Chapter 2 Jealous

Arvino's car rolled slowly into Naura's driveway. The dim garden lights reflected off the sleek black surface of his car, casting long, eerie shadows across the ground. Before he even had a chance to turn off the engine, the front door of the house swung open.

Naura ran out like an excited girl who had just seen her birthday present. Her long hair flowed freely, and her casual dress hung off her shoulders, deliberately showing just enough to seem fragile and seductive.

"Arvino!" she squealed with joy. "You actually came! I thought you'd listen to your wife for once."

Without waiting for permission, she wrapped her arms around him tightly. Her body pressed against his, her perfume immediately filling his senses.

He stood still for a moment before lightly returning her embrace. "Of course I came. I couldn't leave you scared and alone here, Naura. I know you're still not fully recovered from losing your parents..."

Naura looked up at him, her eyes shining. "I knew you wouldn't abandon me. You're all I have left now..."

Arvino met her gaze, hesitating briefly, then offered a faint smile. "Let's go inside. The night air's cold."

They entered the house. Naura looked thrilled. She told Arvino to sit down while she fetched him something to drink. Then she headed to her room, where she slipped out of her casual clothes and changed into a silk pink nightgown-thin, elegant, and intentionally tempting.

Before going back to the living room, Naura paused in front of the mirror, lifted her phone, and took a photo from an angle that highlighted her curves.

Her smile was sly. Without hesitation, she sent the photo to a contact labeled Isabella.

> Look at this, Isabella... Tonight, I'm sleeping with your husband.

---

Elsewhere, Isabella sat on her bed, her eyes swollen from crying. Her phone buzzed. She looked at the screen and froze when she saw the sender.

Naura.

With trembling fingers, she opened the message. A photo of Naura in her seductive nightgown filled the screen. Below it, a sentence that made her blood boil:

> Look at this, Isabella! Tonight, I'm sleeping with your husband!

Isabella didn't cry. Not like the night before. This time, her eyes stared blankly at the image-and then, she let out a bitter smile.

Her fingers danced across the screen.

> Enjoy your nights as a homewrecker.

She sent the message, then calmly placed the phone on the bedside table. But her heart? It was in turmoil-fractured, burning with a slow, steady fire.

---

Back at Naura's house, her phone buzzed. She chuckled softly as she read Isabella's reply. Then casually handed the screen to Arvino, who was still seated on the couch.

"Look, she replied," Naura said breezily.

Arvino read the message. His face darkened.

> Enjoy your nights as a homewrecker.

His jaw clenched with heat. He immediately picked up his own phone and dialed his wife's number.

"Isabella, can you watch your mouth for once?! Why do you always have to say such hurtful things? Naura is not a homewrecker, so stop accusing her!"

Isabella answered with a calm voice, icy and sharp.

"Oh? You don't like me calling your mistress a homewrecker? Isn't that exactly what she is-a seducer of another woman's husband?"

"Isabella, enough! Don't make this worse than it is. I hate how childish you're acting!"

"Childish?" Isabella's voice wavered slightly. "You know what hurts, Arvino? Not that you chose to sleep at another woman's house... but that you chose to protect her, not me."

Arvino fell silent, at a loss for words. But his pride wouldn't let him soften.

"I came here because she needed protection. This isn't about love or anything you're imagining."

Isabella let out a humorless scoff and ended the call without another word.

---

She tossed the phone onto the bed. Her fists clenched, her jaw set tight.

"You and that woman... you've both made me the victim of your selfish relationship," she muttered, her voice flat with fury.

Her footsteps pounded against the floor as she marched to her vanity. She opened the drawer and pulled out every wedding photo of her and Arvino. One by one, she tore them to pieces-no tears this time.

She had no tears left.

All that remained now... was vengeance.

---

Meanwhile, at Naura's house, the mood had shifted.

Arvino sat on the sofa, his face clouded with frustration. Naura approached and sat beside him, leaning against him sweetly.

"Forget her, Vin... She'll never understand you," Naura whispered as she rested her hand on his chest.

Arvino gently pushed her hand away. "That's enough, Naura. Don't do this. I came to be with you because you were scared, nothing more."

"But I need more than that, Arvino," Naura said with a trembling voice. "I've been alone for so long. Do you know what it feels like to lose everyone you love in a single night?"

Arvino closed his eyes. His head throbbed. His thoughts tangled into knots. He knew this was wrong. He knew his wife was at home, sad and alone. Yet here he was-under the same roof as another woman who drew closer with every breath.

---

Back in her room, Isabella stood on her balcony, gazing at the dark night sky. The wind blew her hair gently. She held her phone tightly and opened the gallery. Her eyes landed on one photo: Arvino smiling as he proposed to her.

The same face. But no longer the same man.

"I'll make sure you regret everything you did to me, Arvino..." she murmured, her voice ice-cold.