Melissa gruffly demanded, "Let go of me. What are you doing? No matter what you offer me, I won't be the other woman in your relationship."

Marcus whispered into her ear, "But you made me the other man three years ago."

Melissa kicked him angrily.

That was not her intention. That night at her place, things just happened and they had hugged and kissed. He even touched her.

She didn't mean any of that.

She didn't even want to like him.

As these visions flashed through her mind, her body sagged, and her spirits fell.

Noticing her changed mood, Marcus didn't push her anymore. He just tightened his arms around her, pressed his thin lips against her ear, and whispered, "Melissa, after you left, I searched for you."

Melissa was still desolate.

She was aware that he had searched for her, but so what? His hurtful words had shattered the last of her feelings and hopes. He hadn't bothered to listen to her, and had called her worthless... He was the one who showed her the drastic difference between when he liked her and when he didn't.

She suddenly snapped back to her senses.

Melissa, why are you still wallowing in his arms? Have you forgotten the condition in which you left him? Have you forgotten how you swallowed the morning-after pill, leaving your self-respect on the floor? Don't you remember how he tossed the check at you? Do you forget that he has a girlfriend now? How can you still hold on to any hope when it comes to this man? How can you still allow yourself to be seduced by him? If nothing else, think of all the years you've spent uprooted. She thought to herself.

Melissa gently grabbed his slender fingers and unwrapped his arms from around her waist little by little.

She remarked, "Mr. Fowler, please behave yourself."

Amidst the heavy silence that followed, he offered in a subdued tone, "Your phone's broken. Let me call a cab for you."

It was then Melissa remembered her phone was still with Marcus. She asked it back because it held photos of Matthew.

The realization that she had left her phone with him for so long gave her shivers.

Marcus, noticing her anxious look, understood her silent plea.

Handing back the phone, he casually remarked, “Working with Albert pays well, doesn't it? Ever thought about getting a car?"

While Melissa checked her phone, she murmured, "I've been considering it."