Gun 16

Elaine

I don’t know why, but no voice was coming out of my mouth until Eron suddenly pulled me away from Louis who was busy talking to a woman.

As he pulled me, tears fell from my eyes. I didn’t know the reason. It just did.

It seemed like Louis didn’t care because he didn’t even spare me a glance. He was too busy talking to that woman. Who was she, and why was it that when she spoke to him, he didn’t want to pay attention to me?

“Are you okay, Elaine?” Eron asked when he saw the tears falling from my eyes. I quickly wiped them away so he wouldn’t notice that I was crying out of frustration.

“Ah, yes. I’m fine. Don’t mind me. I just got some dust in my eyes,” I lied, forcing a smile. He didn’t seem like a bad person since he said that Kaizer and Louis were his classmates in high school.

I thought Louis would be happy to see Eron, but it seemed like things weren’t going well between them.

We kept walking, but my feet started to ache, so I stopped for a moment to catch my breath. “Wait, where are we going?” I asked him. Instead of answering clearly, he just smiled at me.

“If you’re not going to tell me, I’ll just go back to the football game,” I threatened.

Eron sighed. “Fine, fine, I’ll tell you. You’re not going back there, especially since you’re already in pain. I know a place where you can let out all your frustrations in life,” he said, which made me furrow my brow because I didn’t quite understand what he was saying.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked again.

Eron smiled teasingly before answering, “Your frustrations in life. Like the jealousy you’re feeling now.”

My jaw dropped. He was so bold to tease me. I grabbed my shoe and was about to throw it at him when he suddenly ran away. I had no choice but to follow him since I had no idea of the way back to where Louis and I had been.

Why did I even go with this idiot? If I had known how much of a flirt Eron was, I should’ve just banged their heads together. They were both annoying. Especially Louis, who, after making you feel special, suddenly flirts with someone else. Ugh. Men are such idiots!

We stopped at a place where balloons were set up as if there was a party. I immediately turned around because I thought we came to the wrong place. Eron said it was a spot where I could release all my frustrations, so I expected something like a mountain with no one around, but where would you find such a place on this island?

My eyes widened when Eron pulled me inside, so I slapped him. “Hey, wait a second. I don’t remember any event happening today, and I just met you. Don’t tell me you already like me?” I complained, waving my hand as if to push him away.

He laughed loudly, making me raise an eyebrow. Wow, this guy was a real jerk.

“Hey, if you think I’m easy, you’re mistaken. So take me back to Louis,” I said, even doing a little pose so he wouldn’t notice I was getting nervous.

“Don’t worry, I’m not interested in you. Dream all you want, but don’t overdo it. With my good looks, it’s unlikely that I’d ever like you,” he said, looking me up and down as if evaluating me.

I kicked Eron in frustration. How thick-skinned could he be? He acted like he was some heartthrob. I was about to run when he pulled me by the waist, our faces getting closer.

I swallowed nervously. You’re about to get married, Elaine, so don’t act flirty, I convinced myself. I was shocked when he brought his face closer, and I pushed him away in surprise.

“See? You’re really assuming. As if I’d kiss you,” Eron said, acting disgusted, which made me roll my eyes.

“Come on, let’s go inside. Stop acting. Eros owns this place, so don’t worry, I won’t put you in danger,” he added. I had no choice but to follow him since I was already far from the stadium where Louis was.

“Just make sure. If the police catch us here, it’s trespassing,” I said, holding my chest. My heart was racing from the anxiety.

He raised the chain blocking the entrance and went in first. I was about to run when a guard appeared. I was surprised when they greeted him.

“Good afternoon, Sir Eron. Looks like you’ve got a woman with you again, huh?” the guard teased. The other one smiled at me, and I had no choice but to give him a fake smile.

It seemed like they thought I was one of Eron’s flings. How could he bring me here when it looked like he brought all his women here?

“Ah, yes. This is Elena, my new girlfriend,” Eron said. He even came over to put his arm around me. I was about to kick him away when he whispered to me to just pretend.

“Nice to meet you,” I said so he wouldn’t realize that we were both lying. The guard nodded, and Eron and I walked on.

Once he wasn’t looking, I immediately removed his arm from my shoulders. “You must really like me, jerk,” I muttered, and was about to hit him when he suddenly picked me up and carried me to a place filled with food.

After we sat down, he handed me a strawberry, which I immediately took. “What are we going to talk about?” I asked him, looking at the view. Are we really supposed to sit here? It seemed like there would be an event here later, or was it all done?

The view was beautiful. Any woman who would be surprised here was so lucky. 

The place Eros had picked for her was lovely.

“I saw you were jealous earlier when Louis was talking to someone. Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for him?” Eron asked while eating a banana from the basket. I immediately looked away when he mentioned Louis. Even to me, it still wasn’t clear whether I should trust everything he was showing me.

We both knew that we were arranged to be together.

“What jealousy are you talking about? We were just arranged, so why would I fall for him?” I asked sarcastically, starting to eat the strawberry. I looked at Eron when I saw him laughing.

“What’s your problem?” I asked in irritation, only realizing when I saw that I had eaten the green part of the strawberry, too.

“That’s what not being jealous looks like,” he stated, laughing loudly to tease me. I rolled my eyes in frustration, but then my tears, which I had been holding back, started to fall.

“Fine, yes, I’m jealous! Are you happy now?” I shouted at him. I stood up, intending to leave, but I was shocked when he handed me a handkerchief. I only looked at him.

“Take it before I change my mind,” he said, turning away so he wouldn’t see me cry. I took it and wiped my tears.

I had once had a crush on a guy, too, but I never felt this way.

I sat back and ate more strawberries. “You should let it out so you’re not holding everything in,” he said. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before speaking. Maybe he was right. Maybe I needed to release my feelings so I wouldn’t be overwhelmed.

“I don’t know if it’s right for me to be jealous, but when I saw him with Mariella, I just wanted to go into the room where they were talking and pull Louis away from there. But every time I remember how he mentioned that woman when he was drunk, it feels like something’s holding me back,” I began. Eron was looking at me while eating grapes. He seemed to be listening.

“And then I was surprised when he suddenly became nice to me. He even had a surprise for me. But because of a woman, he forgot about me so quickly. What do I know about his past with her? I still don’t know. What does he think I am, a rebound? Huh? Tell me! Am I a rebound?” I shouted. I calmed down when I saw Eron stop eating because of my outburst.

I was shocked when he suddenly handed me a bottle of gin. “What am I supposed to do with this?” I asked. I had no idea what to do with the bottle.

“Try breaking it,” he said sarcastically. “Of course you should drink it. Idiot, tsk.”

My brows furrowed. I was surprised when he took the bottle from my hands and poured some.

We stood up and went toward the beach.

The sea was beautiful in this area, but I had no extra clothes, so I just admired it.

As I got distracted by the sand, someone suddenly tapped me. “Elaine,” he said. When I turned, I saw Kaizer smiling at me.

What was he doing here?

“How did you know I was here?” I asked him. I looked back at Eron who was just scratching his head. It seemed like he was teasing me. I glared at him, but he just shrugged and ran away.

Wow, he’s a real psycho.

“Wear this. We’ve got somewhere important to go,” Kaizer said, making me wonder. What was he planning?

“For what?” I asked.

He didn’t answer me and just covered my eyes with a handkerchief. I couldn’t stop feeling nervous as we walked. When we stopped, I no longer felt the sand under my feet—it was replaced by cold tiles.

Kaizer slowly removed the handkerchief from my eyes. When I opened them, a party popper exploded, startling me. I saw Louis walking toward me. The musicians began playing Brian McKnight’s “Marry Your Daughter”.

I felt a mix of emotions when I saw Aunt Hacel smiling at me while their son was approaching.

“Hello, wife,” Louis said, smiling at me. Why were they all dressed up? What was going on?

I was shocked when Louis suddenly knelt, and I immediately started crying. What was he doing?

My heart raced louder when he pulled out a box and opened it in front of me. “Will you marry me?” he asked. His eyes looked at me as if it wasn’t just because his parents wanted it, but because he desired it, too.

When I looked around, everyone was waiting for my answer. I smiled. Even if Louis didn’t feel the same way, his gesture made me realize that I loved him.

“Yes,” I answered, taking a deep breath to repeat, “Yes, Louis. I will marry you.”

And in that moment, all I could feel was the pounding of my heart as he placed the ring on my finger.

Even without a contract, he was the one I would choose to marry because he was the one who made me feel this way.