoarsely, but he acted as if he didn’t hear me. I wished I could hug him tightly, but I restrained myself.

He might have wished even more that I should stay when I did that.

“I’ll stop asking and let go if you promise not to leave me again,” he whispered softly. I pushed him hard out of fear. He drew back and released his grip on my grasp.

“I...I have to leave.” I averted my eyes and adjusted the pouch’s strap. I refrained from even staring at him since the pain I was feeling multiplied whenever I saw his tears dripping.

“Where are you going? You’re gonna leave me again?”

I didn’t respond. I was about to leave when he drew my body in closer to him.

“What’s the matter, Aurie? Enlighten me. Why are you acting like this? Did I do something wrong? Was there something I did that you disliked? My mind is fogged with doubts, love. Tell me everything. I’m curious about what’s going on in your life, what’s on your mind...everything. Please, don’t be like this...” He held my hands tightly, as if it was his way of forcing me to speak. I raised my eyes and bravely confronted his gaze.

Those unshed tears.

“Let us put an end to this, Pierre.”

I could see his tears welling up. This was the first time I’d seen him weep; I had no idea it would hurt me so bad.

“No.”

“Aurora Elyse, this is not funny. Let’s put stop talking about this, hm? I don’t have time for pranks. Let’s go home. I miss you in every way possible; we should cuddle upstairs and avoid wasting our time here—”

“I’m not pranking you.” I yanked my hand away from him adamantly.

“I’m breaking up with you.” The tears I had previously hidden preceded the fall when I successfully said that. I thought I could conceal my emotions till I returned to the car. But those words were the only thing that could bring tears to my eyes.

“No, baby. I won’t let this to happen; no one’s breaking up. Let’s go home and fix this. This is merely a misunderstanding, love. You cannot leave me; let’s go home.” He snatched my hand away and dragged me back into the condominium, but I utilized my last strength to stay in my position.

“Pierre, my goodness! Enough! I said I don’t want to! I don’t want you anymore, and this relationship—”

“What did I do, Aurie? We had a great talk before you left me! What went wrong? Tell me and I’ll fix it. Don’t be like this...” His eyes were bloodshot as he approached me, but his hands were still a good distance away when I stepped back.

“You don’t understand...”

“Then make me understand! I don’t know much about you, but I didn’t complain about any of them. I understand and respect your right to privacy, but this? I will never understand why you want to break up with—”

“I’m in love with someone else!”

I was practically out of breath because of the sobbing. He was astonished and unable to respond, as though despite all the words I could use to explain, he still refused to hear what was my reason.

Even though I knew in my heart that wasn’t true, it felt like stabbing my chest repeatedly. How could I have lied like this? He must be really hurt right now.

“I-I love another man, Pierre. I can’t continue this relationship since the person I love has been waiting for us to break up for a long time. I’m not willing to see him suffer because of this goddamn relationship! There are several more girls out there, I’m confident you’ll be able to easily replace me—”

“Can you hear yourself, Aurie?”

“You can like ladies who are more attractive than me. More mature, more intelligent, those who do not require assistance with acads—”

“I don’t care if I spend the rest of my life teaching you, Aurie. You are the only one I want. Please, stay with me,” he stated drowsily. He glanced at me faintly, as if he couldn’t hear what I was about to say.

“How about me, then? I don’t want this anymore.”

“Baby...”

I didn’t want to waste any time waiting for him to respond, so I went away swiftly. I felt as if his cries were still echoing in my head, despite the fact that he’s already far away from me.

It seemed like every people I came across was staring at me, perhaps because I looked like a complete mess. I was quite aware that my make-up was entirely smudged because of the tears I’d shed. My hair was destroyed because Pierre dragged me towards him several times so he could hug me again.

I didn’t give a damn if I appeared to be incredibly unsightly at the moment; the only thing on my mind was to go home and cry uncontrollably. That I would be able to expel all of the pain I was feeling.

I was not sure how I managed to get into the car without hitting anything or anyone. I could clearly see the driver’s disbelief when he saw how I appeared to have turned out.

“Can you tell me what happened to you, ma’am? Are you okay?”

“This look has nothing to do with my health or whatever it is. Let’s go back to my house.”

Despite his hesitations, the driver started the engine. He started the car without saying anything, so we could get out of there.

My weeping did not cease throughout the trip. The pain was so unbearable that I had to get it all out. I felt like my chest was going to explode from the pain at any moment.

I couldn’t breathe due of how much I was sobbing, I noticed the driver giving me a few more sideways glances.

I am sorry, Pierre. That was a lie. If you only knew how much I love you and how much I cherish you, you will definitely never cry and be hurt right now. This is something I did for both of us. I am confident that you will appreciate what I’ve done in the future. If you know that I am in love with someone else, you won’t have a difficult time finding a new woman.