章 29: Breaking Down Her Denial

Liliana and Nadia spent their last night at the hotel by persuading the heartbroken Nancy.

The latter kept crying and hurling insults at Gilbert. Because Nancy only wailed and spoke between her sobs, Liliana and Nadia had yet to know the full story.

"I don't care! I'd make sure that damn scum suffers!"

Nancy wailed at the top of her lung. Her voice echoed loudly inside the hotel room.

Liliana and Nadia were worried imagining how Nancy was right now. Because both of them were abroad, they couldn't immediately go to check on Nancy.

They asked Nancy to change the call into a video one but, she quickly refused, saying she looked so messy right now.

"Yeah, yeah, let's teach that scum," Nadia wholeheartedly agreed, "What do you want? I have tons of ideas from my webtoon. How about you put chilies in his boxers? Even the condoms will do."

Liliana playfully slapped Nadia's thigh, "He'll know it's Nancy's doing. We need another plan."

"That's right. But, you can play ignorant first, Nancy," Nadia's smile had a hint of evil, "Find concrete evidence of his affairs and spread it on his social media. How about that?"

"Nancy, are you at your place now? How did you know that he's cheating?"

Liliana was still baffled by the news. Even though Nancy and Gilbert fought more frequently now, Liliana never thought that he was cheating on her friend.

They had been together for almost seven years. How could he do such an irredeemable thing?

Nancy's sobs began to lessen. She coughed a few times, trying to speak properly.

"Well... I actually got a hunch before but, I was in denial..."

Liliana and Nadia carefully heard Nancy's stories. The clock was showing half-past eleven by now but, none of them wanted to go to bed early anymore.

Apparently, the suspicions began with Nancy smelling a particular woman's perfume from Gilbert. At first, she brushed it off as something that accidentally got caught on his coat.

Gilbert had many female workers under his lead. It was not weird if some perfume might cling to him. But, the suspicions grew deeper when Nancy spotted a faint trace of red lipstick hidden under Gilbert's shirt collar.

Although the shirt was in gray color, the lipstick was still decipherable.

"Hic... That bastard! He said... he has to work late again tonight... so I tried to follow him when I saw him... went out of the company. You know what? He's with a woman! They went into a hotel!"

"...just the two of them? Not because they had to meet some colleagues?" asked Liliana. She was still anxious over Nancy's situation.

"Lili, don't be silly," Nadia pinched Liliana's right cheek, "There must be something that Nancy saw. If not, she won't be that certain."

Liliana quickly realized her mistakes, "Ah, I'm sorry, Nancy. I didn't mean to doubt you."

Nadia just smiled in helplessness. Among the three of them, Liliana was the naive one. It was one of the reasons that both Nadia and Nancy were often worried about her.

They really hoped Liliana could be more careful and cunning in the future.

"It's fine, Lili," Nancy blew her nose, she coughed a few times more, "Well... I saw that cheater and that woman... kissed. And... some other things."

Nancy was too shocked to witness such a scene. She cried all by herself while hiding on the street opposite the hotel. She actually planned to catch them red-handed once they walked out of the hotel but, it was not a solid plan.

Gilbert might not return to the apartment tonight. He had done so several times before but, Nancy really thought it was all because of work.

He just went sleeping around! Going inside another woman's pants!

"So, what do you plan now, Nancy? Do you want to feign ignorance until you get more evidence?" Nadia was calm as she inquired further from Nancy.

"I don't know... but, I think I should do that..." Nancy agreed with the idea.

"Nancy, go to bed first. Try to sleep," Liliana chimed in, "Let's meet. Do you have work tomorrow?"

"My shift is in the afternoon. I don't think I can sleep..."

Nancy sounded so dispirited. The cheerfulness that was often embodied in her was nowhere to be heard.

"Or, you can snoop around his things since he's not at home," suggested Nadia, "Who knows? You might find something. Check everything. Even his study."

"Yes! I should do that!" Nancy exclaimed, "He always spends time inside his study. Maybe he hides anything there too. I rarely go inside."

Liliana was shocked but, Nadia's idea was brilliant. This was indeed a good time for Nancy to poke around Gilbert's personal belongings.

If she found anything, they could be accumulated before being thrown into that cheater's face. Gilbert also couldn't dance his way out of this problem.

Thus, Liliana and Nadia gave Nancy more encouragement before they ended the call. Because Nancy had to work as usual, they planned to meet after her working hours.

"I wonder what Gilbert was thinking when he first cheated on Nancy," complained Liliana while laying down on the bed, "They have been together long."

"Maybe he's dissatisfied with Nancy," Nadia made a guess. She sat on her own bed, leaning against the headboard, "He might think she's not in the same standing as him."

"What?" Liliana gasped.

Nadia nodded, "Nancy works as a restaurant supervisor. Gilbert is promoted to be the assistant leader of his team. I dare say he thinks she's beneath him."

Liliana exhaled a sigh. She was still worrying about Nancy. It saddened her when her best friend was also in a relationship problem.

"Just because of that, huh?" murmured Liliana quietly, "I remember how well Gilbert treated Nancy before. I didn't expect that... he'd cheated on her."

"People's hearts can change. If Gilbert's idea of Nancy was someone perfect, his so-called love will fade. He didn't really love Nancy. If not, he'd encourage her to be better."

Liliana agreed with what Nadia continued saying.

Even if Gilbert's love for Nancy started fading, cheating was unjustifiable. He was a coward who didn't dare to step forward and tell Nancy directly that he wanted to break up with her.

"Heh, let's see what Nancy plans next," Nadia laughed while switching off the lights using a remote controller, "I hope he gets what he deserves."

Liliana quietly nodded. She shared the same sentiment with Nadia.

What would be the most deserving punishment for a cheater?