Chapter 21: In Which She Gets Even

Aurora drew in a sharp inhale.

Theo wore this shirt yesterday, so this was definitely not from a long time ago. Alone? Ha! He wasn’t alone at all. Her breathing became shallow as her blood started boiling. That jerk- argh! She was even feeling sorry for him.

You’re such an idiot, Aurora. You let two men lie to you. When will you ever learn?

She read Audrey’s text again and let out a dry chuckle. That b*tch wants to meet? Sure. Bring it on. Whatever it is, she’s going to pull some hair. No one messes with her man behind her back.

She stood -- and then halted.

Hold it, girl. Think this through. You are just playing his girlfriend. It’s not real.

But the sting of her nails in her palms was real, and she was already gripping her fists tight. The second she saw the photo, she became territorial. She didn’t like seeing Theo with another woman.

Real or not, Aurora decided that she would do something. At that thought, she stormed off towards the fountain, ignoring the curious cries of Sophia.

She got hold of a resort staff who passed her by and asked for the directions to the fountain. Lucky for her, there was only one fountain so it wasn’t hard to locate. As she moved closer to place, the loud swishing and splashing sound of water grew louder. For some reason, she took in a deep breath to steady her nerves and stepped into the brightly lit outdoors.

“... you didn’t tell her, am I right?”

Aurora stopped dead in her tracks. It was Audrey’s voice and somehow, she felt that she was ‘her’. Instinctively, she lowered to the ground behind a waist-high hedge and continued listening to the conversation.

“Let it go, Audrey. I’ve told you, I’m with Aurora now.”

The sound of her name in Theo’s deep voice made Aurora’s heart skip a beat.

“No!” Audrey screamed. “Why did you let me stay with you the whole night and not her? It’s obvious that your heart chose me!”

The whole night? Aurora drew in a quivering breath and held it in. An image of Theo lounging and laughing with Audrey broke into her mind and she felt the anger bubbling inside her.

“I did not let you--.”

What did he say? Aurora sneaked closer.

But the voices have stopped.

Aurora wrinkled her brows in sheer curiosity. What the hell is happening out there? Wait a minute. Why is she hiding? Real or not real, she is Theo’s girlfriend. She has every right to stand out there and talk to them, face to face, one on one.

She shot up and stomped towards the direction of the voices.

They were next to the fountain. Audrey had her arms around Theo’s neck and she was kissing him.

One look at another woman's lips on Theo's, and she imploded. A wave of possessiveness overcame Aurora. This time, she’s not letting this b*tch get away. She stalked up to the pair, enraged, just as Theo pulled himself away.

“D*mn it, Audrey! What the hell are you do--?”

Audrey saw Aurora and finally released Theo, who had been struggling to break free from the witch’s claws. Then, she cast a smirk of triumph in Aurora’s direction and cried in fake surprise, at the top of her squeaky voice.

“Oh, Aurora! I didn’t know you were here. Did you hear our conversation?”

Theo heard Aurora’s name and squeezed his eyes at the embarrassing realization - he had been set up by Audrey. You dumb f*ck, he scolded himself silently. He spun around just as Aurora moved past him, charging towards Audrey like a steam train. He grabbed Aurora’s elbow to get her attention. “Aurora… Listen, I... “

Aurora had no time to listen. This was the moment she had been waiting for. That b*tch’s cheek was wide open and unguarded. She shook off Theo’s grasp and stepped towards Audrey, and in one swift motion, took a whiff of her stinky perfume, raised her strong hand and slammed its palm onto that powdered cheek.

SLAP.

Audrey stumbled backwards.

Aurora stood in front of the model-like woman crouching in pain and thundered, “Don’t touch my man!”

Holding her cheek with a hand, Audrey straightened and pointed furiously at Aurora. “You slut! How dare you touch me?”

Looking directly at her, Aurora countered in a steady voice, “I didn’t touch you - I slapped you. Can’t you feel your cheek burning?”

At the mention of her cheek, Audrey’s face collapsed into an embarrassment, then she wailed like a child who was denied a candy. Tears gushed down her reddened cheeks, scalding them further, as she stomped her feet and whined at an ear-bursting decibel.

“Theo! You see what she did to me? She slapped me! That savage--.”

Aurora interrupted with a lioness roar. “Don’t talk to him! He’s mine! You touch him again, I swear to God I’ll pull all your hair out. Leave us alone, you crazy b*tch!” With that, she turned to Theo, grabbed his wrist and pulled him out of the garden.

Theo was flushed with excitement.

Why wouldn’t he? Aurora had just claimed him as hers. Her words were still ringing in his ears and he was grinning from cheek to cheek, as he was pulled across the corridor and into their room.

Once the door closed behind him, Aurora faced him with a bleak expression.

“I’m going home.”

Theo blinked. He was on cloud nine a minute ago and it was hard to return to reality, her words didn't register in him until she started shoving her clothes into her luggage.

Frantic, he lunged forward and grabbed her suitcase away from her. “Wait, Aurora. Let’s talk first.”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Aurora gritted her teeth. “You lied to me, Theo.”

“I didn’t,” he retorted firmly.

Aurora threw her hands in the air and chuckled in disbelief. “I heard everything, d*mn it! You told me that you were alone--.”

“I was.”

“But Audrey was with you the whole night!”

“She wasn’t.” Theo stepped towards Aurora, but the orange-red hair beauty backed away with a glare that warned him not to get any closer. He stopped and held up both hands. “Alright. She came and we had a little chat, and then she left.”

“Oh my God,” Aurora held her forehead. “I can’t believe this.”

“She left!” Theo yelled. “I stayed behind until--.” He paused, unable to go on.

“Until?” Aurora cocked a brow. “Until when?”

“I don’t have to tell you that,” he answered curtly and turned from her.

Astonished, Aurora sighed in a whisper, “Of course, you don’t have to.” She stepped towards Theo, her voice steadier and angrier. “Because we’re not a real couple. You don’t owe me any explanation.”