LEGALLY MARRIED TO MY EX (Episode 57)

                              EPISODE 57

"We have to talk this out today!" Joey said as he stood in Mandy's way. "I can't keep living like this. I can't be walking on eggshells in my own house. No! No way, I can't! And I won't! I refuse to deny myself adequate night rest. Sleeping soundly knowing something isn't right between me and someone, that's definitely impossible for me. So please Mandy! Help me sleep

peacefully!" Joey cried out as he moved left and right the same way Mandy was moving trying to find a way out. "I can't be at peace knowing I might have done something to upset someone I care about!" Joey screamed as he held Mandy by her shoulders to get her to stay in a position, tired of moving back and forth.

"Someone, you care about?" Mandy finally said as she stood, Joey's hands still on her shoulders. "Do you even know what it means to care about someone?" She asked. Her eyes moved over to Joey's hands which were glued firmly on her shoulders and then she looked up at Joey.

"I'm not taking them off!" Joey said showing strong resistance.

Mandy rolled her eyes. "You really want me to say it huh!"

"Yes! Heavens yes! Yes, I do, I crazily really do!"

"Okay. You asked for it."

Mandy took a walk to the couch and she leaned in. Joey followed her and he took a seat too, but he leaned forward. Mandy was relaxed, but Joey was tensed.

##############

"Hey, babe!" Tiffany said excitedly over the phone. "I miss you! I miss you! ! miss you!" She said repeatedly.

"I miss you too babe!" Jake said back, not with so much excitement as Tiffany

had said hers.

"Is everything okay over there?" Tiffany asked noticing the dullness in Jake's tone.

"Over here? Yh, everything is!" Jake said.

"Jay!" Tiffany called out. She wasn't buying his poorly marked lie.

"Alright fine! You don't make it easy to lie to you. Everything isn't fine! There has been a terrible slip." Jake said.

"What happened?" Tiffany asked. The excitement in her voice wasn't there anymore. It disappeared the very moment she sensed trouble in Jake's voice.

"Okay! Here is the thing." Jake said reducing the volume of his voice. "So the documents for our new business plan which we are to pitch into the investors tomorrow leaked."

"What! How?" Tiffany asked, feeling worried.

"I don't know! I really don't know! | don't how it happened, I don't know when it happened, I don't even know where it happened. No one except myself and two of the team members knew about this, it hasn't even been made public to entire team members. So I really don't know how it got leaked."

-you know who’s responsible. Right?😂😂

"How did you get the information?"

"I received an email not too long ago from the investors, they sent us the business plan. They said they couldn't trust us because our managerial team wasn't promising and is careless. That's me, babe, they are talking about me. But you that isn't true. You know I

 am the most careful person in the entire universe." Jake said getting tensed up.

"I know that babe, so you have to calm down. Getting all worked up isn't going to do anyone any good." Tiffany said trying to relax Jake's nerves. "How about you seek out new investors?" Tiffany suggested.

"That is like asking me to gulp down a hot cup of coffee in a second. There is no time babe. Where on Earth do I start searching for new investors from, it's as good as late. We can't afford to let this just go like that. We've invested millions into this project because we believed we would get investors to help us regain our expenses and even make tripled profits, this is such an outstanding business plan, and it would be so sad to watch it go down the drain just like that because of inadequate funding. I really don't know what to do babe! If we don't get investors before the end of today, we are going to run into debt. We already made a press release about the contract signing with the investors, l wonder what story the press would be publishing tomorrow. A contract deal, or our company plunging into bankruptcy." Jake said with a weary heart.

"It is going to be the former babe. Believe me." Tiffany said trying to sound comforting.

"I really want to believe you, I really do".

"Then do so! Have I ever been wrong about my hunch before?" Tiffany asked.

"No babe!"

"So trust me again this time."

The whole apartment looked like a circus. Costumes were scattered all over the place. It was a costume festival at Itaewon tonight, and Squad one received an Intel that Jake and his team members would be coming around. Not regarding how messed up the entire place looked it reeked of sweat, and overstayed snacks.

"What in the world is going on here?"

Angel yelled as she walked into the dumpster of a room.

"Lots of things!" Dudu replied as he scrambled to the other end of the couch trying to get a hold of the Spiderman costume which he noticed Allen had eyes on too. "Darn you and your swiftness," Dudu said to Allen who got them before you.

"Could you at least trash your leftovers,"

Angel begged as she gathered all the trash? 

"This place reeks, how do you guys even manage to sleep here!" She cried. "Hygiene! It's just one word, why is so hard for you to abide by." She questioned.

Angel had refused to stay in the same apartment with the boys when Ford suggested it. It was almost as if she saw this beforehand. The squad was finding it difficult to keep to the rule of keeping your identity a secret. They always had a face mask and a face cap on their face whenever they were outside or together, just like now. It wasn't easy to do this, it definitely wasn't. 

Last night, Ellen forgot about the whole rule and had walked out of the bathroom without his face covered, luckily for him no one was around to see him as they were all still unpacking in their rooms.

"You are going to make this mission fail if you fall sick! Everyone here is important and is highly needed, so if you don't want this mission to go into the gutters, stay clean! It's just for two days. Two days guys!" Angel pleaded.

"Okay, ma'am!" The guys all replied in unison. 

Angel actually sounded like a mom scolding her four overgrown babies and educating them on the benefits and need for hygiene.

"We have less than thirty minutes guys," Ford said as he stared at the clock on the wall. "But, before anything, let's clean up this place!" He commanded.

One need not be told, it was obvious Ford was the boss of this squad.

###########

The conversation had taken longer than usual but still, Joey and Mandy were just parading in circles. They were both saying lots of things but no one was saying anything at the same time.

They even had to go on a break, that was how energy-draining the seemingly endless discussion was.

"I think we should stop this now!" Joey said as they returned from their third break. "It's been..." Joey paused and he looked at the wall clock resting peacefully on the wall. "only heaven knows how many hours already and we still haven't said anything useful or reasonable."

"Is that what you think?" Mandy asked.

"No! No Mandy, it's what I know. If you had said anything important then I think you would have to repeat it because I didn't pick it up. This is stressing me, and if it's stressing me this way, I wonder how it's going to be for you." Joey said with his eyes fixed on Mandy's slowly protruding stomach.

"Get your eyes away!" Mandy yelled as she noticed where Joey was staring at.

"You see, this is exactly what I was talking about. You keep doing this thing you do."

Joey was lost. He was confused as to how someone knew what he was doing

and he didn't know about it. "What exactly? What is this thing I keep doing?"

"Pity!" Mandy exclaimed as she stood up from her seat. "Pity Joey! You keep feeling pity for me." She was pacingaround the room as she spoke. "Am I pitiful, Joey?" She asked. "Do I look pitiful to you?" She asked again, this time standing at a spot.

Joey wasn't amazed. He couldn't believe this was what the whole coldness was centered around. He felt relieved at that moment. If this was the reason Mandy had been mad the whole time, then he had nothing to worry about, as long she had no idea about the other thing. At least, so he thought.

"Is that why you are mad?" Joey asked

Mandy, feeling relieved.

"I wish! I wish that was why!" Mandy said as she began pacing across again.

"But no! I heard you,a Joey." She said nowlooking sad. "I wish I didn't, but I did! | overheard your conversation that day!" Mandy exclaimed as she stared at Joey with disappointment in her eyes.

What Joey feared had happened.

-do you feel pity for Jake? don’t forget to leave a comment— move over to episode 58❤️