Lover's Deceive

Chapter 10: Surprise! NOT.

“It’s shopping time!!!” Rita shrieked loudly, her high pitched voice breaking my eardrums instantly. My instincts kicked in – cupping my hands over my ears eventhough the fully-filled shopping bags swung vigorously beside me as I did so, constantly hitting my shoulders without a hint of mercy. 

“Correction, it should be ‘Even more shopping’,” I interjected her jubilant thoughts. We were heading nowhere in the mall. Rita couldn’t stop walking around in circles whereas I was carrying huge loads of bags; including Rita’s recently purchased products. I had been following her around the mall for four hours straight and I felt like a dying woman. Rita, on the other hand, hopped and shrieked whenever she was too close to a shop. 

“Rita, I need to rest. Please stop.” I begged sincerely, hoping she would say ‘yes’. But to my utter disappointment, she replied a quick ‘No’. Well, that certainly had my hopes down. 

“Just follow me! This will be the last shop we’re going to. And I assure you, you do not want to miss this,” She said with a glint of cheekiness in her eyes as she continued walking in quicker pace. It was hard keeping up with her. For no reason, she would speed up as if a murderer was chasing her and the next thing you know, you find yourself knocking into someone’s back. Her back, to be specific. 

Worst case scenario? – Falling flat on your butt. 

I huffed loudly when she made another abrupt stop which almost caused me to knock into her – for the umpteenth time. “Woman, I swear if you were to stop in front of me again for no bloody reason, I’m going to dump these bags on your head,” I warned her in my mind, knowing clearly she could not hear my thoughts. 

“We’re here!” She grinned excitedly, clasping her hands together as she looked at the shop opposite her. Blood drained from my face as I took a quick glance at the shop. 

Rita was enjoying the view of half-naked mannequins in lacy lingerie. I gaped and shook my head when Rita persuaded me in to go in. 

“Come on! It’ll be fun!” She whined, dragging me inside. I planted both my feet to the ground and refused to move. “Summer, help me out! Please?” 

“Are you insane?” I asked, looking at her in disbelief. “You expect me to go in there with you? Are you out of your mind, Rita? Of all the places we could go to, you brought me to a freakin’ lingerie shop?!” I half yelled, still taken aback by her stunt. What the heck was she thinking? 

“Philip said we were going to do the ‘thing’ tonight, and I want to make it special. So please help me!” She blurted, causing my jaw to drop. “It will be our first time –” 

“Rita,” I interrupted but she continued blabbering on her thoughts about their special night. “Rita, stop it before I purge my lunch on the floor.” I warned her but was cut off by another one of her statements.

“You and Kane were like a couple and I thought you two would maybe end up together one night and well, what are friends for?” She concluded and smiled at my nonplussed facial expression. Either I was having hearing problems, or what she said was no joke at all.

“NO!” I blurted, flabbergasted. “What the heck were you thinking?”

“Wait, so you’re telling me that you two aren’t a couple?” She asked quizzically, her eyebrows knotted into a scowl. I looked at her confusingly, unable to grasp what she just asked.

“What are you talking about?” I looked at her in awe. What was she thinking? What else was everybody thinking? Was that why people kept casting me weird glancing whenever I was with Kane? Was that the reason why Dan kissed me in that – putrid room?