CHAPTER 165: SAD JULIA

It was just another sad day for Julia.

Having finished dinner, she was on her way back to the room. But the one person who should have been by her side was nowhere to be seen.

Her husband, even on this vacation, was not with her.

Any other wife would have found it suspicious, but not Julia. She was used to it.

She was used to a husband who fooled around with other women.

Unfaithful.

Drunk.

Rich.

That was her husband.

No matter how many times she complained about him to her friends, they always brought up his money.

Well, of course, money was nice. But it wasn’t as if she were poor before she got married.

She was educated enough to apply for a well-paying job.

’If only I hadn’t met him...’

Deep within her heart was regret for her college years.

If her friend hadn’t introduced him to her back then, she wouldn’t have been led into a shotgun wedding.

She loved yet regretted those youthful years of her life.

Wondering if she would have to spend the night alone again, she had opened the door to her room when she noticed a man walking past her.

He was dressed in semi-formal attire and embellished with silver chains. His piercings attracted her more than anything.

They signified something she hadn’t tasted in years: freedom.

The man unlocked the room adjacent to hers and casually stepped in.

He must have noticed her gaze, because he turned around and winked at her before stepping in and closing the door.

’Would I have dated someone like that if I were younger and not married?’

She didn’t think so. He didn’t exactly look faithful.

Her gaze shifted.

A pair of ladies casually stepped into the room the man had just entered.

With a sigh, she locked the door behind her and went in for a warm shower.

After wiping herself dry, she texted her husband.

- Where are you?

- Are you returning to the room tonight?

- Call me.

There was no reply. She was left on read.

She turned on the TV and flipped through the channels.

’Didn’t Yoko say something about a new show on CBC?’

She switched to it and found herself doubting.

"I have a pair of babies who recently lost their father in an accident."

The man on the screen looked an awful lot like the man she had just seen.

’They look so similar.’

"Oh, those poor kids..."

"Yeah..."

Quinn scrunched his nose and pulled back his lips, as if saying ’not really.’

"He wasn’t such a great father."

He made a half-hearted, not-appropriate-to-say-it-but-I-am-going-to-say-it expression.

"It’s actually better for the kids that he died."

Julia’s eyes widened.

"Gracious God!" she exclaimed.

The contents of the show were too edgy for her at times.

’Is it a documentary?’

It wasn’t her kind of show, but she kept watching nonetheless.

At times, it was informational. And at times, it was embarrassing.

It looked like such a bizarre program that she couldn’t take her eyes off it.

"Hey, Rodrygo, repeat this after me."

Quinn was speaking with a macaw.

He cleared his throat and leaned in.

"Ah, don’t beat me, Rin!" he screamed desperately, his face lacking liveliness. "Please don’t beat me! I’m sorry, please!"

Julia was stunned. ’He’s completely different, but it’s him, isn’t it?’

"Please, not there, Rin! Please don’t hit me there! Aaaaaaah!"

Quinn’s passionate performance came to an end with a few fake sobs.

"How was that? Can you mimic that? It would make for good blackmail material."

The bird looked at him with unflinching eyes.

"No, Mr. Taylor, we can’t! This isn’t right; your wife deserves to know. This affair can’t go on, Mr. Taylor!"

A small group of handlers gathered around the bird.

"Oh, Mr. Taylor, not there!"

Julia squeezed her hand. ’Cheaters everywhere.’

A hunking piece of a man ran towards the crowd and snatched the bird away.

"It’s time to bathe Rodrygo," he said while escaping, sweating profusely.

"Do we need to call Mrs. Taylor?"

"Let’s continue as if nothing happened."

’Yeah...’

Julia looked at the unanswered texts.

’That’s all you can do.’

***

In a dark room, Averie was sitting with his arms and legs crossed.

Flashing on his cornea was the reflection of the TV.

CBC was on, and he was on it.

To be exact, Quinn was on it.

A four-legged, black creature with friendly eyes greeted Quinn.

"What is it doing outside its cage?" He bent the knee to meet its eye level. "What exotic animal is this?"

"That is, um, a watchdog."

Madelyn awkwardly smiled at the nearby security guard holding the leash of the beast.

"Why is it allowed to walk free while others have to stay in?"

"Because it’s a good boy."

She pulled him away from the guard and towards a wall full of display cases holding reptiles.

She tapped on one of them. It held a turquoise-colored snake.

"This is a Blue Pit Viper. This is a rare color."

Quinn looked at it with mesmerized eyes.

"Is it venomous?"

"Yes." The handler emphasized with round eyes. "Its venom is hemotoxic. It can paralyze and kill by causing internal bleeding."

"On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is ’they know he tried something funny’ and 10 is ’he killed his parents for inheritance,’ how venomous is it?"

Min-Ha found it funny, but Hyerin was shaking her head.

"That’s too edgy."

But the more Averie thought about it, the more it looked perfect to him.

’What is the focus of this mockumentary?’

When he signed the contract, the environment of each episode was to be served as the focus of the project.

’The zoo, the animals, and the handlers are the focus of the first episode.’

In that sense, it was not much different from any other documentary.

But where it differed was where Averie superimposed himself.

’Gradually, the environment will fade, and Quinn will become the focus of the show.’

It was a subtle yet imposing change.