Chapter 13
Mia’s POV
“He’ll never changed.” I felt the screams of frustration at the back of my throat. “That makes him a real asshole. I don’t like the idea that he’s treating you like his possession. You’re human for God’s sake and you’re free to do what you want.” The person at the other line said angrily. “It’s always what he wants NOT what I
want. I feel like a kid that can’t decide for
myself.”
“He’s selfish, controlling. Tonto! He
should respect your decisions.”
“But he keeps on saying that he loves
me.”
“Being in love is not enough. There should be respect, trust, loyalty and honesty. Communication and commitment is very important too. In his case, all the mathematical formula of a perfect relationship is missing.” “What am I gonna do?”
“Hmm… let’s figure it out later. I’ll call
you back. Mikael is here.”
“Ooopss, sorry. Give my love to him.”
“Sure. Take care of yourself, mi amor.”
“Bye, love you, Dylan.”
That’s right. Dylan was my accomplice.
Everything was pure acting.
Dylan and I became best of friends and shared our problems. We pretended to be engaged to help him conceal his homos£xuality from the press. I needed the fake engagement also so Xander would find me. It was a year already but still I haven’t moved on. I wanted to see him to know if I still feel the same way.
Too bad. I still feel so strongly for him.
I saw Xander coming back in the car,
carrying a paper bag. I asked him to go
inside 7-Eleven to buy me three packs of
sanitary napkins. I had my period and I
intentionally didn’t bring any spare with
me. I wanted to test his patience.
“I also bought some chocolates and nuts. The cashier said that it’s good when you’re menstruating.” Xander said. “You should eat bananas to avoid muscle cramps.” “You actually asked the cashier about that?”
“Of course.” He gave me a boyish smile
that made my heart flipped.
I wanted to go shopping, alone. But he
insisted on accompany me. So, fine! Let’s
see if he can bear following me around
the mall.
It took me an hour to decide what lipstick
to buy.
“Why not buy everything?” Xander
whispered behind me.
“I’m not wasting my money buying all that colors.”
“It’s very cheap, Mia. I’ll pay for it.”
“No. I have my own money. I can buy
whatever I want. I don’t need a sugar
daddy. If you have no patience then go
home.” I faced him, giving him the ‘I told
you so’ look.
“I’m not leaving you. I’ll stay here no
matter how long you’ll shop.” He put his
hands on his pants pockets then rocked
back on his heels.
“Okay.” I lifted my chin and faced the saleslady again. “I’ll take the Posie K, Coco
K and Mary Jo.”
I shopped for five hours and Xander was
following me all along. I bought a lot of
stuffs, dresses, shoes, more makeups,
makeup organizers, bags and others. He
insisted to pay everything… so I let him. I
bought even more.
He carried all the boxes and shopping
bags I bought. He almost tripped at the
escalator. But he never complained. Not
even a sign of impatience or irritation.
Later that evening, we went to a Japanese
restaurant. I knew Xander really hated
sushi, especially raw fish and wasabi. I
took the liberty to order our meal – I
ordered California maki, Salmon Nigiri
sushi and sashimi.
“I can’t eat these.” Xander’s brows drew
together in a worried expression.
“You can do it.” I put a wasabi on top of a raw fish and took it using chopsticks. “I love a man who eats sashimi and wasabi.” I said flirtatiously and put the food in his mouth.
He coughed and gagged. His face was
burning red. He grabbed a glass of water
and drank heartily.
“Oh! Sorry. Never mind. We’ll just order
another dish.” I said disappointedly,
slumping my shoulders.
“No… no. I can eat this.” He insisted.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. Anything for you, Mia.” He
forced a smile.
“Well… that’s good. Hmm… maybe we can talk about us later?”
His face brightened and pulled the sashimi
dish closer to him. “I would definitely love that.”
Xander ate all the sashimi with wasabi. He struggled chewing it, gagging, coughing and drinking too much water. I told him that that was enough, but he wouldn’t stop.
When we arrived home, he threw up.
I felt bad of myself. I shouldn’t have made
him eat that. Two or three slices of
sashimi should have been enough. I forgot
he was a very proud man. He wouldn’t say
NO to a challenge.
Xander’s POV
I woke up feeling sick. I wanted to throw
up again.
The lights were on and I was surprised to
see Mia already dressed.
“Where are you going?” I sat down
abruptly on the couch, where I’ve been
sleeping since we got home.
“I have a photoshoot today.” She said,
dragging her luggage.
I looked at the wall clock. It was still four
in the morning. What the hell! Who do
photoshoots at this hour. It’s too
early. She never even mentioned a
photoshoot last night. She just signed the
contract.
“I’ll go with you.” I stood up and fixed my messy hair.
“Don’t worry, I can manage. I’ll take a cab. Just go back to sleep. You look sick.” She said firmly with her hands on her slim hips. She looked so cute and s£xy in her off shouldered white sweater and denim short shorts.
“No. I’m fine. I’ll just take a bath.”
She looked at her wrist watch. “There’s no time. I’m going to be late.”
“Okay… okay. I’ll just change clothes.”
“Hurry up.” She said and went out of the
bedroom.
I grabbed my jeans and shirt, changing clothes in a hurry. I went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth whiled I peed. Then I rinsed my mouth and washed my face at the same time. “Let’s go!” Mia shouted outside.
I forgot I had an important business meeting in the morning. Franco and Manuel was upset. The business deal with an investor from India didn’t turn up well. I was the one who could explain the business proposal better. And now, the investor hesitated to close the deal. I just wished I could do something about it when I get back.
I couldn’t just leave Mia here. We were in a beach resort hotel, two hours away from the city. Besides, she was wearing a skimpy bikini surrounded with half naked male models. I couldn’t believe why she accepted a modelling contract like this. It was very upsetting on my part. Especially with that ash blond guy who wouldn’t leave her side and kept on staring at her. One wrong move and I was ready to smack him down.
We transferred from one spot to another in the beach. I carried her things for her. Her luggage, her water, her hat, her umbrella, her robe, her towel and others. She had her shoot the whole morning. The
heat of the sun made my head hurt
terribly. Damn it. I’m going to get sick.
“Are you okay?” A waiter asked me,
frowning. “You are flushing.”
“I’m not. Do you have some lemon water
and Tylenol.”
“Yeah. I’ll get you.” He said and left. He
came back bringing the medicine. I felt
much better in a few minutes.
“You’re lucky you work as her bodyguard. She’s very pretty.” The same waiter said when he passed by my side.
“I’m not a bodyguard.” I gritted my teeth.
“I’m her fiancé.”
“Oops. Sorry sir. I thought…”
I dismissed him with a wave of my hand.
Mia finished her shoot in the afternoon. I
was relieved that finally we could go
home.
I was driving feeling drowsy. I felt terrible, I wanted to crawl on the bed. But I pretended to be fine, struggling to keep my eyes open and focused on the road. I listened to Mia, talking about the people and the beach. She was in a very festive mood. Singing and dancing in the car. Then she turned the speakers’ volume up. The very loud music of Chainsmokers ‘Closer’ made my head hurt more.
.
RUNAWAY FIANCÉE