Day Thirteen…
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Nathan and Abigail were still in their hugging position when the door of their booth was pushed open. Veronica emerged from the door along with her doctor friend, Doreen.
The two were surprised the moment they saw Nathan and Abigail. They looked so intimate at each other. Abigail's arms were all over Nathan. She was also comfortably leaning on his body.
Veronica folded her fingers into tight fists as she gritted her teeth. She wanted to burn Abigail alive. She couldn't believe that she was witnessing this scene.
She didn't come just to see them in this position. She was sulking in her room when Doreen informed Veronica that Nathan went out together with Abigail, Kathleen, and Stephen. Veronica decided to follow them.
"What are you doing?" Veronica spoke loudly to catch their attention. The two seemed so lost with their own thoughts that they failed to notice Veronica and Doreen's presence.
Dr. Doreen just darted her gaze back and forth between Veronica and Abigail. She thought Veronica was Nathan's woman because her friend Veronica made her believe it.
'Is Nathan cheating on her?' Doreen mused to herself.
Meanwhile, the magical moment had been broken when Nathan and Abigail heard Veronica's voice.
Abigail shot her a cold sharp glare. 'Damn! The Witch is here! Why did she come?'
Abigail and Veronica met each other's eyes, exchanging deathly glare at each other. Nathan gently pushed Abigail aside. But he didn't expect that Veronica would come.
The five-minute hug was done. In fact, the two didn't even notice that they exceeded five minutes. They were interrupted by Veronica's arrival.
"We are having fun. Why do you care?" Abigail responded with a taunting smile on her face. She even anchored her arms around Nathan's left elbow.
Veronica gnashed her teeth because of Abigail's provocative move. She was intentionally making her angry, annoying her further.
'Stay away from Nathan! You bitch!' Veronica had the urge to slap Abigail and pull her hair. She was supposed to be the one trying to seduce Nathan. But Abigail moved ahead of her.
'I can't let her win.' Veronica was so determined to win over Nathan. The game had just begun. This was not the end.
As the tension between the two ladies grew, a waiter pressed the doorbell, announcing his presence.
"Your order has arrived!" The waiter said from the outside intercom.
"Let him in," Nathan simply said, not leaving his seat.
Dr. Doreen was the one who opened the door, letting the waiter in. He served the food without noticing the heavy tension inside.
"Let go of me now and eat," Nathan whispered to Abigail as soon as the food was served.
Abigail flashed her wide smile before nodding her head. She followed Nathan obediently. She was already satisfied to see Veronica's annoyed expression.
As a courtesy to the doctors treating Phantomflake, Nathan invited both Doreen and Veronica to join them. Despite her anger, Veronica managed to sit down next to Nathan.
Nathan was now seated in the middle of Abigail and Veronica. Abigail was on the left while Veronica was on the right. Doreen chose to sit on the opposite couch, facing the three.
The room was filled with an awkward atmosphere. Fortunately, Stephen and Kathleen finally entered the room to join them. Kathleen was not supposed to bring Stephen there as she also wanted to have a private moment with her all-time crush.
However, she saw Veronica and Doreen going to the second floor a while ago. Kathleen didn't like to be selfish so she decided to support her friend, Abigail. She thought Veronica was a bully and she might bully Abigail. Kathleen just wanted to protect Abigail from the scheming woman like Veronica.
But who would have thought that Abigail would just enjoy her fried chicken as if she wasn't worried about Veronica's presence at all? It was Veronica who had a sour expression as she watched Abigail's nonchalant behavior.
"Whoa, another bucket of beer! Are you planning to drink all of this, Nate?" Stephen chuckled at the sight of several bottles of beer on the table.
"Of course, you can have some," Nathan mumbled. His mood has already improved. And he was acting as if Veronica and Doreen didn't catch them a while ago.
'I have nothing to hide. It was Abigail who suddenly hugged me. I didn't ask her to do that,' Nathan justified his own action.
'But you allowed her, instead of pushing her away,' his alter ego spoke to his mind.
Nathan just grabbed another bottle of beer and drank it. Stephen and Kathleen joined Dr. Doreen on the other couch. Kathleen heaved a sigh of relief. She could tell that Abigail was doing fine. She was not intimidated by Veronica's presence.
'I like Abigail's guts and bravery. She could deal with Veronica alone. Haha. I got worried for nothing.' Kathleen silently watched Abigail with amusement and admiration in her eyes.
"Let's sing!" Doreen grabbed the microphone and chose her song. She wanted to break the awkwardness through singing.
"Oh, I love that. Abi, can you sing me a song?" Stephen requested Abigail unknowingly with his puppy-eyed look. Two pairs of eyes automatically stared at him– Nathan and Kathleen. One had a sharp look while the other one had a disappointed look.
Abigail stopped eating. She had the urge to hit Stephen's head. Why did he have to request her? He should ask Kathleen to sing for him, not her!
Abigail glanced at Kathleen worriedly. She was uneasy because Stephen was showing his fondness for her. She just hoped Kathleen wouldn't get jealous and misunderstand their relationship.
'Damn, Stephen. Stopping hitting on me in front of Kathleen.' Abigail gave Stephen a warning look.
"I can't. I will only sing a song for someone I like," Abigail said as an alibi, rejecting Stephen.
Nathan was taken aback when he heard that. She just sang a song for him a while ago. Abigail was indirectly confessing to him once more.
"Ouch! Does it mean… you don't like me?" Stephen continued to be playful, pretending to be hurt.
Veronica hated to see how Abigail had become closer even to Stephen. How did she catch their attention that easily? Both Aiden and Stephen! Was she trying to seduce the three of them– Nathan, Stephen, and Aiden?
"I like you as a friend… but not as a man," Abigail frankly said, rejecting Stephen because of Kathleen.
"Then how about Nathan?" Kathleen suddenly butted in, interrupting Abigail and Stephen. "What do you think of him?"
That question brought silence inside the room. Even Doreen who was busy searching for a song stopped what she was doing just to listen.
'C'mon Abi. Say it! Be bold and mark him!' Kathleen was looking at her friend with anticipation.
Abigail just flashed a faint smile and tossed a look at Nathan who was currently drinking his beer. "I already sang a song for him," Abigail declared.
"Cough! Cough!" Nathan choked on his drink as Abigail didn't deny it. It was one way of telling everyone that she liked Nathan as a man.
Doreen gasped and covered her mouth. She glanced at Veronica, wondering how she would react. Another woman just told her that she also liked her man! Would there be a catfight happening here?
But Veronica surprisingly remained quiet in her seat. She didn't say a word. She pretended that she didn't hear anything. If she lost her composure, Nathan would think of her in a bad way.
Kathleen, on the other hand, was satisfied with Abigail's answer. 'Way to go girl! Keep it up!'
To hide his embarrassment, Nathan stood up and excused himself. He fled since Stephen was looking at him teasingly. He proceeded to the men's comfort room.
Unknown to Nathan, someone had been keeping his eyes on Nathan ever since he left the hotel. Someone was following him behind. A guy, who was sitting on the balcony of the second floor, also headed to the men's comfort room.
Nathan entered the men's comfort room just to keep his emotion in check and to calm his racing heart. He washed his face in the sink and watched his reflection in the mirror. He had mixed emotions right now.
Nathan was still silently looking at the mirror when another guy entered the comfort room. Nathan just ignored him as he inhaled and exhaled. He didn't care about the newcomer as he was lost in his own thoughts.
The guy who was wearing his cap noticed that Nathan was a little bit distracted and was not paying attention to his surroundings. He grabbed this opportunity that Nathan was still in a trance.
He slowly approached him, secretly picking his weapon inside his pocket. It was a black knight spearfishing knife. As soon as he reached Nathan's spot, the guy swung his knife, plunging the tip at Nathan's side.
Nathan groaned at the feel of a sharp object plunged into his flesh. The guy drew back and planned to stab him twice. But this time Nathan grabbed his wrist and pushed the man.
Thud!
The man's back hit the wall! It was a strong push coming from Nathan.
"Who the hell are you?" Nathan charged in his direction to attack him. He was aiming to see the man's face.
Nathan managed to land two hard punches at the man's stomach while dodging the enemy's attack. Nathan overwhelmed his attacker as he showed his excellent fist-to-fist combat skill.
The man was caught off guard as he didn't expect Nathan to be a good fighter himself. He thought Nathan would only rely on his bodyguards!
But a few seconds later, Nathan's vision had become blurry. 'Fuck! He used a poisoned knife!'
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om