A Lab Rat for His Love

Melissa's lips were ringed red from her smeared lipstick. When our eyes met, she grinned. Glee sparkled in her eyes.

If Howard was what she wanted, I'd give him to her. A man who'd cheated was like rotten food. Holding on to it would only cause disgust.

My thoughts were a humbled mess as I caught a cab home.

Lying back onto the couch, my brain functioned sluggishly. I scrolled through my chat records with Howard.

Throughout our four years at college, I'd enjoyed how Howard took care of me and expressed his adoration. I spoiled him with gifts, and he took me on dates. I helped him with his thesis, and he took me to the movies in return.

I tried to find out whether he liked me, and he let me do whatever I wanted, even going as far as to reciprocate. This gave me hope.

Even though he'd never confessed or confirmed my status as his girlfriend, I allowed him to bed me in the hotel. How cheap of me. I had no idea what I was doing and thought it was the passion of true love.

Time and time again, I thought we were only a step away from an actual relationship. Now, I realized that we were miles away from true love. I was too exhausted to bridge the gap between us.

While I dozed off, my phone buzzed. Too tired to even pry my eyes open, I didn't check it.

I woke up to Howard's lips on mine. He smelled of the cheap fragrance of a hotel room. Furrowing my brows, I shoved him aside.

He frowned. "Why didn't you reply to my messages last night? Since you were the one who didn't read them, you can't blame me for not updating you regarding my whereabouts."

My head was throbbing painfully, and my throat felt as though it was covered in sandpaper.

Howard leaned down lustfully and put his weight onto me.

"I miss you. The party was so boring without you. Everyone was talking about how they'd invite you if not for the fact that you don't drink. It was my fault I didn't come home last night. Let me make it up to you, alright?"

He unbuttoned my shirt single-handedly. I pushed at him as hard as I could, but he barely moved.

With an unhappy expression, Howard grumbled, "What now? Are you playing hard-to-get with me? Don't worry. You don't have to put on a show to get me up. I'll always be ready as long as you're the one I'm with."

Nausea gnawed at me. I wanted to laugh at the irony.

Wasn't it enough that he'd spent the night with Melissa? Were they only going to be satisfied once they slept together in front of me? I couldn't do anything about the fact that he liked someone else, but why did he have to act like this with me?

The smell made me sneeze repeatedly.

I turned to my side, making Howard fall off the couch.

"What are you doing?"

I could barely speak from the pain in my throat, nor did I want to talk to him.

Suddenly, Howard's expression softened. It was as though he'd recalled something.

"Did you see those videos in the group chat? As you know, Melissa comes from a poor family. In the future, she won't have a chance to visit luxurious clubs like these after graduating.

"Out of the kindness of my heart, I brought her with me for the sake of exposing her to our world. Are you going to get mad at me just for that?

"Selena, you're a good girl. Stop making a fuss. I've stayed up all night, only to come home and have to explain myself to you. Don't you feel bad for me?"

I sat up. When the light from the window hit my face, he noticed my flushed cheeks. Hurriedly, Howard touched my forehead with his palm.

"Why's your temperature so high? Why didn't you tell me you were sick? When will you fix this temper of yours? Even a sick cat knows to meow for help. Is your phone just there as a prop?"

After his rant, he hung his head for a moment. Then, he said, "Don't move. I'll take you to the hospital."

He bent down to pick me up, but every time he got close, I pushed him away.

"I don't need you to do that."