Chapter 17: Don't judge me

Every time you judge me, you are showing me a part of you that needs healing.

~ARLET~

There comes a time when pushing someone’s expectations has become difficult to execute. The evening arrived when the anticipations coming from Kathy and Michael had to be performed. Since morning I was restless, thinking, am I the right person to go with Ruben?

Do we need to pretend like a happily married couple in love in front of his friends, too? Because last time I checked, their expressions on the wedding evening exported the confusion, same as Ruben’s.

Looking at the blur mirage in the window, my mind sifted, and my thoughts accumulated; he might have ignored this invitation as his parents would not be there to keep us in check. But when he came to the breakfast table, he mentioned the party to Raya. Our eyes met, and his expression never betrayed like a stone-cold gaze towards me, expecting nothing, just avoidance. For a few days, it has become a habit for us to spend some time together at the