“Hiding what? You’ve got it wrong.” Esli nervously released Ed’s hand before his own could be severed.“I just want Liz to enjoy herself when she meets her friends.”Esli tried to persuade him, but Ed kept walking inside, not knowing where Liz's room was but guessing it would be on the second floor.“Wait, Don Rosas!” Esli followed in a panic, cursing under his breath.“Hey! Where are you going?”Just as Ed reached the end of the stairs, Ruby greeted them sweetly, looking normal, but her shoulders moved slightly, hiding her labored breathing. It was clear she had been running, but she tried to look as if she hadn’t.“Where have you been?” asked Ed. Ruby had emerged from the hallway leading to the back exit.“Oh, I was just seeing my friends off. They just left.” Ruby forced a smile.“What happened to your forehead?” Ed approached Ruby and tilted her head up. The bandage was quite large.“This? I fell while fooling around earlier. It’s a small wound, but my friends insisted I wear a ba
“Are you crazy?!” Ruby couldn't hold on to her tongue any longer. She wanted to curse at Esli.“Why? This should be an easy task. I see he's already quite interested in you. You just need to seduce him a bit more. Use your body, or whatever; just make him worship you.”Ruby's hand at her side clenched into a fist, preventing herself from grabbing a vase and throwing it at Esli's face. She couldn't understand how someone could be so heartless.“You might think I'm cruel, but believe me. Rosas deserves what's happening to him. You don't need to feel sorry for Rosas or act sanctimonious like Ja—just follow my instructions. That way, you can be with Jade again soon. The sooner you make him fall in love, the sooner I'll give your mother back.” Esli sneered.Meanwhile, Ruby's head was pounding. Her mind raced, searching for a way forward.“Two hundred million pesos. I want 200 million as payment,” Ruby stated firmly.“You must be insane!” Esli raged again.That amount was indeed fantastic.
Ed was about to dive into the pool, but then he saw Ruby moving her hands and feet. She didn't appear to be drowning; she was swimming normally. It wasn't an accidental fall or an accident. Ruby intended to swim.Still, it was an odd decision given that it was nearly three in the morning.Ed stood waiting, unmoving and silent, by the pool's edge. Because there weren't any bright lights around, Ruby was unaware of his presence.Ruby kept swimming back and forth until she finally stopped and stood still in the middle of the pool. She hung her head, her wet hair covering her face. Ed saw her body shaking, naturally thinking it was because of the cold. But then he realized that her hunched shoulders and back were caused by crying. There was no sobbing, but Ruby then covered her face with her hands."Why are you crying?" Ed moved closer and sat by the pool's edge, knees bent.Of course, Ruby was startled. She had been very sure she was alone."You're... why... here?" Ruby inquired, wiping
"I won't ask, but I'll tell you to go to sleep. You've had enough swimming,” Ed said, putting down the towel and turning away.He would leave and sleep somewhere else—change clothes and cool down—because his body temperature was much higher than it should be, as he vividly remembered Ruby's wet, naked, and glistening body.“Cold,” Ruby whispered as Ed held the door handle.“No wonder.” Ed snorted, then turned around, approached the thermostat, and raised the temperature to make it warmer.“Next time, don’t have the idea of swimming before dawn,” said Ed, heading back to the door.“Still cold,” Ruby whispered even more faintly.“Is it still not enough?” Ed glanced at the temperature monitor. He began to feel hot. His room was never more than twenty-two degrees. He had already set it to a warm temperature of 25 °C.But as he was about to adjust the temperature again, a connection was made in his brain. It wasn't the temperature that was the problem.“Do you want me to stay?” Ed was hesi
The request eventually became a hassle for Ed, as he had to think about the destination while Ruby fell back asleep. The medicine the doctor gave was quite potent, it seemed. Perhaps it was for the best, so she wouldn't get carsick.And now the medicine's effect was wearing off because Ruby was starting to wake up again."Where are we?" As she straightened up, Ruby inquired. Her head felt much better, and her body wasn't very warm anymore."Guadalajara." Ed, who didn't have a specific destination, just drove out of habit and ended up in Guadalajara."Oh, your work place." Ruby wiped her face, clearing the stickiness from her eyes, and then looked around. This was the first time she had visited the city, though she had heard of it often. Her mother frequently referred to Guadalajara as a place to avoid, not as a place to visit. She said it was dangerous.Ruby had never been interested in disobeying that order since it was so far away, but now it was too late, and the place no longer se
Ruby woke up drenched in sweat, her body sticky, and she couldn't remember when or how she had fallen back asleep. She remembered drinking and sitting on the sofa, but nothing happened after that."Don't get sick," Ruby muttered irritably. Ruby rarely got really sick before this, but then again, she had never gone swimming in the middle of the night before.Ruby looked around and nearly screamed in surprise when she saw Ed lying next to her. He was sound asleep, still fully dressed.Ruby immediately felt guilty. She was the reason Ed had such an extraordinary day. Due to excessive stress, she had inadvertently dragged Ed into her randomness. Meeting her mother, Esli, and her new plans were too much to think about all at once.Ruby made a mental note that she must not lose control like she did yesterday. What she had done was irrational.Ruby got out of bed, and the first thing she did was lower the air conditioning temperature. She knew the room was warm because of her ability to see
Ruby flipped the tortilla, which had already turned brown, twice, ensuring all sides were heated before transferring it to a plate. The fillings were ready, so Ruby just had to arrange and roll them."You can cook?" Ed entered the kitchen with wet hair and a towel, drawn in by the aroma of food as soon as he stepped out of the bathroom."I'm just heating things up. This is Tita's cooking, right?" Ruby pointed to the bean paste that would complete the burrito. After sampling it for freshness earlier, she immediately recognized the taste. The fridge in the house was stocked with ample food, all of it prepared by Tita, and just needed reheating."Yes. " Ed nodded. "Tita sends food here every two or three days." But usually, the food went to waste. Ed rarely made use of it like Ruby was doing now."You've cooked before," Ed commented as he watched Ruby competently roll the tortilla with its fillings—meat and various vegetables."I've heated things up before. Not cooked in detail." Ruby wa
“This row will suit you.” Ed pointed to a row of books that were indeed thicker than average.But Ruby’s eyes were fixed on one book, and she immediately pulled it down.“You have it! You’ve already read it.” Ruby showed the book she had just been discussing.“Why didn’t you say anything?” Ruby immediately felt like her effort to explain had been wasted.“I didn’t want to spoil your happiness.”Ruby had already sighed, ready to continue her anger, but she deflated upon hearing that reason. There was no way to stay mad with an excuse like that. Ed just didn’t want to disrupt her enthusiasm.“And I might need to hear a direct review because I need a reason to finish it.” Ed showed a bookmark stuck about a third of the way into the book.“This book isn’t my favorite type, but I’ll finish it later. It seems like there are many interesting parts to come.” Ed didn’t say the book was bad, just that it wasn’t his preferred genre.“Yes. The further you go, the more interesting it gets. Many th