'People always say "don't introduce your boyfriend and your bestie." I thought it was a joke. But now I know why—I'm a bad bestie.'
Thinking of this, Kasie dissolved into tears, sobs wracking her lovely body.
Debbie was startled. She decided to wrap up what she was doing. "Gotta go, Ruby. Call you later."
She stood up, walked over to Kasie and asked anxiously, "Kasie, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
Kasie shook her head. 'She's always there for me. But I…' Her weeping grew into hysterical cries. "Debbie… Tomboy… Boo…hoo…"
The last time Kasie cried like this was when Emmett passed away. After that, though she would cry every time she visited Emmett's grave, it was nothing like when he just passed on. This scared the shit out of Debbie. "What happened, Kasie? Tell me!" she demanded.
"Tomboy. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…" Kasie clung tightly to Debbie, apologizing to her again and again.
'I'm a bitch! I kissed her husband behind her back, ' she thought.
"Just tell me what happened," Debbie said while stroking Kasie's back comfortingly. She was sure it couldn't have been so bad, but she wanted to hear it from her.
Kasie wiped the tears from her face, and chose to just straight up tell Debbie the truth. "Debbie, I… Mr. Wen… He…kissed me. I'm so sorry. I swear it won't happen again."
"That's it?" Debbie's reaction made Kasie's mouth drop.
"Yeah." With that, she snuffled, trying to keep the snot from running out of her nose.
'Why isn't she pissed?' she wondered. "I'm so sorry. If you want to yell and scream, go ahead. You can hit me if you want—"
"Kasie!" Debbie interrupted Kasie, who was visibly agitated. Kasie was finding it very hard to breathe, gasping and weeping at the same time.
Kasie lowered her head, sobbing and covering her face with her hands.
Debbie took out a tissue and gently wiped Kasie's tears. "It's not as bad as you think. I can't explain right now, but I will. Promise."
"What do you mean?" Kasie was totally confused, and had no idea what Debbie was talking about.
Debbie smiled and asked, "You know I'm head over heels in love with Carlos, right?"
Kasie nodded. 'I know. And because you couldn't have him, you married Ivan, ' she thought.
"Do you think I jump to conclusions?' Debbie asked.
Kasie said nothing, as she was totally confused.
"So did he kiss you or did you kiss him?" she asked with a smile. 'If Ivan kissed Kasie, it means that he's not gay. But if Kasie kissed him, that's bad news. I don't want her to get hurt.'
"He kissed me…" Kasie answered, lips trembling.
Her answer made Debbie heave a sigh of relief. "Thank God! Hey Kasie, if you don't hate him, date him."
Kasie's jaw dropped even more. She was well and truly shocked. 'What the hell? Is she crazy?'
"We're heading for a divorce, Ivan and I. So if you want him, he's fair game. I know Emmett would want to see you happy. I think he's still watching over you." Kasie might already know it, but Debbie wanted to make sure she did.
Kasie sighed and murmured, "Sometimes, I dream about him. I'm scared he'd be mad if I found someone else. We were going to get married." Tears welled in her eyes once more.
"I remember that. But he's gone now." Debbie could totally relate. After all, she thought Carlos was dead for three years.
Only Carlos was really still alive. His death was a cruel lie, while Emmett's was a crueler reality.
The two women talked for a long time, about everything and nothing. And Ivan didn't matter. Kasie was happy that Debbie wasn't mad at her. 'I gotta stay away from him till those two are through, ' she told herself.
After talking like in the old days, they were still as close as they ever were.
The next day, Kasie and Debbie hung out together as if nothing had happened last night. At the canteen, they chatted over a meal.
Carlos looked at Debbie and thought, 'I guess she doesn't know about Ivan. I'd better keep my mouth shut. I don't want her to get hurt.'
That afternoon, they went to the beach again. Ivan and Debbie were playing on a floating trampoline. Carlos saw them and swam towards them.
Debbie was about to jump onto an air mattress about a meter away from the floating trampoline. She took a deep breath and jumped with all her might.
She overshot her target, and fell into the water with a mighty splash. "Argh!" Debbie shrieked by instinct.
Ivan was about to dive in as well when he saw a figure swim towards her. The unknown figure swiftly grabbed Debbie's arms.
He held her waist and lifted her up out of the water.
Debbie stroked her wet, messy hair and turned to look at Carlos. She rolled her eyes and said indifferently, "Mr. Huo, I know how to swim."
Carlos felt a little embarrassed. From his perspective, she was in danger, even though he saw her swim yesterday.
So he let go. Caught off-guard, Debbie fell into the water again.
"Mmmph…" 'What an asshole!' she cursed inwardly.
Under the water, she found where he was and pinched his belly hard.
But she didn't aim well, and instead found that she grabbed something else instead. Something that was growing harder the longer she held on.
Carlos was instantly turned on. He grabbed her roughly and pulled her into his arms. He bit her lips to punish her.
Ivan, who was not far away, was dumbfounded. "Hey man! You sure you want to do that in front of her husband?"
Carlos didn't feel guilty at all after he knew about Ivan's affair. He let go of Debbie and answered indifferently, "Pretty sure."
Neither Ivan nor Debbie had a response for that.
After a while, Debbie was relaxing on the floating mattress. Carlos was lying next to her. "Don't do that in public," she told him. "Your fiancee is here, and my husband too."
Carlos cast a cold glance at her and asked, "Do you love him?"
After a pause, she answered honestly, "You're the only one I love."
'So why did she marry him in the first place?
Is it an open relationship? I could get real used to that!' Carlos thought to himself, a sly smile appearing on his face.
