39

LUCAS' POV.

"Okay. I want to be cool, and pretend I didn't hear a thing, or that I didn't understand a thing of what you guys were talking about, but I can't. A movie is playing in front of me." She paused, "Damn! John's wife slept with his uncle!" She suddenly screeched, and I got out of my chair abruptly, almost falling, as I tried to clamp my hands over her little mouth.

"What are you saying? You're totally out of your mind, Sadie." I said, with one knee on the ground, so I could match her height.

"No, I'm not, Lucas."

"We were only rehearsing for a drama at work, and for goodness sake, what do you think sleeping together is? Of course, it is sleeping together in the same room, not necessarily on the same beds." I said, trying to brainwash her, but she simply raised a brow as she took out her phone from her pocket.

"Kids nowadays are smarter than they should be." She replied, jingling the phone in front of me.

"I guess that's a solid reason you shouldn't have that." I said, staring at the phone, and wondering just how much she'd learned from it.

"I know perfectly well what you're saying. Adults say this because they don't want to say the real thing. Teenagers have all sorts of names for it. I could basically give you a lecture. You really think you can fool Sadie of all people? How about you bring out your books, and let me teach you? I'm sure you're not up to date with the latest slang." She said, and I covered her mouth.

"You really know what we mean?" I asked, feeling screwed.

"Of course I know perfectly what you were talking about. You wanted to make babies for goodness sake." She said loudly, but Emily's gasp was louder.

"What babies? Why would I want to make babies? You're so smart, read the situation!" She blurted out.

"Oh yeah, I will! In the meantime, maybe I'll make others read it too!" Sadie retorted, then shouted. "Lucas and Emily intended to have…!"

Emily's scream cut off her words, and it was so loud and shrill that I lost my balance out of shock.

"You… you don't have to make others read it too. I… I was just joking. It was just a joke, a joke, okay?" She said, desperately, as she made her way to Sadie. "Look, I didn't know it was him, and he didn't know it was me. We didn't even know each other." She said, also kneeling so she could be able to look at Sadie properly.

"I think saying that's worse."

"There must be a term for strangers sleeping together." Sadie said, and raised her phone, starting to type.

"Oh, gosh." I let out tiredly, and took the phone from her. "There are other better things you can learn. Now Sadie, are you really going to tell people?" I asked, and she stuck out her lips in a pout.

"I'm guessing you don't want me to tell anyone." She said, sulkily.

"Yeah. I'll take you out on a nice treat. You can eat whatever you want, and your mum wouldn't be there to nag you."

"Really? Ice cream, popsicles, sugared doughnuts, I'm going to try pizza too, and basically all the junk food in L. A. But wait, you're really going to treat me to all that in exchange for this?" She asked, tucking her phone into her pockets, and I nodded.

"I would do more." I assured her.

"Why? That's weird." She remarked, taking two steps backwards.

"It's totally normal." I emphasized.

"What's normal about it? I'm suspicious. Just for this little favor, you're going to go against mum, and feed me harmful foods?" She asked, and I laughed.

"The hardest thing for kids to do is to keep a secret, and also, they're not harmful foods, unless you consume them in unsafe quantities." I told her, and she nodded slowly, considering it.

"Alright. This is sliding because it's you." She said, walking into the kitchen, and Emily closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Then she opened them, and saw me staring.

She got to her feet immediately, and cleared her throat.

"You shouldn't have pushed me. You knew the truth already. I don't trust Sadie, she hates me." She said, in a whisper.

"If you say that, then you mean she hates everyone. Sadie's naturally mean."

"And I guess you find that cute? She being so rude, and…"

"Oops." I said, and she turned around. Sadie was there with a bowl of cereal in her hand.

"Keep going. I heard you already." She said, rolling her eyes.

"Why are you so fast?" Emily asked with clenched teeth, trying to sound nice. "Oh, that reminds me. I do have some work to do. I'll take my leave first." She said, taking her plate to the kitchen, and returning swiftly, so she could leave.

"She's quite funny, you know." Sadie said, spooning cereal into her mouth. "Hmm, so good." She muttered, and licked milk off her lips.

"So, how was Sadie's day at school." I asked, sliding into the seat in front of her, and she smiled.

"Terrific!" She said, hitting her hand on the table. "I got my first love letter, Lucas! I couldn't wait to tell you." She blurted out in excitement, and I watched her for like three seconds before bursting into laughter.

"Can I read?" I asked, and she blushed. Sadie blushing was a rare sight.

"Ohh! The letter's going to be cringey." She squealed.

~

The next day, I was about to go to work, when Emily stopped me. She looked a little uncomfortable, but seemed determined to say whatever it is she wanted to say.

"Do you… are you in a hurry?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"Do you want to talk?" I asked, feeling slightly amused.

"Yes, I just wanted to say…"

"Let's talk over coffee. We can't just talk here." I said, walking towards my car, and she seemed reluctant at first, but followed me.

Her hair was in a messy bun, and she had thrown a long red coat over a shirt, and a pair of pants that were definitely her nightwear. She had rushed out to meet me.

I opened the door for her, and she entered gingerly. She sat like we were in a meeting. Her hands were dutifully on her lap, and her back was straight. She was tense.

She kept on looking out the window as we drove out of the mansion to the nearest café, and I knew it wasn't because she saw something spectacular, but because she was uncomfortable with me.

For ladies like her, having a one-night stand was probably like a crash of their dignity, or maybe not? She could have other reasons I wasn't aware of. People were like onions. They had so many layers to them.

We got to a café in two minutes, and she pushed open the door of the car hastily, like she was so happy to get out.

We walked into the café, with her walking timidly behind me, and when we took seats, she looked even more tense than she had been in the car. Also, there was some blush on her cheeks.

I ordered a cappuccino for her, and a latte for me, since I had heard from John so many times about cappuccino being the only thing she wanted from a café.

"We can talk now. The drinks are here." I said, and she cleared her throat.

"So, everybody does care about their image, right? I'm here to clear mine." She said, and I could tell she had rehearsed those words all along.

"Okay… so what is this about?" I asked, setting my latte gently on its little plate.

"I want to explain that night. Actually, what happened was… Well, John and I had a fight, and so…" She paused,

"You wanted to sleep with someone else to get back at him because of a fight?" I asked, and she raised her hands in protest.

"No, no. Our marriage was in a few days, but I caught him sleeping with K… a lady. A lady I do not know. Tell me how that sounds. Also, I didn't have it in mind to just give myself out. I was mad, and sad, and… the… the crazy bartender saw an opportunity. He acted all nice, and drugged me. I was drunk too. Then… then the whole thing happened. I don't go looking for strangers.

"Even… you can't find me at a bar. That night was just… I don't know. But it was a mistake. I couldn't even see your face, or your clothes, so I didn't know if you were handsome or not, had money or not. God save me, if it was an old man, who knows what I would have done." She said, looking into space, with an horrified expression on her face. Then she shivered horribly, making me laugh.

Her gaze snapped to me quickly, and she sighed.

"I'm not lying. If you would ask your so-faithful cousin, he'll tell you I'm a bad liar. You can always tell what I'm thinking from my face straightaway. I'm really explaining the truth. This is to let you know that I'm not a cheat like John. At least to cheat on a partner, you have to have it in mind." She said, and I took a sip from my Latte.

"So that was the missing part. He cheated." I said. John hadn't told me anything about cheating. He had said she saw Katie in his house, and had assumed they were sleeping together. Emily raised her glass gently to her lips, and I spoke. "The woman John was sleeping with. Was it Katie?" I asked, and she shook, then began to cough so hard that I had to rise, and pat her.

"I didn't see the person's face!" She snapped.

"But you should see your face. You're as red as a tomato." I said, and she mopped up her lips hastily with a napkin, then rose to her feet, looking up at me with steely eyes.

"Since I've explained myself. We can finally push the night past us, and move on. Thanks for listening, and have a nice day." She said, with a little bow, and brushed past me.

That made me confused. Was it Katie or was it not? Was she cringing at the thought of Katie and John being together, or had they really been together. Was she shocked to think it could be a possibility, or was she shocked because I had said it out without hesitation?

I watched her leave, and flag down a cab. Emily was a very interesting person. It made me want to get closer to her. Having a friend like her seemed like fun. I needed more reserved people around me.

It must have hurt a lot to see John cheating. So much that it drove her to a place she shouldn't have been in the first place. Maybe she really loved him, but did she still love him? I couldn't tell, but deep down, I wished she didn't.

Later that day, I called John, and asked how he was doing. He ranted a lot about things being hard, and too traditional, and I laughed. The month was just starting. He wasn't to feel tired as he still had a long way to go.

On my way home, I decided to make it up to Emily a little. She had seen John cheating at a time when that had never crossed her mind. It must have felt so bad. So, I was going to give her something to laugh about, and maybe also give myself something to laugh about.

I asked for her location from Katie who was at John's company, and she told me, although she asked why.

I simply shrugged off her question. Katie giving John headaches by telling him what I was up to wasn't what I intended.

I waited in front of the restaurant Emily was meeting with a client, and watched her speaking. I couldn't hear what she was saying, but she seemed calm, and confident.

It turned out I didn't have to wait for too long. She eventually came out, looking beautiful in her royal blue suit, and palazzo pants. She pulled her hair out of the bun it was, and sighed deeply. Could her day have been exhausting? I instructed the driver to drive towards her, and when we were side by side, I stopped the car.

She looked shocked to see me, and looked around like we weren't to be seen together.

"Get in." I said.

"Oh, no. It's fine. I'm not…" She stopped talking when I got out of the car, and made my way to her. "It's…"

"I borrowed you for t he day." I said, with a smile, while staring at her shocked face.

I knew John wouldn't like it, but I wasn't going to care.

No, I didn't want to care.