Chapter 2 Why me

Xavier widened his eyes as he saw Nadira, who was shrieking

in pain when suddenly scalding soup, for some reason, splashed onto her,

drenching her wedding dress, which now looked disheveled. Several waitstaff

rushed over to her, and there were family members who seemed panicked and were

also shouting, making the atmosphere slightly chaotic.

"What is she doing?" Anita asked, making Xavier

shrug nonchalantly.

"I don't know, just ignore it. Right now, let's find a

seat. You must be hungry, right? I'll get some food for you," Xavier said,

causing Anita, who was still focused on Nadira and the people around her, to

nod in agreement.

However, just as Xavier was about to pull Anita away, he was

suddenly blocked by her father, making Xavier visibly frustrated. After Nenda

had blocked his way earlier, now it seemed Remon was going to make things

difficult for him.

"Don't you see that your wife is currently in distress?

Quickly, see what's happening to her and deal with the situation," Remon

said, causing Xavier to look at his father-in-law with a questioning

expression.

"Why me? Aren't there waitstaff and other family

members there already? They can take care of her, right? Besides, she's not a

child. She surely knows what to do," Xavier replied casually, making Remon

look at his son with a cold gaze.

"Right now, Nadira is your responsibility. If you

understand the meaning of responsibility as a man, take care of your wife

properly. Don't ever embarrass our family with your ungentlemanly

behavior," Remon said, further agitating Xavier's anger.

"And I also have to take care of my wife here. Anita

hasn't even had a chance to sit down and eat, and I can't just neglect her to

attend to others. There are plenty of people paying attention to them, while

Anita here is relying on me," Xavier said, choosing to walk away from

Remon. However, Remon couldn't be underestimated by Xavier. Remon immediately

grabbed Xavier's shoulder firmly.

"Go, see Nadira right now, before I do something that

will make you ashamed," Remon said, while looking at Anita who remained

silent. If Anita could maintain her composure when facing Nenda earlier, she

was completely unaccustomed to dealing with Remon, especially with his hateful

gaze. This eventually led Anita to release Xavier's hand, causing Xavier to

look at her with displeasure.

"I'll go see Nadira, you can find a seat and get your

own food. Besides, she looks like she's in distress," Anita said while

looking down. After that, she walked away, leaving Xavier and Remon behind, causing

Xavier to look at his father disapprovingly.

"Actually, what do you want from us? I followed your

wishes to marry that woman. Shouldn't you be satisfied with what I've done and

not bother me and Anita anymore?" Xavier said, making Remon respond with a

stern gaze.

"Don't jump to conclusions. Do you think your duty is

done just by marrying like this? You need to be a real husband if you don't

want your grandmother to separate you from Anita. Your father has been kind

enough not to interfere in your first marriage. As long as you can treat Nadira

as you treat Anita, because right now, Nadira is insurance for your first

marriage. Keep that in mind," Remon said, finally leaving Xavier who

remained silent with swirling emotions before clenching his fists tightly.

"So, she's just a woman who serves as insurance for my

marriage with Anita. Alright, if that's what you all think, I'll make the most

of my insurance," Xavier said, then turned with a hardened jaw and

approached the crowd of people who were still trying to help Nadira. They

immediately moved aside when they saw Xavier approaching, and without

hesitation, he firmly took Nadira's hand, causing Nadira, who was already in

pain, to widen her eyes.

"Where are you taking me? Can you walk slower? I'm in pain,"

Nadira said. However, it seemed that Xavier had no intention of showing any

compassion to the woman labeled as insurance by Remon.

"Please, stop. I can walk on my own," Nadira said

again, but once again, Xavier didn't listen, until Nadira finally felt that her

legs were not strong enough to be dragged like this by her husband. Nadira

immediately released Xavier's grip and pushed him away firmly.

"Stop if you have no intention of helping me. It's

better not to do anything. I can handle myself," Nadira said, leaving

Xavier laughing out loud. At that moment, Nadira could only remain silent.

"Handle yourself, if you can handle yourself. Why do

they keep telling me to take care of you? Shouldn't you just hide in the corner

as if you're invisible to me and everyone else?" Xavier said, making

Nadira speechless. Xavier then looked at the disheveled dress before pulling

Nadira's wrist again. This time, Nadira could only endure her pain without

saying a word or struggling. Xavier brought Nadira to a room he had used

earlier when he was getting ready.

"Take off the dress," Xavier said, causing Nadira

to widen her eyes.

"Don't you need help right now? I've been kind enough

to give you a little attention, so take off the dress now," Xavier said

again, making Nadira shake her head.

"No need, I can handle it myself, so you better go back

to the event outside," Nadira said, making Xavier fold his arms, looking

sternly at his second wife.

"Yes, and then you'll go create problems for Anita

again, won't you? If I go out after dragging you like this, my family will

target Anita. So, at least act as you should as my wife," Xavier said.

After that, he turned to a corner of the room where there was a wardrobe.

Xavier immediately opened each drawer of the wardrobe, leaving Nadira silent,

watching the upright figure of the man who had now become her husband. Then,

Xavier walked back with a box of medicine in his hand and threw it towards the

side of the bed where Nadira was.

"I don't care what you're going to do now. Just look at

the wounds on your body and treat them. I'll just be here watching after making

sure everything is okay. You can do whatever you want; that's all I want to

make sure of," Xavier said, making Nadira feel like she was just a tool to

Xavier.

"Why hurry to undress? Do you think I'll be tempted by

your body? Forget your dirty thoughts," Xavier said again, finally making

Nadira reluctantly take off the wedding dress that still clung to her body.

Xavier only stared at her with a cold gaze, as if he were

truly not interested at all. Nadira felt forced to do it. If not, she would be

stuck in the suffocating room with Xavier for even longer. Leaving only her

underwear hugging her body, Nadira was somewhat surprised when she saw her

thighs, which turned out to be far worse than she had imagined.

Nadira thought her thighs would just be red from the hot

soup, but the injury was more severe. Her skin was blistered, and it made

Nadira gasp, just as Xavier reacted the same way. Xavier had thought the thick

wedding dress would somewhat reduce the heat from the soup, but it didn't seem

to work, judging by Nadira's severely reddened and blistered thighs.

"Clean the wound first. It seems this medicine alone

won't be enough for the burns. I'll call the doctor right away," Xavier

said, albeit in his cold tone. But for some reason, seeing the injury, Xavier

felt a bit of sympathy. Yes, it was just a matter of his humanity, nothing

more, Xavier thought. Finally, he reached for his phone and called the Chandrawinata

family's personal doctor to come immediately.

After that, Xavier turned back to look at Nadira, who was

slowly opening the medicine box. As Xavier had said, she needed to clean it up

before waiting for the doctor to arrive. Xavier didn't know what he was

thinking right now.

As his gaze shifted away from the wound, he looked at

Nadira's face, which occasionally winced as she cleaned her injury. Her face

appeared petite with round eyes framed by thick and long eyelashes. Her small

nose and red lips made Xavier feel like this was the first time he had paid

such close attention to his second wife. Next, his eyes shifted to other parts

of her body, where Nadira was only wearing underwear, revealing her petite

figure, which turned out not to be as small in certain areas.

This finally made Xavier turn around and glance around the

room before his gaze fell on a hanging bathrobe, which Xavier immediately

pulled.

"Put this on before the doctor arrives," Xavier

said, making Nadira look at the bathrobe that Xavier had thrown onto the bed.

Nadira hadn't thought about covering herself before. With a sense of

awkwardness, Nadira quickly put it on and continued to tend to her injured leg.

Finally, about 20 minutes later, the doctor arrived.

"Is it very chaotic outside?" Xavier asked, seeing

how Irfan looked rushed with sweat dampening the sides of his face.

"Yes, earlier your grandmother stopped me because I

suddenly appeared at your event. Even though when your grandmother invited me

before, I declined because there was an important surgery going on," Irfan

replied, making Xavier nod. Irfan was indeed one of Xavier's close friends and

also their family doctor.

"So why did you come now?" Xavier asked.

"Didn't you call me? Fortunately, the surgery had just

finished, and I could come here right away," Irfan replied.

"What did grandmother ask?" Xavier asked again.

"Yes, because they didn't know I would come, and they

guessed that my arrival was because you called me, and they thought something

bad must have happened," Irfan said, glancing at Nadira, who was still

observing them. Irfan immediately looked at Xavier with a questioning look.

"Yes, whatever you have in your mind is correct,"

Xavier replied, seemingly understanding his friend's gaze. Irfan must be asking

if that was his second wife.

"Alright then, I'll start treating her," Irfan

replied, then walked closer to Nadira, who looked somewhat awkward. Nadira was

the type of person who couldn't immediately accept strangers close to her.

"Where is the injury?" Irfan asked, making Nadira

finally pull up the bathrobe she was wearing slightly, revealing the blistered

wound on her thigh, which made Irfan immediately look at Xavier.

"What happened?" Irfan asked.

"Because of someone's carelessness on her wedding day,

she ruined it and injured herself. I don't know what she was thinking to spill

hot soup on herself," Xavier replied sarcastically, making Irfan look at

Nadira again.

"I didn't do it on purpose. Suddenly, the waiter who

was placing the hot soup lost balance, and then the soup splashed on me,"

Nadira replied, seemingly understanding the meaning of Irfan's gaze, making

Irfan smile and nod.

"Alright then. Has the wound been cleaned? Because

afterward, I have to apply medicine and ointment," Irfan said, making

Nadira nod diligently. Irfan treated Nadira's thigh, and Xavier continued to

watch his friend's movements.

"This will sting a bit, but you can handle it,

right?" Irfan asked, making Nadira nod.

"Come on, she's not a child who will cry in pain. She's

25 years old, she's an adult," Xavier interjected, interrupting the

conversation between Irfan and Nadira. This made Irfan look at him with a lazy

eye roll. Irfan knew that his friend was a cold and untouched man, but he

didn't expect that this cold attitude applied to his second wife. Although

Irfan knew the course of Xavier's marriage, he still couldn't believe how tough

his friend really was.

A few minutes later, Irfan had completed his task of

treating Nadira's wound.

"This is the oral medicine, antibiotics, and this is

the ointment. You must take them regularly if you want the wound to heal

quickly, and if this ointment isn't applied properly, I'm afraid the wound will

scar," explained Irfan, making Nadira nod her head.

"Yes, thank you, Doctor," Nadira said, and Irfan

nodded. After that, Irfan got up and approached Xavier again.

"Make sure your wife takes her medication properly

because it's crucial. The wound is quite severe," Irfan said, making

Xavier shrug casually.

"Alright, I'll see you later then. I need to talk to my

second wife first," Xavier said, making Irfan look at Nadira briefly, who

just stared at him with a blank expression before nodding and leaving Xavier

and Nadira. Xavier then approached Nadira.

"Did you hear what Irfan said, and I don't need to

remind you three times a day to take your medicine," Xavier said, making

Nadira pause for a moment.

"Of course, as you said, I'm not a child. I know when

it's time to take my medicine," Nadira replied, making Xavier look at her

with raised eyebrows. It seemed that his wife could now respond to his gaze,

unlike before when she appeared fearful. Was it because of the injury she

experienced or the accumulated frustration in her heart, Xavier thought,

finally giving her a slight smile.

"Good, then. Live peacefully and don't trouble me so

that I can maintain this marriage a little longer," Xavier said, then

turned to leave Nadira when her words stopped him once again.

"Why are you holding onto this marriage if you don't

want it?" Nadira asked, making Xavier pause before turning around and

looking sharply at Nadira.

"Because someone said that you are insurance for my

marriage with Anita, so be useful insurance for me. Don't expect any reward,

that's why you exist in my life. Don't dream of getting more from me. Isn't the

attention from my family alone already a big advantage for you?" Xavier

said, making Nadira fall silent. Xavier didn't care if Nadira would consider

his words cruel or anything; he was just expressing his feelings.

"Do you think I want this marriage either?" Nadira

said, making Xavier turn around to look at his wife again.

"Well, if you don't want this marriage, why didn't you

reject it yourself? Why did you have to be a part of my life? I sacrificed all

the happiness I had with Anita just because of you," Xavier said, making

Nadira clench her fists and get up from her seat.

"Do you think I didn't sacrifice my happiness? Do you

think you're the only one who had a happy life with your wife? Didn't you think

that I have my own life too? Alright, as you say, I'll live without burdening

you. I'll live as if I'm not in your life, but don't blame me if one day you

might need my help. Because at that time, even if you beg me, I won't be easy

to help you," Nadira said. She didn't know how much courage she had to

answer Xavier's words, which made Xavier stiffen his jaw and walk closer to

Nadira before gripping her shoulder.

"That will never happen. Do you think I would ever beg

you? It's just a dream," Xavier said.

Xavier then leaned closer to Nadira to whisper the cruel

words he was about to say when suddenly the bedroom door opened. They fell

silent, both looking at someone standing at the doorway, staring at them with a

puzzled expression. They remained silent, unsure of how to react, and Xavier

had no idea how to proceed.