Their Meeting (8)

After their lunch, they lingered inside for sometime to settle their full tummy. Fem felt the need to use the comfort room so she stood up.

"I need to use the washroom, wanna follow?" she said like he was her long time buddy.

"Fem, is something wrong with your brain?" Mark chuckled. He found it cute and funny of her that she is effortlessly humorous.

"I think the food went up into my brain instead of going down to my tummy. If you can't help, please wait here then I'll go discharge some." she smiled then turned towards the toilet.

Mark watched her back adoringly as she disappeared. Mark withdrew his gaze from that direction when he heard a buzzing sound on the table. He wasn't sure if she intended to leave it there or she just forgot it.

The caller is unregistered in her phone book. It is a new number as there's no name appearing. It kept ringing for good thirty seconds, then after a minute, it rang again, then another ring after two minutes. Obviously, the new number wants to contact her. Could it be emergency? But he dared not pick it up because he wasn't supposed to.

After three minutes, the phone buzzed with messages. He peered a look at the popping -up messages. It is from the same new number that miscalled a while ago.

[Hey Fem, it's Stan! Got ur # from Julie when she came home last month. How r u doin now? Miss u badly!"]

Then another message yet again popped-up.

[Fem, have you thought things over yet? Would you consider coming home to settle our family issues?]

...And still another message.

[Btw, Architect Fem, have you seen the newspaper lately? Our names were there! Congratulations to us! Can't wait to celebrate with you! Come home ASAP! Return me a call f u've time.]

Those message popped-up on the screen and Mark's eyes were sharp and quick to read them. His heart went in panic having seen the sender's name. 'So they're really this close? How privileged is that man to be so close to this woman he dearly loves! He is her cousin, right! But setting that aside, they're both men who are capable of fighting for the one they love! And he was not about to give up just because they happen to be classmates and friends! At least, he is fighting for her fair and square!

Mark was in deep thought when Fem came back to her seat. Seeing him seem quiet and in deep thought, she gave him more time not wanting to disturb his trend of thought, whatever he maybe thinking. She picked up her phone and unlocked it. Her brows went an inch higher the moment she slided her fingers on the screen. She scrolled it downwards to read everything. Her smile went from pleasant to sour then to tight zipped mischievous one.

Mark was observing her as she scrolled her phone. Her facial expression was telling him that she was delighted upon the sight of seeing her cousin's name, turning sour upon seeing the second , then uncertainty the moment she read the third. Does this mean, she isn't yet ready to go home and face her family's situation?

"Fem, what is it?" He asked.

"Nothing. It's just some notification from my service provider." She lied. She wasn't about to talk about herself now. It was him who asked for a time to talk anyway. Why would this date end up with her being asked about? She chose not to reveal anything to him, except that maybe he knows about the newspaper release a week ago. She just passed the board exam for architects. She's not at all surprised though. She was neither pressured during the exam period nor found it so difficult, so passing it didn't come as a surprise at all.

"So are you going to talk about something or we end up staring at each other here?" She put back her phone into her pocket.

"Ummmm, I saw those messages actually." He blatantly said without reservation.

"So? What does it have to do with what you're going to talk to me about? Didn't you say you want to tell somethings?" She frowned.

"Fem, can we just start all over again? I don't know how to begin with, but it's what I want in short. I still love you!"

Fem eyed him wide in complete disdain and mockery. Her blood rushed up to her head and her face blushed as tiny needles seemed to prick her cheeks sending tingling sensations that needed to be released as soon as possible. But in such place, there were a lot of people around- some locals and mostly foreigners. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to slap his face double side! She wanted to slam the table infront of them and evaporate! Her heart pounded so strongly and angrily that she needed to breath in long and hard!

After eyeing at him angrily, she managed to control the urge to act as she felt she should. She instead breathed out the anger she was holding and looked away towards the sea.

"I've said this before to myself and if I recall it right, I even told you I won't marry anyone else but you. That is as long as you're true to your word. In the end, I found the reason to break from that vow I made. And I'm not raised up by somebody to wreck someone else's home!" Fem said solemnly under her voice as her eyes glared coldly at him.

"Fem, what are you saying?" Mark's voice cracked as he swallowed. He was deeply touched by her words of vow but yet was hurt that her knowledge of his status was firmly established in her mind. His voice trembled to his surprise as tears begun to blurr his sight of the cold woman in front of him.

"Ha! Would you leave your wife for me? Stupid!" She coldly said in a mocking tone.

"Fem, I... I don't ....I... I don't know how to..." His voice came soft as a whisper as he tried to explain things. In the end, words couldn't come out from his lips. His throat hurt and his lips quivered when he attempted to speak. His eyes weren't clear anymore. He paused long long time to recover his voice.

After being silent for some five minutes, he managed to speak, " All I know is that..... haaahh!!!!... Fem, this is all your fault!" He said in broken phrases revealing a deep anguish from his soul. The tear that has long blurred his vision dropped and was followed by another, then another.