After Being Cheating

The men left discreetly.

Ivanka was awakened by the ringing of her cellphone. She opened her eyes and found herself lying on an empty balcony.

Ivanka looked at herself and recalled what had happened. She stood up and tried to make her way to the living room.

But she was so weak that she fell to the ground.

...

The damned man. Couldn't he be a little gentle?

Recalling what had happened last night, Ivanka came to realize that nothing had happened between her and Daniel.

'Janet must have felt heartbroken.' Ivanka thought as she remembered Janet's woeful face. Then, she decided to tell Janet the truth. She couldn't get in the way of an innocent girl and her lover.

Ivanka walked into the bedroom with all her strength and picked up her cellphone. It was Poe.

"Poe Yi, how vile you are! Nothing happened between Daniel and I. I will tell him about this immediately!"

On the other side of the phone, Poe was surprised. 'Was it really possible that nothing happened between Ivanka and Daniel that night?' he wondered.

However, it had all come to this point of no return. He had to make sure that the plan moved forward.

"I have transferred your sister to another hospital. You know what to do to keep her alive!"

"You are crazy, Poe Yi! Even if I was pregnant, how long do you think we can deceive Daniel into believing this? After all, he is not the father of the baby."

"That's none of your concern. I have my plans. What matters right now is to keep the truth from him, as long as possible!" Poe hung up the phone as soon as he had finished speaking. He did not give Ivanka a chance to speak.

Ivanka was so weak that she had to prop up her head with her hands while sitting on the edge of the bed. She was exhausted, so she fell asleep before she could think about what to do next.

Today was Janet's birthday. She was 23 years old. It was early in the morning, but Janet was already downstairs with her luggage.

"Where are you going, Janet?" Ella walked to Janet after putting down a plate on the dining table.

Janet looked normal, just as before. She smiled at her mother and said, "Mom, I'm going to America. We will have a classmate gathering there. I'll take this chance to stay longer for a trip." Ella felt relaxed after hearing Janet's purpose for her trip.

"You are leaving, and you are just telling me about this now. Why hadn't you told me earlier? I must tell your father. He will drive you to the airport, " Ella said as she went upstairs. But Janet held Ella's arm and said, "It's unnecessary, Mom. I'll take a taxi."

"Anyway, you have to let your father know. And today is your birthday. Can't you stay and leave tomorrow?" Ella didn't want her daughter to spend her birthday on a plane.

But Janet shook her head. How she wished to escape from the city that Daniel lived in! She felt breathless thinking of it.

"I have to inform your father. It doesn't matter whether you want to spend your birthday at home or not... Anyway, we can still celebrate it next year." However, a birthday celebration would be the last thing on her mind right now. She remembered how Daniel had said that he would take her to the Civil Affairs Bureau to register their marriage on her birthday. It would've been the best birthday gift ever...

But everything had turned out to be a dream that would never come true. How could she possibly celebrate her birthday knowing she wouldn't be able to receive the gift she had always wanted?

The smile disappeared on Janet's face when she heard her mother's words. Noticing her expression change, Ella insisted no more in making Janet stay. So she said to Janet, "Go and say goodbye to your father."

Janet went upstairs. Ella felt sorry for her daughter.

How she wished that she had not arranged opportunities for Janet and Daniel to meet and fall in love with each other... Janet wouldn't have to feel this bad.

Janet knocked on Samuel's door. Samuel was helping his son get dressed. He heard the knock and said, "Come in."

"Dad." Janet entered and kissed John on his cheeks.

"Why are you up so early?" Samuel studied her daughter carefully and sensed that something must have gone wrong.

"I'm taking a morning flight to America. I just came to say goodbye to you."

"You hadn't mentioned a single word about the trip. Why are you in a hurry? Is Daniel...?

"Dad!" Janet interrupted her father as soon as he mentioned Daniel's name.

Samuel sighed. Then, he took his son into his arms and sat next to his daughter. "All right. I will not mention him again. But why will you go to America?" "There will be a school reunion there in a couple of days. And I want to travel as well."

She would stay in America and come back a month later...

"That's okay. But today is your birthday. Can't you wait and leave tomorrow?" Samuel said while looking at her daughter.

Janet shook her head, "No, Dad. It doesn't matter whether I celebrate my birthday or not. I'm just eager to leave and have a happy journey."

Silence swept the room as both the father and the daughter kept quiet.

Samuel said several minutes later, "I will drive you to the airport, Jane."

Janet intended to turn down his father's offer, but Samuel was so persistent that she gave him a nod.

After arriving at the airport, Samuel helped Janet check her luggage in and saw her off at the security checkpoint.

"Jane, someone will pick you up when you arrive in America. Please don't say refuse. I worry when you are not around."

Janet could not help but nod after seeing her concerned father.

"Dad, I will come back soon. I'm still waiting for... the result."

Samuel knew what Janet meant as Harry had told him what had happened. He felt sad for Janet that he took her into his arms.

"Please don't be sad, sweetheart. It doesn't matter if you lose Daniel. You can meet some one better."

'Meet someone better?' No. She didn't want to have anyone else but Daniel.

Janet's eyes became red as she tried to refrain herself from crying. She hugged Samuel and took a step backward, "I understand, Dad. You better go now!"

"All right. Call me when you arrive."

"Okay, Dad. Don't drive too fast," Janet tried her best to squeeze out a smile. However, she didn't have any idea what a sad smile it was. It seemed worse than a crying face.

Samuel looked at Janet and felt sorry for her. He waved at her and said, "Go. I'll pick you up when you come back!"

"Yes, Dad. Goodbye!"

Janet could not help shedding tears as she passed through the security checkpoint alone.

'I'm not a good daughter. I always worry my parents, ' Janet thought to herself.

At the VIP Lounge of the airport

Janet was dazed, staring blankly at the seats where she and Daniel had sat on before. After a while, her cellphone beeped, as it received a WeChat message from Daniel, "Happy birthday, Jane." Tears welled up in Janet's eyes again, but she didn't respond.

More messages came in succession. "Wanna take you out for dinner."

"Wanna present you with a bunch of pink roses."

"I'm sorry, Jane. Can you give me one more chance?"

And the last one read, "Wanna take you to the Civil Affairs Bureau."

Janet felt so heartbroken that she couldn't hold her tears back any more. She put her hand on her mouth to suppress the sobbing and dashed to the ladies' room. But the moment she got there, she heavily cried.

Before boarding, Janet finally sent Daniel a message, "I'm travelling now. You can concentrate on your work. I will let you know when I come back."

Daniel called Janet immediately after receiving her message. But she had already powered off her cellphone.

He sent for Spark and asked him to find out where Janet went.

However, at the end, he said, "Never mind. Don't do it."

'It's better to leave her alone for a while. I cannot push her too hard, ' Daniel thought.

Janet stayed in America for about two weeks before flying to Africa.

She received messages from Daniel almost everyday. However, she only said "Good night" to him and nothing else.

But Janet didn't know that Daniel had gone to America twice and that he had followed her and had watched her go shopping with her classmates. ¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶