3: 3
Carmen watched me without a word, a flicker of triumph in her eyes. The wronged look vanished in an instant, replaced by a coaxing, patient smile.
"There now, Mona. That slap just now, I'll chalk it up to you losing your temper. I won't hold it against you. Look how good Stanley is to you. Sweet-tempered, thoughtful, warming up a basin of hot water just so you could soak your feet on a freezing day like this. A good man like that, you won't find anywhere else."
As she spoke she tugged at Stanley's sleeve and shot him a look.
Stanley caught it at once. Slowly he loosened his arm from around Carmen and dug a small red velvet box out of his pocket.
He cradled the box in both hands, dropped to one knee on the still-damp floor, and eased it open bit by bit. Inside sat a tiny diamond ring.
"Mona, I know a proposal right now is rushed, but I really can't wait any longer! I don't care what anyone calls me. I just want the right to stand at your side!"
"Even if you had nothing left, I'd hand over every bit of pocket money I've saved from my part-time jobs! From now on your money is our money, and I'll manage it for you. I'll never let you suffer even a little again. Please, marry me!"
The second the words left his mouth, the floating comments overhead scrolled by in a frenzy.
【Damn! Do NOT say yes—he bought that ring with your bestie's money, just to lock you down. The moment you nod, Stan comes charging up with a knife and hacks you alive!】
【Your ex is already on his way up the stairs. That thing is a death sentence. Run, girl, run.】
【These two work so well together, one playing nice, one playing hard, all to corner her into a dead end.】
I stared at the ring, and instead of any rush of feeling, all I got was a pang of pure heartache over money.
The diamond was so small you could barely see it, and he actually thought this thing would reel in my ten million in savings. Wishful thinking, plain and simple.
Seeing me stay quiet, Stanley assumed I was turning up my nose at it.
"Mona, I know I've got no money right now. This ring really is too small. It's not fair to you. But trust me, I'll work myself to the bone and I'll buy you a huge diamond someday, I swear!"
I looked coldly at Stanley kneeling on the floor, then at Carmen standing beside him, her face full of expectation.
I put out two fingers and pinched up the ring with open distaste, eyeing the pathetic little stone on it, smaller than the chip diamonds I used for my nails, and inwardly rolled my eyes.
"Save it..." I muttered, already refusing him, my hand darting out to grab his arm, meaning to haul him up off the floor at once and shove this piece of junk back into his hand so I'd be clear of the whole thing.
But the words of refusal never made it out.
"Bang——!"
The dorm door was kicked open from outside, the panel slamming into the wall with a deafening crash.
I flinched all over and turned to look.
Stan stood in the doorway, the cold of the outside clinging to him, his eyes bloodshot, like a beast pushed to the brink of fury.
And right then, Stanley was on one knee before me, gazing up at me with all his tenderness.
And I had that engagement ring pinched in one hand, while the other gripped Stanley's arm.
To his blood-red eyes, the whole picture looked exactly like me taking the ring in delight, tenderly helping up the man whose proposal I'd just accepted.
