Chapter 7

[ARIETTA’S POV]

Since I had nothing else to do at the private house and Sir Pierce wasn’t around, I decided to visit the restaurant where I was supposed to intern.

"Oh, we have a visitor!" Blaire said with a laugh when she saw me. The other interns who also worked at the Villa immediately surrounded me, probably to ask about Sir Pierce.

"How’s Sir Pierce? What’s he making you do?" they asked. It seemed like they weren’t busy. Maybe it was their break time, so they had time to gossip.

"Uh…just cleaning up his mess," I replied.

"What kind of mess? Must be a lot of tissues in Sir Pierce’s room, huh?!" one of them grinned. Her friend playfully slapped her, and they both laughed as if there was some hidden meaning behind what the first one said. I didn’t get it. What did she mean? Anyway, my tasks there are light. Most of the time, Sir Pierce isn’t around," I said, running my fingers through my hair.

"Oh? Why? Where does Sir Pierce usually go?" another intern asked me.

"I don’t know. Maybe he’s at the beach or the poolside. He could also be at the bar," I answered, possibly looking for a woman or his ‘flavor of the day’. I wanted to add more, but decided against it. I didn’t want them to think I was bad-mouthing the guy.

"Is Sir nice? I wish I had been assigned there. I’d serve him fully!" They squealed, probably imagining all sorts of ideas.

Blaire pulled me away from the girls who were swooning over Sir Pierce.

"Are you sure you're okay there? Sir Pierce isn’t bullying you, is he? I tease you a lot, but I’m still worried about you. There might be things you haven’t told me."

Blaire and I do see each other at the dorm, but because of our busy schedules, we don’t have much time to chat.

"I'm fine. He’s not bullying me. Though, there are times when his remarks are really annoying." 

Blaire seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "Good. I thought it was like when he cornered you. I was wondering what Sir was up to. He’s probably nice, though."

I shrugged off her comment about Sir being nice. I didn’t know if he really was. That guy is hard to read. “By the way, Eugene came by earlier." We sat down on the side. Since it was their break time, we had a moment to chat.

Blaire looked at me. At first, it was just a stare, but as time passed, she started laughing. She playfully hit me on the arm.

"Why? Did he smell you from here? He must really have an effect on you! You’ve turned him down several times, yet he’s still chasing after you."

I took a deep breath. "Yeah, he just came by. I don’t even know how to turn him down next time. It’s like no matter what I say, he’ll insist on pursuing me. I can’t snap at him because he’s not really doing anything wrong."

"Well, did he give you anything again? I bet he showered you with material gifts like he always does." Blaire crossed her arms.

"Yeah, flowers. I just placed them in the dorm earlier.” I took another deep breath. “He said he’s visiting again.”

Blaire laughed again, shaking her head at the things I said about Eugene. 

"Can you believe it? So many people are wishing to be the girlfriend of varsity player Eugene, and yet he’s so head over heels for you. No wonder so many people want to pull your hair at school!"

I scowled at the air. "I’m not into him." 

Blaire kept teasing me until she suddenly stopped and stared behind me. There was something in her expression that I didn’t like. 

"Yeah, because you’re drawn to people who are hard-working, have dreams, and are successful, right?" She smirked at me. "Like that guy who’s walking towards us."

My brow furrowed at her statement. I turned to look at who she was referring to and saw Sir Pierce. I immediately stood up because I felt like he was going to assign me some work. 

He immediately caught the attention of everyone in the area. Even people from a distance stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him.

"Sir Pierce, do you need anything?" Blaire spoke up before I could. Sir Pierce looked at me before answering my friend.

"I want to eat."

Even though he was talking to Blaire, his gaze stayed fixed on me. I swallowed hard. Why is he staring at me so intensely? Did I do something wrong?

"Right away, Sir!" They immediately began preparing the table where Sir Pierce usually sits. He just grinned before looking away and walking to his table.

What was that? Suddenly, he was smiling. The day passed like everything was normal. The only difference was, I didn’t see Sir Pierce bring a woman to his private house. But then again, that's none of my business. Maybe he was just tired from riding his horse.

Eugene’s visits to me became a daily occurrence. Sometimes, I tell him not to do it, that I’m not his obligation. But in the end, he’d say he’s courting me, and it always turns me off. How do I get this guy to stop? I’m getting close to my breaking point, and I’m about to lose my patience.

I’m not accepting any courtship, I told him one day. I want to tell him that he’s becoming a nuisance, but those words might hurt too much. 

Words are very powerful. You can change someone’s life with the words you say to them. That’s why, as much as possible, I try to hold back from speaking badly to others. Well, it still depends, though.

"I know you're not ready yet. I’ll wait," he says.

Should I tell him I don’t like him? The thing is, I’ve already said that before, and he didn’t accept it. He’s also very nice-looking, and I don’t think he can accept that there’s someone who doesn’t like him.

It just went on like this. Sometimes I’d really avoid him. I’d just tell him that I’m busy so he would leave. But that wasn’t enough to make him stop.

Then one day, I really reached my limit. I’ll use any means necessary to get him to leave me alone. It’s becoming an issue with others too. Word has been spreading that I have a boyfriend who visits me often. Soon enough, my supervisor might hear and say I’m flirting while on shift.

"Eugene, I have a boyfriend." I really thought this would be the only thing that would make him stop.

He paused at what I said. There! It seems his obsession with me is finally ending.

"You’re joking, right?" Eugene laughed loudly. We had already attracted the attention of people around us.

"No! I really have a boyfriend. That’s why I can’t be with you, Eugene."

"You’re just saying that to make me stop," he replied. "I told you, I won’t stop pursuing you. You’ll fall for me too, Ari."

He shook his head, as if he didn’t believe a word I said.

I frowned. "I do have a boyfriend," I said with finality. Even if I didn’t, I was going to stick with this until he believed me.

He sighed heavily. "Where did you meet him, then?"

I quickly thought of something. "I met him here." It was safer if he didn’t know anyone around, so no one could ask about him.

"I want to meet him." His expression darkened, like he wasn’t pleased with what I was saying.

I got nervous, but I knew this was the only way to make him stop. I bit my lip.

"I’ll wait here, Ari. Introduce me to your boyfriend, if you really have one."

He sat down on a sofa and looked at me. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. Whatever happens, happens.

I was about to leave to grab someone, anyone, when I heard a voice from behind.

"Arietta, what are you doing here?"

I knew he wasn’t the perfect choice for this. I would probably get teased or worse, but whatever.

Without warning, I grabbed his hand and turned him toward Eugene. I saw the furrow in Eugene’s brow.

"This is Pierce, my boyfriend."

At that moment, I knew I had put myself into a situation I shouldn’t have.