I Don't Like You

To say Adrian was pissed off was an understatement. He was highly irritated; and they were a lot of things irritating him at that moment. One of it was that he couldn't stop thinking about Georgina. No matter what was going on, her name was always on his mind. It didn't help that he was currently sitting beside his fianceé, Daphne who bore such strong resemblance to Georgina that it annoyed him.

Speaking of Daphne, her continuous chatter irritated him to no end. First, she kept asking him questions he clearly didn't want to answer. Then, she started talking about her day. Like, who cared about her day? Adrian surely didn't.

He let out a quiet sigh of relief when his mother and Karen returned from the kitchen and Daphne turned her attention towards them.

Few minutes later, the chef rolled in their dinner of mashed potatoes, Lamb patties, chicken and cheese salad and sausage and potato casserole.

Adrian watched at the chef and a couple of the servants served them. He watched as Daphne scooped only a little of the mashed potatoes unto her plate and began to eat. He said nothing, turning his head back to his food.

"This food is delicious," His mother, Anna said to Karen who beamed with pride at the compliment.

"Ah yes, we have one of the best chef," Karen answered.

"Daphne, honey, is that food enough for you?" Anna asked, turning to Daphne. Unlike Daphne, Anna had scooped a little of everything on her plate.

"Yes it is," Daphne answered with a brief smile.

"Our Daphne is always careful of her weight," Steven, Daphne's father said with a proud smile in his daughter's direction.

"What's there to be careful about?" Anna asked, quite carelessly. "She looks good to me," she said.

Adrian glanced at Daphne, at her small tiny frame and frowned as the image of Georgina came to his mind. Did Georgina also try to watch her weight? Um, judging from the large bowl of ice cream they ate the other day, he didn't think so. A smile appeared on his face at the thought of that.

"I just don't want to be fat," Daphne explained to Anna.

"So, you are going to starve yourself?" Anna asked and Adrian nearly laughed at the look of bewilderment on his mother's face. If there was anyone who didn't hold back on their food, it was Anna. She loved a good meal.

Daphne shrugged. "I'm not starving. This is okay for me," she says, turning back to her food.

"Um, okay."

"So, Adrian," Karen called and he glanced up at her, not smiling. "You said you had some business to attend to Saturday night and that was why you left," she said. "What business?"

Adrian's lips tightened. "Just personal business," he answered in a blank tone.

"His cousin had an issue and he had to help her out with it. Right, Adrian?" His mother prompted, glaring at him.

He gritted his teeth. "Right," he answered, his jaw ticking.

"So, Adrian, has Daphne told you about your schedule tomorrow?" Steven Rodriguez, Daphne's father asked.

Adrian looked at him in confusion. "My schedule? What are you talking about?"

"I was kind of hoping we could talk about it privately," Daphne cut in, sending a glare in her father's direction.

"Why don't you talk about it now?" Karen demanded.

"What are you talking about?" Adrian repeated. He turned to his mother. "Mum, do you know what they are talking about?" he asked her and she gave him a pleading glance. He turned to Daphne, repeating himself, "What are you talking about?"

Daphne sighed. "My dad booked a couple of interviews and press tour for us this week," She said. "And we have like two interviews tomorrow and three more further down this week," she quickly rushed out, avoiding his gaze.

"What the hell?!"

"Adrian," his mother said in a quiet voice. "Language."

"We also have a date tomorrow night," Daphne added.

Adrian's shoulders were shaking with fury. "You booked interviews without even consulting me first?!" He growled. "I have a job and business to look after!"

"Adrian." His father's voice was sharp. "Keep quiet and listen to what she has to say."

"Listen to what she has to.... is this a joke?" he demanded. "I have a job! I am a busy person! The least you could have done is asked for my consent!"

"We do not like you raising your voice at us," Karen suddenly said in a very prim voice. "You left us no choice when you humiliated our daughter that night. The press tour and interviews are the only ways to save face," she said.

"Yes, and to sell your engagement to the public," his mother added in a calm tone. "Surely, you understand, right?"

"I...." Adrian tightened his fist, still shaking in anger. He shoved his chair backwards and rose to his feet. Then, he turned around and stormed out of the house.

"Dad!" he heard Daphne whine as he walked away. "Why would you bring it up now? I was going to talk to him alone!"

"Anna," Karen said, turning to Adrian's mother, "it doesn't seem as though your son is happy with this arrangement."

Anna sighed. "Adrian is....well, he's a very complicated person, but trust me, this is good for him," she said. "He will come around. I'll make sure of it."

Daphne pushed her chair backwards and rose to her feet. As she walked towards the door, her father asked, "Where are you going?"

"Outside. To see if I can talk to Adrian," she explained. Without waiting for his reply, she walked out of the house.

Outside, Adrian stood, resting his back on one of the pillars. There was a stick of cigarette in his mouth as he stared ahead, a far away look in his eyes. He was still mad. In fact, mad wasn't the right word to explain how he was feeling. He was livid with anger. He would have droven off if not for the fact that he brought his parents in his car and leaving meant ditching them. He was an asshole, but not that much of an asshole.

As he stood outside, he took a slow drag of his cigarette. He couldn't believe it. Why in the world would Daphne and her family think it was proper for them to make plans for him? He already apologized for ditching and humiliating their daughter, so, what more did they want? Okay, granted he was yet to feel guilty about what he did, but they didn't know that. Besides, he was more mad that they didn't consult him than that they booked interviews for him?

"Hey," he heard Daphne's voice say.

That was the difference, he realized as he turned around to face her. The difference between Daphne and Georgina was in their voices. While Daphne's voice was high and tiny and annoying, Georgina's voice was low, a little but deep and enticing.

He glared hard at Daphne. "What?" he snapped.

"I didn't know you smoked," she said. "That's not really a good thing. You should stop."

Adrian continued glaring at her, but he removed the cigerette from his mouth and stubbed it against the wall. He wasn't an habitual smoker. It was just something he picked up whenever he was angry or sad or depressed. "What?" he repeated.

"I'm sorry my dad brought the topic up like that. I wanted to talk to you about it alone."

"That wouldn't have made it any better," he snapped and she nodded.

"Right, right. Okay. I just.... Look, what you did that was humiliating for me," she said. "It's still a subject of discussion, so, it's better we do a little bit of damage control right now," she explained. Hopefully, he was smart and logical enough to see what she was talking about.

"Damage control?" Adrian chuckled humourlessly. "So, you think it was proper to make plans for me without asking me? You think you would just tell me what to do and I would do if without batting a lid?"

Daphne wanted to say 'yes, that's kind of how it works with me' but when she stared at Adrian's furious face, she knew instinctively that that was the wrong thing to say. With her relationships, Daphne always had the control. She planned their dates, interviews and what not. All she had to do was order her boyfriend and he would do whatever she wanted but obviously, Adrian wasn't like that. So, she answered, "No....I just didn't think you would have a problem with it."

Adrian was quiet for a moment. Then, he said in a low but sharp tone, "I don't like you."

Daphne jerked lightly at the words. He didn't like her? Why? Why wouldn't he like her? People liked her? She was beautiful and rich, an even though she could be bratty and arrogant, they still liked her. They adored her.

"I don't like you," he repeated. "I think you are a brat and you are annoying, and I don't want to get married to you."

Tears pooled in Daphne's eyes, her lips trembling. Why wouldn't he like her? She was so likable!

It was too dark for Adrian to notice the tears in her eyes but from how her shoulders shook, he knew she was crying. And he didn't care. "Tell my parents I'd be waiting for them in the car," he said simply. Then, he turned around and walked away.