Austin's POV
I failed to talk to Faith again. Why is it always like that? Always interrupted — if not by a call, then by her rushing off. I feel like she's avoiding me. But it doesn't matter… she's nearby; she'll be able to see me every day.
Let's see if she can still escape me.
I smiled to myself at the thought. If I need to force her — not in a bad way, but just to make her face what she's been avoiding for so long — I will. I will never let her go again.
"O, what's your plan with the vegetables you bought, Glen?" Hero asked, bringing me back from deep thought.
We all laughed. Our bodyguards were carrying the bags and loading them into the SUV Mayor Angelo had lent us.
"That's what he'll eat from morning until dinner," Casniel chimed in, patting Glen on the shoulder.
"He just saw something beautiful and panicked," I said, putting my arm around him. He was out of it too, just like I had been earlier.
"You're right… she's so beautiful," Glen replied softly but clearly. "This is the first time I've been impressed by a woman's beauty. Even without any makeup, she has a great appeal."
We laughed again. But we all knew — he was hit.
Of the four of us, Glen is the biggest playboy. He gets bored quickly, changes his mind easily. But now there was a serious look in his eyes. Though Jade is still very young.
When we arrived at my cousin's house, Glen and I hadn't changed our ways. We were still the same… like we wanted something but couldn't get it. Like we were waiting for something, with no certainty it would ever come.
I quietly looked up at the ceiling. Faith… when will you face me again?
Night came, and there we were in the plaza for a program I hadn't really planned to attend. But when I saw Faith's name listed as the emcee, something moved inside me. I hurriedly prepared and came — to see her, even if she didn't know.
In a few minutes, the program would start. Faith was not there yet. I looked around, trying to calm myself. Maybe she wouldn't come...
After a while, I saw her arriving, walking calmly but clearly in a hurry. I immediately stood up from where I was sitting, but a man reached her before I could.
Principal Jaecob — Mayor Angelo had introduced him to me earlier. He said he was the principal of the school where I would build a classroom building. Now he was the one greeting Faith. And not just greeting; he assisted her up on stage, very carefully. His body language said something else.
I stopped. I watched them from afar.
Why is it like... too much? I'm a man, too. I know the actions of a man who isn't just being polite; when a man's gaze has meaning, when every move is careful as if he wants to prove something.
What's going on with them?
The program went smoothly, but I couldn't help staring. Every time Principal Jaecob looked at Faith, a smile followed. And what hurt most… Faith smiled back.
That smile she doesn't even give me when we meet. It felt like something pinched my chest. Those smiles should only be for me.
At one point Faith looked in my direction. I didn't look away. I stared straight at her, without smiling. Maybe she read the emotion in my eyes, because a few seconds later she looked away.
After a while, the principal went up again carrying bottled water and tissues. He approached Faith. Damn it. I watched as he reached toward her forehead to wipe her sweat.
"Fuck," I muttered softly, crumpling the program in my hand.
"What's your problem?" Hero asked — he was the only one who heard me.
"Nothing," I replied.
But I saw Faith stop him, take the tissue, and wipe herself.
Good girl, I whispered to myself, smirking. She couldn't hear me, but it felt as if there was still a connection.
I looked up at the sky. The air was cold, but the distance between us felt colder.
I thought the pain I felt tonight would be over. When Faith sat down briefly after calling the speaker onstage, I saw her wave at someone with a wide smile. Then she put something to her lips and blew a flying kiss. I followed the direction she was looking and saw a man catch her flying kiss and put it in his pocket. Put it in his pocket? I turned my gaze back to Faith — she was laughing and blew another flying kiss.
Damn it! Were they in high school, flirting like that? In front of so many people? I clenched my fists under the table. My arms trembled. I wanted to hurt someone. Who first? Jaecob? Or this new man?
Bullshit.
Why is it like this? Why do I still feel like the loser even though I was the one who left?
I forced myself to turn my attention to the stage. I couldn't make out the speaker's words. My heart pounded. My breathing was heavy.
Faith… didn't you say there was no one else?
If there was no one else, why did I feel like I was the one interrupting her scene?
Faith continued with her work while I stared at her as if she were the only person in my surroundings. Despite the noise around me, she was the only one in my mind.
I could hear women around us making positive comments about the four of us.
"OMG! They're so handsome!"
"They're so hot!"
"They look like Greek gods!"
"Sir, just one child, oh."
"Mine's the one in red!"
"That's me. Sorry, girls, my heart is taken," I whispered in my mind. Those were only a few of the comments, but I couldn't help feeling self-conscious.
"Bro, Faith might melt from your gaze," Glen suddenly chimed in, pulling me out of my stare.
"It seems like I have a lot of rivals here, bro. I want to put them in a sack," I replied irritably.
"Well, then fence her in," he said.
"How? She won't even talk to me. It's as if I've done something terrible to her," I answered, with a hint of resentment.
"Whoa! The billionaire CEO is getting scared?" Hero teased. He was always joking.
"It's different, bro. Business is my specialty. Matters of the heart… I don't know. You know that Faith is the last woman in my life — seven years ago."
"You haven't had a sex life for so long, bro. Are you still human? You might get sick," Casniel added, laughing.
"Of course I'm still human. I have ways to release. But I don't want just any woman. I'm careful. I won't get sick — especially with a woman who has been used by many. But I don't intend to explain that to them anymore."
"Be like me," I replied. "Because with them, it's like getting soft drinks from a store."
A woman near us sighed, "Teacher Faith is so beautiful, right? And she's so good."
"Where's the beauty in that? She's just showing off. She's so pretentious; you'd think she's a virgin," I heard a familiar voice say.
I turned and saw Nicole — Faith's coworker — with another woman.
Why does she have to speak like that about Faith?
"She seems kind, friend," her companion said.
"She just seems that way. But she's so pretentious. You'd think she's demure… but she's a slut," Nicole continued.
I clenched my fist. Seriously. Is she really so quick to put someone down?
"You're so harsh. There might be children around. They could hear you," her friend scolded.
"So what? What I'm saying is true. She's avoiding Sir Jaecob, but they were so sweet earlier. You saw it. I know," Nicole snapped.
"Why are you so angry with her?" her companion asked.
"She's a nuisance. You're just not being noticed by Jomer, that's why you're like that," her friend retorted.
"Jomer? Who's that?" I wondered.
"Can you just shut up, Coleen? I'm better than that single mother. I am fresh. No children. But why her?" Nicole spat.
I frowned. Faith is a single mother? How? How did that happen?
"Maybe because… she's kind," Coleen replied softly.
"Are you really my friend?" Nicole snapped.
I stopped listening. Their words echoed in my head, especially the part about Faith being a single mother.
I need to know the truth.
Why can't the people I paid to find her get any information? What really happened?
I wanted to cry. Is there nothing to go back to?
No. That's not possible. I need to know everything. I won't stop until I know the whole story while I was gone.
I left Faith because I needed to study in America, according to my father's wishes. He had no other heir, so I did everything to grow the company he worked hard for.
Faith and I had promised each other — I would be faithful, and she would wait for my return.
Faith was only eighteen then. I was twenty-two.