4. Congratulations

"Ugh..." Lydia winced and then grimaced in pain as she got up from the toilet seat and walked to the sink.

 

 After washing her hands, Lydia looked at her reflection in the mirror. Even to the naked eye, she could clearly see the red spots on her neck. There weren't many, but one stood out the most.

 

 Around the base of Lydia's neck were faint finger-like marks. As if she had been strangled. And there was no need to ask whose fingerprints they were. They were Reino Andersen's.

 

 "This is really crazy. How could it be like that? That polar bear almost killed me."

 

 Lydia, remembering the events of last night, got goosebumps. It really had been a hot and brutal night. Lydia had to remember to cover this up for a while in the afternoon before her mother and brother came home.

 

"Shitting hurts so much, God," Lydia mumbled after she managed to get back on her bed.

 

 Lydia was in so much pain right now. Everyone says that making love is so good, but what is this? The process was fun, but the pain afterwards was definitely not fun anymore. Lydia's lower abdomen was also hurting.

 

 Lydia thought for a while. Should she ask her more experienced friends? Who knows, maybe one of them would know how to deal with this pain. The problem was that she had to go back to work tomorrow. Lydia couldn't take two days off without a doctor's note.

 

 "There's no way I'm going to get a note from the gynecologist saying 'excessive exercise,'" Lydia muttered, covering her face with a pillow.

 

 "Oh my." Lydia jumped in surprise as her cell phone rang loudly. She immediately answered it.

 

 "Yes, hello Ma. What are you calling about?"

 

"LYDIA," her mother shouted loudly. Lydia had to pull the phone away from her ear.

 

"Oh my God, girl. Where were you last night? Why didn't you come home? Do you know how shocked I was to see your room empty and so neat? I called you yesterday, but you didn't answer. I called the office and they said you didn't come to work.

 

 "I almost didn't go to work to look for you. Kenzo almost told me he was going to skip class to find you. Instead of calling back, you just sent a chat. Like nothing happened."

 

 "Sorry, Ma," Lydia cried quietly. She had completely forgotten to call her mother back. Luckily, Lydia had sent a chat to let her know that she was home.

 

 "Where were you last night? Yesterday you only had permission to work overtime."

 

 Lydia winced even more at the lie she had told yesterday. She wasn't sure if she would get permission if she said she was going to a nightclub. Her mother is very strict and old school.

 

 "After working overtime, I was invited to dinner with my office friends, Ma. My department event. I don't feel like it," Lydia replied with another lie.

 

 "Then why didn't you go home?"

 

"Because it was late, I stayed the night," Lydia replied shyly.

 

 If her mother had asked where she was staying, Lydia would not have been able to answer again. Even if she could answer, her mother might call the person whose name she had given to confirm it. And if that happened, Lydia's life could have been taken.

 

 "Thank Erika for taking you in. It's good that you have such a good friend."

 

"You called Erika?" asked Lydia a little confused.

 

 "Of course I did. I called all your friends and finally calmed down after I called Erika."

 

 Lydia breathed a sigh of relief. Her best friend had saved her. Lydia would have to remember to call her best friend to thank her after her mother's scolding was over. And now Lydia knew who to ask.

 

 "Thanks for helping out last night."

 

 "Anytime. But where were you when you didn't come home? I had to lie to your mother so she wouldn't panic," the curious Erika asked immediately.

 

"How do I put this," Lydia replied, suddenly hesitant to ask Erika.

 

 If Lydia asked, it meant that she would have to tell her a lot of things. And if Erika was very curious, she might have to tell her about her contract marriage. Although Lydia had never told her mother.

 

 Erika didn't insist at all if her best friend didn't want to talk, but Lydia felt guilty for being annoying.

 

 "I'd say I made a mistake last night," Lydia replied hesitantly.

 

 "Let me guess. A one-night stand with a stranger?"

 

 "Sort of," Lydia replied with a soft chuckle. Not at all surprised that Erika had guessed correctly.

 

"Sort of how? Do you have a boyfriend or a FWB relationship?"

 

 "Nope. I don't have a boyfriend or anything like that. I mean I do it with someone I know and... just like that."

 

"How so?" Erika asked.

 

 "He's my boss and..."

 

 "Excuse me? Your boss?" Erika interrupted her best friend's sentence.

 

 Lydia nodded, then quickly realized that she was on the phone and Erika couldn't see her. "CEO to be exact."

 

 Lydia started to tell them some work-related things. Her friends already knew that, but not the reward from the big boss. Then she went on about the accidental meeting last night.

 

 Oh, and Lydia certainly didn't talk about the hot scene. She just told me about the fingerprints on her neck.

 

 "There are fingerprints?"

 

 "Yes. And I also have pain in my lower abdomen and buttocks," Lydia replied.

 

 "The pain is normal because it's your first time, but the fingerprints? It's really hard and rough. No wonder your stomach hurts so much. It's not abnormal, is it?"

 

 "A sexual disorder, you mean? Actually, I don't know about that," Lydia answered honestly. She hardly interacted with Reino, how could she know?

 

"Even if there is, it's none of your business. You want to avoid him, right?"

 

 "Yes. As much as possible." Lydia nodded.

 

 "That's good. That means you don't have to worry about anything else. Just focus on yourself, Lydia."

 

 

"I wish I could," Lydia replied, sounding very tired. "The thing is, he's my boss. It's not impossible that we'll run into each other again."

 

 "It's okay. Just be professional."

 

 After a long conversation, Erika ended it by telling her best friend to get some rest. That was it, nothing more. And Lydia also forgot to tell Erika to keep this a secret from the others.

 

 Unfortunately, Lydia forgot one thing. Things like this were almost never a secret among her friends. That was also what Erika thought when she sent the message to their group chat.

 

 "Oh my God Erika," Lydia screamed as she read the text message from her best friend.

 

 [Erika: Congratulations to Lydia who finally managed to lose her virginity].

 

***To Be Continued***