A Journey Through Love and Loss

Pretending

Analea's POV

The morning sun cast a warm glow over the hotel's buffet breakfast area as I made my way down. Thoughts of last night's failed plan with Avery swirled in my mind, especially now that Tyler had unexpectedly shown up. I couldn't help but feel a pang of envy seeing him embrace Avery, prompting me to leave quickly before anyone spotted me in the park.

Nakakainis, lagi na siya nasa tabi ni Avery kapag kailangan siya nito. Hindi na ako nag cap at salamin dahil naiirita na rin ako. Almost 1 week ko na ginagawa yun tuwing lumalabas ako ng hotel room ko.

Arriving at the buffet breakfast, I spotted Caleb, Mark, Lucas, with Ruth gently feeding Tyrone. Seeing them together, I couldn't help but wonder if Avery and Tyler were still at the hospital.

Taking a deep breath, I decided it was time to stop hiding. After all, Avery was the only one who knew about my plan, and our friends were clueless. Wala silang kaalam alam sa mga pinaggagawa ko.

Magpapanggap na lang ako na kunwari hindi ko alam na sa hotel na 'to sila nakacheck in.

I casually picked up some food and milk and deliberately walked past by them. Lucas noticed me immediately and called out in surprise. "Oh My, Analea! You're here."

Nagkunwari naman ako na nagulat, I approached their table. "Hi, I didn't expect to see you all here," I greeted them with a smile, tapping Tyrone's head while Ruth was feeding him. He smiled back at me.

"What are you doing here in New York?" Lucas asked again.

"I'm here for business. We have an investor meeting for our company, and I need to meet them in person," I replied casually.

"Small world, isn't it? All of us staying at the same hotel," Caleb remarked with a smile.

"Mind if I join you at the table?" I asked. This was my chance to ask them some questions.

They nodded quickly and agreed. I glanced at Ruth, who gave me a sharp look and rolled her eyes before focusing on her food.

She must know what happened between Avery and me. She wouldn't be acting like this otherwise. We used to be close, but it seems that's over now. I ignored her and sat in the empty seat next to Tyrone.

I faced the three guys. They were my only friends, along with Thalia. It annoyed me that they were friends with Avery now too.

"Actually, Avery and Tyler are staying here too," Mark chimed in.

I smiled and nodded. "That's nice. So you're all together. But where are they? Why is Tyrone here alone?" I asked.

"Avery was just discharged this morning. She's resting in their hotel room with Tyler. We're taking care of Tyrone for now. Secretary KC is handling Tyler's work back in the Philippines," Lucas explained.

I handed Tyrone the milk I had grabbed earlier. "Here, drink this," I said with a smile.

He smiled back. "Thank you," he said and drank the milk.

"Fake," I heard Ruth mutter. She continued eating. We all looked at her. She noticed and smiled a fake smile. "I meant the cup is plastic," she said, then her smile vanished.

She's good at quick comebacks. I rolled my eyes subtly.

I started eating to keep up with them. "So, how long have you been in New York?" Caleb asked me.

"Almost a week now. I'll go home once the deal with the investor is closed," I said, though there was no such deal. My real plan was to ruin Avery's treatment so she wouldn't recover.