5. Hottest New Couple

"Are you okay?" Helga asked for the umpteenth time.

Bonita shrugged. She was too tired to respond after getting a thorough lecture from her father.

That morning, Nolan had come to the bridal shop. He claimed he had just bailed Benjamin out from the temporary holding cell at the police station. Bonita had explained what had happened, but Nolan insisted she should have talked things through instead of calling the police to kick Benjamin out. Nolan argued that, after all, Benjamin wasn’t a criminal; he came to the house with the intention of clearing up the issue.

On Bonita’s phone screen, which she was holding at that moment, there were numerous gossip articles about how close Benjamin was with the model Zayna Lott. The two were appearing on various news portals. There were even photos on an online magazine page labeling them as "the hottest new couple."

Bonita huffed in frustration, her chest tightening. She tossed her phone onto the table and rubbed her face in exasperation.

"Just go home, Boo. That look on your face will scare off customers," Kenzo warned, pointing the blunt end of a pencil at the tense corners of Bonita's face.

Bonita pouted at Kenzo, "Try telling that to my dad. His stare alone would probably scare kids since he arrived."

"That's because you overreacted. What were you thinking, calling the police just to kick Benjamin out of the house?"

"Just? My house was locked, Ken, and I didn't want to be disturbed! Can't I have a little privacy after catching him cheating right in front of my eyes?"

Helga and Kenzo exchanged glances. They knew this situation wasn’t ideal, as it would only worsen Bonita’s trauma about marriage. They knew Benjamin was the only man she had given a chance to earn her trust and hold her heart. But now, that trust was shattered beyond repair.

Bonita stood up and walked to the window, the aura of anger radiating from her. The turmoil in her chest was so intense it seemed to make the bridal shop's walls tremble.

"Benjamin came to talk to you, didn’t he?" Helga asked cautiously, but Bonita remained silent. "Talk to him. Listen to his explanation."

Bonita turned to Helga, snorting in frustration. "What’s there to talk about? I saw Zayna clinging to him like a snake after they spent the night in the same room. I don't need any explanation to understand what happened."

"You sound jealous," Kenzo interjected without empathy.

"I am jealous! I am furious! I gave him my trust to keep my heart safe for four years, and he cheated on me. Honestly, I'm convincing myself to be grateful that we’re just dating and not married."

Kenzo sighed and shrugged at Helga. Helga looked at Bonita with a worried and sympathetic expression. Meanwhile, Nolan remained silent, listening to their conversation from the stairs.

***

"Why haven’t you clarified anything? You promised you’d help me reduce that news," Benjamin demanded as he arrived at Zayna's apartment.

"Just wait a little longer. Why rush? Besides, such news will disappear on its own," Zayna replied, hugging Benjamin’s arm and pulling him to sit beside her.

Benjamin huffed in frustration, pushing Zayna's hand away. "I was just released from the police station because Boo called the cops to kick me out of her house. Clarify the news before it gets any bigger and out of control."

"It’s better if we don’t respond to it. Trust me. Besides, all that coverage will benefit us."

"Benefit? My relationship with Boo is on the line!" Benjamin snapped in disbelief.

"Your business will improve in the coming months. People who are curious will look you up and find it. Isn’t that good for you? Didn’t you tell me last month that your business was struggling?"

"But not like this. I don’t want my relationship with Boo to fall apart. We’ve been together for four years," Benjamin said, growing more agitated. "I’ve known you since we were kids. I know you always delay important things. This time, please understand my situation."

Zayna smiled knowingly. "What about Mea?"

Benjamin paused for a moment before speaking. "What about her?"

Zayna stood and walked to the bar in the corner to pour a drink. "You haven’t met her yet?"

"I met her a few times last month. She seemed fine," Benjamin replied, scratching the side of his forehead that didn’t itch.

"Why did that coincide with the time your business was struggling?" Zayna asked with a sly smile, which Benjamin couldn’t see because she was facing away from him.

Benjamin stared out the window, lost in thought. The three of them—Benjamin, Zayna, and Mea—had been close friends since childhood because they lived in the same neighborhood. They had remained friends for years before Mea and Zayna's families gradually moved away. But Zayna usually made time to visit Benjamin's family a few times a year, while Mea only reappeared to see Benjamin last month after many years.

Zayna clearly remembered the moment when she moved to Benjamin and Mea's neighborhood years ago. She found Benjamin and Mea playing in the park. Zayna approached them, clutching a koala doll. That doll was her only plaything because kids her age in her old neighborhood had always shunned her for being "too pretty."

"Can I join you?" Zayna asked hesitantly, her fingers fiddling with the ribbon on the koala doll’s neck.

Benjamin turned to Zayna and stared at her without blinking. He couldn’t say anything because Zayna looked like a very beautiful and graceful little girl to him. Her curly, shoulder-length hair was tied up on the right side, making her look very charming, even to a boy Benjamin's age at the time.

"Sure. We can play together," Mea replied with a sweet smile, but Zayna felt a pang of unease in her heart.

"Together?" Zayna asked, glancing between Mea and Benjamin.

"Yes, we can play together. My name is Mea Loza. You can call me Mea. We can be best friends from now on," Mea said, extending her hand to Zayna, who quickly accepted it. "That’s Benjamin, but you should ignore him because he’s my guardian from a realm different from ours. He’s not real."

"He’s... not real?" Zayna asked, stepping back in surprise and fear. She thought she might have just seen a ghost or something similar. She wasn’t sure of herself because it was the first time she had experienced something like that. But she found it strange because Benjamin looked like any other boy. Benjamin was even sweating on his forehead. Weren’t ghosts supposed to not sweat?