Sophia stood there with an unreadable expression, her arms crossed. She then laughed lightly, “You’re saying that I slapped Xyla? How? Where’s the mark? What proof do you have?”
Still sobbing, Xyla stepped out from behind Richard. Pointing at the slap mark on her face, she cried, “Just admit that you slapped me!”
That was merely a gentle slap. Sophia could easily do the same thing on her thigh and it would also take a while for it to fade.
With her tears running down her cheeks, Xyla rushed and grabbed at Sophia. “I deserve this. I was the one who came between the both of you. There’s nothing wrong with you hating me. If hitting me makes you feel better, do it! Just please stop going after the Harpers and Richard!”
Raising her palm, Sophia struck her. This time, she wasn’t using the same force she’d used to kill the mosquito. Instead, it was an extremely hard and open-palmed blow. Sophia used everything she’d learned from Gwen, making sure to smack Xyla until she bled.
Whoosh! A loud, piercing noise came along with that one slap. Everyone stood still, shocked for a whole second. In that second itself, Sophia slapped Xyla again with the other palm. Only now were the slap marks well balanced.
Xyla was feeling dizzy after the two slaps, and she tasted blood in her mouth and nose. Covering both of her cheeks, she looked at Sophia unbelievably. Bewildered, she staggered backward, falling into Richard’s arms. This time, she wasn’t pretending. She genuinely felt weak, as if the slap had given her a concussion.
After a brief silence, Richard broke into a shout, “Sophia Edwards!”
Xyla’s expression was blank. She didn’t react, not until she tasted the blood flowing from her mouth and bleeding through her nose. Then, she wailed, burying her face into Richard’s chest.
Richard’s eyes glowed with twin blazes as he held Xyla, and he looked like he wanted to skin Sophia alive. Gritting his teeth in anger, he pointed at Sophia. “Sophia Edwards, I never knew that you were this sort of person!”
Much to his bewilderment, Sophia answered confidently, “What’s wrong? Doesn’t she deserve the slap? How about you tell me. When did we break up? And when did you and Xyla get together? If you’re bold enough to cheat on me, shouldn’t you let your ex-girlfriend get some revenge from your lover here?”
Feeling guilty, Richard looked at her, not knowing how to reply. Before breaking up with Sophia, he’d been flirting with Xyla. After the pregnancy scare, Xyla had been staying by his side and supporting him. Naturally, they got together, way before he and Sophia went their separate ways.
Richard clenched his fists, looking enraged. “It was all my fault. If you’re still blaming me, just let it all out on me! This is on me!”
Sophia shook her head. “I wanted to hit you too, but I knew you would retaliate.”
This hit a chord, and Richard said, “Come on then. Hit me! Punch me! I’m the one who wronged you! Even if you beat me to death, I won’t fight back!”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: My Dreamy Old Husband