Chương 15: You Ruined the Date

"Who are you texting?" Lily asked suspiciously as she tried to take a peek at his screen.

"Just a regular friend." Her voice seemed to have interrupted his conversation with the friend he was talking about.

"Talking about this friend, then. When will I be brought along to any of your hang outs? It's been two years since you mentioned about gathering with your friends and bringing me along." The corner of her eyes didn't stop her curious nature from trying to see who he was messaging.

A part of her was already eighty percent sure that he was talking to a girl.

"Soon. They are all busy." He used the same excuse that he's been using in the last two years to avoid bringing her out.

"Ok," her mood worsened during their small walk around the park. In the middle of walking through the park, she couldn't have a proper chat with him without his eyes being glued to his screen. His dodging and angling skills were super fantastic that she missed all the chances to see who he was smiling to.

Feeling that this date could not get any worse, his phone rang and he picked it up in front of her. As if she was an invisible wall or something, he continued walking at his own pace and left her behind.

Listening closely to the way he had softened his tone to speak to whoever the person is over the phone, she decided that she has suffered enough of his provocation. She ran in front of him and prevented him from walking further. Covering the speaker part of his phone, he asked, "What is it now?"

With her arms crossed on her chest, she asked, "Don't tell me that the person you are talking to is also that same friend from before. If it is, then hang up. Today is our date and you can hang out with that friend another day or talk to him at another time."

Facing her fierceness for the first time ever, he calmed his emotions and said, "It's my sister. She's asking me for her opinion on something private. Would you stop overthinking?"

Her sixth sense told her that he was definitely lying. Therefore, she called his sister on the spot and placed her on the speaker.

Lily: "Hi, Helen! It's Lily, what are you doing right now?"

Helen ( Hawk's older sister): "Oh!! What a pleasant surprise! I'm with my boyfriend right now having lunch."

Lily observed Hawk's guilty expression and continued the conversation, "I was trying to call Hawk, but his line keeps flying to his voicemail. Can you call him to see if it goes through?"

Helen quickly agreed, "Sure! Hold on, I'll put you on hold for a second."

Her sharp glare, followed by his sister's cellphone call exposed his obvious lies. He hung up immediately and didn't pick up his sister's call. Helen came back to this call and said, "He didn't pick up my call, but it works and goes through. Maybe he is busy with something. I'll say to try again later."

Lily's eyes turned pink as she placed the phone to her ears and turned off speaker mode, "Thank you."

Lowering her gaze on the device in her hands, she looked back up and asked, "Well? How many sisters do you have? From all four years, I've only known this sister of yours. When did your parents give birth to a second daughter?"

If chimpanzees are considered the smartest animals in the world, then Hawk's brain must have taken after its genetics because his convenient responses literally pushed the blame onto her in the next second. He parted his mouth and stared at her, "What's this? You don't trust me? Lily Jiang, after going out for four years, you've lost trust in me?"

"Then maybe you should show me how a boyfriend should act and actually prove to me how loyal you are. Do you dare to give that phone to me? Show me your conversation in the past hour with your friend?" She stretched out her palm and held in her tears. The glossy surface of her eyes showed how fragile she was feeling at the moment.

He scoffed and shoved her hand aside, "If there is no trust in a relationship, then regardless of how many times I show you my phone; it would be useless. If that's the case, then you are the one with the trust issue. You should work on yourself before asking me to reveal my privacy."

This time, she's the one who let out the mocking laughter at him. "Oh? Then why would it be difficult for you to show me your phone if you have nothing to hide? I could show you mine anytime you wish as well. It's only fair."

"Lily Jiang, you're going way too far. Forget about dinner tonight. Remember, it's you who ruined our anniversary for today."

"So you still remember that today was our anniversary? Yet you have acted this way to ruin the date. You're the one who should think everything over and see your faults. The one who ruined today is not me; it's you."

With that being said, she saw him step forward without turning back. Tired of chasing after a man whose heart could no longer hold honest words in front of her, she turned around towards the opposite direction. She went to the nearby movie theater, bought some soda and popcorn to enjoy the movie that she had planned to see with him, alone.

It was a comedy, but it wasn't funny to her at all. The popcorn tasted bitter and soda was sour. After the movie finished, she decided to walk through different tourist attractions. A notification reminder was sent to her phone from the restaurant saying that her booking for two people is confirmed for 9 P.M. tonight.

Smiling bitterly at the number two on her screen, she put away her phone and continued roaming around the neighborhood. After walking for a while, she realized that it was already 7:30 P.M. She called the restaurant to see if she could still eat there if she only had one person.

Waiter: "I'm sorry, ma'am. If you change your seating to one person, then you will have to wait until 12 A.M. midnight."

Lily didn't feel like going home with such a foul mood, so she answered, "Sure. I'll take that spot. Please cancel my previous reservation at nine and change it to 12 A.M."

Waiter: "The changes were made, and you should receive a confirmation text soon. Thank you for choosing our restaurant. We look forward to serving you."

The call ended and her head lifted up to the beautiful shades of sunset colors. 'Haaa.. Dating is so tiring. Since I'm in the mood for spicy food, why should I change anything for him? I should give myself a treat once in a while. Maybe it's even better to eat alone this way.' She thought to herself as she started walking around again.