Valentine woke up with a dry throat. Instantaneously, her head pounded like hundreds of elephants walking during a parade. Moreover, huge, running elephants. With frustration, she groaned loudly and brought her hand to her head, as if it was the instant cure for the headache to ease within seconds. She sat upright and noticed that she wasn’t in her room William had given her temporarily. Through the tinted glass windows which can only allow people to see from the inside, she saw the beach. As usual, the waves crashed against each other and the water sparkled and shimmered due to the sun’s rays.The strong urge to drink cold water surfaced and as she whipped her head to the left, a glass filled with water and ice cubes stood on the table before her eyes. Longing for moisture within her mouth and throat, she grabbed on the glass and consumed every drop of water. It went to her mouth, down to her throat and satisfyingly, the cold water hit ever wall of her flesh unti

“V, are you still there?” Missy’s voice seeped out through her phone’s speakers. “Yeah…” Valentine rubbed the temple on her forehead as she answered. How will she calm herself now? Her head still ached and the issue made through the news broke her even more. What was the word her brother used? Berserk? He even brought William in their little family reunion. She disliked William but she wouldn’t see him as a bad influence for her. “M, I’ll go to the restaurant later,” she said, not giving Missy an opportunity to speak as she ended the call after a second. “Seems like your brother disapproves of our marriage. You should go tell him that we were doing this for your father.” His husband suggested as he stood beside her, facing the blank screen of the television. “My brother knows that you bullied me back then; so, he hated you as much as I did. I know him and he’ll wreck your reputation for sure, even if we tell him about it. Just make sure Lucy won’t be

“There’s something I need to tell you guys,” Valentine started after she managed to stop both Missy and Delilah from squealing. She gripped them on their wrists and pulled them straight back to the kitchen.“Wait! But before that, you need to hear mine first,” Missy chirped.“Yes, V. M had quite a hot night.” Delilah placed the used plates and utensils down to the sink before settling down to sit in front of Valentine.“Really?”The three of them sat on the chairs, while the two were both facing Valentine. She felt her muscles calm down knowing that she was given an opportunity to breathe and tell her little story later. This time, it was best to let Missy speak first. At least, to help her feel confident and talk normally.“Do you remember those photographers last night?” Delilah inquired first.“The photographers?” Valentine’s eyes squinted, her nose even s

“This may sound crazy but the both of you know exactly how I’m obsessed with him. After reading the news that you were engaged to him, V, struck me like a lightning bolt. But the words you said a minute ago… they lit me up. Let me prevent him from falling in love with you. I’ll make him love me instead.”With Missy’s words, she sounded slightly psychotic and crazy. But on the other hand, she was the perfect candidate – a strong barrier between her and William. The way she spoke proved she was sincere. Valentine nodded aggressively, agreeing.“Perfect. M, all you have to do is talk to him but don’t get too close because that might cause serious issues,” Valentine warned. If William’s reputation was slightly ruined by her own brother, what’s more if Missy jumped in abruptly into the picture?“Don’t worry, V.” Missy beamed.“Are you both serious?” Delilah i

The teenagers apologized after that. To prove that Valentine was indeed not in love with him – she experienced no butterflies fluttering inside her stomach filled with bits of pizza. She rolled her eyes.“Valentine?” His eyes bore into hers, making her nervous.She looked away. “Yeah?”“Let’s go to the garden.” He stood up and walked steps farther away from her. He was leaving her. In fact, he wanted her to follow him.Hurriedly, she wiped her lips with the tissue and followed him. As she got outside, she instantly thought he had left her. She followed the row of sunflowers, leading her to the back part of the pizza place which was the garden. There were benches made of bamboos with shades and a fountain in the middle. She was quite enthralled; it wasn’t merely a pizza place, it was also a tourist spot. Starting from its traditional look of using bamboos as furniture and the main materials for building