CHAPTER SEVENTEEN : 3F'S

Elaine stood staring absently at the cooking pan sitting on the burner. Like a fool that had come to her senses, she realized she was actually about to fry an egg. Yet, there she was frying the chopped onions. She put them back on a plate and proceeded to crack an egg on the pan. She needed to hurry before noon.

She looked over her shoulder to stare at her husband's bedroom. Setting the fire in low heat, she walked in that particular direction. Elaine tried to clutch the doorknob but to her dismay, it was locked. She went back to the kitchen with her crushed hope. She was thinking about when she will ever get the chance to eat with him at the same table. A sad exhale escaped from her mouth. Definitely. But it will take time.

Once the sunny-side-up was done, she put it on a separate plate and placed it down the table. Elaine sat on the chair. However, her appetite to eat was ruined. She was staring at it for a little while before finally forcing herself to wolf down the food. Thankfully, she was able to clear her plate after taking four long deep sighs and gazing at nothingness for almost twice in a row.

After finishing her meal, Elaine put disposable gloves on before picking up the trash bag and took it out. Drew told her that she found a guy who could paint the house and she was waiting for him to arrive today. According to Drew, he was her neighbor's friend. A lay-off worker from a construction site around Makati. Elaine felt bad for him so she offered the man a double service fee.

To her surprise, she saw Marco standing outside by the time she opened the gate.

"Good afternoon, Elaine," he greeted with a broad smile plastered on his face.

She rolled her eyes at him and continued walking out of the gate. "You are too early to visit a neighbor, sir, do you realize that?" she told him, giving him a sharp stare.

He wore a black Nike tracksuit, running shoes and a towel hung over his shoulder.

"Do you like what you're seeing?" he teased her.

She pressed her lips in irritation.

"The sun was too hot for a jog. You could get sunburn for real. Why are you jogging in this broad daylight?"

"I just got finished!" he answered.

She didn't buy that alibi. He did not sweat at all.

"Don't you have work today? Strolling around here is such a waste of time, don't you think so?"

"If I can get to see you like this, then it is totally not a waste," he winked at her, grabbing the garbage bag from her hand.

Elaine's face began to dim. Goosebumps started to crawl in her skin up to her temple. Couldn't he get any cornier?

"Mr. Officer, you told me you are engaged. You had me try on all the clothes that you bought for your fiance, right? You focus on her and stop flirting with me. How is that hard to understand?"

She tried to grab the trash bag once more but he was fast to keep it away from her.

"Nothing is certain in this world, Elaine. Who knows, you are the one who's fated for me. Let's just accept it wholeheartedly since no one is really able to dominate one's destiny."

Elaine sneered in utter disbelief.

"Destiny? You aren't my type. And besides, I had already found mine. So please, you need to stop."

"You aren't my type either. I am more into thicker girls than those who eat almost nothing at all."

Elaine's mouth left agape. She could not believe him. She wanted to hit him right now. Every time they met, he did nothing but criticize her.

"I thought your fiance and I shared the same body size?"

"Kind of. But, hey, if you ever find yourself slowly falling for my charm, I suggest you don't just throw yourself at me, okay? Just pretend that you are not interested in me just yet. You know, I want to be the one who's more desperate than those who are to me, you know what I'm saying?"

Elaine could not help but glower in her eyes. This guy's just too full of himself. As strange as it may sound, despite his arrogance, like a moron she constantly accommodated him. She knew that everything that came from his mouth was complete nonsense, but whenever he's around, everything around her turns surprisingly lighter.

Did she ever mention to him about her marrying the same man for the second time? She was not sure but she needed to clarify it to him. Whether he was messing around with her or not.

"Did you know that I married my husband for the second time? You probably have no idea but I love him so much. So much that I’m willing to take risks. So please, don't compare me to other women. I don't condemn cheating. I am not that desperate."

Elaine's statement was completely misleading her own actions. There was a knot of tension in her stomach the moment she uttered the sentence. Did she not steal Tan away from Janine? Her words backfired at her like a ricochet.

When she looked into Marco's eyes, Elaine flinched. Empathy? Was that it? She could not tell if that exactly was written on his face. Why? He did not know anything about her yet, did he? It was not that long when she first encountered him anyway.

"Love is painful and tiring, isn't it, Elaine?"

"W-what are you talking about?" she asked with an awkward smile.

"Just that.." he hesitated and continued to stare at her. "When people fall deeply in love, they tend to do stupid things. And that includes hurting themselves."

The smile on her lips slowly faded.

"Why?" he asked with a smile when he saw the complete change in her reaction. "Have you ever gone through that crap before?"

Elaine shook her head before grabbing the garbage bag from Marco's hand. What the heck is he talking about?

She turned to the waste container to throw the garbage bag when she saw another plastic bag inside. Bottles of wine loomed from it. She released the garbage bag and tried to pull one bottle out from the garbage container. Tan discarded all the alcohol she bought yesterday. She wanted to think that he did that out of concern. But she knew it was rather impossible.

Marco came closer. His brows arched seeing all the bottles inside the trash container.

"Did Santa drop by last night to hand some alcohol? Man, I wonder if he also came by to our house,"

"Are you just going to stand there and not help me?" she turned to look at him.

"Yeah, sure. Let me do it. You know I don't want you to get your hands dirty."

"Jesus, stop it, Marco. You're giving me chills for real."

The brute just laughed out loud, amused by her defense. Elaine pouted her lips as she shook off the dirt in her hands. She took a few steps behind to distance herself from the trash container. There was an inward smile lying behind her lips while looking at Marco. Somehow, the disappointment and pain in her chest passed into oblivion. Amusement began to creep into her knowing that Marco was there to brighten up her mood.

In the end, they found themselves helping each other carrying them all back in. Once they finished, Elaine tossed a can of beer to Marco. He felt proud of himself when he was able to catch it.

"I don't want to be indebted to anybody. Thanks for the help."

Marco's eyebrows shoot up. "I'm off! You are stingy as heck, do you realize that?"

Just when he was about to head to the door, the doorbell suddenly chimed. He halted and turned to Elaine.

"Your husband?" he asked.

"That might be the person I hired to paint the house," said she as she headed out of the door to accommodate the man who was waiting outside. Marco followed her.

Standing behind the gate was a 5'6 tall man probably in his late thirties. He looked decent enough if not because of the visible scar on his face.

"Is this Miss Elaine?" he asked.

"Yes. Just call me Elaine," she smiled at him. "And you are?"

"Jack."

Elaine gestured to him to come in. "Come on in."

The man's eyes flew towards Marco who was watching closely.

"I thought you're leaving?"

"Can I leave after I finish my beer?"

"Whatever. Suit yourself."

They all went back in once she closed the gate. She then handed the man a drink. Also, she offered him something to eat but he politely refused, telling her he was full.

"You only need to repaint my bedroom wall as well as the exterior walls of the house. How long do you think it will take to finish the painting, Jack?"

"Probably before five sharp."

"Awesome."

"Is he your husband, ma'am?" Jack asked her as she led him towards her bedroom. The husband he was talking about was Marco who was waiting on the sofa. She politely shook her head.

"My husband is at work. He's probably going to be off of work pretty late. He's a doctor so he works through the night until dawn."

"Ah. . ."

Jack began working on painting the walls vigorously. On the other hand, Marco was roaming around like a supervisor, as if making some observations towards his employer. Elaine could not tell what but he probably had his reasons why he stayed for the time being. Perhaps, one of the reasons was to boss her around.

Jack was able to finish his job before the clock reached five. Not only did she pay for his service but also gave an extra fee for the taxi fare for his way home.

"Thank you, ma'am and sir. Have a great day," he said then left the house.

Marco didn't even acknowledge his gratitude. Elaine turned to him with a scowl once the man had left.

"You are so mean to him, aren't you? Giving him a poker face all the time? At least give the poor man some credit, you know."

"Lock the gate when I leave," he sounded pretty serious when he said it to her.

Her brows furrowed, giving him a shrug. Once he left, Elaine followed as told so. She locked the gate carefully. Her eyes went towards the flickering lamp post across the fence. Mentally reminding herself to replace the light bulb tomorrow.

As soon as she went back into the house, she noticed the canned beer she gave to Marco earlier ago. It was left untouched. She shook her head and picked up the can to put it back in the kitchen when something lingered in her mind. Tan must not see this. He strictly prohibited alcoholic drinks in the house. Elaine decided to take it back into her room instead. A thought of getting a mini-fridge crossed her mind. Right now, she had no choice but to put the drinks into a box and hid them underneath her bed for the time being.

She went back to the kitchen to prepare dinner. The kitchen counter looked a bit messy. She made snacks for them, as per Marco's persistent request.

She figured that beef broccoli would be best to have for dinner. All thanks to unlimited access to the countless cooking tutorials she can find on the internet. Who would have thought that in a short span of time, technology could make such a huge difference in improving one's lifestyle?

She decided to wait for Tan to return home tonight and try her luck to convince him to eat a meal with her this time. She was able to finish cooking dinner before the clock reached eight. She then headed to the bathroom after making sure that everything in the kitchen was spotless to the T.

Immediately after she finished taking a shower, she looked for her phone to ring Tan. After ringing him twice, she decided to back down. Tan won't pick up. Why did she even have to try so hard? But she did not lose hope. Perhaps, he was busy in the hospital at the moment. Rather than pestering him, she decided to text him instead.

Elaine heard the doorbell ringing at ten sharp. Excitement rushed through her veins. Did Tan forget to bring the padlock keys? She didn't hear his car engine. Though skeptical, the excitement somehow overpowered her at the moment. She fixed herself and rushed towards the gate.

However, her enthusiasm flopped down almost right away when the person standing behind the gate frame was not Tan after all. She focused on the man's face and figured out it was Jack. Her forehead creased a little. She thought that he had left since five o'clock this afternoon.

"Hey, did you forget something?" she asked in a friendly tone.

A playful grin drew on his lips.

"Your kiss."