bChapter /bb319 /b

    bSkr /bpursed her blips/bb. /bb“/bIt’s me, Skrb. /bYour friend called and asked me to take you home. Let’s bgo/bb./bb” /bbShe /bbreached /bbout /bbto /bbhelp /bbYose/b! bup/bb. /b

    Howeverb, /bthe drunken man pushed her away, eyeing her warily. “Don’t touch me. Skr will get mad if she finds out!” bYosef /bslurred.

    “She won’tb, /btrust me,” Skr replied gently.

    “Yes, she will!” Yosef insisted.

    Their eyes met. Yosef’s gaze was stubborn, his lips pressed into a tight line. Seeing this, Skr didn’t want to argue with a drunken man, so she softened her voice. “I’m your wife. Will you be a good boy ande with me?”

    Yosef squinted at her, slurring, “What proof do you have that you’re my Skr?”

    Her tone turned icy, and her face hardened. “Yosef, the way you’re acting makes me wonder if you’re actually drunk or just putting on a showi./ii” /i

    Yosef immediately quieted down. “Oh, you’re Skr.”

    ‘Do I need to scold him to make him behave?‘ she thought, feeling weary.

    Skr then sighed. “Let’s go.”

    Surprisingly cooperative, Yosef followed her without another word.

    Skr took Yosef to a nearby hotel, checked him in using her ID, and helped him up to the room. Sheid him on the bed, removed his shoes, and gently wiped his face with a warm, wet towel.

    After tidying him and seeing he was okay, Skr figured her job was done. Hence, she quietly prepared to leave.

    However, Yosef, as if sensing she was about to leave, staggered down and wrapped his arms around her from behind. Slurring his words, he mumbled into her hair, “Skr, please don’t go…”

    Skr struggled a bit. “Let me go, I need to get some rest.”

    “You can rest here,” he dered stubbornly, his arms like an iron band around her waist, giving her no chance to escape. Without warning, he swept her up in a bridal–style carry.

    Heid Skr gently on the bed, then climbed on top of her, holding her tightly in his embrace, refusing to let go. Yosef slurred, “Skr, why are you seeing someone else?”

    Skr frowned. “Seeing who? What nonsense are you spouting now?” She tried to break free, but his arms were like steel bars. No matter how hard she pushed, he wouldn’t budge.

    Yosef insisted, his words thick with alcohol, “Skr, don’t choose him. He’s no good for you!”

    “What are you talking about?” Skr blurted out, utterly confused.

    She had no idea what he was talking about. But after a moment’s thought, her mind inexplicably drifted to that incident with

    bMon/b, 25 Aug Mo

    bChapter /bb319 /b

    bCould /bbhe /bbhave /bbgone /bbto /bbthe /bbar bto /bbdrown his /bsorrows because bof /bbthat/bb?/b” bshe /bbwondered/b.

    The bmore /bbSkr /bbthought /bbabout /bbit/bb, /bthe more usible it seemedb–/bbuntil /bshe remembered bYosef’s /bbusual /bbposure/b. bHowever/b, she bcouldn’t /bbelieve it. She told herself. ‘Someone as cold and detached as him wouldn’t get bdrunk /bbout /bbof /bjealousyb, /bbnot /bbeven for /bbme/bb, /b

    b‘/bbHe must /bhave been upset about something else, which is why he drank so much.”

    Between the two possibilities, Yosef getting drunk out of jealousy over her, or him being troubled by something belse/b, bSkr /bbwas /bmore inclined to think it was thetter.

    After allb, /beven if the world ended, Yosef probably wouldn’t even take such a matter seriously. ‘What could shake him like bthis/b?”

    Both exnations seemed possible at first, yet neither fit.

    Skr fumed inwardly. She shoved Yosef, but the man was too heavy. He didn’t even budge.

    ‘I can’t even leave, Skr thought. Her brow furrowed in frustration. ‘And he’s too drunk to make sense.‘ She was dying of frustration.

    Eventually, somehow, she drifted off to sleep. As Skr closed her eyes, Yosef, lying beside her, opened his….

    Under the dim light, his dark eyes lingered on Skr’s radiant face without restraint. He reached out and brushed his fingers across her cheek. Yosef whispered hoarsely, “Skr…” softly calling her name again and again.

    He pulled her closer, her soft body molding against his. With a contented smile, Yosef lowered his head until their foreheads touched, and, perfectly at peace, drifted off to sleep.

    AD

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