บท 19: Love and Debt

"So what's bothering you aside from thinking you're starting to like me?" Andrew asked while they soaked in the tub.

"You." She answered.

She was leaning on his chest while he was hugging her by the waist.

"What did I do?"

"I never thought you were like that."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You confused me. You asked me to marry you and then divorce after a few years. You said I would just serve you in bed but after we did it you proposed to me and agreed to stay married to me. Now you're saying you like me." She said.

He took a deep breath and started kissing her by the neck before giving her an answer.

"Nina, I'm not a bad person. I admit I am a playboy but I never hurt any woman's feelings. Those women I dated and slept with, they were one night stands and sex buddies. I never had a serious relationship. After I had sex with them, either we forget each other or continue being fuck buddies. They are the ones who chased after me. I am always the one in control. But with you, I really don't know why I wanted to stay. I never asked someone to be my girlfriend and eventually marry me, only you."

Nina couldn't understand if she would be happy to hear that she's an exception to all those women or if she would feel anxious from the fact that he never had a serious relationship. It's only a confirmation that she could be replaced any time.

"Do you believe in love?" She asked.

Andrew was caught off guard. He didn't expect that kind of question. He sighed and decided to answer.

"Yes, I still do but I don't believe in marriage. For me, marriage is just a formality that you are tied to someone. You can sign a paper even if you don't love the person."

She suddenly felt the pain again, like someone was pricking her heart. Andrew's words were echoing in her ear, the fact that they will get married even if they don't love each other. Unlike him, Nina believes both in marriage and love. She promised herself that she would only marry a man she loves but she broke that promise.

"You became quiet. Nina, I said I'm beginning to like you. We have a long way ahead of us before we get married. A lot of possibilities could happen but for now, I wanted you to at least like me so we could live together in peace." He said.

He couldn't offer her more than that. He likes her and he really wanted their relationship to be okay. He didn't want to have a wife who would always nag at him.

"How about we make a deal?" Nina suddenly blurted.

He was kissing her neck while she played with the water, making a small splash by squeezing her hands together. He stopped when she said something about a deal.

"Are you serious? You tore the contract I gave you and now you are suggesting another deal?" He frowned.

She could feel his hands around her waist. He doesn't really do anything aside from kissing her neck. It brings heat to her body but she was ignoring it. She wanted to focus on their conversation instead.

"I am. But I will give the conditions, not you." She said in a firm voice.

He wanted to laugh. He didn't really expect something like this. He was supposed to be in control of everything but he couldn't understand why he was amused by Nina's actions instead of going against it.

"Tell me and I will decide if I agree with it." He said.

He wanted to slap his face so maybe it could wake his senses. Nina was starting to control him but he didn't really do anything to stop her or even disagree with her. He was just watching her, agreeing to her demands.

"Since you said you believed in love, I will make you fall in love with me. On my college graduation day, we will confess our feelings to each other. Whether it's like or love. If by that time, you fell in love with me then my debt will be paid."

"You know I could easily say something different, right?" He said.

"If your love for me is true and sincere, you wouldn't be able to lie to me." She answered.

Maybe she was right. People who fall in love deeply couldn't lie to the person they love. And he wouldn't exempt himself from that.

"But you can actually consider your debt paid since you're already my fiance and remember, I asked you to marry me without any contract, why would you want to make that deal?" He asked.

"I don't know. Maybe I really wanted you to fall in love with me." She answered directly.

"How about you? Will you fall in love with me?" He asked, frowning.

He thinks that Nina was being selfish. She was telling him she wanted him to fall for her but she never mentioned she would try to fall for him.

"I don't know. That's why we're making a deal. It doesn't end with the confession. If you fall in love with me, then I owe you nothing and you will give me everything I ask. If I fall in love with you, then I still owe you and you can ask me to do three things for you. If we both fall in love, that's when we decide what to do next." She continued.

He doesn't really agree with her conditions but he still allowed her. His definition and meaning about love was a lot different from Nina's. She wanted him to fall in love with her but he was already disappointed by what she said.

For him, love is unconditional. You do not need a reason to love someone. You would just feel it in your heart. Even if the person has a lot of flaws, you could only see the brighter side of that person.

"Okay, then let's start your love and debt game. Let's see who will fall first." He said, smirking.