I couldn’t imagine how big my eyes were when I looked at the man beside me.
“Kim, what are you doing?” I exclaimed, still muddle-headed.
“Sorry for troubling you. But you know I can’t be there.”
It suddenly occurred to me that his wife was betraying him in his own home. This fact just blew out of my mind when he appeared like a knight in shining armor to save a damsel in distress. I was focusing on being star-struck, rather than being sensitive enough to his feelings and to the current situation.
“Kim, I don’t understand.” I was just so afraid to make a wrong conclusion.
“Mr. Yuki is still her husband. When he got sick for a long time and was under the care of his family, she decided to go home to the Philippines. She was pregnant at that time, so his family thought it was indeed inconvenient for an eighteen-year-old wife to stay with a comatose husband, so they kindly sent her away. When Mr. Yuki recovered, he insisted on going back to his wife.”
“But what about you?”
“Mr. Yuki won’t stay long. His treatment is still ongoing in Japan.”
I furrowed my brows as I stared at him. So many questions popped up in my mind but I couldn’t dare to voice out even one of them.
“Feel free to ask,” Kim scoffed. Perhaps he had read through my questioning glances. Layers of contempt painted his face as he turned his head to look at their house through the rear windshield.
“But how did you two get married?” I finally let go of my curiosity.
“She has two registered names. And her parents’ names are also different in each of her birth certificates.”
“I don’t understand.” This was mind-blowing. From Maezy’s betrayal to the manipulation of her birth certificates, she really was something.
“Unfortunately, this same thing happens to many people because of registration methods ages before. Most women gave birth through illiterate folk midwives and herbalists that resulted in registration errors. But instead of having it corrected legally later, she uses it for her advantage.”
“So, you know about it?” I stared at him with a frustrated look, unable to believe my ears.
But I got it. That was how head-over-heels in love he was with Maezy that he didn’t care if she was already married to someone else.
“I have my reasons.”
“Does Maezy know you’re here?”
“Of course, she doesn’t.”
I thought he expected this kind of incident where he had to bear the inconvenience every time Mr. Yuki comes home. And I thought he was mentally prepared for this.
“She doesn’t know either that I know about Mr. Yuki’s presence in her life,” he sneered, glancing at the rear glass again.
I could understand his pain. Seeing the bright lights flooding outside the house, anyone could tell that the people inside were celebrating. Sadly, he was not a part of it.
“How did she explain Jaykee to you?” Since he opened up, I couldn’t hold my curiosity, either.
“One-night stand.”
As simple as that. Somewhat similar to what happened to us if we went deeper. If we did it and I got pregnant, what would he do to me?
“Yen, can you be my eyes?”
I was taken aback. It seemed that the scope of my job would include spying on Maezy. How could I ever do that? I never wanted to get involved in troubles such as this.
“You don’t have to tell Maezy that you will be working for me. She is too busy to care about that. Perhaps, she wasn’t even listening when I talked about my offer. Her eyes were on Tim alone at that time.”
My heart ached for him. How could he swallow and ignore Maezy’s betrayal? It wasn’t enough for her that she lied about Mr. Yuki. Now, she also hooked up with Tim. If she couldn’t care less about Ara’s feelings, she should be more considerate with her husband. Why wasn’t she afraid of getting caught?
Suddenly, bright neon lights in rainbow colors whirled and reflected against the car’s rear glass. Even if the car was heavily tinted, we could clearly see what caused that kaleidoscope of colors to flood inside the car. I looked into the house and I saw Maezy, Ara, and the servants dancing in the front lawn while Mr. Yuki sat in the chaise lounge, watching them.
Kim and I watched in silence. My heart even sank for Ara when I saw her laughing and dancing with Maezy. She had no idea that the woman in front of her was a snake. What shocked me more later was seeing Maezy grinding on Mr. Yuki while the latter was trying to squeeze her butt and her breasts.
I moved my eyes sideways and saw Kim’s beet-red face. My hands immediately shook. I never saw this angry expression in him back then when we were spying on Maezy and Tim. Perhaps because Tim was just a fling while Mr. Yuki was a legal husband.
“Can we go somewhere else?”
Even my knees were already trembling. I was afraid Kim’s patience would lose. I could already see shattered heads spurting with blood at the back of my mind.
He turned to me with his furious look, but eventually, nodded. Soon, the engine roared into life. The car slowly moved until we turned to the corner lot where our house stood beautifully. Beside the house, sat our garden, blooming with multi-colored petals. To my surprise, Zed was there watering the plants. I wondered what happened to his appointment that night.
I glanced at Kim sideways. He didn’t seem to notice my reaction. I was then debating deep inside whether I should go down or accompany him. But seeing his furious but depressed look, I quickly made up my mind. Kim needed my presence more. He wanted someone to talk to.
“Can we go to the park?” Kim’s voice broke the silence and disrupted my thoughts on Zed.
“S-sure.” I stammered. How could I answer fluently when my husband was waiting for me?
However, my heart went out with Kim's grief so I just heaved out my discomfort with a sigh. At least, we didn’t go far.
Once we were there, Kim opened the windows and the cool breeze rushed in, ruffling my hair.
“Are you alright?” Kim asked, perhaps seeing me holding the strands of my hair, struggling to keep it away from my eyes.
“Of course.”
Kim then turned on the music player and a beautiful ballad floated in. I immediately let myself immersed in the soothing and emotion-stirring melody. I didn’t know how long I stayed like that but this was the best way of easing away the awkwardness between us. I just didn’t know how to comfort him.
“How are you going to confront Maezy?” I finally got the nerve to ask after thirty minutes had passed without a single word from him.
“It’s not the right time, yet.”
I glued my eyes on him while he was staring off in the distance. His sharp look and his trimmed reminded me of the looks of those imposing CEO in the movies I had watched. This refined look of him entranced me once again.
“When is the right time?” I indeed wonder about it and why he was so patient in dealing with his wife’s betrayal.
“You’ll know later. Don’t worry.” He glanced at me and I saw an amused glint in his eyes.
“You know, Kim, I haven’t appreciated the true essence of love until I see it in you now. It is indeed very patient, very kind…” I was referring to the gentle way he was dealing with Maezy.
To my surprise, Kim laughed softly. “There is only one person in my heart, Yen. And that is Jakara Blue.”
Author's Note: Please don't forget to give this story a star and a comment. Thank you.