The Mindless Man's Paradise

Chapter thirty-nine

Our scheduled date arrived quicker than expected.

  Before we knew it, we were pulling on clothes, mounting our bikes, and making our way to the Restaurant.

  Parking our bikes with the many others, we entered the romantic atmosphere, and cringed at the sight of the cameras that lined the inner and outer premise.

  We would be heavily guarding our conversation at this place. But we would still have to act like we were having a wonderful time, wouldn’t we?

  We were lead to a table with a camera pointing directly at us, as if it was purposeful. But who knows, maybe it was.

  We ordered our drinks and our food almost immediately, just wanting to leave as soon as possible.

  Looking around, practically every other table was filled with other Soul Mates around our age. They were eating, awkwardly talking to one another, obviously struggling to keep a steady flow of conversation.

  Cyrus and I strained to do so as well. Every other sentence, I had to stop myself from saying his name. We had to talk about stupid things like what our favorite colors were, or how nice the décor was.

  The whole place was filled with a constant buzz of chatter, and I was glad our food arrived when it did, because I needed a moment to come up with a couple more safe conversation starters.

 As I delicately ate my pasta, I couldn’t help but notice another pair of Soul Mates walk in. I couldn’t see the boy very well, but I could see the girl. She was smiling, and her coppery red hair fell flawlessly in ringlets down her back. Freckles covered her face, and her emerald green eyes were striking.

  Her Soul Mate pulled her chair for her to sit down, facing away from me, and once she did, he pushed it in.

  Even then, chivalry wasn’t dead. I smiled to myself at the thought.

  Not that Cyrus wasn’t a catch or anything, but it was just nice to see that some Soul Mates liked each other a little bit, at least.

  When the boy turned around to sit in his seat, I realized it wasn’t just any boy.

  The reddish-brown hair. The freckles. The green eyes.

  It was the Boy.

  The Boy I had betrayed. The Boy I had sent to be tortured, knowing what they would do to him.

  My insides squirmed as I remembered his last words to me.

  “I would never choose a Soul Mate like you, Girl! You are disgusting!”

  His words echoed in my brain. I could perfectly remember his face as if it was only yesterday. His expression was contorted with rage, as his body thrashed, attempting to free itself of SHQ official’s grip.

  Apparently my expression of shock was obvious, because Cyrus asked me if I was alright.

  Immediately I knew, no. No I was not alright.

  If the Boy spotted me, I was in deep doo doo. I remembered his pure, unadulterated fury that lay behind his eyes on that night. I remembered it all too well, and I knew it would only be worse if he spotted me.

  I knew if his gaze fell upon me for an instant, he wouldn’t hesitate to pounce.

  I moved my hand to block my face from his view.

  He was sitting but twenty feet away, and the effort seemed futile.

  “What is it?” Cyrus whispered.