CHAPTER 20
ARIA’S POV
+25 BONUS
Adam is appalled at my guts. Before, what used to be said to me in public, I used to be very submissive. Now, things have changed. As he puts it, I have changed. It is a total transformation and the breaking of the shackles. The woman who stands before him is more adamant and resilient.
“We’re in public and you can’t keep quiet, Aria?!”
I see it in Adam’s eyes–the expectation for me to conform to play the role of the submissive one while Eva emerges victorious. It is a script he is all too familiar with, one where I remain silent and compliant, allowing others to dictate the terms of my existence.
“Do I care what you think about me or expect from me?”
Adam seems frustrated, arguing with me. He is giving up and I am loving it. I shall do my best to hurt him at each. and every occasion I get. I am sparing no one.
At that moment, Regis approaches me, removes his jacket and covers the stain on my dress. Yes, the dress is black, but the marks are already showing. It is like the wine is eating up the fabric. I loved this dress so much and this bitch Eva had to ruin it! That was a precious gift from Stella and the bitch could not bear to see me wearing a lovely dress. 1
“Regis?!”
“Get a hold of your sister, Adam.”
Adam’s eyes linger on Regis and me. I know his gaze boils with jealousy and anger as he watches Regis put his jacket around my shoulders.
“How dare you touch my wife!”
“She’s not your wife anymore.”
When Regis says those words, there was almost an inaudible glee in his voice, which makes Adam’s face changes, he couldn’t what he was hearing. Adam has always his private matters away from the public and here he is, in a situation he has never wanted to be in.
“Why are you siding with her, when you know that she pushed Eva into the pool?”
“That’s because I believe in Aria.”
Regis maintains a calm demeanor, his expression unwavering despite the tension in the air. It’s funny, you know. Regis is only my ex–husband’s uncle, but he chose to believe me when my ex–husband clearly doesn’t.
“I’ve never known you to be believing or trusting anyone.”
Adam huffs in annoyance. He is still not ready to believe us before declaring.
“If she’s innocent, why don’t we check the security cameras?”
There is utter silence and Eva seems shaken. Seeing that there is no response from anyone, Regis does not give up on his claim.
“I’m sure, even if Arla pushed Eva into the pool, It must be for a good reason!”
I can’t believe that Regis will fight for me and indeed, he is right about the Eva episode. I wish Adam defended me like this every time his mother and sister have tried demeaning me.
1/2
+25 BONUS
CHAPTER 20
“N–No need to prolong this matter. I’ll just go home.”
Éva must have been terrified that Adam would see through her façade and realize the extent of her actions to ruin the party. After all, she has always tried to deceive Adam, pulling the wool over his eyes whenever she can.
“Then, I suggest you apologize to Aria, if it’s your mistake”
Regis imposing on Eva like this in front of everyone makes Eva flinch, yet she tries her best to remain composed.
Why should I apologize to a lowly person like her?! She shouldn’t be here, anyway!”
Eva protests, as she steps out of the pool.
Gosh, does she ever know how to shut up?
It is the first time that Adam hears Eva speak like this about me and that also in public. He looks shocked by this. Every time she has supposedly been victimized by me, she has tried to act like she is meek and a fragile woman. Her acting has always been on point. Unfortunately, tonight, her true colours came out. Now, even Adam is of same opinion as Regis and urges Eva to apologize.
“Eva! Apologize and end this matter right away!”
Adam asking her to apologize to me? That’s a first.
Eva hears this, she opens her mouth for a few times but nothing comes out. Knowing that this bitch would rather die than apologize, I am not going to stand there and wait for an apology. So, I quickly grab a wine glass nearby and splash it over her head.
“Since you won’t apologize, then I have to take this matter into my own hand!”
As the wine cascades down her face, leaving dark stains on her once–pristine blue dress, a rush of vindication floods through me. It’s a deliciously satisfying moment, watching her perfect façade crumble before my eyes, her carefully constructed image marred by the same chaos she sought to inflict upon me.
In that instant, every ounce of resentment and frustration I’ve harbored towards Eva comes bubbling to the surface, mingling with a sense of triumph that’s as intoxicating as the finest wine.
It’s a rare moment of poetic justice, where the tables have turned, and I find myself revelling in her misfortune with an almost sinful pleasure.
Yet, in the heat of the moment, those fleeting moments of compassion are overshadowed by the overwhelming rush of satisfaction. As I watch Eva, soaked and humiliated, I can’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction knowing that, for once, she’s the one left reeling in the aftermath of her own actions.
