Chapter 29: Chapter 29

ROYCE

I still couldn't believe it. Nelly wants me to take her home. I had to tap my nape, ensuring I came to my senses. And yes, without a shadow of a doubt, Nelly said it right.

"Would you like to tell me why the sudden change of mind?"

"Well, since you are here, might as well take me home as you asked earlier. Do you mind doing me a favor after I did you two favors earlier?"

I cracked at her words. "So it was a favor visiting our office?" I scrunched my face as I acted displeased by her involuntary visit.

"Of course not; I truly want to see your company; it was interesting. When I was young, dad used to bring me to his company. I think it was his one way of convincing me to be part of his company like he wanted for my brother. Good thing that my brother is really into business, so he didn't break my dad's heart as I did to him. I never wanted to be in business; when I was little, I already had a passion for makeup and skincare; it was my playtime."

"That's cool; you seem really successful since you have achieved your dream."

"Yes, it's a dream come true. Sorry if I had to be a storyteller tonight," Nelly slapped a hand in her mouth like she was shy to admit it.

"No, you know I love to hear from you. I would be happiest if we would sit together and share our family stories without hesitation."

Nelly lowered her hand and gave me a side-smile as she shook her head. "Hoping to have it one day too, and I enjoy visiting your office. It's been a long time since I haven't seen a corporate office like yours."

"Royce?"

Nelly halted when a woman chimed in. Her eyes shifted behind me, so I turned to check who might be the woman calling my name.

"Royce? Oh, it's you," said the girl and hurriedly drew nearer. She gave me a side kiss, and so did the other 2 girls following her. I was shocked as they seemed to really know me and assumed that we were close.

"Hey, Mia, remember?" The second girl wearing a little red dress introduced herself. "Royce, are you kidding me? Don't tell me you don't remember?

I hunched my shoulders in reply, recalling where I met them.

"Oh Mia, it seems our guy here has already forgotten us. Arya, by the way, does my name ring a bell?"

"Girls, hold up; it seems that your faces wouldn't mark any guy's memory. How about Lexxi? Does it ring a bell?" said the girl who first called out my name.

"We met at the convention; you were with your grandparents then, remember?" Lexxi added when she seemed to realize I didn't recognize her as well.

"Oh, I see." Who would have thought that it was that event they meant to say. "Sorry if I hardly recognize you; it was a long time ago when my grannies were still alive," I stressed as I stepped back and placed my hand on Nelly's waist. I don't want her to feel unwanted in our conversation.

"See, girls, it was easy for Royce to remember my face and name," Lexxi said, bragging to her friends. The two girls shrugged their shoulders in response.

"Nice to meet you again, girls. But we have to go; I'm taking my girlfriend home, so guys, if you'll excuse us," I said as I turned to Nelly. Nelly squeezed my waist a little, and I replied by pressing hers. Nelly glared at me, but she didn't say a word to protest my claims.

Mia waved a hand. "Hi Nelly, sorry I barely noticed you."

"Yeah, me too." Arya seconded.

"Oh, sorry, excuse me, so you guys are together?"

"Yes, Lexxi. So, you guys know each other?" Nelly gave me a thin smile when I shifted on her.

"Kind of, but we're not so close; we stay in our circle," Mia answered as she took her phone and acted, playing on it blatantly, showing no interest in the topic.

"Why is that? What kind of circle are you talking about, Mia?"

"Actually, Mia was referring to our family status," Lexxi chimed in. "I wondered how hard it could be for you guys since there's a huge gap between you, right? I mean, Nelly, how's your family after the tragic accident? Especially that you are not living the luxury life, you were used to. It must be hard for you, right?"

"It was, but I'm here now. So, things get a little bit easier, and besides, Nelly is a strong woman who can handle things on her own."

I see why these women wouldn't fit to be Nelina's friends. They are the typical arrogant rich kids who are only up for money in getting new acquaintances.

"Really? Good for you Nelly; must be hard for you, Royce."

"No, it's great spending time with Nelly. We have many things in common, and we always have a good talk together in our leisure time," I answered and then turned to Nelly, giving Nelly I'm proud of her look. She pursed her lips in return.

"To answer your question, Mia. It made me stronger that it's easier for me to discard those who don't deserve to be in my life, especially those snakes creeping around me."

A question is not needed if the three girls dislike Nelina's statement. The girls' faces were in scorn, losing interest to interact.

"We have to go, excuse us, girls." We didn't wait for more questions as I know Nelina wasn't comfortable with them.

Nelly cleared her throat when we got to the elevator alone; she glared at me again. "What was that?"

"What?" I acted innocent, hunching my shoulders.

"You still wanna act clueless, huh? There's only the two of us." Nelly muttered, pouting her lips.

"Not really, interested to see how you would react. I got what I wanted."

Nelly glared at me. "So, you want to piss me off?"

"Of course not; I wanted to see how cute you are again. I don't remember a situation where you don't look cute. So, I thought of rechecking it, and I confirmed it right. God made a woman too perfect for me."

"For you?" Nelly said, her face in disdain when I winked at her.

I pulled her close to me, tucking her beside me. I chuckled, realizing I pissed her off again. Her face flushed. Too cute. The reason my heart became erratic for the whole time we were together. Nelina's mere presence could effortlessly make my day.

"Seriously, do you really know those girls?"

"Are you jealous?"

"Dream on," Nelly said, side rolling her eyes on me as she crossed her arms on her chest.

I laughed at how fast she had to deny it. Although I know she's not jealous, I know there's tension among them. The way the girls stared at Nelly, the eyebrow-raising, and how they wanted to put her down was hard not to notice.

"As I've said, I hardly remember them. But I am certain their parents are in business. The event they mentioned was attended by businessmen."

"Yeah, their parents are business tycoons; that's how we got close before. Quite a long story but, never mind," Nelly said, shaking her head.

"That's okay, they're not my close friends, so we don't have a problem. Let's not talk about them. How about we talk about ourselves?"

"Royce, we have been talking about us the whole night."

I don't want to ruin the mood again. I placed a hand on Nelly's waist and guided her out of the elevator as it opened. Nelina was surprisingly polite to me; she invited me to come with her. Their home is not the biggest unit of the condo, but it was cozy and warm, perhaps because the love of my life was with me.

Aunt Melissa has insisted on staying for dinner that I gladly agreed. The food looks and smells appetizing prepared on the round table. Aunt Melissa sat with Uncle Arthur by her side, more accessible for her to feed him.

"Royce, please help yourself," said Nelly's mom as we started our dinner. "Pasta is Nelly's favorite; tonight, we have shrimp pasta."

"Thank you, it looks appetizing; I'm sure this tastes good."

"Well, let me know if it passes your taste buds."

I twirled pasta on my fork to have a taste of it, and it honestly did not disappoint. Nelly's mom is a good cook. "This should be on a restaurant menu; it tastes great."

Aunt Melissa had a slight crease beside her mouth when she smiled. I'm glad I made her happy in my simple food test.

"Thanks for the compliment, Royce. I'm glad you finally came to have dinner with us."

"To be honest, I've meant to pay you guys a visit and spend time together. It's Nelly who disapproves of it."

I silently whined when I got a stomp on my right foot to the side where Nelly was sitting.

"Nelly? You are free to invite your friends here. I'd be glad to cook for them as I do for Marica. You should expand your circle of friends, sweetheart."

"It's not that, mom. I have been so busy recently that I don't have time to entertain guests."

She caught me staring at her; Nelly's eyes were piercing. She must be angry again; she's still cute, though. I grinned at her; I couldn't get over her sweet little face, blushing cheeks, and small, bearing eyes. She made my night.