CHAPTER 219: CELEBRATION [2]

While Coco was conversing with the merchant, on the other side of the room, three particular mediators were talking to each other.

The three of them were talking about their favorite time of the day at first, but then, the topic shifted to their spouses being caring, loving, and thoughtful towards them— always ready to be there whenever they need them.

Although, even though one of the three went quiet when the topic shifted, he still stayed to listen.

"I don’t have to worry about my wife not taking care of me because she would always wait for me in the staff room." Joachim sighed out with a small smile on his face, "In fact, I’m the one who’s worried because she seems tired lately."

Zaque hummed softly and nodded his head. "I can understand.. Coco has been the same as well. All she does is work. It’s concerning."

"Now that you mention it, she wakes up early in the morning to go out of the village and comes back a little late sometimes." Joachim agreed with Zaque’s statement, his eyebrows furrowing.

"There were days when she would come back heavily injured and would still insist on working." The pink haired mediator said, sighing weakly as he recalled those days.

Heiren and Zaque grew stiff, their eyebrows furrowing in worry as they remembered the time when they had to treat Coco’s wounds on her back, forcing her to stay still because she wouldn’t sit still and get herself treated.

"When she was first injured, my sister rushed inside the staff room and she was panicking." Joachim shook his head as he recalled Jacques’ panic stricken state, "I couldn’t understand what she was saying at first so I was shocked when she told me that Coco was hurt."

"If it was the first time she got hurt.. The blame was on me." Zaque stated bluntly and raised a hand to rub his neck awkwardly, "I asked her to bring me with her."

Heiren’s eyes went wide and he turned to Zaque, an incredulous look on his face.

"She refused me a couple of times before she agreed to bring me." Zaque continued telling them with a guilty expression, "She was protecting me the whole time we were out and didn’t say anything about it."

Joachim’s expression softened, his eyes catching the way the red haired mediator looked down on the floor like a kid caught red handed stealing a candy.

"She asked me if I was okay and didn’t even say anything about her injuries.. I only found out about it through one of the loudmouths near our home." Zaque sighed deeply, his heart throbbing when he recalled how beat up Coco looked that day.

"She must have stayed quiet about it because she didn’t want to worry you." Joachim said, chuckling under his breath.

"Yeah.. Probably." Zaque nodded his head, going along with what the other mediator thought.

Though.. To be honest, I think the reason why she didn’t say anything was because she doesn’t care about what I think. Zaque thought, his lips forming a straight line as his gaze darted on the floor.

It has always been like that ever since Coco arrived in their lives, not saying anything about herself except for her name and how she possessed their former wife’s body.

She’s keeping us at an arm’s length. Zaque added to his previous train of thoughts, his heart beating painfully.

Even though she had told them who she really was, he felt like he was still at the farthest of Coco’s social circles— having seen how she treats Jacques and her other friends.

To be honest, she looked like she was more close to the village merchant than to him—

"Are you three having fun?" Speak of the devil, the said merchant was making her way towards them, her cheeks dusted with color, with Coco getting dragged by the wrist behind her,

"Quite so." Joachim answered, turning around to greet his wife with a bright smile, "How about you two?"

"Quite so." Coco said, echoing Joachim’s words as she grumbled, "Your wife is already tipsy. She kept taking a sip from her drink. I suggest taking her to the side."

Joachim giggled at that and took his wife’s hand away from Coco’s wrist. "I can just have her stick with me. If I take her to the side now, I don’t think I will be able to come back because she’s very stubborn when it comes to being near me."

"Woah, PDA." Coco murmured, her eyes gaze on Joachim’s hand on his wife’s hand, their fingers intertwined together, "But okay, just don’t let her drink anymore, okay?"

"Fine, fine.. But it seems that my wife enjoyed this celebration more than me." Joachim laughed, planting a kiss on his wife’s flushed cheek, "She’ll come to regret showing this side of hers to you tomorrow morning, Coco."

"Why would she?" Coco raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, "There’s nothing wrong to let loose every once in a while, you know?"

Joachim could only smile and shake his head. "I’m so happy that you’re my friend now."

"Me, too—" Coco stopped talking when suddenly, she felt someone grab her hand, the words dying in her mouth as her conversation with her friend came to an abrupt halt.

She spun her head around, her eyes landing on a particular red haired mediator.

"What’s wrong?" Coco asked as she gazed at the mediator who looked like he was pouting, his lower lip protruding in a childish display with his puffed out— an expression that someone wouldn’t see a grown man doing.

Coco couldn’t help, but raise an eyebrow at his expression, her confusion at being interrupted temporarily replaced by amusement.

"It looks like your husbands wants to spend time with you." Joachim said with a teasing glint in his gaze and an amused tone in his voice, "They did dress up beautifully for you, Coco."

"I also want to celebrate with her, too." Zaque mumbled.