Ariel busied herself in the kitchen so intently, oblivious to her ferocious chopping and the angry clanging of the pot on the stove as her mind was occupied with the memory of last night. Anna noticed the unusual fiery mode that Ariel was in. She was never one who would explode easily at anything. Halting her cleaning work, Anna placed her hand on Ariel and inquired, "Ariel, are you okay? I've never see you this angry before. What's going on?"
Ariel stopped what she was doing and sighed, but breathe out not a word.
"On my," Anna gasped, "Your eyes...did you manage to sleep last night? Were you crying?"
"I-I'm fine. No, I'm not...Oh, I don't know. I'm just so affected by-"
"Leon?" Anna finished her sentence. Ariel rubbed her left temple at the mention of his name.
"I understand. I don't like him being with that girl. She's a bad apple. You know how much I wished you were his -"
"Please, Anna," Ariel raised her palm to signal her to stop. "I've seen what kind of man he really is. Do you know how crazy he can go when he's drunk? I mean, sheesh! He's not in the right mind and he can be so scary, spewing out the most hateful words to me! Anyway, I'm near the end of my contract and I'll finally be free of his nonsense."
"You're not the only one who have seen him drunk and say the stupidest things," sighed Anna. "Is that why you're so angry?"
"Yup." Ariel sighed, "I'm a sucker when it comes to love. Fall in love with the wrong type of guys, get heartbroken. Especially now after we kissed -" She clasped her mouth with her hands swiftly, realising that she just carelessly let out a huge secret.
"You two kissed?" Anna beamed.
"Shh..." Ariel begged, lifting a finger to her lips.
"Tell me, tell me," the cleaner nudged her.
Knowing Anna was trustworthy, Ariel needed the weight to be lifted once more. She shared briefly the night on the rooftop with Leon at his parents' mansion and last night's mean drunken encounter. Instead of expecting a reaction of surprise, Anna was very calm. She pondered deeply before speaking.
"You know, Ariel. If you remember what I last said to you, see past Leon's philandering ways and meanness and there's an underlying sweetness in him. Though I may like to think that you two would be good together, I respect your wishes. It's not easy for any woman to date a famous celebrity and keep her sanity intact. That one serious girlfriend he used to have, that was the first and last time he was ever in love. Since she left, he was never the same, and that was the first time he turned to alcohol. I never saw him 'alive' until you came along. And your boy, I can see Leon is very fond of him."
Ariel was pricked in her heart at those words. She realised that like her, Leon's loss of someone he loved had changed him in a profound way. The growing hatred she felt for him was melting away slowly.
But why should I care?
She pinched herself.
Swallowing hard, she said, "I see, Anna. Thanks for sharing. Leon has Jasmine now so I'm sure he's happy now."
"Oh, don't mention that name!" Anna grimaced with hands raised. "Did you see what she did to the bathroom AGAIN?!"
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"Haha! Well done on your greatest act!" Arnold grinned from cheek to cheek, flashing the news of Leon's "latest squeeze" in the media from his laptop.
"Thanks to you, I go through this torture every darn day!" Leon seethed.
YOU ARE READING
365 Days with the Celebrity
RomanceAriel Lee has been stuck for years in a dead-end job as an assistant chef. Struggling to meet ends meet in a life of poverty while raising her young son whose father left them for another woman, their lives would soon change when she narrowly won a...
