<i>"I just feel like something bad might happen if you two don’t break what you have now before it’s toote," said her mother and she subconsciously started crying. Arabe gently wiped off the tears on her mother’s cheeks and smiled. "You’re our only child and we don’t want to lose you."</i>


    <i>"You don’t have to worry about any of that, mother. Xander and I both know what we want. Besides, he’s the one I’m dating, not his parents..." She tried to assure them, but it was obvious from the look they were giving her, they didn’t rx one bit. </i>


    <i>If anything, their worries only grew. </i>


    <i>The living room fell in silence as they nced at each other. </i>


    <i>"Why’s everyone looking at themselves like that?" </i>


    <i>They suddenly heard someone question from the door, and they were surprised to see Maxwell standing at their front door with a chocte box in his hand and a food container in the other. </i>


    <i>The living room was so quiet enough that they should have heard himing in. Yet still, they didn’t. </i>


    <i>"And Aunty, why are you crying?" He asked as he dropped the chocte box and food container and rushed over to Arabe’s mother. "What did you do to make her cry now?" He questioned Be. </i>


    <i>Although he tried to ignore it, he could feel the heavy air in the living room as if some terrible argument had just urred. </i>


    <i>Maxwell was Arabe’s cousin from her father’s side and he lived just across the street with his parents. </i>


    <i>"Can you talk some sense into your cousin? She’s dating Xander and—"</i>


    <i>"Mother, I’m not going to break up with Xander just because of our family’s different status. We only started dating today and it would be weird if I just texted him saying I want to break up with him," Arabe told her mother. </i>


    <i>"Wait...you and Xander are already dating?" Maxwell questioned with a louder voice that got all heads to turn to him. "You know the kind of reputation he has in school, Arabe. Why would you go and date him?" </i>


    <i>Arabe sighed, already tired of the conversation. </i>


    <i>"I’m tired, I’m going to go to sleep now," she said and left for her room. </i>


    <i>As soon as she disappeared behind her doors, Maxwell faced Arabe’s mother. </i>


    <i>"She’s dating that guy?" He asked. </i>


    <i>Arabe’s mother nodded in response. "She is, and I’m worried something might happen to her when the boy’s family finds out about it."</i>


    <i>Maxwell frowned slightly. </i>


    <i>Arabe’s mom sighed before she parted her lips to exin her worry and Maxwell’s frown only deepened. </i>


    <i>"That’s not possible, Aunty. I’ve met Mr and Mrs Wace personally myself and they don’t seem like the ones to think in such a way, especially Mr Wace himself," he exined as he chuckled lightly. </i>


    <i>Since Maxwell was closer to Xavier than Xander, it was only normal that he’d been invited to the boy’s mansion sometime to hang out. </i>


    <i>"I think you’re thinking too much about this, Aunty. Xander is a good guy despite his shenanigans sometimes, and I’m sure he will take care of Arabe. You’re worrying for nothing," he assured her, and she smiled at him. </i>


    <i>If only he knew that the worry was still ced in the woman’s heart. </i>


    <i>Arabe was in her room as she worried about her mother’s words. </i>


    <i>She’s seen in movies where the family of the rich guy wouldn’t want their son to have to do anything with the girl. But this wasn’t a movie...it was reality. </i>


    <i>Arabe took off her bracelets as she recalled Xander ncing around ces, probably trying to find out who could be watching them. </i>


    <i>Arabe was not immune to stares—so she was able to sense someone watching them from the park to the restaurant and then back home. </i>


    <i>But she’d pretended not to be alert to not spoil their first date. </i>


    <i>A smile graced her lips when she remembered how he pecked her cheeks. Realizing she was smiling like a fool, she quickly shook her head to get rid of the butterfly that fluttered inside her belly. </i>


    <i>Then her phone suddenly vibrated with a message from someone. </i>


    <i>Arabe picked it up, wondering if it was Xander. </i>


    <i>However, it wasn’t him. </i>


    <i>It was a text from an unknown number who boldly wrote out the words: LEAVE HIM ALONE IF YOU KNOW WHAT’S GOOD FOR YOU!!</i>