Chapter 47 Chapter 48
Marlie appeared troubled as she exited the bathroom. Although she recognized the man in her memories as Chad, she was unsure of what to do.
What could she do when the man she despised and enjoyed her intimacy with turned out to be none other than Chad? Moreover, she recalled nothing beyond that kiss from years ago. What troubled Marlie more was how she would confront Chad about what had transpired.
"Marlie, think! Concentrate, damn it. How can you be devoid of any ideas at such a critical moment? Did that kiss render your mind blank? Idiot!" She furiously racked her brain, but it seemed to betray her.
"Damn it, why can't I rely on this damn brain when I need it the most!" She cussed herself, knowing that she always neglected her rationality in favor of her emotions. Perhaps it was no surprise that her mind failed her, or maybe she was burdened by pressure and frustration.
Why wouldn't she be if she simply repeated the events of years ago just a few moments ago? "I was foolish not to have self-control. Damn it! What am I going to do now? I need someone to confide in.
Ah yes! Mark, Mark, yes Mark can assist me! Oh Marlie, how could you have forgotten that?" Marlie scolded herself and immediately dialed Mark's number.
She paced back and forth in the room while waiting for the phone to connect.
"Mark!.." Marlie exclaimed as soon as Mark answered. He was no fool, he could sense the anxiety in Marlie's tone.
However, Marlie gathered her thoughts and reminded herself of what she was about to ask.
"Marlie, what's wrong? Did something happen? You haven't told me yet what occurred when you went home." Mark inquired, his concern evident in his voice.
"Mark uhm... I wanted to check how you are doing." She said awkwardly, as this was the first time she greeted him with pleasantries.
Mark chuckled. It was surprising for him to receive such kindness from Marlie since she only called him when they had plans, let alone to ask how he was doing. Something was definitely amiss.
"Did I wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?" Mark's initial question almost earned him a cuss, but Marlie stopped herself. Meanwhile, Mark continued, "Or did you eat something that didn't agree with you?"
Marlie couldn't contain her sarcasm and cussed, "Damn you Mar--." but she didn't finish it because it was better to stay on good terms with Mark. After all, she needed his advice.
"No, I just wanted to check in on you Mark. How can you say that?" Marlie pretended to be hurt.
Mark chuckled and said, "Alright, alright, I'm fine. And since that's all you called for, let me get back to--"
"Mark!" Mark paused from hanging up the call when Marlie abruptly called his name.
"I wanted to ask you something," Marlie said, suddenly feeling shy.
"Really? Okay, go ahead, I'm listening!" Mark said.
"Uhm... It's like this... I have uhm... a friend, who... recently discovered that she had shared an intimacy with her enemy in the past but can't remember all the details. And uhm... what happened before has just happened again now. Moreover, she's afraid to confront that guy. So I want you to help me find some advice for her. What do you--" Marlie was speaking when Mark cut her off with his question.
"Did something happen between you and Chad?" Mark asked. He wasn't a fool. There was no way he wouldn't know that Marlie didn't actually have a friend as she claimed.
"No! No way!! How is this even possible? I specifically mentioned that it's a friend. Were you not paying attention?" Marlie felt flustered by his question.
"Marlie, please explain what really happened between the two of you. There's more to the story than you're letting on. Why does it seem like you and Chad are the so-called enemies? Tell me, what's happening?" Mark inquired.
Marlie blushed with embarrassment. "You know what, forget it!" Marlie said abruptly and then hung up the call.
DAMN! Marlie had never been in such disarray before. She had always been in control of her own life, but today, she felt overwhelmed by her problems.
Who can I turn to now? Wait... there's someone else. Yes! Nanny can help me. Let me go find her." She reassured herself and hurriedly left her room, heading downstairs to Vien's room.
"Nanny, Nanny! I need to ask you something." Marlie said the moment she entered the room.
"I also wanted to talk to you, but please go ahead, my child," Vien said and gestured for her to take a seat.
Alright, here's the situation... I have a friend who is dealing with a complicated problem. The thing is... she had intimacy with her archenemy twice. The first time was years ago and she lost her memory of that incident, not realizing it was him. But just today...
No, actually, the second time confirmed her suspicions that it was indeed her enemy. What should she do?" Marlie asked, using hand gestures to illustrate her words.
Vien remained silent throughout Marlie's explanation, occasionally nodding to show that she was following along. However, Vien, being older, understood perfectly well who the "friend" and "enemy" really were.
Struggling to hide her smile, she straightforwardly answered Marlie, "Oh, that's not a big issue. She should just confess her love for her enemy, that's all. The problem will be resolved, and they will have a happy ending."
"What? No! That's impossible! Who said I'm in love with--" Marlie paused when she noticed a slight smirk on Vien's face.
Clearing her throat, she quickly said, "I mean she's not in love with the man. It's not possible. My friend could never be in love with him because she despises him." She defended.
Vien nodded, as if she understood something. "So if I've understood you correctly, that guy and lady are actually you and Chad, right?" The older woman asked.
"Yes! It's me and Ch-- No, that's not it... I mean, my friend... I just mentioned... Damn it! You know what? Forget it. Screw all of you!" Marlie cussed and stormed out of Vien's room, while Vien called after her.
Vien interrupted Marlie, exclaiming, "Hold on! There's something crucial I need to inform you about."
Unfortunately, Marlie was now in a sour state of mind, so she retorted angrily, "What could possibly be more significant than my own issue? Keep it to yourself. I don't care about any of you!"
Having expressed her feelings, Marlie forcefully shut the door of Vien's room with a deafening thud and stormed off.
"Who do Mark and Vien think they are, mocking me like that? I only sought their perspective. Granted, expecting loyalty from these people was naive. Nevertheless, how did they manage to uncover the truth?"
Ruminating on her emotions, Marlie grumbled inwardly before returning to her room, wearing a scowl.