While I was still trying to figure out who the two people across from me were, Mia abruptly stood up, "David, gimme a sec."
Before I could react, Mia had already walked away. Her tone seemed a bit cold as if she wasn't entirely happy.
But she was the one who suggested coming here, so why would she be upset?
I was confused and glanced across the street again. This time, I noticed something different: the two familiar figures were now joined by another woman.
That woman was Mia.
How did she suddenly end up over there?
I hurriedly followed her out, but I was stopped by a waiter after a few steps.
"Sir, your meals have already been served," the waiter said, clearly worried we might dine and dash. After all, Mia had left abruptly, and now I was also moving quickly. It wasn't unreasonable for the waiter to think that way.
But the situation was urgent!
Mia had suddenly joined another table. What if she got into an argument with them?
She was just one woman, how could she handle two guys?
"I need to take care of something. I'll be back in a bit. If you're concerned, I can leave my phone here."
To reassure the waiter, I added, "It's the latest model, worth a week's salary. Practically brand new. That work for you?"
Seeing my calm demeanor and good attitude, the waiter relaxed and let me go.
I quickly rushed to the restaurant across the street. Just as I reached the door, I saw Mia land a hard slap on the man's face in front of her.
His face twisted with pain, a trickle of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth.
She didn't hold back!
It was then that I realized who the people were. The man was Matthew, the bar owner, and the woman was Fiona, the bar's lobby manager.
Weren't Matthew and Fiona a couple? They seemed to be on a date, so why did Mia come over and slap Matthew?
Was she out of her mind?
With thought, I decided to hang back by the door to get a better grasp of the situation before deciding whether to step in or stay out of it.
Surprisingly, despite being slapped, Matthew didn't get angry. Instead, he held Mia's hand and said something to her, seemingly begging for forgiveness or trying to calm her down.
Their relationship definitely seemed complicated.
"Matthew! How dare you cheat on me?" Mia shook off his hand, her tone filled with disbelief.
I was as stunned as she was.
Matthew was actually Mia's fiancé?
That shouldn't be right; wasn't Mia's fiancé supposed to be on a business trip?
"I'm sorry, Mia. I apologize for everything I did."
"Get lost! I'll never forgive you! Do you think an apology can make up for the weeks I spent waiting for you?" With that, Mia gave another slap on Matthew.
This time, his face immediately swelled up, turning red and painfully puffy.
He still apologized, "No, Mia, can you listen to my explanation? She's just a colleague."
"You're having dinner alone with a female colleague late at night? If you have something to say, I suggest you tell it to my aunt!" Without another glance, Mia stormed out.
I watched as Mia walked past me.
Matthew watched her leave, too, and naturally noticed me.
I approached him with a casual greeting, "Mr. Nelson, fancy seeing you here! Out for dinner too?"
"It is quite the coincidence. You dining alone?"
"Yeah, decided to leave work early and treat myself. But it looks like I picked the wrong time. I'll get out of your hair now."
Before Matthew could respond, I quickly slipped away and ran back to the restaurant where Mia and I had originally come from.
The place we chose was a bit more upscale, featuring one-way windows that allowed you to look out but not the other way around.
For me, it was the perfect spot to observe the unfolding drama.
As soon as I sat down, I fixed my gaze on the restaurant across the street.
I noticed that Matthew's earlier attempt to soothe Mia seemed insincere. As soon as Mia left, he was hugging and consoling Fiona, without a care for the onlookers.
But soon enough, Matthew let go of Fiona and dashed out of the restaurant, looking around frantically, likely wanting to pacify Fiona first before smoothing things over with Mia.
"Alright, stop gawking. Haven't you ever seen a love affair before?" Mia said, looking a bit annoyed.
I muttered, "This is actually the first time I've seen it happen, but Matthew is your fiancé?"
"Do you know him?" Mia asked.
"Yeah, I used to work at his bar," I openly admitted.
Mia continued, "So you also know that he's with that woman, right?"
I nodded, "Not only do I know, I even saw them hooking up! I just thought they were a regular couple having fun outdoors; I had no idea he was your fiancé."
Given the complexity of the situation, I definitely couldn't get involved; otherwise, I'd end up in hot water.
"It's not your fault. I'm just so furious. We've been together for seven years, from college until now, and we were about to get married. And he cheated on me?"
Mia kept venting to me, then suddenly stood up.
"No! I can't take this anymore! I need to tell my aunt and get her support." With that, she grabbed the phone on the table and dialed a number. I glanced at it but couldn't quite see who she was calling.
"Auntie, it's Mia. Matthew... he cheated on me! You have to help me!"
"Okay, where are you? I'll come to you."
The person on the other end seemed to give an address. Mia hung up and then started searching on her phone, "I'm heading out for a bit. Let's just call it a night. Finish my portion too; I'll settle the bill first. If it's not enough, order whatever you want."
I responded, "Alright, take care on your way."
I didn't need to get involved in this family matter. The more entangled I got, the higher the chances of my relationship with Mia being exposed.
After Mia left the restaurant, I continued eating, finishing both my meal and hers.
As I was leaving, the waiter suddenly stopped me, "Sir, please wait a moment!"
I asked with confusion, "What's the matter?"
The waiter responded, "Well, the lady who was with you paid the bill, but she overpaid, so we need to refund you some money."