The girls sat in the dimly lit, rundown living room of Diogo Myers' house, the peeling paint and worn-out furniture a stark contrast to the opulent lifestyle they had heard he once lived. Isabella, with a mix of curiosity and concern etched on her face, leaned forward to reiterate their purpose for visiting.
"Mr. Myers, we're here to discuss your situation with Jennie," she said gently.
Diogo Myers, once a man of immense wealth and influence, now a shadow of his former self, slumped in his chair, his eyes downcast. He took a deep breath and began to recount his tale of woe.
"It started in high school," he said, his voice laced with regret. "Jennie and I were sweethearts. I loved her dearly and did everything to make her happy. But looking back, I realize she was using me for my wealth and status. Despite she was from a middle-class family, other students liked to interact with her, most especially because of her brilliance. When we began dating, she became arrogant and selected the people she wanted to be friends with. With my name, she became the school's queen bee. She'd ask for things, and I'd give them to her, even if it meant stealing it."
As Diogo spoke, the girls listened intently, their expressions a mix of empathy and dismay.
"After my father passed away, I inherited a substantial amount of wealth," Diogo continued. "Jennie pestered me until I transferred everything into her name. I thought she loved me, but I guess she just loved my money. When I tried to hold on to some of it, she got rid of the documents that proved I was the rightful owner."
The girls gasped in shock, their eyes wide with dismay.
"Things only got worse from there," Diogo said, his voice cracking. "She framed me for embezzlement, and my business partner cut ties with me. We had a huge argument, and I wanted to kick her out, but she lied about her involvement. Then, she teamed up with a lover of hers, my most trusted worker, stole all our money, and left me with nothing."
As Diogo finished his story, the girls sat in stunned silence, their faces filled with empathy for the man who had been so thoroughly betrayed.
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Myers," Carissa said softly. "No one deserves to go through something like that."
"She didn't reveal herself to me too quickly. She was still hiding the fact that she was behind our wretchedness. She never even tried to support any of my endeavors. It was always seducing and the next day, yelling loudly about me being - poor. I was so disappointed in her when I found out. And after she went with the lover for a couple months, she returned telling me about a pregnancy, which her lover has refused to be responsible for and the DNA proved the child was actually mine."
"I couldn't provide anything for the child and her mother and Jennie's parents urged her to get out of the marriage and raise her daughter single-handedly. Jennie got a job and completely cut ties with me, preventing me from seeing my daughter. I couldn't talk to her, until she was 10 years old, when I heard how Jennie's lover had eloped with some other woman a few years back. Jennie and Claudia were alone and I wanted to be with them. But they shooed me away, especially Claudia who didn't wanna see me anywhere near her. She stared at me like I was poop and said I could never be her father. At that time, Jennie was dating a rich senator and later, I heard she was having an open love affair with Alejandro Flores, after a one night stand. After transforming the senator into a nonentity, making him lose his place in the country."
"You know what, Mr. Myers. Would you like to make Jennie pay for doing this to you? Don't you want her to be jailed and be miserable?" Diana asked him, a glint in her eyes.
"Of course I do. But I don't have the power to. Anyways, somethings are better forgotten and the future should be faced."
"No, Mr. Diogo. Jennie deserves to pay for all she has done. Claudia is walking in her footsteps, hellbent on dating Miguel Jackson and becoming rich. She is responsible for Daniela Flores' r@pe and hates Gabriela Flores."
"Those are such big names. But how could she make my daughter so evil?"
"Jennie will be punished. And we need your help to bring her down." Isabella continued.
"All I want is my daughter. I want her to change and become a good person. I want her to accept me as her father. Jennie has poisoned her mind."
"Let's bargain." Carissa's voice was an evidence that she meant business.
"We'll make your daughter accept you, and you'll get us everything against Jennie. Isn't Claudia all you want?"
"Yes. That's all I want."
Diana and Isabella exchanged glances.
"Um....There's a condition."
"Let's hear it."
"You have to support whatever action we take on your wife and your daughter. Either good or bad." Mr. Myers nodded.
"Not much on Claudia, just something to make her realize what she has done."
"There's no problem. Just...my daughter. I just want her. I don't care whatever happens to Jennie."
~~~~~~
"Do you guys think its a good idea?" Isabella raised the topic, they were in the car on their way home.
"Yeah...that's the only thing I could think of. We need to be smart if we wanna get what we want. Right?" Carissa replied.
"Right." They chorused.
"Did you return Professor Jennie's phone?"
"Yeah. When we were done using it."
~~~~FEW DAYS AFTER~~~~
Michelle was busy on her laptop, reading some new recipes and scribbling away in her notebook.
She was exhausted and sweat dripped from her face. She exhaled but nearly fell from her chair when a finger brushed strands of hair from her face.
"You scared me!" She exclaimed.
Damien sat on a chair near hers, facing her.
"Didn't you notice I walked in?"
"I...Kinda, but I was lost in this..."
"Really? Let me see.." He peeped and grinned.
"Wow. A great cook researching on great dishes." He landed back on the chair, crossing his legs.
Michelle smiled.
"Thanks." There was a minute's silence.
"Do you have any idea what I'm doing in your room?"
"I don't know, probably you're bored and you looking for someone to chat?"
"Nope, it has been two weeks since you said you'll think about giving me a chance."
"Yeah..." Michelle scratched her head when she remembered.
"And...Two weeks is more than enough time already. What do you think?" Michelle's expression switched.
She was looking puzzled.
Tensed.
Like her chest was thundering with the beat of her heart.
She bit her lower lip. She didn't want to refuse.
He moved his chair closer to hers and touched her shoulder. She was startled, but showed it with slight movement in her arm.
"Michelle, I can't get you out of my life. This may seem stupid but its really true. Whether you say yes or not, I'll be stuck to you till the end. But, I can't just watch you continue to live this life. I can't watch this happen to you until a guy you don't even like just whisks you away and I won't be able to do anything about it."
"I want you to be mine, at the same time, I care about your feelings. If you're not interested in me and you want space, I'll go. Even if you're going to leave me someday, just know that you'll always hold a special place in my heart. Tell me what's wrong. Tell me what's on your mind. Is Nadia threatening you?" Michelle glared at him, her eyes wide.
"No, she isn't." Her eyes traveled back to her book.
"Its just....I'm just skeptical. Guys like you are always found cheating and committing atrocities. Is there really someone who is as rich as you and doesn't flirt with other girls? Are they good guys out there? Guys that can be like those fictional ones. What if there's something about me that you won't tolerate? What if eventually you realize what I've been talking about, that I'm not the perfect girl for you? I feel - I feel the same way but sometimes we need to think about...circumstances. What if Nadia comes after me when she finds out that we're dating? What if...this thing called love isn't gonna be safe for the both of us?"
Damien laughed heartily and Michelle felt a little embarrassed.
"Michelle, you just wanna be the possessive girlfriend and you think I won't like it? I'll really enjoy making you jealous." She rolled her eyes playfully.
"There are Mr. Perfects in fiction, like you said earlier. Although I'm not flawless, but I'll try to be. Just for you. I'll try to be the guy you want. I'll tolerate your weirdness, I won't yell at your mistakes. And most importantly, I'll always make you smile."
"Don't think I'll ever break your heart, Michelle. Those circumstances you talked about, I'll do something about that." He said softly, squeezing her hand.
"I'll do anything just for you to be with me. I'll never ever cheat on you. I'll never do anything to make you cry. I promise." She exhaled.
He paused.
"Will you be my girlfriend?" He smirked when he noticed Michelle blushing.
"I thought I'd ask you in a proper way."
"All men - are not the same, Michelle. You might think that our personalities don't match, you might think it's weird to date an extroverted guy who's searching for love. But I'm not searching for love. I'm wishing that you can just love me, the same way I love you."
She felt his icy but dreamy eyes staring into her soul, and couldn't help but feel a wash of excitement mixed with bewilderment.
She felt his affection, even without him expressing it and that alone lit up her face.
"Yeah." She replied. Her soft voice made Damien's heart dance.
This moment...it was so unreal.
He couldn't believe it.
Michelle had finally agreed - after years that he had longed for her.
Something formed inside Michelle, a sense of relief that she wasn't so perplexed about what to do anymore.
It was a great idea.
It was nice to begin with, but what about Nadia and those nudes?
"Won't they come after me?" She thought. Reality struck her when Damien leaned in and crashed his lips on hers.
He was caressing her soft lips with his, his hand sliding down her waist, his tongue suckling playfully on her lower lip.
Her lips parted a little and his tongue went in, creating a tingle inside of her that made her body shake with desire.
His fingers were on her nape, the kiss switching from a passionate to something burning, something she felt she'd never come out of.
Their lower lips touched and the electrifying feeling in her senses made her shudder, so much that she imagined herself melting in her chair.
The kiss was broken and Michelle shyly stood up, wanting to leave his presence but he pulled her roughly and her back hit the wall.
He connected their lips again and Michelle gasped when he deepened the kiss.
She leaned closer, their bodies touching as Michelle welcomed his tongue, pulling him closer to herself.
Damien was just as possessive, his hands squeezing her waist, enjoying her muffled moans.
She felt her head floating when Damien's tongue explored the sweetness of her lips, his gentleness turning harsh as the seconds tickled.
Her heart was hammering in her chest, unable to breathe, wanted to stop the kiss but just couldn't.
It was just too good.
He slowly broke the kiss again, his tongue lingering on her lips.
Michelle's look after the kiss made him chuckle.
"My beautiful chick," Michelle shut her eyes.
She wished the moment never ended.
"This wasn't why I came."
"Then..why did you come?"
"Nothing much, just a math problem I believe you can solve. Looks pretty difficult to me."
"But kissing wasn't difficult."
"Difficult?" He laughed.
"That's why I'm here with the math problem. Anything we do together will never be difficult."
Michelle sat on the bed and tilted her head to a side, smiling satisfactorily.
"What's with the grin?" He sat next to her, flipping the pages of his book.
A phone buzzed, startling them.
"It's mine." Damien noticed and picked it.
"Who called?"
"Nadia." Michelle scoffed.
"What does she want?"
She called again and Damien could feel her urgency.
"Hello?" He answered the call.
"Damien. I really need your help."
"Okay...what's up?"
"There's a really difficult math problem, and I was thinking I could come over and you'll solve it." Nadia suggested.
"Um...I'm not a math genius."
"But you got the highest score in the last test."
"That's just luck, Nadia. If you're so affected by this math problem, why don't you get off the phone and find someone else to help? Plus, why is the daughter of a math professor talking to me about math anyway? Shouldn't you be with your mom?"
"Mom is so busy, Damien. She can't help. Only you can. You're the only one that can make me understand it, Damien." Damien was frustrated.
"Nadia, get off the phone I've got better things to do."
"Better things like what?" She snapped.
Damien smirked, cooking something to make her explode.
"Better things like make Michelle go crazy when I kiss her." Michelle bit her lip hard, trying to hide the blush that appeared on her face.
"Better things like sit on Michelle's bed and watch her get dressed."
Nadia was crumbling, grabbing her sheets tight to herself, angry tears streaming down her cheeks.
"O..o..kay.." Her lips quivered.
"We're dating now. Congratulations, right?"
Nadia didn't respond
"Michelle is one of the best math students. You could ask her for help."
"Are you there?"
"Nadia??" Nadia hung up.
Damien tossed his phone aside, only to receive a playful punch from Michelle.
"Ow!" He exclaimed.
"Why did you tell Nadia those things?"
"It's because I wanted to make her jealous. I wish to see her burn when you step out of my car and I announce that you're officially my girlfriend."
"There's no way you're doing that."
"Why?"
"I don't want clout."
~~~~~
"What were you doing behind my back, Rafael 'cause I found out. Diana told me about it and I'm so mad at you right now!" Isabella was being dramatic, yelling at Rafael on the phone.
Gabriela was next to her and they were both on the bed, busy with phones.
"Doing behind your back? No way, Isabella. Unhooking your bra is the only thing I'll ever do behind your back."
Isabella was red with embarrassment.
Gabriela heard that clearly and a gasp escaped her lips.
"Um... Rafael, I'll call later to give you a piece of my mind. I wanna grab a snack."
"Okay, I'll be waiting." Isabella hung up.
Her heart was pounding.
She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
This guy was insane.
"Oh my gosh, Isabella, so Rafael is thinking about unhooking your bra??" Gabriela exclaimed, exaggerating her expression.
"No, no, no, Gabriela. He was only kidding."
"Kidding? Are you too foolish to see how much this guy is into you?"
"Gosh, he's so nasty." Gabriela squealed.
"It was a harmless joke, Gaby. You don't have to be so hyper about it." Isabella rolled her eyes.
"Girl, it's not a joke. I know for sure that if you ever gave him a chance, he would."
"He must be good in bed. You should try being with him for a night, Isabella."
"Gabriela!" She snapped and threw a pillow.
"That's enough. Please mind your business."
Gabriela's lips formed a cute 'ooh'.
"Mind my business? Wow. Remember I'll always be here if Rafael breaks your heart."
"We're not dating, Gabriela." She was stern.
"Okay." Gabriela shrugged.
"Rafael is a great guy; Teasing you is his love language."
"Love language? By the way, did you check on Daniela?"
"Why did you change the topic?"
"What's more important, hot gossip or your sister's condition?"
"Both."
"I'm visiting Miguel tonight at his father's mansion. What could be his love language?" Gabriela thought aloud, a cheeky smile forming on her lips.