FATED TO BE YOURS

Chapter 18: The Woman in the Photo

Leaving the cafe, Sam immediately dialed Mon's number as she accelerated her car.

"Mon, where are you?" Sam urgently asked as soon as Mon picked up the call.

"I'm still at the office, Sam, preparing to leave. Why?" Mon replied on the other end of the call.

"I simply want to meet you. Let's meet at the park nearby in 15 minutes. I'll be waiting. And Mon, if Tee, Jim, or Kade calls, please ignore them," Sam urged.

"Sam, you're behaving strangely. Is everything alright?" Mon asked with concern.
"It's nothing. Just please don't respond to them for a while," Sam replied.
"Alright. I'll meet you at the park," Mon replied.

After 15 minutes, Sam arrived at the park where they had agreed to meet up. Nervously, she waited for Mon, her ears perked up at the sound of a familiar voice.

"Waiting for someone?" Mon teased as she approached Sam.

"Yeah, I'm waiting for the right person to come," Sam replied, turning to Mon. "And I think that person has already arrived."

"What was that, Sam? Is that a pickup line? You're so cheeky," Mon replied, giggling. "How are you, Sam?" Mon greeted her and leaned towards Sam to give her a kiss on the cheek.

Sam was stunned, unconsciously touching her cheek after the kiss.

"Um... Sam? What's up?" Mon asked.

"Nothing urgent, I just wanted to see you. That's all," Sam replied.

"You drove all the way here just to tell me you wanted to see me? That's so sweet of you, Sam," Mon replied. "Let's take a stroll and maybe grab some dinner," Mon invited.

As they strolled in the park, Mon asked, "Sam, I'm still not convinced that this isn't an urgent meetup. What's bothering you?" Mon asked curiously.

"Well, I just need to clear my mind. I want some distraction, so I wanted to meet you," Sam replied.

Mon turned to face Sam, noticing the beautiful backdrop behind her. She quickly pulled out her phone and said, "Sam, hold on, don't move, okay?" Focusing her camera on Sam, she added, "Smile, Sam."

"Mon, you know I don't like taking pictures," Sam hesitated.

"Sam, please, it's something we can look back on to remember? Just one shot, Sam?" Mon pleaded.

Reluctantly, Sam stood still as Mon clicked the shutter.

"Okay, let's do one more, this time with me!" Mon suggested. She positioned herself beside Sam, who looked at her with evident worry in her eyes. As Mon took their selfie, she noticed the anxiousness on Sam's face.

"Okay, Sam, be honest with me. What's bothering you? You don't look well. Are you feeling okay? Does your chest hurt?" Mon asked with concern, pointing to the photo on her cellphone.

"Hey, Sam. What's bothering you?" Mon urgently stepped in front of Sam, grabbing her arms to comfort her.

"Well, honestly, it's Tee. Tee wanted to set up a blind date for you," Sam confessed.

"So that's why you wanted me to ignore them for a while? So I wouldn't agree to it?" Mon asked, and Sam nodded.

"Sam, you don't have to worry about that," Mon assured her. "Even if they offered, I wouldn't agree to it. You know why? Because it's not them I want to be with. Okay? Are we good? I'll just go to the restroom, okay? I'll be right back," Mon replied.

Sam still puffing her cheeks, nodded as Mon walked away. Whispering to herself, Sam muttered, "And who is that person that you like to be with?" She looked away from Mon, sulking.

Mon heard Sam, paused, and turned to see Sam sulking. She took out her phone, snapped a photo, and sent it to Sam.

Sam's phone chimed, and she checked it to see Mon's message. Curious, she gazed at Sam as Mon urged her, "Read my message, so you'll see the answer to your question." With that, Mon continued walking towards the restroom.

Sam checked the message and saw that Mon had sent her the photo Mon took earlier. Sam started to smile, giggling to herself and shaking her head in disbelief. It dawned on her that all this time, she was the person Mon was talking about.

From afar, Sam gazed at Mon, who turned to check on her. They exchanged sweet smiles and glances, sharing a moment of understanding.

Sam escorted Mon home, and both of them couldn't conceal their fluttering emotions, particularly Sam.

"We're here, Mon," Sam said, trying to contain her emotions by looking away from Mon and biting her lip while smiling.

"Thank you, Sam," Mon said, trying to release herself from the seatbelt. Sam noticed that Mon was struggling to unlock the seatbelt, so she reached over, unlocked it, and leaned towards Mon to help her.

As Sam leaned forward, Mon was stunned to find herself inches away from Sam. Sam gazed up at Mon, leaving them face to face. Finally, Sam managed to unlock Mon's seatbelt and said, "It's unlocked now." Sam then unlocked the door for Mon and leaned back into the driver's seat.

Mon got out of Sam's car, thanking her once more. As she turned away from Sam's car, she tried to contain her excitement, feeling butterflies in her stomach from the face-to-face interaction with Sam. After regaining her composure, she headed inside their gate.

Meanwhile, Sam couldn't contain her smile, her excitement still evident on her face. She shook her head in disbelief and sighed happily as she drove away.

Later that evening, Mon couldn't shake off the memory of the scene in Sam's car. She found herself lingering on Sam's lingering scent, recalling the moment when Sam leaned in close, their faces mere inches apart. Mon vividly remembered the captivating sight of Sam's tantalizing brown eyes and the soft contour of Sam's lips up close.

Mon snapped back to reality when her phone chimed with a text from Sam, updating her that she had arrived home safely.

"Good to hear, Sam. Take a rest now," Mon acknowledged Sam's update.

"I don't think I can sleep tonight, Mon. I'm still bothered!" Sam replied via text message.

"Still bothered? I thought I made it clear earlier," Mon replied, confused.

"Yeah, you made it very clear, Mon. I was just wondering if that woman, the one you sent me a photo of, has a chance with you?" Sam jokingly replied, sending her own playful photo as someone else.

"I'm afraid I have no match for her," Sam added via text message.

Mon giggled at Sam's playful banter over text message, agreeing to play along.

"Oh, that woman? Well, she's smart, she's cool, and she's so beautiful, isn't she?" Mon teased back.
"Do you reckon I can outshine her, Mon?" Sam's message elicited even more giggles from Mon.

Their playful exchange persisted until Mon thought she heard a man's voice softly whispering, "Princess..."

Startled, Mon glanced around to ensure she was alone. Feeling uneasy and jittery, she wrapped up her chat with Sam and opted to call it a night, heading to bed at last.