Chapter 254 - I Don't Need A Man

Angela accompanied Oliver for breakfast, and instead of drinking her usual morning coffee, she opted for a glass of aloe vera juice that her brother got for her. She could have made coffee with her Moka pot using lightly roasted beans and almond milk instead of the full cream, which would have been okay for her stomach, but Gael's note rang in her head, telling her to avoid coffee for now. And the sucker that she was—despite her current situation with him, she still followed his words.

Oliver was about to leave her apartment at half past eight in the morning when he stopped by the thermostat and questioned, "What's this?"

"Hm?" Angela raised her head and saw him reach for a pink note next to the digital device on the wall. Her eyes grew wide, realizing it's one of Gael's notes.

[ The weather outside is much colder now. Don't forget to adjust your temperature. ]

He knitted his brows in confusion. "Why do you have a reminder to—"

"It's nothing! Go. I'll see you later. Text me when you're about to pick me up," she told him as she pushed him out of the door.

"Okay! Okay! Jeez. I'm going!"

As soon as Angela closed the door, she eyed the note on the wall and drew her brows together. How did she miss that earlier? She grabbed it and then fanned her face with it, chewing her bottom lip as she stared at the thermostat. Then she clicked her tongue and proceeded to program the digital device, setting it to her desired temperature at certain times of the day and making the evening much cooler. 

Her yoga pants were a bit too thin to wear now, so she changed into a much thicker bottom and even wore fluffy socks. The pink notes she collected were stored in a small wooden box on her nightstand, and she added the new in it. Angela thought about hunting for more notes, but she didn't think there was any left. So she would leave it to chance instead of actively searching.

That morning, Angela spent a couple of hours on her phone and laptop. Her brother had left her the contact information of the organization they were working with for the orphanage's case. She called the hotline number; however, it was a Sunday, so there wasn't anyone in the office to entertain her proposal. She was advised to pitch in her idea of helping rescue the children and returning them to their parents through email, or she could call again the next day.

Wanting to get it out of her head, she decided to write the email. Angela planned to do whatever she could to help get the children back to their homes or find them a better home. The common reason why the parents agreed to the settlement was the fact that they couldn't afford to feed or raise the children due to a lack of livelihood—poverty. The parents themselves probably also lack education. 

The only thing she could think of at the moment was how she could use the funds she had for her foundation differently—that instead of building a school, perhaps she could use the money to fund a project that would help the less fortunate live a better life. Angela decided to focus on the whole family instead of just the children. It was a more significant project than what she initially planned, and she was even scared at the thought of handling that. She still had to write books, so she couldn't possibly spend all of her time doing this. 

Maybe if she could find the right people to trust, this would work. She'd feel much better if the money she raised would go into something more useful. She was sure some people were willing to provide sex education and family planning in the remote areas and livelihood training or seminars. Providing jobs and teaching them ways to have a source of income would definitely be better than just giving them food. Give a man a fish, and he'll eat for a day; teach a man how to fish, and he'll eat for a lifetime—right?

Angela was overwhelmed with too many things that she began to get anxious. Her head was about to explode. 

"I can't. I'm done." She closed her laptop, got up from her seat, and left her office.

It was already noon, but she thought she could squeeze in at least a twenty-minute yoga session to clear her head. 

She needed a long break—preferably alone in a beautiful place where no one knows her. 

***

"Are you meeting Gael at the hotel?" Chairman Su asked his daughter as they rode in the backseat of their Town Car, wondering why she was riding with them.

Angela hadn't forgotten that her father invited Gael to the Su family party, but he didn't know what happened last night and she couldn't tell him either. She hadn't spoken to Gael since the morning, and with the way things were between them at the moment, he wouldn't show up tonight. She smoothed the champagne-colored tulle fabric of her one-shoulder dress to appease herself. 

Keeping her face neutral, she revealed a soft smile and answered, "He can't make it."

Her father and Oliver exchanged brief looks, and the latter shrugged, not knowing what to say. 

They spent the rest of their ride in silence until they reached the venue of their party—Crown Hotel. It's a chain owned by Crown Resort Group, whose Chairman and CEO was William's cousin, Damien Park—one of the youngest billionaires in his generation. Well, according to Forbes, he's the fourth richest man in the world. Crazy. 'What does he do with all his money anyway?' she wondered.

As the car came to a full stop in front of the entrance, the three of them got off and headed to the function hall. Every year, the Su clan would take turns hosting their yearly gathering in December. Most of the time, it would be held in the host family's house. But this year, the host decided to have it in a hotel. This year's host was their father's sister, Linda—a woman in her late fifties who had a radar like the Space Force and was the typical nosy aunt.

"Hello, darling. How are you?" Aunt Linda greeted her with a kiss on the cheek at the entrance of the event hall. She was dressed in a red evening gown with her hair brushed up in a bun, looking so classy as she looked behind Angela. "You're...alone?"

Angela had walked behind her brother and father, so the two men already entered before her. "Oli and Dad are with me," answered Angela with a neutral tone, but she exaggerated a "duh?" in her head.

"Right." Linda nodded with the fakest smile she could muster. The way she talked sounded like she expected something else—maybe someone. 

Did her father already boast about her dating and possibly bringing someone tonight? 'Someone kill me!' she cried in her head.

Angela was just about to enter when Linda's daughter, Lyra came over wearing a form-fitting emerald strapless dress. 

Linda's smile widened. "Hey, honey. Look who's here… It's your cousin Angela." Then she turned to Angela and lowered her voice as if she would whisper, but her voice remained loud when she said, "Lyra's fiancé is here tonight—Lyra, dear, you should introduce Josh to Angela. Tell her all about your honeymoon plan in Europe."

Ugh. This party couldn't start any worse. 'No, thank you. I don't wanna hear any of it,' she thought but kept a wide smile on her face—mostly to keep herself from saying what she was thinking.

"Oh, you have to meet Josh. He's the absolute sweetheart. See my ring?" Lyra all but shoved the back of her hand to Angela's face, showing her 2 carat diamond ring.

"Pretty," was all Angela could say.

"Where's your date?" Lyra questioned. "You came alone? I thought you—"

Aunt Linda patted her daughter. "Lyra, why don't you ask Josh if he has any single friends and introduce them to Angela. You're almost thirty; you have to find a man who can provide for you. Find someone like Josh, and you won't have to work for life," she told Angela.

Still keeping her smile classy, Angela responded, "I can provide for myself, Aunt Linda. I pay my own bills and buy myself anything I want. I don't need a man to do those things for me."

The mother and daughter were taken aback by her choice of words. Angela spoke with poise and confidence, putting shame on the two who had—for years—been implying to find a rich man so that they could sustain their expensive lifestyle. It wasn't like the Sus were in need of money. What's up with these two?

"It was nice seeing you, Lyra, Aunt Linda. I'll see you both inside." She subtly waved and turned to enter—only to be stopped again.

"I'm sorry I'm late. There was an accident on the way here." A strong man's arm circled Angela's waist, keeping her in place. She snapped her head and looked up to see a sophisticated, confident man who filled her mind the whole day. He extended a hand towards the other women and introduced himself, "Hello. You must be Aunt Linda. Angela's told me about you. I'm Gael De Luca."