Chapter 4

Today is Steve's family's lunch day. I was worried about what her parents would say to me. They're probably aware that I'm not the one he proposed marriage to, but I'm the one who will marry him.

Even though I didn't want to, I took a shower and groomed myself. I'm dressed in a black bodycon dress and black pumps. I simply pinned a cute hairpin near my ear to the side of my hair. I appear to be on my way to a funeral. But the truth is that I will be grieving for the rest of my life as a young woman.

I went downstairs and found Mommy and Daddy waiting for me. As he looked down the stairs at me, Daddy raised an eyebrow. When I got to their habit, he suddenly smirked.

"It's not obvious that you're depressed about the wedding, Czes. Let's go..." Daddy said.

I simply followed them out. I couldn't talk to Mommy even if I wanted to. When I was close to her habit, she was immediately avoided. I'll admit that it hurts to feel like we're both like this. I'm so close to my mother that she babysits me when we're only two. I now feel as if I didn't exist because she never bothered to give me a glimpse. And it's excruciating. Her actions are excruciating. And I despise myself as a result.

Mommy sat in the passenger seat while Daddy drove. We don't say anything. I was simply observing what we were going through.

We arrived at Delux Resto, a pricey restaurant in Batangas. The butterflies in my stomach grew stronger as we approached our second meeting. I'm at a loss for how to deal with him; every time I see him, I see his girlfriend's hurt expression.

A long table with four people awaited us. Consider Steve's family to be wealthy. When they saw us approaching, they stood up. If his father hadn't looked at him, Steve would not have stood up.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Dela Cruz," Steve's father said to Mommy and Daddy with a smile. They accepted his hand.

"So do I, Mr. Harrisson, and so does your wife," Daddy said.

"Oh, by the way, Lincoln Asher, my eldest."

"Nice to meet you, sir," Lincoln said as he shook Daddy's hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Hijo."

Meanwhile, Steve appears unconcerned about his surroundings. It appears to be a lazy thing to happen. The elders had lunch ready for all of us in a matter of seconds. They talked to each other while eating.

"So, Mr. Dela Cruz, how's business? We didn't get a chance to meet," Steve's Daddy inquired at first.

"So far, so good; we've got a lot on our plate, you know, buildings and houses."

"Oh, yeah, a construction firm is not easy to come by, but it's worth having, right?"

"Yeah," they were only discussing business while we ate quietly.

When they were done eating, they didn't really miss the wedding conversation.

"So, when's the wedding?" Steve's mother inquired.

"Mom!" exclaimed Steve.

"What? The main reason for this lunch is your wedding."

"She isn't my fiancee!"

"Oh, you mean your girlfriend, Nicole?" her mother inquired.

"Yeah, she's my fiance and not her," he said, and I immediately bowed down.

"Well, not right now," his father said.

"What?" Steve's brows furrowed.

"You're not going to marry Nicole because you're going to marry Ms. Dela Cruz." His Daddy and Mommy both smiled at me.

"But Dad... That's not what you promised! You said you'd do something to put an end to this nonsense marriage!" he exclaimed, his brother holding him to his shoulder to calm him down.

"I changed my mind, you will marry their daughter. Nicole is not suitable for our family because she is poor and comes from a broken family. While here, Brianna is as beautiful, kind, and wealthy as we are. See the big difference?" Her mother nodded, while her older brother listened without emotion.

Steve's jaw clenched in rage. "You want to know the real difference?" he asked his father, looking at each of us at the table one by one. He came to a halt, eye to eye, gravely serious. "Nicole is the one I love; only Nicole can complete me; yes, they are different, but the best difference is that I love Nicole and I hate you..." His gaze narrowed as he drew closer to me.

"Steve!" his father chastised him.

What he said made me feel embarrassed. I feel as if I've been stabbed repeatedly. I spent far too much time fighting back tears.

"What am I saying? I'm just telling the truth here, what is the point of marrying her if I don't love her?"

"So, how does your girlfriend feel about that night with my daughter?" Daddy asked, pausing Steve. "I'm guessing you didn't tell her you had sex with my daughter after proposing to her?" Daddy grinned.

Shit! Daddy! What are you thinking?

"Don't you dare," Steve said sternly to Daddy.

"Sure, because I don't need to tell her; she's already heard everything..." He looked at the other table, at a woman behind us. When I recognized it, my eyes widened.

No!

The woman slowly stood up at a table and returned our gaze. Her eyes were welling up with tears, and she was already biting her trembling lip.

It hurts! I'm sorry...

"C-Congrats," she said to Steve, her voice cracked, "Y-You don't intend to tell me everything yet, but thank you and I heard everything..." Not anymore, she held back the tears that had already begun to fall. Whatever she wipes, and even if she's clearly attempting to stop her tears, nothing.

"B-Baby..." Steve stood up, fear visible in his eyes. When he saw Nicole crying, his angry and arrogant demeanor vanished. He is madly in love with her...

Nicole smiled at Steve, her tears dripping down her cheeks. "That's right, Sir, I don't belong in your family," she said to Steve's father, "I may be poor, but I'm not a bad person." She removed the ring from her finger, which caused Steve's eyes to widen.

"N-No... B-Baby no..." Steve was about to approach her when his older brother stopped him. "Please, Kuya, let me go..." pleaded his older brother.

"Don't complicate things, she'll just be hurt," his older brother said softly, but I heard him. He begs to look at Nicole; I feel bad for both of them, but I can't help them. We can't do anything...

Nicole tossed the ring to the edge of our table. "C-Congratulations... I w-wish you the best... Reach our dream... With her," she said, before returning her gaze to Steve. "Be a good husband to her, just as you promised me if you'll be my husband, even if I'm no longer your wife." "

Steve shook his head as his tears flowed one by one; he was still holding back his tears while being shielded by his older brother.

It hurts...

Steve struggled too much when Nicole turned her back; he was so angry that his older brother couldn't stop him; fortunately, there were few people at the resto. He ran towards Nicole, who was already out the door. When he got there, he suddenly hugged her from behind.

What a scene! Fuck! It hurts!

We were all staring at him as he hugged Nicole. Steve's shoulder shook as Nicole spoke; they were both crying outside the restaurant. Nicole forced herself to break Steve's embrace. And when she got rid of it, she ran away.

We didn't even hear them, but I could see Steve yelling Nicole's name as he ran away from him. He even got down on his knees on the road with his hair pulled back. Because of the pain I witnessed, I couldn't stop crying.

"Go get your brother, Asher," their father ordered. Her mother was already wiping the corner of her eye. Mommy was the same, but Daddy appeared to be unaffected.

Steve, who was already lying on the road, was forced to stand up by his brother. From here, you can see his anguish.

"Daddy..." I called out to Daddy, and they all looked at me. "That's enough... I-I don't want to get married..." I begged.

"No, don't feel sorry for them; think of yourself."

"But, Dad... Please..."

"No! And that's final!" I got up and ran out of the resto, I even heard Daddy call me. I even caught Steve just standing there, his brother supporting him. And when he saw me, his eyes immediately darkened.

"No! And that's it!" I got up and ran out of the restaurant, even hearing Daddy call my name. I even caught Steve standing there with his brother by his side. When he saw me, his eyes instantly darkened.

"Are you happy now? You ruined us, the person I loved so much has left me! The only person who understands me has left me! It's all because of you and your family!" He yelled angrily at me, pointing at me. I covered my mouth and fought back a sob. If his older brother hadn't restrained him, his rage would have probably hurt me. "Married?" he inquired, his face flushed. "All right, I'll give you the marriage your parents arranged. And I'll make you go through hell! Nicole and I were ruined by you! I'll ruin your life the same way you ruined mine! Keep that in mind! " He yells at me.

"Steve!"

His older brother's reprimand.

I'll admit, I was nervous about what he said, so I turned my back on them and ran away. Away from the hurtful world I live in. Away from people who are hurt because of me and my family. Away from him... Even for a day... Without pain...