"ARE we celebrating something?" Hanna asked when she noticed the food in front of us. She then turned to me.
I dragged her to the kitchen to let her taste the food I cooked this afternoon.
I shook my head as I looked at the plate of truffle mushroom pasta on the table.
"Nah. I just wanted to cook."
The truth is, I was kind of nervous with my job interview scheduled for the next day. So I distracted myself by cooking one of my favorite pasta dishes. It was a habit of mine--cooking whenever I'm feeling nervous.
Two days ago, I walked past a local bookstore on the next street. I saw they were looking for a part-time staff so I tried to apply for the job. This morning, they called me to inform me that I had an interview with the owner tomorrow.
"Hmm… or maybe this is for Gideon?" Hanna gave me a teasing smile.
I frowned. "This is not for him. It was very obvious that there's no love between us, Hanna. This whole marriage was a mistake."
This was the first time I opened up to Hanna about my marriage with Gideon.
"So, you're only staying with him out of responsibility?"
I let out a small smile. "Yeah."
"But Gideon… he said he wanted your marriage to work."
I chuckled sarcastically. "Because he lost his memories, Hanna. Prior to his accident, we both hated each other, Hanna. Maybe hate was still an understatement. We loathe each other."
"It's a shame," Hanna sighed before she picked up her fork. "You two look good together."
I stopped myself from giving out an irritating laugh.
Hanna was just saying this because she didn't know anything.
We were halfway on our food when the doorbell rang. It must be Gideon.
"I'll get it," Hanna said, drinking her glass of water before standing up from her seat.
I nodded and muttered my thanks.
Gideon had been constantly going to the office now. That was the reason why I finally decided to look for a part-time job.
I couldn't just stay here and wait for him every day! He had no control over me now.
"Hanna said you cooked pasta," Gideon said, entering the kitchen. Behind him was Hanna who went straight to the counter to get another plate.
I frowned when I noticed he was holding another bouquet of white tulips.
"I told you. Stop giving me flowers," I said when he handed me the flowers. "You're wasting money, Gideon. This won't work on me."
He just flashed a smile at me. "I'll wait until the day that you won't discard my flowers anymore."
I frowned. "Even if you'd give me a plantation of flowers, my mind won't change about us."
"I don't need your change in your mind, Bianca. What I want is your change of heart."
My lips parted in disbelief. From the corner of my mind, I saw Hanna watching us.
I cleared my throat. "Shut it. Just eat, Gideon."
"Here, Gideon." Right on cue, Hanna placed a plate of pasta in front of him.
Gideon looked at the food before his eyes returned to me. "Is this a pre-celebration?"
There was a smile on his lips.
Damn. Why was he smiling like I just didn't reject his flowers for the nth time?
"It's eighteen tomorrow, isn't it? The day we got married. What do millennials call it nowadays? Monthsary, right?"
I glanced at Hanna who was pretending to be busy at the counter. I saw her biting her lips as if stifling a smile.
"How did you know the exact date of our wedding?"
"I asked Mom about it. When I was still in the hospital."
I raised my brow. "Well, you're wrong. This is not a pre-celebration."
He pursed his lips. "Then we'll celebrate tomorrow. I'd already told Dad that I won't come to the office."
"We have nothing to celebrate about, Gideon."
"Then just dinner outside?"
"I can't. I have an interview tomorrow afternoon. I don't know how long it'd last."
"Interview?"
I cleared my throat. "Job interview. I applied as a part-timer in the local bookstore nearby."
I looked at him and waited for any violent reaction.
I remembered a few months ago, I'd told him I would look for a job here in LA, but he shut me down and told me to stay in the fucking house.
But then Gideon fucking took me surprise by smiling. He smiled.
"That's great, Bianca. I'm sure you miss working."
"Yeah."
That's the only thing I could answer. I was still shocked by his reaction.
We continued to eat dinner.
"By the way, I have something else I want to give you," Gideon said after thanking me for the food.
I frowned and raised my brow. "Huh? You really think you can win me over material things?"
He pursed his lips. "Then tell me how can I win you over?"
I scoffed. "You can never, Gideon."
He ignored what I said. He even smiled. "Anyway, they're on the couch. I just hope you like them enough to not throw them away."
When Gideon left me to prepare for his therapy session, I went to the living room.
My lips parted when I saw the things he was talking about. On the couch was a paper bag of books.
"Oh!" I muttered as I checked the bag. He got me an editor's collection of fantasy romance novels.
There were also at least three pieces of sketch pads and pencils there.
"Oh, wow. He got you your favorite books!"
I didn't realize Hanna was already there beside me.
"Your husband's kinda sweet, isn't he?"
I frowned at her. "I already have a copy of these. I don't need another set."
"So you're gonna throw them away?" she asked. "Like what you've been doing to those tulips he's giving you?"
I swallowed as I looked at the books in front of me. "N-no. I can't waste books."
When I turned to Hanna, there was a ghost of a smile on her face.