Chapter 10 Barcode

<Mia>

"You have such a heavy hand," I complained to Ethan as he had his arm draped over me.

He removed his hand from my shoulder.

"Nate's here," Teriyaki announced.

"Where? I can't see him. Are you being philosophical again, Terriyaki?" Moon asked.

"Get yourself together, idiot!" Ruru snapped at Moon, clearly annoyed.

"You're so grumpy! Do you have your period or something?" Moon teased.

"Yeah, so what? Is it a problem?" Ruru retorted.

"When Nate arrives, let's sing him 'Happy Birthday'," Adagio suggested.

Suddenly, they all started singing 'Happy Birthday'.

Nate has arrived, and he's accompanied by a young girl. He raises his middle finger to everyone, and they all retaliate, except for Ethan. I feel his hand on my thigh.

"You have quite the hand movement," I whispered to him.

"Do you want me to cut it off?" I gave him a stern look, but he seemed unfazed by what I said.

It seems like the girl has caught their attention.

"Hey, you're hugging my husband," Queen called out to Lorena.

I couldn't pronounce her name properly, so I'll just call her Queen, considering her name also fits the title.

"Oh no, I'm not," Lorena fake laughed in response.

Queen stepped in between them, breaking Lorena's hold on Kieffer.

It's your own doing, Lorena. You've put yourself in the fire.

"Toirdhealbhach? Seriously? Why did you choose such a small spot?" Nate interjected. They didn't have any seats left. Everything was occupied.

There were only three sofas, and each could only accommodate three people.

"Why me? MoonRaker made the decision. He said you guys weren't coming. Besides, how were we supposed to know you'd be bringing a girl?" Teriyaki murmured in his last sentence.

I glanced at Nate's hand holding onto the young girl's hand.

"Here, sit here," Kieffer lifted Quenery and placed her on his lap, and Queen seemed surprised.

"What?!" Lorena reacted. "You'll get tired."

Oh well.

Nate pulled the girl closer and sat down, positioning her on his lap. He wrapped his arm around her waist. The girl kept her head lowered, appearing shy about the situation.

"I smell something fishy," I whispered to Ethan.

I smacked him lightly when he didn't respond.

"Just talk to me,” I said to my husband.

He leaned closer to me, causing me to lean back, "Do you want me to shut your mouth for a few minutes?" he huskily whispered. His voice sent shivers down my spine. My hair stood on end.

"Why are you late?" Adagio teased Nate, giving him a piercing gaze.

"Yeah, who's your company this time? Someone new again?" Moonraker chimed in.

"I'll get a room then," Teriyaki said, but Nate stopped him.

"Don't," Nate intervened.

It took Teriyaki a while to process what Nate said before he understood, and then he grinned mischievously.

"Nate, you're such a paedophile," Teriyaki remarked.

I felt Ethan's hand wrap around my waist, and he rested his head on my shoulder.

"Are you getting sleepy?" I asked him, and he nodded while still leaning on me.

"You have a cousin in high school," Thunder commented.

Nate lifted the woman's head. "Don't be shy," he said to her, and I knew he said that even though I couldn't hear it over the loud music.

The woman bit her lower lip.

"Ethan, your head is so heavy," I complained again. He was weighing me down and making me feel numb.

I couldn't help but laugh at Lorena, who was sulking in a corner.

"I'm sorry," Ethan apologized to me and lifted his head. I felt a twinge of sympathy seeing his eyes reddened and the dark circles underneath them, making him even more attractive. I felt sorry for him when I saw his tired face, worn out and lacking sleep.

"Are you sleeping or are you addicted?" Ethan's eyes were so bloodshot. He looked like an addict.

I brushed his hair aside. Poor thing.

It's a good thing he didn't ask because I wasn't home when he arrived. Thankfully, he didn't ask any questions.

"I'm having a hard time sleeping," I said as I caressed his hair.

"Stop it. I'm just sleepy," I stopped what I was doing with his head.

"It's only seven," I said as I looked at the fancy watch.

"Alright, just rest your head on my shoulder," I suggested. He looked tired and sleepy.

Adagio handed Ethan a glass of tequila, and he accepted it.

I took it from him and drank it instead.

"You can handle your drinks," Adagio commented.

I knew Ethan wasn't fond of alcohol, but he was a heavy coffee drinker. He would have two cups of coffee in the morning, and another one in the afternoon, and sometimes I even caught him having three cups of coffee at night.

"Do you want coffee?" I asked the person beside me.

"There's no coffee here," he replied. See? Coffee is his only remedy. He says alcohol makes him even sleepier.

"Maybe I should just slap you to wake you up?" I suggested.

"Mia,"

I chuckled.

"That's not funny," he added.

Ethan can be so irritating, I swear.

"Do you ever get annoyed with me?" It took him a while to respond, his head resting on my shoulder. I nudged him. "All the time," he replied curtly.

"Really? Nah, I don't think so."

"I'll kiss you if you don't shut your mouth," he warned me.

"Go ahead and try," I teased him.

"Don't test me. The spirit of alcohol is urging me to kiss you, so you better shut your mouth." Despite his drowsiness, his voice still had that depth.

"I'll keep quiet, master," I whispered.

I look at Queen when she raised her voice.

"Why do you keep holding my husband's hand?"

I glanced at Lorena's position.

Queen's expression turned sour as she looked at the mistress.

"She just touched his hand, you're so mean," sarcastically replied Lorena. "It's my fault that his hand got in the way. You're so restless, it's like you're an insect trying to cling to Kieffer," Lorena complained.

Queen scowled at her and didn't respond.

"Idiot! Thunderball is hilarious," Moonraker chuckled while sharing a story. "Because... Because..." Moonraker laughed so much that he couldn't continue his story due to the laughter.

"How sweet! No wonder I'm being swarmed by ants here. The ants are probably embarrassed by your sweetness," Ruru retorted from Lorena's spot.

Kieffer and Queen locked eyes, while Nate kissed the side of the woman's lips.

"Oh, Ethan is so clingy with Mia. He's even more persistent than a snake." Ethan had his arms wrapped around me. I nudged him because I felt embarrassed by what Moonraker said. Ethan groaned.

"Do you want me to buy you coffee?"

He lifted his head again. "I can manage," he said and took a sip of his drink.

Nate's caring attitude towards the woman caught my attention.

"I already told you, she's not my cousin and not a high school student. She's just small, but she's not underage," Nate explained with frustration. He seemed annoyed by the teasing.

"Toirdhealbhach, what now? I thought you were going to reserve a room?" Ruru asked irritably. He seemed quite annoyed.

"You told me not to!"

"Well, go reserve one now! If they don't give us a room in five minutes, tell them I'll cause a scene here." Ruru had a ring on his thumb finger on his right hand.

He suddenly stood up, walked towards our spot, and pulled me, pushing me towards Ethan. My eyes widened as I ended up sitting on Ethan's lap. That idiot Ruru. I glared at him to let him know that I didn't appreciate what he did. He pushed me forcefully as if he had so much anger in him.

I quickly dodged as Nate threw a bottle of medicine towards our spot, but Ethan caught it and took out a pill from it, then drank it.

"You've been at it since earlier!"

As Queen confronted Kieffer about his alleged kiss with Lorena, the tension in the room escalated. Lorena tried to play innocent, but her lips curved into a mischievous smile. The music grew louder, and everything seemed to happen in a blur as the two women began shouting at each other.

"Why? Did you only notice now, girl? You've been fooling me for so long, and you're foolish enough not to realize that Kieffer replaced me with you!" Lorena shouted boldly.

Kieffer stood between the two women, caught in the middle of their argument. The rest of us remained silent, listening to their heated exchange.

Queen looked at Kieffer with a mix of hurt and anger. "Kie? Is it that easy for you? Is it that easy for you to leave me and replace me? For fucking years. It's been 10 years! It's been 11 years! Why? Damn it, Kieffer. I did everything. I was your first girlfriend, and I was there through the ups and downs. Didn't you say we'd try to work on our marriage? Why are we not separated yet? We're working on it, so why did you move on so quickly?" I listened intently to their conversation, intrigued by the unfolding drama.

Lorena retaliated with a fierce shout, "Why can't you understand that Kieffer doesn't love you anymore!" Her audacity was astonishing. I couldn't believe how fearless she was at this moment.

Kieffer grabbed Lorena by the shoulder to try and calm her down. None of us spoke a word, remaining serious and engrossed in the situation.

The chaos continued to unfold as the truth about Lorena being Kieffer's mistress became known. I felt dizzy, overwhelmed by the lights and the crowd surrounding us.

"Kieffer fell out of love with you! He doesn't love you anymore because he loves me now!" Lorena asserted, trying to make her point.

Quenery looked at Kieffer and grabbed him by his shirt collar. "You said we would go back to how things were before? You said we would start anew?"

The drama escalated, but no one was crying. I couldn't make sense of it all; I was getting disoriented amidst the flashing lights and the crowd.

"I'm sorry, Quenery. I tried to work things out, but I can't. My self and heart don't want it anymore. I tried, I'm trying, but I just don't love you anymore," Kieffer confessed, his gaze locked with Quenery's eyes.

"Okay, fine. I'll sign the annulment papers," Quenery replied, holding back her tears.

Teriyaki joined the scene, punching Kieffer.

"You son of a bitch! Seriously, Kieffer! When are you going to fix yourself?" Teriyaki shouted, landing a knee on Kieffer's stomach. "You fool! You're willing to trade almost 11 years for someone you barely know?"

Lorena interjected, "Hey, three months can surpass 11 years." She even pointed her finger at Teriyaki.

I approached Lorena, trying to calm her down. "Lorena, that's enough," I tried to restrain her.

She ignored me and forcefully pushed me aside, making me stumble to the side.

Ethan's concerned gaze meets mine, and his eyes, shining brightly, are only for me.

As someone pushed us, my eyes widen as I see the floor as our landing spot.

Ethan's back hits the floor, causing him to wince, and my heart sinks.

My eyes widen.

Ethan's eyes are closed.

I press a gentle kiss on his forehead.

Quickly, I release myself from the pile and he helps himself up.

I feel dizzy as someone suddenly punches me. It's strong.

Chaos breaks out, and people start fighting.