Chapter 50: Bribes and Goodbyes
It was the day she was leaving.
That thought hit me the second I opened my eyes. The room looked the same but it felt different. Heavier. Like the air itself knew that by evening, she’d be gone.
For three weeks straight, I’d gotten used to her chaos filling every corner of my space. Her snacks left on my desk, her hoodies thrown carelessly over my chair, her laugh bouncing off the walls like she owned them. My bed smelled like her, my mornings started with her, my nights ended with her.
And now I was supposed to wake up tomorrow and not have any of that?
I was still processing when I felt her shift against me. Her leg curled tighter over mine, her face burrowing into my chest.
"Mmm," she muttered, voice scratchy from sleep, "nope. Not today. I’m not leaving."
I blinked down at her, already sighing. "Val—"
"No." Her arms locked tighter around me. "Don’t ’Val’ me. I’m staying. End of discussion."
"You can’t—"
"I can." She peeked one eye open, messy hair all over her face, and whispered like it was a secret, "Because you’re not strong enough to throw me out. Admit it."
I stared at her. She smirked.
"...Get off, Val."
> "Make me."
I exhaled through my nose, trying not to smile. "You’re impossible."
"And irresistible." She tilted her chin up proudly, like she’d just won a battle. Then, slowly—deliberately—her hand slid under the blanket. I stiffened.
"Val."
"Shhh." She kissed my collarbone softly, sweetly, then whispered against my skin, "Let me bribe you."
My breath hitched. "Bribe me?"
"Mm-hm." Her hand was dangerously close to where it shouldn’t be. "One last morning special."
I grabbed her wrist under the blanket, but she only laughed, biting her lip like she knew she had me cornered.
"Don’t look at me like that," I muttered.
"Like what?" she asked innocently, eyes wide. "Like I love you? Like I want you? Like I’m the only girl who can make you weak?"
"...All of the above."
Her grin widened, smug and unrepentant. "So you admit it. You want it. You want me."
I tried to keep my face straight. "You’re not staying."
Her pout was instant. "Why not? You love me, right?"
"Yes."
> "And I love you."
"...Yes."
"Then what’s the problem?" She rolled on top of me suddenly, straddling me, hair falling over her face as she smirked down. "One more round before I go. Or maybe two. Or three. You’ll be too weak to drive me to the car after that, so—oops, guess I can’t leave."
I stared at her, torn between laughing and giving in. She was too much. Always too much.
"Val." My voice came out firmer than I expected. "No."
Her smirk faltered. She blinked, then huffed, flopping back onto my chest like I’d just rejected a child begging for candy. "You’re so cruel."
"Maybe."
"Not maybe. Definitely." She poked my cheek with her finger. "Heartless, mean, evil, cruel boyfriend who doesn’t let his girlfriend bribe him with sex. Who even does that?!"
I chuckled, brushing her hair out of her face. "Someone who knows you’d never leave otherwise."
She glared at me like I’d exposed her entire evil plan. "...Tch."
For a while, we just lay there. Her clinging to me, me stroking her hair absentmindedly. It felt like if we stayed like that long enough, time would freeze. But eventually, I sat up.
"Shower," I muttered.
She shot upright like I’d just insulted her. "Without me?"
"Yes. Alone."
Her jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"
"Excused." I swung my legs off the bed.
She scrambled after me, grabbing my arm before I could get far. "Wait, wait, wait—what if I join?"
"No."
> "Why not?!"
"Because that’s not a shower. That’s—"
"Love," she cut in sweetly, batting her lashes. "Bonding. Teamwork. Water conservation. Very eco-friendly."
I pinched my nose. "Val."
"Fine." She tugged at my shirt, lower lip jutting out. "Then at least let me sit in the bathroom and watch. I’ll be quiet, I promise."
"No, because that will be—"
"History in the making," she cut in quickly, eyes sparkling. "Kai, do you even realize we’ve never showered together? Not once! And you want me to leave without experiencing that? That’s criminal."
"...Criminal?"
"Yeah. Like, relationship malpractice." She pressed a hand to her chest, offended. "Other couples do it. It’s a rite of passage. First kiss, first date, first time... and then—first shower together. It’s practically in the handbook."
I gave her a flat look. "There’s no handbook."
"Because you haven’t written it yet!" She grabbed my wrist, grinning. "Let me be your inspiration."
I gave her a flat look. "No."
She gasped dramatically. "You’re rejecting me again?!"
"Shower. Alone," I repeated, pulling free from her grip.
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "You’re making a mistake."
"Am I?"
She crossed her arms, nose in the air. "Huge. When I’m gone, you’ll regret this. You’ll wish you let me in there with you. You’ll cry in the shower—ironically alone—and think, ’Wow, I should’ve listened to my perfect girlfriend when I had the chance.’"
I shook my head, suppressing a smile, and closed the bathroom door on her sulky face.
---
The smell of food filled the kitchen, and it only made the ache in my chest worse. She’d been humming while moving around my kitchen, barefoot, wearing my hoodie like she owned the place. Every slice of tomato, every flip of the frying pan, every sprinkle of seasoning was done like she was on some food network show. And me? I sat there at the counter, arms folded, trying to look tougher than I felt, because today was the day she had to leave.
I thought she’d fight harder, honestly. I expected her to flat-out refuse, to pull her usual brat routine and climb me like a cat until I gave in. But instead, she was... cheerful. Suspiciously cheerful.
She slid a plate in front of me with that too-sweet smile of hers. "Eat, husband," she said, sing-songy, like she was already making fun of me.
I narrowed my eyes. "Don’t think this breakfast is going to change anything."
She gasped dramatically, placing a hand over her chest. "Change anything? Excuse me, I slaved away in this kitchen purely out of love. Not bribery. Love."
"Bribery."
> "Love."
"Obvious bribery," I deadpanned, even though my mouth watered at the sight of perfectly done eggs, golden toast, and fruit cut into little heart shapes. She cut fruit into hearts.
She slid onto the chair beside me, close enough that her thigh brushed mine. "Fine," she admitted, leaning her cheek against her hand, eyes gleaming like the menace she was. "Maybe it’s like... ninety percent bribery, ten percent love. But that’s still a lot of love."
I tried to keep my expression neutral, tried to focus on the food instead of the way she was looking at me. "You’re still leaving today."
She pouted, dragging her fork against her plate with a whine. "You say that like you don’t want me here. That hurts, Kai. Right here." She pressed the fork against her chest like it was a dagger.
"Don’t twist it," I muttered. "You know I want you here. But if I don’t push you out, you’ll actually never leave."
Her voice dropped lower, dangerous. "What if I told you there’s no underwear under this hoodie?"
I almost choked on my toast. "Val—"
"Eat faster," she interrupted, smirking as her hand brushed my knee under the table. "The sooner you finish, the sooner I can prove it."
"Val." My voice cracked embarrassingly, and her grin widened like she’d just won the lottery.
"See?" She clapped once. "You’re already breaking. Husband, it’s literally your fault if I don’t make it home today."
I swallowed hard, glaring at her. "You’re not winning this one."
She leaned closer, her voice sing-songy again, "Ohhh, I always win, Kai, always. And honestly, you’d miss me too much if I left now. Admit it."
I kept chewing slowly, pretending like she wasn’t right. The truth was, every second she inched closer, every playful nudge, every pout—yeah, I was crumbling. Inside, I was already done for. But outside? I held the line.
Breakfast turned into another round of her shamelessly trying to derail me. Her legs brushed mine more than necessary. She "accidentally" dropped her fork so she could bend down slowly, giving me a view she knew would ruin me. Every move was deliberate. Calculated.
And every time, I forced myself to push back. "Eat your food, Val."
> "I am. You’re the snack, though."
"Val."
> "What? Don’t act like you don’t like it."
By the time we were done, my plate was clean, but my patience was hanging by a thread. She knew it too—her grin screamed victory even though I hadn’t said a word.
Then came the hardest part. She packed her things. Slowly, too slowly. She clung to me at the door, kissed me like it was the end of the world, and whined every time I told her she needed to go.
Finally, she stood by her car, staring at it like if she glared hard enough, it’d vanish. She turned back to me, lips pouted, eyes glossy. "I hate you."
"No, you don’t," I said quietly.
She stomped her foot. "I do. Because you’re making me leave when I don’t want to. You’re supposed to be my husband, not my warden."
"Val..."
Her voice cracked. "Maybe I won’t call. Or text. Maybe I’ll just... disappear. And you’ll miss me, and it’ll be all your fault."
My chest tightened, but I forced myself to stay firm. "...Car. Now."
She froze, lips parting. Then slowly—so slowly—her pout twisted into a smirk. "Look at you," she teased, even though her eyes were shining with unshed tears. "Getting bold."
I didn’t answer. I just opened the driver’s door for her and waited.
She stared at me another long moment before sighing dramatically, sliding in, and muttering under her breath, "You’re lucky you’re cute."
The engine purred to life. She stuck her head out the window one last time, shouting, "I still hate you!" before driving off.
I stood there until her car disappeared.
And then... only then did I let myself exhale.
---
To be continued...