The woman in front of her hadn't changed much compared to the woman in the picture despite the passage of time. She wore a simple yet elegant dress, and a noticeable half-heart diamond pendant necklace identical to the one Henry kept in his drawer. She'd pulled her hair into a tight ponytail, exposing a subtle butterfly tattoo on the side of her neck. Her entire body radiated confidence and her innate beauty made people feel close, like they were talking to a loving elder sister.
Cindy? What was she doing here? For the first time in her life, Sarah hoped she was hallucinating.
"Miss Suarez, how are you?" Cindy's soft clear melodious voice interrupted her. Nope, she wasn't hallucinating. "From your reaction, I assume you already know who I am," Cindy teased, a smug smile forming at the corner of her lips.
Sarah pursed her lips unsure whether to treat Cindy as a friend or foe. Before she determined that, it would be impolite not to respond. She slowly got up from her crouching position and stood facing Cindy. She looked Cindy in the eye and smiled, brushing away a ringlet of hair from her face. "I'm doing fine, Ms. Morgan, thanks for asking."
"Great, at least we can skip introductions," Cindy said with a smile that made Sarah feel an instinctive fear. It felt like she already lost the battle even before it began.
"Hmm," Sarah grunted, not interested in talking further. Something kept bugging her. Why did Cindy come to find her? Whatever it was, it was not as simple as small talk. She did not have such a high status in life to qualify for a small talk with the Prime Minister's daughter. Sarah might be dumb but not that dumb.
"Are you here for him too?" Cindy suddenly asked, her gaze fixed on a particular sport in the building. Sarah followed Cyndy's gaze and her response stuck in her throat. That balcony was a distance away but she could see him clearly. Henry stood on the balcony with a glass of wine, looking in their direction. How long had he been there? So, it wasn't that he couldn't find her, he didn't want to find her. Yep, that was a painful realization.
Was that the reason Cindy chose to find her here? To show her that he didn't care? Or, to remind her that she wasn't as special to him as she believed? Whatever the case, it still hurt. She couldn't breathe, as if someone had punched the air out of her lungs, and couldn't take in any air.
Still, she tried her best to maintain her composure. Her mother had once told her not to let the world see her inner turmoil.
"Oh, so you are here to see Henry." Sarah forced a smile, her gaze still locked onto that figure on the balcony. "He's right there," Sarah signaled with her chin, "you could have gone up there and not trouble yourself looking for me."
"Henry?" Cindy raised an eyebrow. "It seems you're pretty close to be on first name basis," she paused, as if contemplating something, "are you two dating?"
"No!"
"Great." Cindy patted her chest, faking a sigh of relief. Even an idiot could see her pretense. "Then, I'm not intruding into someone's relationship."
"You can say as so," Sarah said, hating the range of emotions she was experiencing at that moment. The discomfort she didn't even know existed and the pain of separation. It felt like watching another kid snatch her favorite toy but there was nothing she could do about it. The helplessness and the emptiness overwhelmed her. She wished for a telepathic ability to tell Henry not to abandon her like this.
Cindy looked at her distress and her smile widened, exposing pearly teeth neatly arranged in her mouth as if the maker had extra time to work on the perfection. Her eyes burned with the determination that made Sarah feel the urge to back out voluntarily. "Sarah, Men like Henry are had to come by. But sadly, he doesn't understand women's thoughts at all," a playful smile appeared on Cindy's lips, "you must firmly grasp the heart of such a man, or one day he might disappear without a trace."
Sarah remained silent. Men like Henry were indeed had to find no matter which way you look at it. But why did it sound like Cindy did not see her as a rival at all? Could it be she was so sure about Henry's feelings? Or, was she really not a worthy opponent in her eyes?
Henry had disappeared from the balcony. He emerged a few minutes later at the front door, heading towards their direction. He walked so fast, his feet barely touching the ground. Sarah took two steps in front of Cindy, unsure what to do. Henry's eyes were fixed on the person behind her, as if afraid she would disappear if he dared to blink.
Sarah watched him walk towards her, and a few questions popped in her head. Why did he suddenly come out? Did he come to see her? Or, was it because he saw Cindy? She glanced at Cindy and she could see a mixture of mischief, interest, and satisfaction in her eyes. Sarah didn't need to think about it because, at that moment, she already knew the answer.
Sarah felt like a whole body had been doused in iced water. All her hopes, dreams, and beautiful scenarios she'd created in her head faded away like a wisp of smoke. Henry had been avoiding her the whole time but rushed out once Cindy appeared. Was Cindy that important to him? Yeah, Robert had said so.
Unimaginable pain flooded her heart. This was the first time Sarah had seen Henry lose his composure like that. What was he afraid of? Was he still in love with Cindy?
Only about ten steps were remaining before Henry could reach them. Sarah's heart pounded harder in her chest. Dread. What should she do? Witnessing the man she had fallen in love with rushing to another woman wasn't exactly a scene she wanted to witness. She figured it was time to make herself scarce. There was no need to make a fool out of herself.
Sarah whipped out her Bluetooth air pods, plugged it in her ears at lightning speed, and turned up the volume of a random song, before turning around and running away in the opposite direction. She couldn't risk overhearing something she shouldn't.
Sarah's phone rang for the third time in a row. Yes, it was that familiar string of numbers that she could recite even in her sleep. That same number he'd written on her arm once. The one she had hoped would call her the past month. But now that he called, she couldn't bring herself to answer. What would she say? What if he confirms her suspicions? No, she couldn't take it.
After the third ring, her screen went blank and he did not call again. Perhaps three calls were his limit.
A/N: hi. What do you think about this chapter? What would you have done?
There are more updates coming shortly 😘.