She closed her eyes, hoping for some rest at last.

Tonight, something seemed to be bothering Leonel. He didn't emerge until nearly twenty minutes had passed. Even then, he was still upset, frustration evident in his dark eyes. Seeing Alexis asleep only seemed to aggravate him further.

But he didn't want to blow up at her. Their relationship was hanging by a thread.

He lay beside her in silence for a bit. Then he leaned in and murmured, "Alexis, don't you have needs as a woman? It's been two years. I find it hard to believe you're not interested."

Alexis was actually wide awake.

She heard him loud and clear. Sure, she had desires too. But compared to her resentment toward him, those needs felt trivial.

She didn't pretend. Slowly opening her eyes, she retorted coldly, “If you can't handle it, Leonel, we can split."

Leonel locked eyes with her.

After a long pause, he said, “Don't count on it happening in this lifetime!"

A few days later, Duefron's medical community hosted a banquet to help up-and-coming talents in the field find a partner.

Axell, being valued by the hospital, got an invite.

"Seize the chance, Axell."

He smiled, replying, "Sir, I've already got a girlfriend!"

His supervisor smacked his forehead and exclaimed, "Dang, I totally forgot! That pic of you and your girl smooching caused a real stir in Duefron. She's a real looker... Even beats all the nurses here!"

Axell grinned at the compliment.

His supervisor then handed him another invitation. “Take your lady with you and have a blast! I can start picking the wedding gift, yeah?"

"You bet!"

After the supervisor left, Axell dialed Jessie's number. "Hey Jessie, got two invites. Want to hit the bash with me tonight? We might be the only non-singles in the crowd!"

Jessie's night was open, so she agreed.

Little did she know she'd bump into Albert at the party.