5. The Regrets

Realizing her umpteenth fatal mistake that night, Lea spontaneously covered her mouth.

"Oops...," she said with a mixed expression, a combination of fear, amusement, and frustration.

Unexpectedly, Shane grunted in annoyance and didn't utter a single word. He immediately turned away and walked towards his parked car.

Lea, who didn't expect to escape the incident without serious injury to his head or at least a slap on the face from Shane for her recent words, followed him with a distant gaze. It seemed like she wanted to stop Shane momentarily to apologize.

However, memories of Shane's annoying behavior towards her throughout the night made Lea suppress the urge and try to console herself that her words were polite enough to describe Shane.

"Bad, seriously," Grace finally said. The girl shook her head in frustration, looking at her silent sister. Freddie scratched his non-itchy head, unsure of how to react. Shane was his close friend, and he was the one who suggested—even forced—Lea to try a blind date with him. The guilt he felt towards his friend was unimaginable.

"Let's go home, Lea, Grace...," Freddie finally invited, opening the back door of his car for Lea to get in.

Lea, still observing Shane at that moment, hesitated for a moment, then obediently got into the car without saying much. Grace followed, opening the car door herself, and venting her frustration towards her sister.

Freddie also got in after making sure Shane's car had already left.

The atmosphere in the car looked gloomy. A few moments after Freddie drove his car through the city crowd, Grace finally spoke up.

"Forgive my sister, Freddie. Can you please convey it to Shane later?" she requested with a resigned tone.

Lea, hearing her sister's words, felt even more guilty. However, her ego still defended herself that everything she said about Shane was true. So let him hear it. Let him know that to be respected by someone, especially someone you just met; it's not enough to rely on a handsome face and a tall, athletic body—what matters most is good manners and words that don't hurt the other person, Lea thought in defense of herself.

"Oh, forgive me, Fred, if I made you uncomfortable with your friend earlier," Lea said.

Freddie spontaneously glanced at Lea through the rearview mirror, his facial expression unclear, making Lea unsure of what mistake she had made now. Grace also turned to her sister's seat, looking scornfully at him. Oh, Lea felt like the most sinful person in the world.

Hesitant, Freddie replied, "It's okay for me, Sist. Shane won't make a big deal out of my mistake. He's been a loyal friend for a long time. But... don't you think you were too harsh in judging Shane?"

"Yeah, your words were too much, Lea. Shane's expression looked like he would eat someone just by listening! Seriously, that’s too bad!" Grace added, cornering Lea even more.

Lea, frustrated and still maintaining her selfishness, replied, "I don't know. That's exactly how his attitude was, just like my description. And I didn't know he could hear that. You should have given me a hint if he was in front of me like that."

"Oh, is this my fault now, huh?" Grace got emotional because her sister seemed to feel no guilt at all. She now understood why her sister couldn't find a man to be her boyfriend. How could those men respect her if this was her attitude toward someone she just met?

"Enough, let's not discuss it anymore. Maybe Lea and Shane are not suitable as blind date partners. It would have helped if Shane hadn't been too silent that night. It was supposed to be an enjoyable time to get to know each other and maybe become friends," Freddie finally concluded the conversation. He wanted to end it all because he wanted to call Shane immediately to convey his regrets and apologies for Lea's behavior.

"Is your friend always so cold and annoying to everyone he meets? Or just to me, perhaps?" Unable to contain her curiosity, Lea put on a brave face and asked Freddie about it.

Freddie didn't answer immediately; he chose his words first to explain it more factually to Lea.

"Shane is a cop. They may be used to being straightforward and to the point with their conversation partners. What do you mean by calling him annoying?"

"Huh? He's a cop?" Lea asked back.

"Yeah, he graduated from the police academy a year ago. We usually call him Officer Shane." Freddie added with a tone as if Lea had made a big mistake by treating their pride, Officer Shane, disrespectfully.

"Oh, no wonder he acted arrogant, cold, rigid, and typical of an annoying policeman," Lea replied, hiding the discomfort that suddenly appeared in her. How would she know he's a cop? Why didn't they take the time to get to know each other beyond just names and decide to argue all night?

Grace shook her head, looking frustrated with her sister, who seemed insensitive.

"Ugh, forgive me, Freddie. I didn't know my sister could be so...," she said regretfully.

Freddie gently stroked the girl's arm, "It's okay. I'm sure Shane will understand and won't blame me."

Grace and Freddie exchanged understanding looks, making Lea, behind the two lovebirds, annoyed. Her singleton instincts flared up again, and in her heart, she shouted at them for being so rude to be romantic in front of her, especially when she had just ultimately failed her blind date program with a handsome cop.

Annoying! Lea exclaimed in her heart, highly frustrated with herself. The image of Shane returned, and the fact that he turned out to be a cop made a lot of difference in her perspective. She began to understand his cold attitude, stiffness in his gestures, and even his straightforwardness towards Lea.

No, she wasn't immediately enchanted because the profession was very prestigious in the eyes of most women. Still, it made an exception for the typical behaviors that police officers usually have due to the strict education they receive at the academy.

If only time could be rewound..., Lea thought, regretting her attitude earlier. But, it’s been too late now. Goodbye, handsome cop, goodbye flat-faced and ice-cold guy..., she concluded in her thoughts.

***