Caught a Responsible Man after the Break Up

VII - Questions

"Ember!"  Fern didn't mean to shout. But he did speak a little loud.

The couple who just got out of the coffee shop looked back in unison.

Ember squinted her eyes and tried to remember the man.

"Yeah...? Hmm you are...?"

Clover led Ember to the side because a customer had just gone out of the shop. 

Fern also followed so Ember was able to see Violet behind him.

"Oh, Ms. Starr? You... are you together?"

"Hello, Ms. Willowbells. I think my boyfriend recognized you from somewhere."

Fern cut her off. "You and Brennan... we met years ago, remember?"

"Bush? Leaves... Your name has something to do with plants." Ember tried to recall.

"Fern. I'm Fern Morgan. I... I'm sorry, I just —" Fern was confused when he heard he was being associated with plants.

"You must be wondering. You mentioned Brennan a while ago. I am no longer pestering him.  So please don't misunderstand. If there's nothing else, I and my boyfriend still have plans for the night. Goodbye, Ms. Starr." She also threw Violet a kind look.

Ember held on to Clover's arm and stepped her legs to go.  But before she turned back, she remembered another thing.

"One more thing, can you and your friends forget my embarrassment? I know you like talking about and seeing my jokes.  Ahh... it's so shameful I don't wanna think about it anymore. I honestly wish Brennan and his woman a lifetime of happiness." She smiled in bitterness, then left.

"Come on, let's go?" Violet asked Fern who was still dumbfounded.

Suddenly, his cell phone rang. He reached for Violet's hand with his free hand and walked towards the parking lot.

The parking lot is also currently where Ember and Clover were heading.

Fern answered the phone when he saw a friend was calling.  The same friend within the circle of friends Ember mentioned earlier.

"Yeah? Tonight? Okay." The conversation was quick yet clear.

"Love, we have to meet up tonight at Echo Bar around 9. Let's have dinner then I'll bring you home before I go there. Is that okay?"

"Brennan and friends?" Violet asked.

"Yes. Brennan just got back this morning. He wants to meet with us. And now I'm so curious. I will ask him about Ember. Maybe I'll get a different story.  I promise I won't laugh with them and stop them making a joke out of her."

They passed by Clover's car and saw him fastening Ember's seatbelt and he kissed her nose.

———————
After dinner, Fern immediately went to a private room in Echo Bar where his friends were already having a drinking session.  He was caught in traffic driving back because Violet's house is a bit far and it's Friday.

After an hour of chatting, eating, and drinking, he finally had the chance to sit beside Brennan, the star of the night.

"Dude, how was your recent travel to London? Is our little Miss Wildcat coming back, finally?"

"First, she's mine. Not 'our'. Second, don't call her a wildcat. Third, I will when she comes back. I don't know but she plans to get back to their company as soon as possible."

"So what's your plan with your little lover at home?" Fern cautiously asked.

Some of their friends started listening.

"I kicked her out last week." Brennan poured himself some alcohol.

"What, did she cheat?" Trent who was on the couch on Brennan's other side joked.

"What? No!" Brennan answered irritably, "Meadows will be back next month, need to clean up."

He looked at Fern suspiciously and asked, "What's the matter with you? What's with these questions?"

"Well, I saw her yesterday near Meadow's company."

"Maybe she's looking for work. As an orphan, she needs to sustain herself since nobody else can support her. Why do you think she sticks with me like a parasite?" Brennan dismissed the slightest thought that maybe Ember and Meadow knew each other.

Ember grew up in St Jerome Innocents Orphanage. But being an intelligent child, she was sponsored up to college under a philanthropist's scholarship program. She met Brennan at the university when he gave a speech as a homecoming alumni. She pursued him, for a year, after graduating before she stopped working and lived with him for three years.

"Hmmm... well it's good that you will both live your lives. It's time for you both to be happy."

"What do you mean?" Brennan who was about to drink again, asked.

"She's already with another man. Now that I think about it, she has a type. The guy has the same aura as you. Hmmm, wait, no. He's gentle, unlike you though. But the physique... the height... Yeah."

"Ah...?" A series of reactions from friends sounded off.

"Let's search to be sure, what's her handle? Wait, were you even connected to her?" Luke, another friend, asked.

"No, do you think a person like her has a social life?" Brennan answered irritably.

Luke, who was active on Insta, searched for Ember's profile.

"I think it's this 'Ember.Glows'. This is her, right?" Luke showed Fern who was nearer to him.

"Yeah, that's them," Fern confirmed then gave the cell phone back.

Ember's profile is not private. Most of the people in the room searched and looked at their own apps.

Even Fern who was right beside Brennan searched and found it immediately.

Brennan was so surprised when he saw Ember's profile pic hugging another man that he snatched the phone directly from Fern.

A moment of silence befell them.

"It only means one thing, she's still capable of seduction," Brennan said while slandering her in his heart.

But his friends think something is amiss with this reaction.

On the other hand, Clover went on a quick web search for a beach resort as requested by Ember. They always have an extra set of casual clothes in the trunk. Any other necessities, even swimsuits can be bought in the resort. They decided to have a satisfying intimate cultivation of feelings and all restraints of Clover were let loose.

The next day, Clover woke up with Ember having a slight fever. Again.

While fiddling with her slender fingers, he decided to nurture her health, make her healthier and heavier.