Chapter 15 Doubt
I can’t leave early today. The company needs me here, especially since our company plans to have a new product and we all need to prepare tea. I’m getting stressed here. I regret studying business marketing; it’s hard to think of strategies, different products, and proposals. It makes my brain bleed.
I texted Yanie to meet me, and hours before she replied, she told me she was at work and couldn’t come over but told me to wait for her if it was fine with me. I need a friend to talk to and feel at a loss.
We had a meeting with my team, and I didn’t understand anything they discussed. My brain is flying. When I finished, I immediately stormed at the company and texted Yanie that I was on the road in the café beauty fa.
I waited for her in the café and when I saw her tears suddenly fell.
"Hey, what happened?" she’s worried; she transfers her chair to my side and wipes my tears.
“What happened, huh? Did Kier hurt you?” How did she know? Did she see him with another woman? It pains me much more than I thought.
“Tell me I’ll punch him for you” I’m crying and don't know where to start or what I should tell her. I don’t understand myself.
“C’mon, tell me” she fixes my hair that has been blocking my face. I cried loudly, and the people here were looking at me, while the others were gossiping while looking at me.
“Tell me,” she shook me a little bit.
“Okay, I’ll call your husband?” I cried harder.
It hurts so bad.
She got her phone and dialed Layla's number.
"What, Vaneng!?" The other line asked.
"Have you broken again?" Layla rolled her eyes even though she was not with her, but she knew her well.
“Hoy!” She started.
“Your sister-in-law is crying. She doesn’t want to tell me what happened. So, I called to ask if you know about it.”
Yanie puts on the call-in loudspeaker, and she hears noises on the other line. Maybe, Layla is at work too.
"What?!" she overreacted; that’s Layla.
“I don’t know about it; why? What happened?”
"That's why I called to ask, and you return my question to me,” Yanie complains, and Layla laughs.
“Can you go here? She keeps on crying. She doesn’t want to tell me the truth” there’s a worry in her voice.
"Okay, okay, girl," she used her barbie voice.
"I'll be there. I'll just say goodbye to my future husband, Grasso. Bye. Love you! Mwa!" Layla.
"K." She ended the call.
“Here, drink water,”
I accept the water.
“What happened, huh?” She is looking at me
“N-nothing,” I answered and looked away.
"Been there, done that many times. Your husband's cousin will be here. So, tell us the truth.”
She attempts to force me to tell her the truth many times, and I don’t want to say it to her. I’m ashamed of it.
“Nothing.” I wipe my tears.
“We had a proposal, and it makes me stressed and frustrated,” white lies.
“I don’t know what to do,” I am about to cry again.
“I think I’m not doing my best enough.” I made my voice strong enough for me not to cry again.
I felt my eyes swollen. I stare outside the café, and there are a lot of people passing by.
“You won’t cry that easily,” her voice lowered, and there was a pity in her eyes.
“I rarely see you cry, and I guess I didn’t know why. So, in my conclusion, the reason behind those tears is your husband,” she stops.
“Tell me so that I can help,” she urges me.
She’s been kind to my best friend and me. I sincerely look at her. Why are men hurting her? She’s so pure and lovely. She’s a good friend.
Silence eats us.
I am humiliated about my feelings. We didn’t talk; no one dared to speak until Layla came wearing sunglasses and sexy in her outfit; she was wearing a fitter skirt, white sleeveless, and nude coat. When she gets near us, she turns around like she’s in a pageant. And when she faces us, she winks at us. Yanie rolled her eyes in the air.
"What's funny?" Layla asked those customers at the other table; they were looking at her while laughing.
"Are you insecure?” Layla asked.
Yanie snaps at her.
“Hey, start a fight,” Layla. Lazily rolled her eyes and sat before us; she took her coat off and hung it in the hair. Thank God! She didn’t start a fight and listen to Yanie. Layla is a war freak.
“Wow! you look beautiful today, Vaneneng!” She praises Yanie and holds her chin.
“Stop teasing me and please stop calling me Vaneneng; that’s disgusting,” she complained.
Layla looked at me, “what happened, my sisterly?” she caressed my cheeks
"My poor baby girl, why are you crying?" She may be a bitch, but she's the sweetest and the best.
“Nothing, I’m fine” I can't look into her eyes.
“Do you think I’ll let you lie to me? I’m not Layla.” She’s proud.
“Let me call brother Kier if you don’t want to talk. We will ask him about you” she got her phone and dialed his number. I bit my lower lip; this was more shameful.
I grab her phone, and it’s ringing. I ended it.
“Please, no,” I pleaded. I don’t want Kier to know that I am crying. We fight again.
"Then tell us now why you're crying."
“If you still want to tell us the truth, I’ll call everyone,” Yanie threaten me.
“O-okay, I’ll tell the truth.”
I’m about to tell them when tears run from my cheeks.
“yYu hurt,” Layla.
“I d-don’t know,” I started. I saw someone looking at me, and I looked away.
“I don’t know” Yanie caresses my back as if she’s comforting me and telling me it’s okay to cry.
“Start it, to the way that you know,” she urges me.
“I’m hurting” Layla goes silent about listening to me.
“I think Kier is cheating.” I started.
“There’s always a woman calling him on the phone early in the m-morning.”
It hurts, especially since I didn’t know that woman.
“Then she shouted at me when I threw his phone at him, and he got mad,” I cried harder.
“He’s always on the phone,” I added.
“Did you tell that to brother Kier? I bet no,” Layla said.
"Please don't tell him about this" I’m timid, crying about this matter.
“Do you think he has a mistress? Err,” Yanie asked Layla.
“Duh, he doesn’t have a girlfriend way back then; we even tease him that he is gay. I don’t see that he will cheat,” Layla said while looking on far away as if she was thinking of something.
“I can’t remember that he dated someone except to– never mind. Maybe that’s brother Kier's business partner” Layla is about to say something, but she changes it when she realizes something.
“You do better ask him about that,” Layla advises.
“Cheater won’t be honest about their cheating unless you caught him,” Yanie said while thinking deeply.
“I didn’t understand why I was having this kind of feeling; I’m not familiar with these,” I started to open up.
“It hurts me when I always catch him talking on the phone.”
Yanie giggles at what I said.
I never had a boyfriend. I don’t have any idea about romantic things.
This feeling is new to me.
“you’re jealous,” Layla said lazily.
“you’re in love!” Yanie happily exclaimed.
“I’m going to tell this to my brother” Layla’s mode came back, and she looked alive now. She grabbed her phone from me and was about to redial Kier’s number.
“Please, no,” I plead again.
“O-okay,” she hid her phone.
I don’t want to open up to Layla, except that she is talkative. She’s the cousin of her husband.
“don’t be jealous; you’re the legal wife,” Yanie cheered her up.
“And I don’t see that he will cheat.”
“Yeah,” Layla agreed.
“And if ever he cheats. I’m your backup. I’ll beat him,” Yanie said with determination.
