14: Empathy

While at the kitchen, Luke insisted to prepare Arabella's food as she watched him fondly.

"Eat," Luke said as he placed the plate full of food. Arabella looked at her plate with eyes wide open.

"All of it?" she asked. Luke nodded as he sat beside her and put his elbow on the table as his face rested on his palm. Then, he smiled sweetly.

Arabella suddenly burst out laughing at his action.

"Well... I don't have a choice but to obey then," she said.

"Good," he replied.

Luke stared at her as she ate the last bite of her meal. She became conscious because of the seriousness of his expression.

"What?" she asked.

He cleared his throat before speaking, "I want to take legal actions regarding the incident this afternoon. If you agree of course!"

"Err... no need I think," Arabella answered casually.

Luke was apparently surprised by her answer, but he didn't comment. He just looked at her intently.

"What?" she asked.

Luke let out a harsh sigh.

"Do you still love that jerk?" he asked softly. Arabella heard him but she wanted to confirm whether what she heard was correct or not.

"Pardon?" Arabella said.

"After what he's done to you, do you still have feelings for him? Is it the reason why you don't want to sue him? He even~"

"Shut. Up!" Arabella exclaimed. Luke was quiet.

"What?!" he asked, astonished.

"I don't love him, okay? I am sure of it. I cried. Yes. But not because of him, it's because I realized how stupid I was--- falling for his sweet words. Besides, I love you, too Mr. Adams," she explained.

"Really?" he exclaimed, cupping her face in joy and kissed her passionately. Then, he suddenly changed his joyful mood into a serious one.

"Then, why don't you sue them?" he asked.

"Because that's not the game your lunatic ex-girlfriend wants," she answered.

Luke understood what she meant.

"So, what will we do now?" he asked.

"I watched all of her videos from when she was a nobody up to the latest and I found interesting facts about her that might explain her possessive behavior," she started.

"Go on. I'm listening," Luke said.

"Through her videos, she showed constant behaviors like whenever she's interviewed with other celebrities, she wants to be the last person to be called. Why? Because she wants the attention to be all hers. Another thing is whenever she has charities to attend to, it has to be well-publicized. Her reason? She wants to shed light on the charity. But that's not true, she just needs constant appreciation. And many reports say, she has a great sense of self- entitlement wherever she goes," Arabella explained. Luke was astounded by how accurate her observations were.

"How did you know that?" Luke asked.

"I watched," she simply answered.

"No~ I mean... I dated her for a couple of months before I noticed her behaviors. Besides, she displays empathy and positive qualities during interviews making it difficult to spot her dark side. However--- you... you only watched her videos but were able to identify them accurately. Wow! You amaze me all the time, babe!" he praised.

"I am actually a Psychiatry undergrad. Yes. Most narcissists consciously show empathy because that's what they want you to see," she said in a sad voice.

"Wait--- what? You're a Psychiatry undergrad?" he exclaimed. She nodded.

"When I was in primary school, I wanted to be a Psychiatrist like my father. So, I was very happy when I passed the entrance exam at Mevious University. Unfortunately, my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer when I was in my third year. We struggled financially because of his chemotherapy sessions and not to mention his cocktail of pills. That's why I decided not to enroll in my last year. I wanted to help. But, he died after his 1-year battle. Then, my mom followed her husband after a major heart attack," Arabella explained. Tears rolled down her eyes. Oh, how she missed her parents. She dreamed of introducing her children to them. Alas! They're both gone.

"Why didn't you continue your studies?" Luke wondered.

"I lost interest in Psychiatry. When my father died, my love for Psychiatry died with him," she uttered.

"But--- look how good you are. You can be a great Psychiatrist," he encouraged.

"Anyway, as I was saying... I believe Regina is a narcissist. She gets what she wants if she doesn't, she'll snap and demean without conscience," Arabella said, ignoring Luke's encouragement.

"Right. So what should we do now?" Luke asked.

"We have to show her what she doesn't want to see," Arabella answered.

"Meaning..."

"Meaning... we have to show her that she is not the center of the universe," she added.

"How are we going to do that?" he asked, excited about where the plan would go.

"She used Social Media to defame us, then use it to revenge," Arabella uttered while giving him a mischievous smile.

"Why are you smiling like a witch?" Luke asked curiously. Then, he rubbed his arms with his hands feeling cold. "You're scaring me," he added.

"I love you," she said mischievously.

"Hmmm... it feels so hot in here. Hooooo!" he exclaimed while he fanned himself with his hands.

Arabella smiled.

"I know right. It is really hot here, so I am thinking of going ahead and take a shower," she teased as she washed the dished she used.

"Can I join?" he asked coyly.

"It depends on how you behave," she answered. Then, she bit her lower lip.

"Damn! Can we go now?" Luke asked.

Arabella intentionally dropped the fork on the floor and slowly picked it up exposing her black underwear when she bent.

Luke gulped. And cursed. He's fully aware of what Arabella was doing to him. But, he had to behave or else he wouldn't take a shower with her.

At last, she's done.

"Time for the shower," Luke said cheerfully. Arabella just smiled as she shook her head.

"I'll check on our son while you prepare the bath," he said.

"Bath? I said shower," she replied.

"C'mon, babe. It's been days since the last time we bathed together," Luke uttered cutely.

"Alright--- alright!" Arabella said.

She was already naked underneath her robe when Luke entered the room. He was also naked--- literally naked. She automatically diverted her eyes to the bubble bath.

He hugged her from behind as he took her robe off her body.

"Fuck!" he snarled.