She's My Sleeping Pill

“I’m sorry.” Stefan whispered with his chin on her shoulder. He was planning to give her surprises every weekend before their wedding but issue after issue arose and it was ruining his plans. He really wanted to know who’s causing him trouble and whack that person’s dead or worse bury him alive.

Cayenne took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. Truth be told, when Stefan told her the current problem he was facing, she was really annoyed, jealous, and angry. It felt like a hand was tightly squeezing her heart. Then, as if lightning struck her, she realized that the issue was something about his past. Though it affected their present, it was still something he did before meeting him.

Who among us never committed grave mistakes? Of course, all of us. No one is perfect after all. Since she married him and promised to accept everything that makes him the man he is today, she decided to get to the bottom of this matter instead of judging him.

And that was what led them to where they are now.

“What’s there to apologize for?” Cayenne questioned after a minute of silence. “Your past has nothing to do with me. Your relationship with Kelly happened before I even started working in Clover Hotel. It’s not something that can be called cheating.”

“Even so, I still did – ”

.....

“Love.” Cayenne turned around and cupped his cheeks while looking directly into his eyes. Nothing works better than showing sincerity in her eyes. If eyes are windows to one’s soul, then she wanted him to peek through these windows and see what exactly she was feeling right this moment. She only wanted to bring him love and comfort. “You don’t have to be guilty.” Cayenne added. “The baby was dead before you even signed the paper and the child wasn’t yours to begin with.”

“I know that now.”

“Right.” Her expression suddenly changed and she pinched his cheeks really hard. “How can you be so stupid as to fall for her tricks back then?”

“Honestly, this might be something you’d get mad about but when she told me that she had a child, I was annoyed that such accident occurred but I never wanted to kill that child. I planned to raise it.”

“Well, it can’t be helped since you have soft spots for kids. Also, you should not be blamed for what happened. Since I know the truth now, let’s just forget about this.”

Stefan was a little surprise that she was willing to forget this matter and pretend it didn’t exist. [This might be for the better. I don’t want her to keep thinking about this issue as well.]

“Alright. It’s time for snacks.”

“Did you get matcha cake for me?”

“Of course. I got your favorite milk tea, too.”

Although Stefan agreed to forget this issue, it was only at the surface. He was keeping tabs of the people involved in this matter and he was thinking of finding the real culprit who exposed this issue. Since Kelly said that he didn’t do it, he believed her. She couldn’t get anything from him by exposing that issue. Surely, her ex-boyfriend wouldn’t do something reckless that would risk his political marriage either. Which means, the person who did it was someone who held some grudges against him.

[Who could it be? I have so many business rivals and personal enemies that I couldn’t point my fingers among them.]

***

The next morning, news about Cayenne’s events were published in many journals and internet blogs. There were photos of Riley and Luiz, too. It was something that the wife of a business tycoon did so it was also published in a financial magazine with a mention of Stefan’s name.

At the same time, before this news came out, many people have read the topic about Stefan signing the abortion papers in the past. Some people were even speculating that the charity event was done to cover the issue that involved him. Worse, there was a leak about Cayenne signing the divorce papers, too.

“What divorce bullshits are they talking about?! It was something that happened long ago. Why mention this again?!” Luiz yelled angrily and threw his phone on the couch. “These people can’t just find something better to do than make gossips. They are so annoying.”

“Calm down.” Jonas commented and handed the phone back to his son. “This won’t ruin your sister’s marriage. Stefan would never allow that to happen. He must have found the cause of this matter already which was why they didn’t come home last night. Don’t let this matter affect you. Your sister will be sad if she knows this.”

“I just can’t help it.”

“Just focus on your work later.” Luiz nodded his head and sat on the couch again. His father was right. He can’t do anything about it since the issue didn’t involve him. He will only add to her sister’s worry if he gets affected by this news.

An hour later, Cayenne and Stefan came home, and found several reporters waiting for them in front of their gate. They moment they spotted Stefan’s car, they surrounded it and held out their microphone to ask him questions even though the car was tightly closed.

Seeing their persistent look, the driver was distressed “Sir, we cannot move the car any furthers because they’re blocking the way. I’m afraid I’d run them over.”

“It’s alright. We’ll get down and just answer their questions.”

Cayenne looked at Stefan and saw determination in his eyes. They both agreed to bury this issue but because of the journalists, they have to talk about this matter again. “Will you be alright?”

“Will you?” He asked in return.

“I’ll be fine as long as you feel the same.”

“Then, shall we go out now?”

With his hand outstretched for her to take, Cayenne placed hers and let him lead her out of the car. The bodyguards immediately formed a circle around them and made sure that there was enough space between their boss and the press.

“Mr. Dumrique, is it true that you asked one of your women to have an abortion?”

“Mr. Dumrique, did you ask your wife to have a charity event to cover your issue?”

“Mrs. Dumrique...”

Dumrique this. Dumrique that...Cayenne was annoyed with the buzzing voices of the press but she continued to smile in front of the camera and controlled herself not to shout at them. They already decided to answer their questions but because the crowd was a mess, they didn’t know which of them to answer first or if the press could even hear the answers that they would say.

“Calm down.” Martin, one of the bodyguards, shouted so loudly that it almost broke their eardrums. Stefan even closed Cayenne’s ears. The crowd was silenced instantly. “All of your questions will be answered so please have some decorum. Raise your hands if you have questions and listen carefully to avoid having the same question twice. You have ten minutes. Woman at the back with black glasses.”

The woman who raised her hand immediately prepared her recorder and asked, “What’s the truth behind the issue that your team instantly shutdown which caused people to spread rumors?”

Cayenne’s annoyance vanished when she heard the woman’s question. It was different from the way the others asked as if they already know the truth and was just verifying the matter. This woman was seeking for the truth of the event.

Stefan scanned the people in front of them and looked at the cameras that they aimed. “I signed it.” He answered firmly which caused the crowd to stir and buzz like bees again. However, just one look from Martin and they all shut their mouth. “I never had an affair with that woman. She was a friend to me and she had a boyfriend. The documents I signed weren’t abortion papers but to save her from the miscarriage she had. Her boyfriend wasn’t around and I was the only person close to her at that moment. She loves the father of her child and the child that she carried. She refused to let the baby go even though it was harming her body already. I was left with no choice but to sign the papers even if she will hate me. And that was what happened. When she found the truth, she no longer sees me as friends and we lost contact.”

Cayenne beamed proudly at her husband. Not only did he clear his name but he also did his best not to implicate the woman who tricked him. She wasn’t angry with his choice because she understood her husband best.

“So, the charity event wasn’t a cover story?”

“Of course, not.” Stefan answered almost immediately. “My wife planned it two weeks ago and the news broke out yesterday. How dare you guys think of it as a cover for my issues. I’d never let my wife suffer like this.”

“About the divorce – ”

“No, divorce.” Stefan retorted which caused Cayenne to laugh and got everyone’s attention. Of all the topics they could think of, they really thought of bringing this matter in front of him again.

“Is there something you want to say on the divorce issue, Mrs. Dumrique?”

Cayenne smiled at them and shifted her gaze back to her husband. If she could see anxiety in his eyes every time there was a talk about divorce before, now all she could see was love and undying trust. “Don’t ever ask about divorce between us.” Cayenne expressed as she wrapped her hand around his arm. “There was no divorce and never will. We will stay strong and make you all envious of our love. Ciao!”

The press looked at their watch and sure enough, ten minutes was over. Cayenne and Stefan left them stunned with their bodyguards surrounding them. They could see their side profiles and the sweet smiles on their faces. Cayenne was really making them feel jealous of her relationship with Stefan.

[Sigh. Who was this foolish person who tried to break them up anyway?]