A waiter approached them as he sighted them. “Good evening, sir, ma’am,” he greeted with a courteous smile and led them to an empty table. “Please, have a seat, sir.”They both nodded, returning the waiter’s courteous smile. Georgina took a seat, and Anthony sat as well, his expression calm and relaxed.“Let me see what you've got,” he said, straightening up as he referred to the waiterThe waiter nodded and presented it to him with a slight bow. “Here sir, please, make your order.”Anthony collected the menu and scanned the expensive meals relayed out. The price for each meal was outrageous, but Anthony was casually going through it. After two minutes, he made his choice. “I’ll go with macaroni and cheese alongside a glass of iced tea.” The waiter nodded, taking note. “Noted.” He turned to Georgina and said, “Your turn, ma’am.” She glanced at Anthony with a smile before proceeding to make her order. After careful scanning, she spoke. “I’m going with baked salmon with jasmine rice.

When Benjamin got to the counter, his mind still swirling with annoyance as to why Sarah decided to make such a sudden decision, he shoved his card to the receptionist, “Here's my card, take out the bills,” he said, almost sounding rude. The receptionist blinked, caught off guard by the tone of his voice. She studied him for a brief moment before smiling faintly. Reluctantly she asked, “You don't look okay, sir. Please, is there anything we can do to help?” She asked with concern in her voice as she took the card. She wanted to know what was making Benjamin annoyed. “Is it about our service? If there are any issues, please feel free to let us know,” she continued, raising her eyebrows at Benjamin. Benjamin's face contorted with anger. His fist clenched at his side as he shot the receptionist a deadly stare. “Just shut up and do what you're been asked to do! Get the fucking bills off and hand the card over!” He growled. The receptionist was taken aback. She only meant well. Not

Sarah also froze at the sight of Anthony. How? How could he be here? She whispered, completely astonished. Her eyes widened. She opened her mouth, but a coherent response couldn't come out. “An…. Anthony, you?” She stammered. Anthony’s eyes flicked from Sarah to Benjamin and he stared at him for a moment longer. Then, they flipped back to Sarah, his eyes filled with quiet intensity. He walked closer. “Sarah,” he called out, still as if he was dreaming. “What are you doing here? With him?” He gestured toward Benjamin. “Didn't you say you were at home taking a rest?” Sarah stood there, iced at a spot. Her mouth went dry of words, a heavy weight of guilt descending on her. “It—it's not what you think, Anthony. There's —” Anthony cut her off, his voice cold. “What else do you want to say? Lie to me again?” He said, completely annoyed. “I called to check on you to know how you were doing and you told me you were resting at home,” he paused, then added. “So, this is the house, right?

Anthony couldn't respond. He only gave a small nod, his face pale.Georgina continued, her tone carrying a hint of disgust. “Is that how she is? Telling lies? I mean, does she have to lie to you? Why didn't she just tell the truth, that she was going out to dine with her boyfriend? You wouldn't have stopped her.”Her intention in saying that was to fuel Anthony's aggression toward Sarah. He wanted him to be more hostile and furious at her so that he would only have time for her—Georgina—and not Sarah.Pausing briefly, she continued, “She was only trying to act like she had wanted to let you know just because she was caught red-handed, or else she wouldn't have even mentioned it to you.”She didn't stop. She went on uttering words that were disgusting about Sarah, condemning her single act with only one intention—to flare Anthony's anger toward Sarah.Anthony was numb, listening to every one of her words.“She isn't trustworthy. People like her are like snakes in green grass. They can

The next day, the morning broke inside Anthony's room, and he lazily woke up, pulled out the duvet, and then sat up straighter. Rubbing his face with his hand, he reached out for his phone that sat on the nightstand. As he unlocked it, his mind drifted to something. “Yes, I need to put a call straight away to him. I have promised her several times, but have always forgotten about it.” With that, he located Georgina’s inbox and glanced down at the message that she had sent to him bearing her mechanic’s name. Without hesitation, he dialed it, putting the phone close to his ear while shifting slightly on the bed. The call rang twice before a voice, soft and friendly, came through from the other end. “Hello, good morning. Who is this, please?” The muscular voice asked. “Good morning,” Anthony replied, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’m Anthony, Georgina's friend. Do you know her?” “Yes. What happened to her?” Anthony cleared his throat and then responded. “Alri