Chapter 5 Part 5

"Good morning, Noah, Mrs. Rose," Joe greeted sweetly.

"Morning," Noah replied casually. "Where's my wife?"

"Ariel's inside. She hasn't finished showering yet," Joe answered.

Mrs. Rose was once again infuriated by her daughter-in-law's behavior. How dare Ariel let another man spend the night in her house while she was still legally married to Noah?

"Let's go home, Noah!" Mrs. Rose grabbed his arm.

"Mom..." Noah gently pulled his arm away. "You should go home first. I'm waiting for Ariel. She needs to come home with me," he said firmly.

"My God, Noah! I just don't understand your logic anymore. Ariel is not a decent woman. Why are you still defending her? Don't let love trample your dignity like this!" Mrs. Rose pleaded desperately with her son.

But Noah remained stubborn. No amount of persuasion would change his mind.

"Excuse me. Could you move? I want to come in," Noah said to Joe, who was still standing in the doorway.

Joe refused to budge, blocking Noah from entering.

Noah forced his way in, brushing past Joe's shoulder. Mrs. Rose followed him inside Ariel's house.

"Ariel, sweetheart! I'm here!" Noah called out.

He walked straight to Ariel's room.

"Auntie, look at your son! It's pathetic. Ariel clearly loves me, but he still insists on keeping her," Joe laughed mockingly in front of Mrs. Rose, ridiculing Noah's persistence.

Mrs. Rose didn't flinch. Her breathing grew heavier. She had tried everything to persuade Noah-manipulation, reasoning, begging-but none of it had worked.

"It's fine if Noah wants to keep Ariel," Joe said nonchalantly. "She and I will still be together anyway."

Mrs. Rose said nothing. She was done arguing, doing her best to keep her blood pressure in check.

Inside the room, Noah took in the disheveled mess. A silver triangle-shaped thread lay on the floor near the bed-clearly Joe's. The white wedding dress Ariel had worn just days before lay crumpled nearby.

"So, Ariel and Joe... last night?" Noah took a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

Just then, Ariel stepped out of the bathroom, her hair still damp but dressed casually.

"You! Since when have you been here?" she asked nonchalantly.

"Just got here. You read my text last night, right?" Noah gave her a warm smile.

"No," she replied bluntly.

"Oh. Well, I came to pick you up, sweetheart." Noah reached for her waist, pulling her into his arms.

Their eyes met. Noah's gaze was calm, his smile sincere.

"Let's go home. You're my responsibility now," he said gently.

Ariel pushed against his chest, breaking the embrace.

"I'm not going back! Your mother kicked me out!" she protested. Though part of her wanted to go with Noah-it would make her plan easier-she still acted aloof, wanting to see how desperate he would become.

"Mom's downstairs. She came to pick you up too. That means she's forgiven you," Noah explained.

"Yeah, right. She probably just wants to insult me again like last night. I'm not going!" Ariel insisted.

"Please... trust me. She won't insult you again," Noah pleaded.

"You're sure about this, Noah? You won't regret it?" Ariel asked, testing him.

"I'm sure, Ariel," he replied confidently.

"Fine. But don't blame me for what happens next," Ariel said.

Noah nodded in resignation and waited while Ariel got ready. He returned to the living room, where Joe and Mrs. Rose were still seated.

"Still here, Joe? I think it's time you left. My wife's coming home with me," Noah said calmly. He remained polite, despite everything.

"What if I don't want to leave?" Joe said, baiting him once more.

"That's up to you. But Ariel's leaving with me. She's not staying here," Noah replied coolly.

Mrs. Rose remained silent. Not a single word escaped her lips.

"You should go, Joe," Ariel said, entering the room. "He won't leave unless I go with him."

Noah wrapped an arm around Ariel's waist, showing Joe who she belonged to.

"You heard her. My wife asked you to leave," Noah said proudly.

Mrs. Rose looked annoyed. Fearing a rise in her blood pressure, she decided to head home early.

"Fine, whatever," Joe sneered.

But as he reached the door, Joe paused, then turned to face them again.

"Noah... my seed is already inside Ariel. Hahaha. I wonder how it'll turn out-when two seeds mix?" Joe laughed triumphantly, taunting Noah for being second.

Noah's hand clenched tightly, but he kept smiling.

"It's fine. We'll see later which seed takes root," Noah said coolly. "Come on, sweetheart, let's go."

Joe fumed-once again, he had failed to provoke Noah.

Noah confidently scooped Ariel into his arms, carrying her out of the house, determined to bring her home.

"This man is insane," Ariel fumed internally. "What will it take to break him? To see him cry blood?" She was beginning to doubt herself-afraid she might fail in her mission to crush Noah emotionally. She wanted him shattered-heartbroken, maybe even driven to madness like his mother.

"Maybe I need to be more brutal. Whatever happens, I must not falter. You can do this, Ariel," she told herself. "If not me, then who?"

Now inside the car, Noah occasionally glanced at Ariel-the woman who had made him fall in love so fast, and in just as little time, managed to devastate him.

"The real game is about to begin, sweetheart. Get ready..." Noah thought, smirking to himself.