Morozov

Chapter 8

Mallory's pov
It was my first break of the day so I made my way to the cafeteria. I already had breakfast but I wanted to sit with Vivien.

"Hey Mallory," one of Benjamin's friends interrupted our conversation by yelling from the other side of the cafeteria.
"Is it true you cheated on Benjamin?" he asked while slowly coming closer. Suddenly, everyone's attention was on us - mainly on me.

I just looked at him in shock because I didn't know what to say. "Well, don't feel bad, he cheated as well," he laughed out loud and my face dropped.

I looked over to Benjamin and he was sitting at their table, laughing along with them.
I hadn't talked to him yet, I think we both avoided each other. And now I knew why.
"Look" the boy reached our table and towered over me intimidatingly before showing me a picture of Benjamin kissing another girl. I didn't know her, at least.

"That's what happens when you let a boy wait for too long," he whispered with a wink, both hands now resting on the table as he glared down on me.

"Wait so they've been together for a year and still haven't fucked?" "I always thought her Hail Mary attitude was just a facade."

Tears welled up my eyes. It's one thing embarrassing me in front of everyone but cheating is even worse. I mean I had no choice other than to move in with Ace and I still didn't do anything that was considered cheating. But he did and he decided the wrong way. Is that what Ace meant when he said I wasn't the one doing something wrong?
Was the only reason he was flirting with me because he already knew?
Because he thought I'd soon be single anyway?

"Oh and look at that," he exclaimed in a loud voice, standing straight again and holding his phone up to show around what was on it.
It was a picture of Ace and me, taken when he picked me up from the bus station.

"Who's your little friend? Huh?"

I stood up but couldn't move. Even Vivien didn't know what to say. And she normally was the quick-witted one of us.
The cafeteria went from a mass of students chatting and laughing and yelling to dead silence in minutes.
Everyone looked at me. Some in disgust, some in pity, some with an evil smirk plastered on their face.

What was I supposed to say?
That's my fiancé, the one I'm forced to marry and live with, you know?
What? I haven't told you about it? How could I not tell you that my family is in the Mafia? My bad.

Tears were flowing down my cheeks when I finally built up the courage to rush out of the cafeteria.
Sobs I couldn't control escaped my mouth. My lungs constricted and I felt like I couldn't breathe. Suddenly, I bumped into a tall, familiar guy. I looked up and saw Ace's eyes already trained on me.

At this point, I didn't care about anything anymore. I didn't care whether he was okay with it or not, whether anyone saw me or not. All I wanted was to hug him.
Probably because I was a wreck already and Ace was the only person I barely trusted and who was reachable.

Without a warning, I wrapped my arms around his torso, pressing my face into his muscular chest as I kept on crying, desperate for love.
He hesitated for a second before hugging me back. His one arm wrapped around my shoulders while the other hand held onto the back of my head reassuringly.

"What happened?" he asked with worry in his voice.
"Can we please leave?" I ignored his question. My eyes widened in embarrassment when I saw two wet spots on his T-shirt from my tears. "I'm sorry," I sniffled as I grabbed the sleeves of my hoodie and wiped my nose. He suddenly grabbed my wrist.
"Don't do that," he demanded and I nodded, shocked by his sudden outburst.

"So that's your boyfriend? Pretty dumb cheating with someone that's not even your type," I heard Benjamin shout from behind. Ace's gaze immediately snapped over to him. He was standing a few feet away from us. Ace looked down at me when I looked up at him with more tears running down my face and neck.