Wrong for the first time

"Now think about how you are going to apologize." After calming down, Josh suggested in a mild voice.

"I don't apologize for anything," Irvyn shut the file in his hands close with a loud sound, and left his chair. He stood up, and started strolling from one corner to another.

"Sure, who else knows this better than me?" Josh let out a sigh. "If this is the attitude you are trying to keep maintaining to her, then forget about things going well between you two."

"I never wanted things to go the way you are thinking as something well, Josh," Irvyn stopped at his pace, looking straight at his friend. "Marrying her was never out of choice. It was because I was out of choice."

"Tch, you and your word games," Josh clicked his tongue, feeling annoyed by his high and mighty proud friend for probably the thousandth time. "Fine. I get it. Keep being like that with her. But at least don't let her feel the way worse pain she was having in her maternal home. That much you can and should do, right?"

In response to that, Irvyn just nodded before continuing pacing back and forth. And as suddenly something clicked on his mind, he stopped again and turned back at Josh. "Oh, I met Chloe yesterday."

"Huh?" surprised, he responded. "When?"

"After dinner time. She is going to Italy in a week," Irvyn stopped his back and forth strolling and returned to his seat. "Why didn't you tell me the moment she informed you?"

"She… never told me," Josh let out a wry chuckle. "You know Chloe places you higher than anyone else, Vinnie. Surely, you were the first one to know about it."

"No way! I was sure I was the last one to know. Who starts informing people just before they are about to leave, anyway?" Irvyn shook his head with denial.

"For vacation?" Josh asked, ignoring Irvyn's question, or maybe not really bothering to answer it.

"I wish. She is going for gathering more information and study a bit more about a serious case. Might be a few month's worth of time before she comes back," Irvyn replied to him what he heard from Chloe herself last night. He was thinking about having dinner with all three of them, and finally inform Chloe about him getting married. But if she is going someplace farther than them, now is totally not the right time to mention this.

On the other hand, Josh felt like he was punched in the stomach by the sudden information he got. She was going for a couple of months, and didn't even feel the need to inform Josh about it. "We at least have been friends for years, right?" he mumbled to himself. "She could've told me for the sake of that at the very least."

"Hum?" Irvyn felt like he heard Josh say something, but couldn't really figure out what.

"Nothing. Irvyn, I have some tasks I need to finish, and train the newbies as well. I'll get going, okay?"

Irvyn gave a short glance at Josh, and that was enough to detect his expression darkened all of a sudden. Someone who is always cheerful and flowery in nature is too easy to read when they get a frown on their face. Irvyn simply gave a nod to him, and Josh left the office room.

"It's been so many years, still some things never change, huh," he rested his head on the headrest of his chair. Now that Josh wasn't here anymore, and the Chloe topic was stopped, Yvette came to his mind once again. Her annoyed face, her scared and flustered look from yesterday, her helplessness from two days ago. But the most that moved him always was the second time he met her. In the church, when he found her crying like she was stripped off with everything she possessed in this world. She didn't even bat an eye when she was forced to marry him. But to cry this much over a guy who just went ahead and betrayed her, she sure is one stupid of a lover.

"Guess I really did go too far with the young girl," he let out a sigh. But apologizing is something he never had to do in his life. Because he was never wrong with his works, deeds, decisions and instincts. Then how come he was wrong to read into this simple thing? He couldn't figure that out.

– – – – – –

"Uhm, aunt Suzy?" Yvette peeked into the kitchen from the doorsteps, watching the housekeeper busy in cooking something. The aroma was too strong and delicious to ignore, and since Yvette was angry enough to barely eat to her full satisfaction in the breakfast, she got hungry really quick.

"Yes? You want some snacks? I still have the cake from this morning stored up," Aunt Suzy gave a brief glance before returning her attention back to the cooking pot on the stove.

"Yes, I'd love to," Yvette smiled from ear to ear by the response, and slowly came into the kitchen.

"Take a seat in the living room, and watch something on the TV if you want. I'll be bringing it in a little bit."

"Nah, it's okay, I want to watch," Yvette insisted in response to her, and kept looking at the bubbling food on the pot.

"I swear, this Irvyn, always acts over the top. I hope you don't mind him, honey," Suzy handed Yvette a small plate with a large piece of the cake, while bringing up this morning's incident.

"I don't have the right to take his words by heart, Aunt Suzy. After all, except for the fact that he is just my husband in name, what else do we share here, anyway?"

Aunt Suzy's face turned gloomy by Yvette's words. She is well aware how hard it must be for her to tolerate and cope with all this, and still trying her best to smile through it. But it was way harder for her to take Yvette's support fully, as she knows very well the reason behind Irvyn's this rash move. So consoling this innocent and gentle looking girl and doing her best to make a comfortable environment for her is the best Suzy can do.