She was full of thoughts about him throughout the day, wondering if he had feelings for her or not. She cooked dinner herself for Gilbert, which surprised him because no one had ever taken care of him like that before.
She was smiling as if she were genuinely happy. Seeing her like that, he started feeling overwhelmed. He thought that these days she looked glowing.
"How are your relatives?" Rita asked.
"I'm not close to them. As for my grandparents, they are fine as long as you follow them," he replied.
Rita looked nervous. She lowered her head and continued eating silently. Gilbert noticed that and said, "You don't need to worry about them. They don't even like me."
Rita nodded, but she still felt nervous. Feelings of insecurity started rising inside her. Gilbert couldn't understand why she was so nervous.
Gilbert was really tired, so he slept peacefully, while Rita couldn't sleep the entire night. In the morning, when he woke up, he saw Rita watching something on her phone.
"Didn't you sleep?" Gilbert asked.
"No," Rita replied.
"Then put your phone aside and sleep," he said.
"But I can't sleep," she said worriedly.
"Okay, let's have breakfast first, then you can sleep."
He handed her a glass of juice. "Don't drink coffee, or you won't be able to sleep."
After that, he got ready to go to the office.
"You don't need to deliver lunch today. We'll go together for the family dinner in the evening."
She nodded.
He continued, "Now go and sleep. Take care, I'm leaving."
Even after he left, she still couldn't sleep. She spent the whole day trying to fall asleep, but nothing worked.
Meanwhile, Gilbert was working in his office. He finally finalized the project. Once it became successful, he would no longer need Rita's father's help.
After finishing his work, he went to see Laura because she was leaving. When he came back home, he saw Rita already dressed and ready to go.
"Did you sleep well?" he asked.
"No," she replied.
"What happened to you?" he asked.
"I don't know."
The thing bothering her was him.
"Why are you worrying about them? I told you it doesn't matter what they think," he said.
"Why did you come so late?" Rita asked.
"Laura was going back, so I went to the airport to see her off," he replied.
"Oh," she said quietly.
Rita wanted to ask Gilbert what she meant to him and where their relationship was heading, but she held herself back because she didn't want him to realize how much she had started liking him. Although he treated her well, it still felt more like responsibility than genuine affection.
Inside the car, they sat in the backseat. On the way to his family home, she unconsciously fell asleep. When she woke up, she realized she had been sleeping on his shoulder.
Meanwhile, Gilbert was looking at her face, wondering what made her look so radiant these days.
"Sorry. Why didn't you wake me up?" Rita asked.
"It's okay. You didn't sleep the whole day," he replied.
She was still sleepy. When the car took a turn, her head was about to hit the window, but Gilbert instinctively raised his hand and protected her from getting hurt.
Rita thought, This is why, whenever you behave like this, I can't stop myself from thinking about you. You make me doubt my own judgment.
Sometimes I think you might feel the same way I do, but because you don't know about my feelings, you act distant at times.
They arrived at his family home. Inside, everyone was already seated around the large round dinner table.
"You're late," his grandfather said from the head seat of the table. His grandmother sat beside him, while all the cousins sat in a line nearby.
"Sorry," Gilbert replied.
His parents, uncles, and aunts sat opposite the cousins. Gilbert hurriedly sat next to his cousins, while Rita sat beside one of his aunts, facing him.
Everyone chatted and ate, except Rita, who ate carefully because she didn't want to be judged by his family.
"Now that you're married, you should be more responsible," his grandfather said.
"Yes, Grandpa," Gilbert replied.
"So, how is your work going?" his grandfather asked while everyone at the table looked at Gilbert.
"Good," he replied.
"I heard you asked for funds," his grandfather said.
"Yes."
"How did it go?"
"It's still in progress."
"So they said no."
"Yes."
He didn't want to admit it in front of everyone, but he had no choice.
"This is why you came here today," his grandfather said.
Although Gilbert was looking at his grandfather while speaking, Rita could tell he felt embarrassed.
"Yes. I want funds from you," Gilbert admitted.
His grandfather stayed silent.
After dinner, everyone sat together chatting. Rita was sitting with Gilbert's mother and all his aunts.
One of his aunts said, "Gilbert is already twenty-five years old and still asking Grandpa for money."
Gilbert's mother replied, "He's asking for business purposes, not for personal benefit."
"My son is the same age as him," the aunt continued. "He worked at a company, earned his own money, and then started his own business."
"You know we suffered from debt, and you're still talking like this," Gilbert's mother said.
The aunt scoffed. "Not only that, I heard he makes Rita do all the household work. He's not even responsible toward his wife."
Rita didn't like the way they were talking about him, and it made her agitated.
"Aunt, I see Gilbert work really hard every day," Rita said. "He never takes breaks because he wants this family business to grow."
Everyone at the table looked shocked.
"And I don't know where you heard that from," she continued, "but he takes really good care of me."
Gilbert's mother was surprised by Rita's reaction. She had never expected Rita to compliment her son. For the first time, she thought maybe their relationship was actually improving.
Another aunt said, "You're only taking his side because he's your husband."
"I'm taking his side because I know he's a responsible person," Rita replied. "And I don't think there's anything wrong with asking your own grandfather for help."
Meanwhile, Gilbert was listening to everything from another room. He became slightly emotional because, for once, someone in this family was taking his side.
Finally, his grandfather stood up and asked Gilbert and Rita to come to his room.
"Grandpa," Gilbert said nervously.
"Convince me that if I give you money, you won't disappoint me."
"I promise, Grandpa. You know I always—"
His grandfather interrupted him.
"I don't want to hear promises. Tell me, if you fail, then what?"
"I'll do whatever you say," Gilbert answered nervously.
His grandfather then looked at Rita.
"You tell me. Do you trust him?"
"Yes, Grandpa. I trust him."
Gilbert immediately turned toward Rita, but the moment he looked at her, guilt suddenly crept into his heart because the money he was asking for would eventually help him divorce her.
His grandfather nodded.
"Okay. I'm only giving you the money because she believes in you."
Then his grandfather asked Rita to leave because he wanted to speak with Gilbert alone.
"Thank you, Grandpa," Gilbert said gratefully.
"How is your relationship with your wife?" his grandfather asked.
Gilbert felt confused about how to answer. He was experiencing emotions he couldn't understand, so he simply said, "Good."
"I heard you were forced to marry her."
"Why are you asking this now?"
"People here talk about all kinds of things, so I'm curious about the woman you married."
Gilbert knew exactly what people might be saying.
"What do you think about her?" he asked.
"I'm happy that, whatever the reason for your marriage, your father still found you a really nice woman," his grandfather said.
Gilbert was surprised and didn't know how to react, so he simply nodded.
"Take care of her," his grandfather added.
"Yes, Grandpa."
While Rita was waiting outside, she met Gilbert's younger cousin, Ellis, who asked her to join them to play games.
While she was playing, one of the cousins approached her.
"Hey, do you want a drink?"
"Sure," Rita replied.
"Let's go."
As everyone in the room continued chatting, Rita asked, "What's your name?"
"I'm Archer."
"Sorry. During the wedding, everyone was so busy that I couldn't meet everyone properly."
Archer smiled. "That's completely fine. But I know you."
Rita looked curious. "How?"
"I was in your school."
Rita froze upon hearing that. Memories from school came rushing back.
"Sorry, I didn't recognize you."
He handed her a drink.
"It's fine. I was in a different section."
Rita felt relieved.
"Oh."
"So, how is your marriage with Gilbert?" Archer asked.
"Why?" Rita asked cautiously.
"It must be difficult for you to marry him."
Rita didn't know how to answer because, honestly, it had been difficult, but she couldn't say that aloud.
"Why are you saying this?" Rita asked.
"I know he bullied you. He treated us the same way too. That's why everyone treats him like this."
Rita tried to process everything he was saying.
Meanwhile, Gilbert came back and started looking for Rita. He passed by his aunts, who were talking to his mother.
"How did you find a girl like her for him? I feel bad for her."
Gilbert ignored them and asked Ellis, "Have you seen Rita?"
"She's with Archer. They went to get drinks."
Gilbert immediately wondered what Archer wanted from her. He hurried over and saw them standing close together.
Archer was saying, "But you're a good person. You still defended him. He's lucky to have you."
"Did he bully you too?" Rita asked quietly.
Gilbert couldn't tolerate it anymore. He interrupted furiously.
"What are you talking about?"
Archer calmly placed his glass on the table.
"Nothing."
Then, while looking at Rita, he said, "I'll see you later."
Gilbert grabbed Rita's hand and dragged her to the rooftop.
"What were you two talking about?" he demanded.
"Nothing," Rita replied.
Gilbert looked at her as if he didn't believe her.
Avoiding his question, Rita quietly walked to the edge of the rooftop and rested her hands on the railing. Gilbert followed her silently and stood beside her, close enough to feel her presence in the cool night breeze.
"You got your investment," Rita said softly, her fingers tightening around the cold railing.
"Yes. Thanks to you," he replied while looking at her.
"You don't need to thank me. You deserve it."
Before she could finish her sentence, Gilbert stepped closer and suddenly kissed her.
Rita froze in shock, but she didn't push him away. Instead, she stood there motionless. It was her first kiss.
She could feel the warmth of his lips. Suddenly, he placed his hand behind her head and pulled her closer.
They became so lost in the moment that they didn't even hear someone arriving on the rooftop.
"Oh! I'm sorry!" Tisha exclaimed.
Covering her eyes, she quickly ran back downstairs.
Gilbert immediately pulled away from Rita, as though he had suddenly returned to his senses. His breathing became uneven as he avoided looking directly at her.
"I'm… sorry," he muttered.
Without waiting for her response, he turned and hurried back inside, leaving Rita standing alone beneath the night sky.