Chapter 2: You sure have some guts, Lucas!

“And in the period that I have known you, I have known peace. I have known the meaning of being taken care of. I have also learned the value of the right woman in a man's life…” At this point, Lucas was just rambling. Saying things that should convince her that he was the man for her, in case she doesn't know yet. It doesn't look like she thinks so. Lucas needed her to think so.

“With you, I have found love, and I would be the biggest fool if I let that love escape my grasp. Aria, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He said with a soft, pleading voice.

The whole restaurant has since gone silent and everyone listened to his words. Someone in the restaurant started a Facebook Live, and netizens instantly predicted that she would refuse. It was not hard to guess. All one had to do was look at her face. Her eyes were cold and stern, glaring down at poor Lucas.

“Aria, will you marry me?” Lucas finally got the most important words out, with sweat trickling down his back and armpits.

Aria forcefully dragged her chair back and stood up. At 5 '6 (1.68 m), Aria considers herself short and compliments her height with heels as high as 4 to 6 inches (ca. 15 cm), depending on the occasion. Today, she was wearing 6 inches (ca. 15 cm). Towering over the kneeling Lucas, Aria looked down at him. Not just physically, in her heart, she looks down at him. Disdain flashed through her eyes without anyone noticing.

“Stand up Lucas,” Aria said in a small voice after a bit.

“Aria…”

When Aria gave him one of those 'don't-play-with-me looks she uses on her staff, Lucas knew he had made a grave mistake. He slowly stood up and closed the gap between them. “Aria.” He muttered dejectedly.

Aria broke into her well-practiced sweet smile and opened her arms. She placed them around his shoulders, closed the little gap between them, and put her face to his right ear.

“You sure have some guts, Lucas.” She started.

His body went stiff and his face was clouded with confusion. He tried to withdraw, so he could catch her face, but Aria held him down. If he should use force, it would look embarrassing, so he didn't struggle with her.

“What do you mean babe?” Lucas asked in a shaky voice. His face was going pale by the minute. His mind was racing, trying to figure out what Aria was so angry about. But he couldn't come up with anything.

“How long have you been in Florida?” Aria asked before letting go of him. Thanks to her 6 inches (ca. 15 cm), when they stood facing each other, they were eyeball to eyeball.

She looked around at the crowd and spread her hands out in a slow, delicate way. “How will you explain this to Cici and her son? What of Sophy, Ashley, and your boy toy, Ben?” She enunciated each name and kept her small smile, refusing to break their gaze.

“You…y…you knew!” Lucas whispered in shock. His body shivered uncontrollably as the drops of sweat suddenly turned into a flowing stream. Any time from now, it would soak through his tux.

Aria rolled her eyes and turned away from him as she picked up her small purse off their table. She couldn't wait to be out of the restaurant.

Lucas was a businessman. He was slow because he didn't know what he had done wrong. But now that he knew for a fact that his secrets were out, Lucas' brain sprung into action. He quickly grabbed Aria's hand, forcing her to stop.

“Aria, don't be rash. We are in the public." He hurriedly said. "Just take the ring first. We can break up later. Don't embarrass me like this, please.” He pleaded into her ears.

“Let go!” Aria sneered. The audacity! The effrontery of the man! Aria had no words to describe her anger. And the fact that she couldn't express it because of the public was infuriating. It was her birthday and every picture must be perfect.

Seeing how she had no intention of giving him a face, Lucas acted without thinking. He tightened his hold on her arm and sternly snared at her, practically breathing in her face. “Don't mess with me, Aria. Do as I say, else…” he started sneering to intimidate her.

Instead of getting scared, Aria's stern face broke into a beautiful smile. A smile that reminded Lucas of the kind of woman he was dealing with. Whatever gave him the audacity to intimidate her instantly felt stupid after he saw that smile. After months of watching Aria deal with strong-headed businessmen and tycoons, Lucas was in the best position to know that nobody can threaten Aria easily. Lucas closed his eyes and tried to calm down. There must be a way to salvage the situation. He has to.

“Aria” He called her name in a soft, pleading tone again. “I am sorry.”

Aria pointedly looked at his hand that was still holding onto her hand, silently reminding him to release her hand. Remembering Aria has no problem with causing a scene, Lucas quickly released her. Aria rubbed the spot he had grabbed. The arm had gone red and it was stinging.

Lucas winced slightly when he saw this and guiltily looked at her with pleading eyes. "I am sorry." He said in a small voice.

“Lucas?” Aria suddenly raised her voice, drawing everyone's attention.

When Lucas heard her call his name out loud, he flinched. All this while, they were speaking with undertones. Nobody could hear because they were almost in each other's faces.

Why will Aria speak out for everyone to hear? What is she going to say?

Lucas' heart ached.

“Our relationship has been 15 months too long. Let's break up!” She announced then laughed in a squeaky child's voice.

When Lucas was still frozen in place due to the shock she gave him, Aria patted his right shoulder, dainty adjusted his tie and used the tips of her fingers to arrange his hair like a caring wife who wanted to make sure her husband was well put together before he leaves the house. She took a step back to check her job, nodded in satisfaction then turned around and started walking out of the restaurant with strides that could rival several superstar models.

I hope I gave you a great show, bitches. That's all you are getting this time around. She mused inwardly, never breaking her strides.

As she confidently walked out, the whole restaurant dropped into silence. Except for the clicking sounds of her heels and the clicking of the wall clock, nothing was moving. A few seconds after she was gone, it was still silent. Nobody knew who spoke first, but someone wowed, and the room went into an uproar.

The same thing happened on the internet. While some were cashing out on their bets, others were cursing Aria and losing their money. For the next two weeks, her name will stay on the top trending lists and online forums will name Lucas as the greatest simp of all time…

Lucas couldn't believe his eyes. If anybody had told him that this could happen, he would have laughed in their face. Things were great between them. How did he get so sloppy? For how long has she known of all his side chicks?

When Lucas went after Aria, it was just for fun. In his circle, Aria was a challenge for the boys. She was aloof and arrogant. Even though she hardly makes public appearances, the paparazzi were always on her tail because she throws the best birthday parties every year and always announces her breakups by herself on her social media handles. She celebrates them with lots of fanfare.

After two of his friends had failed to get her, Lucas had stepped forward and to everyone's surprise, she agreed to date him after several dinners. Then Lucas discovered that she is a homely person. Outside work and her only friend, Aria has no other life. When she is not working, she is at home where she does all her things. She clubs twice a month if there is time for it, and she doesn't stay out all night. She never snoops or gets jealous when she sees him with other women. Even though Lucas took extra care to hide his infidelities from her, he always believed that he would get away with it because Aria wasn't a jealous person. Proposing to her wasn't because he was in love with her. Lucas decided to marry her because she made things easy for him. Unlike his friends' girlfriends who monitor them, Aria doesn't care. It never crossed his mind that she knew. She didn't just know of one, she knew of every one of his girls and his child. Lucas was so shocked that if his best friend who was in the restaurant crowd didn't step out to take him out, he would probably be in the same spot for hours, trying to figure out how he fucked everything up.

Lucas' best friend wasn't the only one in the restaurant's crowd. Anthony Queens, Aria's father, was also there. He knew about the proposal and had traveled down from New York to witness it. His expectations were high, but his dreams were once again shattered by his headstrong and untamable daughter. Presently, Anthony's face was as dark as the night and his breathing was erratic. After Lucas was taken out, Anthony stayed at his table. He was forced to listen to the side talks in the restaurant. When he was sure he could make it out of the restaurant without drawing attention, he stood up and slowly left, looking defeated. After today's drama, Anthony wasn't sure any decent man would be stupid enough to go after his daughter again.