155 At The Hotel

When Jake opened the door, he met eyes with Masha, who was sitting on the bed cross-legged. They stared at each other for a moment, sparks about to fly. Then, Masha snorted and Jake closed the door, walking further inside.

Without paying the woman any heed, Jake took off his coat, carelessly hanging it on the chair before slumping on it. Next, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and tossed it on the night table; only then did he consent to lift his eye and look at Masha's grumpy face.

"Before I turn on the recorder," he said, "do you have something to say?"

"Honestly? I've got a shitload of things I'd like to shout at you."

"The room is soundproof," Jake smiled coldly, "so go ahead."

Masha's mouth twitched. "Can't believe I'm going to say this, but I'm missing your cocky ways! That passive attitude of yours is annoying as hell—it's like talking to a wall."

"Well, I'm afraid you're going to punch me if I dare say anything remotely wrong, and I don't exactly want to return home with a bruised eye. So, better watch my tongue."

Silence fell, and neither tried to break it for a while.

Masha mulled over how to dismember Jake and hide the body parts, whereas the man in question didn't lose his commercial-like smile and silently sized her up. When he acted like this, he reminded Masha of Gabriel. His emerald eyes shone with the same cold glint, and the kind look on his face was just as chilling. Now that Jake had dropped the act, only a fool wouldn't realize that he and Gabriel were blood-related.

Somehow, it was disconcerting; how could these two be so alike? And they both had that bad habit of taking everything upon themselves. It'd have been so much simpler if Jake was a jerk through and through. But alas, he wasn't.

"Anyway," Masha eventually said, "I do have a question for you. You don't seem to hold any animosity toward anyone else other than me—even Tristan. I'm not as dense as my brother, you know?"

Jake pinched his lips but didn't comment.

"What kind of fool was I in the first timeline?" Masha let out a self-mocking laugh. "For goodness' sake, I didn't even notice my father was beating up my little brother! And we were living under the same roof." Masha paused to scoff at herself. "Gabriel also gave up many things for my family and me, including his inheritance, yet I've never done anything for him except cause trouble. But I don't think that's what's bothering you."

Again, silence.

"Let me guess, then. Was I really stupid enough not tp realize something was wrong with Camille's family…? Well, I don't think so. I probably just turned a blind eye to whatever dark secrets I found. And who knows? Maybe I even helped her hide the evidence. That wench has always been good at manipulating people, and I was a brainless fool blinded by love. I was already being led by the nose in this timeline, and we had been dating for less than two years. I don't want to imagine how much deeper I'd have fallen into her honey trap after a few more years. It's scary just to think about it."

Masha smiled wryly. Considering how things turned out in the first timeline, she wouldn't be surprised if she clung to Camille like a starved beast. In her other self's mind, Camille had probably been the only person who would ever love her, and she'd do everything to keep her by her side. If she had to go against her conscience to reach that goal, so be it; she knew herself well enough.

"So, how about telling me what I did?"

"And what good would it do you?"

"I'd know why you hate my guts so much, for starters!"

"You want to open Pandora's box for this silly reason?" Jake scoffed, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, but you'll have to think of a better argument. Ignorance is bliss, keep that in mind."

Masha gnashed her teeth. "Yeah, I'm aware there are things better left unsaid and digging skeletons rarely end well, but what about you? You know the truth and shoulder it alone. It's absurd! You should at least let me in the know for what I did!"

"That girl isn't you," Jake corrected. "Believe me, you are two very different people."

"Oh yeah? Then stop being an ass to me!"

"That's easier said than done."

Masha didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Jake was like a stranger to her, and she had difficulty adjusting her mindset. Provoking him was useless, and his calm demeanor was so damn anger-inducing that she felt like pulling her hair out. She had thought Gabriel was tight-lipped, but it seemed like his brother's lips were even more tightly sealed. He also seemed more stubborn than Misha. It made her wonder if that guy would even talk under torture…. taking into account that he gave up an eye without hesitation to protect Tristan and Misha, probably not.

"You will have to talk about it one of these days, you know?"

"As long as I don't need to, I don't intend to. You cut Camille out of your life, and that should be more than enough. You haven't heard anything about her for the past few years, haven't you? So why go around and poke the viper's nest? Let bygones be bygones."

"That's easier said than done." Masha threw back Jake's words at him, a sinister smile stretching her lips. "I'm as petty as my brother, and now that I know she has caused so much pain to us in our past life, I have difficulty letting the matter go. I'd rather make her pay for everything, whether she remembers it or not. It'd have been another story if she just played with my heart, but reality seems harsher."

"Even so, I'm still not telling you."

Tsking, Masha let herself fall backward on the bed. She stared at the white ceiling for a moment, trying to bottle up her anger. Whenever she thought about the first timeline, she wanted to slap her other self. Before, she could wrap up her emotions relatively fast and brush them off, but now that she knew that the timeline went on and that Gabriel was left alone, her heart felt about to burst. Her dearest friend had to go through so much because of her own stupidity; it brought about a feeling of self-hatred. If only she had known….

But what was done was done, and she couldn't change the past now.

"Leaving that matter aside," Jake said, snapping Masha out of her thoughts, "we have something to take care of today."

A drawn-out sigh escaped Masha's lips. Right. They had that thing to tackle if they wanted to fool Angela and keep her guard lowered. "I'm warning you; I'm a terrible actor."

"You can't be as bad as your brother."

"…Fair enough."

Masha chuckled, thinking of the past few years. Since Misha transmigrated back in time, she had always known something was off about him. But, of course, she could never have guessed that he had traveled back in time. It wasn't the first thing that came to people's minds, after all.

"Oh yeah! You know…." Masha's voice trailed, a mischievous glint flashing in her bright blue eyes.

Jake's mouth twitched. 'Whatever she says next, it's not something I want to hear,' he thought. And as expected, her following words made him feel exasperated deep down. Why were the Lesskov siblings so prone to tease others? It was going to drive him crazy one of these days.

"I thought you would bring a camera with you, so I'm kinda surprised you're thinking of using your cell phone as a recorder. It's a little sloppy, don't you think?"

There was a short silence before Jake smiled coldly, "I don't want to be killed by either Gabriel, Yuki, or Misha, thank you. Besides, even if we're going to play comedy, I'm not a masochist and don't wish to sleep with someone I do not like. Sounds are going to be more than enough to convince Angela; no need to show her a video of you and me making out. Or what? You wanted to spend the night with me that badly?"

"Seriously, your calm demeanor is really starting to piss me off."

"Glad to hear that."

"…"

That prick!

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Edited by Clozed!! ♥

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