EPISODE FOUR

EPISODE FOUR

HAZEL

After he left,I threw the tissue paper inside the trash can beside the gate.

I made sure my eyes weren't wet any longer before pressing the doorbell.

After a while,A man opened the gate and stared at me from head to toe before facing me again.

What's that for?

"Good evening,I'm here to see Stefano's Mom"

"And you are?"He asked in a hard tone,I pressed my lips together.

Why is he not welcoming at all?

"I..I'm his wife,He dropped me here a few minutes ago"I stuttered.

Shit. I can't believe I introduced myself as his wife.

His facial expression softened immediately,He moved back a little and opened the door wider for me.

"I'm sorry,you can enter"

I entered the compound nervously. It felt as if I'm in an unfamiliar area.

The designs,the flowers in the garden,Some rose flowers imprinted on the walls.

The exterior of the mansion is it, Beautiful and special.

A middle aged woman dressed in an expensive slim gown walked towards me,She was putting on little or no make up and had striking features with Stefano.

Is this his mother?

"Are you Hazel?"She asked. Her eyes glinted in happiness,I nodded softly.

"Oh,Dear"She hugged me immediately.

I was confused at first,I couldn't return the hug.

Is this his mother?He told me she hated commoners.

She pulled away from the hug and stared at me,Tears filled her eyes.

"I'm sorry,I..I was just too happy"

"Are you Stefano's Mom?"I asked slowly, trying not to ruin her mood.

"Yes,I am."She replied,chuckling. Her dimples pressed in the moment she started laughing.

Christ. She's beautiful.

I gasped in shock and moved back immediately.

"I'm sorry,I should have greeted you well"I bowed, apologizing profusely.

"No,It's fine,We should enter, you must be feeling cold"She urged me and held my hand.

I followed her inside timidly.

The ornate columns outside were all inside the living room.

They were long,shining,The blue fluorescent light incident on it made everywhere sparkle.

The homely smell was so calming and soothing.

Everything here looks expensive and beautiful.

"The ornate columns are beautiful"I complimented.

She turned to me briefly and smiled again.

"Mine aren't that beautiful, Stefano's house is more better than mine"

"Really?"I gasped in shock.

"Yes,three times bigger than this,He loved the ancient designs,They were far better than the modern designs,He spent five years designing his house,And he hardly receives visitors except his family members and Luca."

"Will I live here with you?"I blurted,loving her already.

She stared at me in amusement and burst into laughter.

Guess she loved smiling. "Why?You're married,You need to perform your marital duties to your husband,I'm only your mother-in-law,But you can come here anytime you want."

The marital duties scare me a lot,I wonder if Stefano will be a demanding husband.

I hope he will give me some time to prepare myself,I'm not ready for it yet.

"I'm not talking about sex only,"she added after noticing my mood.

"No,I..."

"I know the marriage is an arranged one, He's surprised when you gave yourself up for the freedom of your father,Stefano never needed a wife,I forced him to accept it,because I...I want him to be happy"

"I don't know if I can do anything to make him happy."I stuttered nervously.

"Yes,don't do anything,Just be you,Don't try to impress him,Trust me,he will loosen up around you,I don't want to be the one he run to anytime he's at the edge anymore,I want him to have a wife,And I hope you don't mess up."

"I.."

"I prepared dinner,We should eat. ''She said briefly before walking to the dining room.

I guessed she didn't want me to say anything,I didn't even want the marriage from the start,I just hope we make things work out,at least.

She served me my meal and they turned out so well,she cooked so well.

"Can you cook?"She asked during the meal.

I swallowed the food in my mouth and nodded.

"Stefano loves eating,He hates eating outside,I'd to cook everyday because of him,I will give you the list of his likes and dislikes after dinner"

"Alright,thank you ma'am."

"He's a jerk right?I'm sure he has said some derogatory words at you the few moments you spent with him"

"Yes,and I think it's normal,He can't like me straightaway"

"He hates people,Including everyone around him except Luca and his immediate family."

"Oh"

She continued lecturing me about Stefano and I must say,I don't think this marriage will ever work.

He's the opposite of me. How could someone hate people around him that he lived alone after his fifth birthday?

He's such a weirdo.

His mom didn't say anything about his sex life,I wondered if he knew about it or she just didn't want to talk about it.

"Uhm.. Ma'am,I..."

"Ma'am?Talk to me casually,You can call me by my name or call me mum if it's comfortable with you."

"I'm sorry,I will go with Mom."

"That's good"She winked before scooping the soup into her mouth.

She dropped some shrimps and dumplings in my food,I thanked her and continued eating.

"Why are you not talking about Stefano's sex life?I just want to know."I asked curiously.

She almost choked on her food,I handed her water hurriedly.

She glance at me briefly before drinking it.

"He's a jerk when it comes to that, Stefano had bitches,Women that he sleeps with,He paid them off after he's done with them,I don't want to talk about it because I'm embarrassed too."

"It's fine,it's nor..It's fine still."I couldn't gather the right words to use.

Things are still quite awkward between us.

"Have you dated before?"

"No."

"A crush?"

"Yes,He rejected me?"

"Why?"She questioned in a loud voice.

"He never liked me,I was too naive and always nervous. He knew I was taking therapy classes so he rejected me in the presence of the whole school after I bought him flowers,"I explained.

I don't want to recount the inhumane treatments I faced in high school and college,I stopped going months ago,I just had to stop.

It was too choking, Overwhelming debts,Demanding Josh and Mom who couldn't do hard work because of her health.

"Have you ever had sex then?"

Okay,Here's the most awkward moment.

I almost choked on my food,I pushed it from me slowly and drank lots of water.

Why's she asking me such question out of the blue?

She stared at me weirdly without offering to help.

After a while,she started laughing.

"I'm sorry"I apologized, pressing my lips together.

"You're just too naive, you've never had sex right?"She questioned again,I only nodded.

"I don't have a sexually appealing appearance,And I've never dated either."

"Don't say that,You're beautiful"She rubbed my back.

I was already full by this time so I stopped eating.

Stefano entered immediately,drenched in the rain.

I didn't know it was raining.

"Oh,You got drenched!"His mom exclaimed, rushing up to him.

I stood up from my seat slowly,my eyes not leaving the ground.

I was nervous as hell.

What happened between us earlier still lingered and it made the atmosphere more awkward for me. For us.

"Yeah,I will get changed"He muttered simply.

I moved back from the way leading to the stairs,He walked past me without acknowledging my presence.

What do I expect before? A hug? Stupid.

"He will be done soon,You guys can start going."

"Do you have a dry towel?Wet hair causes cold"

"Oh,of course,I will get it for you"

She rushed to the small room close to the dinning and came out with a small white towel.

Coincidentally,Stefano was just coming down the stairs.

His hair is still wet and dripping water.

I walked closer to him,He stopped for a moment,surprised.

I raised my hand up to his hair but he's just too tall.

He grabbed it from me and scoffed.

"You should have just told me you want me to dry my hair."

"I'm sorry."I mumbled and moved out of the way for him.

"It's none of your business."He snapped.

His Mom was already walking closer to us.

Stefano is losing it again.

"You will catch a cold."

"And it's none of your fucking business!"He yelled at me angrily and threw the towel away.

Unfortunately,The towel hit one of the big picture confined in a fine glass due to the force he added to it making everything crash to the floor.

"Stefano!"His mom yelled at him,pissed off already.

"It's okay,I sho..."

"Fuck. Meet me in the car if you want to go home"He cursed angrily and walked out of the house immediately.

God.