"Go and sit anywhere you like. Do you want something to drink?" Belinda asked nicely, not noticing Annie's strange change.
"A glass of cold water would do." Her head was still spinning from all this new information about Rain. She slumped back on the plush leather couch, and put her hand to her head.
"What? Cold water? Are you sure? It's freezing cold today!" Belinda looked at Annie, her eyebrows knitting.
"Oh, sorry. I..." Annie could no longer muster up any other words. She was deeply unsettled at what Belinda had just told her. It was only then that she had realized how much hurt she must have caused Rain. The wooziness in her head had gone; it was replaced by a terrible heaviness in her chest. Annie closed her eyes, covering her eyes with her hand.
"I'll get you some warm water. Okay?" Belinda noticed that Annie seemed to be aghast. She looked at Annie with a bit of worry, but thought it best not to pry. She went over to the mini bar in her office, grabbed a small glass, and filled it with water. She walked over to Annie and gave her the drink.
"Thanks." Annie took the glass and downed its contents. When she had finished, she breathed in deeply, trying to calm herself down.
Belinda had sat down across from her. She tucked one leg in front of the other. "I heard that you got married, right? And have kids." Belinda started. She felt sorry for Rain for missing someone he loved. But she also understood that love was mutual and now that Annie was married to another man, she couldn't just force Annie to divorce and marry Rain.
"I..." Annie contemplated whether or not she should tell Belinda the truth. She bit her lower lip and diverted her gaze from Belinda.
Belinda saw Annie was getting uncomfortable. "Never mind. It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. By the way, are you free for lunch? Let's have lunch together. It's on me. I've missed you so much!" Belinda said hurriedly.
"Thank you for your invitation, but perhaps some other time," Annie politely declined. She knew Belinda was kind enough to invite her to lunch. But she got another emergency to deal with. "I need to find a school for my kids. They're starting kindergarten soon."
"Kindergarten? Why didn't you say so! My son's in kindergarten as well. You could enroll your kids there. The staff and facilities there are also top-notch. They could look after each other if they are in the same one." Belinda recommended enthusiastically.
"That sounds great, but it still depends on how far it is from my place." Needless to say, the school Belinda's son was enrolled at must be very expensive. It was not really a problem for Annie, as she was genuinely more concerned about the convenience.
"That's not a problem. It's just around here," Belinda reassured.
"Really? Could you tell me the address? I think I'd like to go visit the school first." Annie wanted to be absolutely sure first of the quality of education her children were going to get. It wasn't that she doubted Belinda; as a mother, this was a natural concern.
"Do you want me to go with you? I mean, you are just new here," Belinda said as she fished around her bag. She took out a name card and handed it over to Annie.
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