Chapter 33. Between A Mother and A Daughter
34 Chapter 33. Between A Mother and A Daughter
Olivia\'s pat on my shoulder restored my mind.
"Ah ... Good afternoon, madam," I said in reply.
"Come in, we can talk along the way," Camila said.
I was just about to refuse her offer since I wasn\'t interested in getting caught between them. "I\'m so ---"
"What are you waiting for? Come on." Olivia pushed me into the car impatiently.
She went inside and closed the car door while the chauffeur immediately returned to the driver\'s seat and drove our car, leaving Diamond College.
I sat in silence, trapped between Olivia and Camila. Okay, this is really awkward ... And worse, I\'m the only one who feels awkward here.
"Ethan, thank you for taking care of my daughter," Camila\'s voice broke our silence.
"You\'re welcome, madam."
"I hope you are willing to take care of her for the rest of her life," she continued with a smile.
I froze as I gave her an awkward smile after hearing her words.
"Mom, our relationship hasn\'t reached there yet," Olivia scowled. Her face turned red again.
"My daughter may look a bit fierce but she is actually very kind. I hope you can understand her temper," said Camila again.
A bit fierce she said? I thought maybe because she was her mother so she could say that. Olivia is really fierce, especially to men. She treated us like a virus that deserves to be exterminated from this world. I still remember when she returned my sweater a month ago, she looked like she wanted to challenge me for a duel, even Larry had thought that I would die that day. That\'s why I never thought that Camila was her mother since Camila looked so fragile and feminine while Olivia was a tomboy who was feared by all men. But after I accompanied her to look for Camila for two days, I could guessed her fierce attitude towards men because she often saw her father hurt Camila. That experiences created a rebellion within her and labelled all men the same as her father.
"Never mind, mom. I thought it was futile to begin with. Even if I tried to change, my image as a fierce woman could no longer disappear."
I glanced at Olivia and noticed her sad face with a bitter smile on her lips.
"Olivia, you shouldn\'t say things like that," Camila said, trying to encourage her. But Olivia\'s expression did not change.
"Do you want to change for yourself or for someone else?" I said suddenly.
"Of course it\'s for ..." She stole a glance at me.
I understood her gesture and sighed.
"If you want to change, do it for yourself. If you change just to attract someone\'s attention and that person does not give you the response you were hoping for, you will be disappointed."
Olivia looked down with a sad face as she thought my words were a gentle rejection.
"Then what should I do?"
"Be yourself. Using a mask just to be loved by the other is a stupid thing." Those words are actually also for me since I have two identities. But if I admit Ethan and Damian are the same person, it\'s the same as revealing my true identity as a demon. Let alone accepting me, even my status could turn into a fugitive. At least I want to find a way out before being honest with them, I know I can\'t possibly cover all of this forever.
Olivia\'s face turned red after hearing my words but she quickly looked down to cover it. "O-okay ..."
Camila\'s giggling sound interrupted us.
"I never thought my daughter would be better at choosing a man than me," she teased.
"Mommm !!!" Olivia pouted.
While I only could smile awkwardly once again as I realized it seemed I could not escape anymore from the love triangle between this mother and daughter.
----
04.54 PM
"Thank you for the ride," I said to Olivia who was standing in front of me.
"Are you sure you don\'t want to come with us? Isn\'t Damian also your friend?" Her disappointment was clearly seen on Olivia\'s face.
As I thought they were thinking of having a double date today. "I can\'t. I will get fired if I\'m late," I reasoned. Now I begin to hope that this system can give me a skill that makes me split into two.
"I have to leave now. See you later!"
My feet moved quickly, occasionally I looked behind me, making sure they didn\'t follow me. After entering the station, I changed my clothes and activated my incubus form in the toilet, then put my bag in the station locker after sending a message to Celia that I would be home late again.
Quickly, I walked to the Havana Cafe in the Acrine district. The door opened, my eyes shifted to Camila and Olivia who were sitting not far from the door. A cup of tea and a latte are already on their table.
\'Now, I have to face them as Damian,\' I thought as I took a deep breath.
I walked to their seats.
"Sorry for keep you waiting," I said.
Camila\'s smile immediately blossomed after seeing me, while Olivia\'s face turned sour. "It\'s you!" Olivia said, rising from her chair. Her eyes looked at me sharply like a lion ready to pounce on its prey.
"We meet again, Olivia," I replied casually. I\'m sure Olivia was shocked since she didn\'t expect that the person who slept with her mother and the person who bumped into her best friend was the same.
"Is there something wrong?" Camila asked.
I cast my gaze at Camila.
"It seems your daughter has a bad impression on me since our first meeting at the Diamond college," I explained.
Olivia was silent a moment while her brows furrowed, her eyes fixed on me.
"Did you come to meet Ethan that day?"
"Yeah."
"Why did you meet him at the college? Why didn\'t you meet him outside?" she asked again. It is surely strange since Damian is not Diamond College\'s student.
"We are busy and he works in the afternoon as well as me. So I was only able to see him at his college."
Olivia narrowed her eyes at me. "He let you meet him at college despite your profession? Are both of you really that close?"
I nodded.
"Yeah, you can say that."
Olivia sat on her chair and sighed in relief.
"That\'s good, I thought Ethan\'s friend was only Larry since they are always together," she muttered.
\'Wait! Didn\'t I already explain that Larry and I were just friends? Does she still think nonsense about our relationship? Do we look that bad? \'
"Damian, please sit down," Camila said.
I nodded and took a seat next to Camila.
Olivia cleared her throat.
"Did Ethan say anything about me?" She looked calmer now and I could catch her cheeks that were slightly flushed.
Pausing to think, some words that I could not say as Ethan to her yesterday crossed my head, so I wanted to take this opportunity to say it. I leaned my face closer to her and spoke in a soft voice.
"He said he admired you because you tried to protect your family and your friends. But he hoped you also didn\'t forget to protect and love yourself." After that I pulled my face away and could see her face getting even redder.
"Did he really say that?" she asked in disbelief.
"Why should I lie?"
Her smile blossomed, her face turned brighter. My smile and Camila\'s also developed after seeing her face. Olivia immediately cleared her throat once again and tried to regain her composure.
"Damian, even though you are Ethan\'s friend but if you dare make my mother cry I will make your life miserable," she threatened.
"Olivia!" Camila scolded, surprised by her daughter\'s sudden threat at me. Her face looked unhappy with her daughter\'s impoliteness.
But I answered her calmly. "Thank you for your warning. I will try my best not to disappoint her."
After hearing my answer, Olivia let out a breath of relief, finished the rest of her latte and rose from her chair.
"Then I\'ll excuse myself."
"Where are you going?" Camila asked in confusion.
"I want to go home early since I have to do my assignment. Beside this is your date, I don\'t want to bother you," Olivia said with a smile, then she walked toward the exit.
Camila turned her gaze to me.
"I hope you can forgive her."
"It\'s okay. I think it\'s normal since she\'s worried about you," I said, turning my eyes to her.
"How about your divorce?"
"Everything is going well. After attending the court several times I will officially divorce." A happy smile developed on her face as if this was her best solution.
"Is it really irreversible?" Divorce always reminds me of my father and mother.
She shook her head and smiled bitterly.
"My husband has been getting worse lately. Last night he made love on our living room sofa in front of me and Olivia."
I sighed and looked down.
"I\'m sorry to hear that."
She held my hand slowly and my eyes shifted to her again.
"Can we move to a private place?" Her eyes looked at me deeply as if she wanted to say something that was not described by words.
"Okay," I replied when I understood where she meant.