Chapter 406 - Horrendous

"Hmp!" Zoey hummed sharply, pouting as the beautiful memories from her previous life invaded her head again. As she walked back to her car, she wiped her tears with her arm. "No more crying. What's done is done." She muttered, reminding herself that although those memories were too beautiful to forget, they all had a bad ending.

"What matters now is the present…" She whispered, reaching the car and opened it with her eyes still overflowing with unrestrainable tears. "F*ck!" She cursed, almost throwing the food she ordered onto the front passenger seat.

Fortunately, she recalled that she still needed to deliver this to Matthew. Or rather, eat them with him. Hence, with tears rolling down her cheek, Zoey placed the paper bag on the front passenger seat carefully.

"I think I'll have my period soon." She murmured, hiccuping and wiped the tears she was trying to hold back. For a moment, Zoey leaned back, taking deep breaths; her hands on the steering wheel with her eyes closed.

"Calm down," She whispered, inhaling through her nose and exhaling through her mouth. Her chest heaved upward and downward slowly, stabilizing her insane heart rate. "I'll make good memories once I pass this dark tunnel I'm in. I won't let him experience Inigo's existence." She added under her breath, patting her chest as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Stop crying. Everyone will be fine in this lifetime." Her lips stretched into a forced smile, looking up in the rear mirror. Her eyes were slightly swollen, her eyelashes damp from all the crying. "You can do it, Z." She cheered, staring back at her own reflection.

If one would see her at the moment, they would think she was going through heartbreak. Well, not that there wasn't any truth behind that conclusion. Zoey's heart was still broken. Although she slowly adapted to time-travelling, her heart and mind could still vividly remember the pain of her previous life.

She's fortunate to stay sane until now. She wouldn't pull the trigger if the pain, emotional, mental torment she experienced in her previous life was bearable. And yet, she was given a second life to correct it. A second chance that was forced for her to happen.

If Zoey had time-travelled to another world where Matthew and everyone weren't in, Zoey would still choose death even if that's her only chance. That was her mentality from then and till now. The reason she was trying her best to suffer alone rather than bring chaos to everyone's lives. Little did she know, Zoey didn't know her husband that much.

That being married for a short time was not enough to know the person. That sometimes, no matter how genuine and sincere their love was, it would take time to open up just like how she took her time about Inigo… right, until now, she was taking her time because she failed to tell that part of that story to him in their previous lives.

After several minutes of calming herself down, Zoey grabbed a bottle of water and chugged a mouthful of water. As she closed the bottle's lid, she cleared her throat and sniffed. "I'm okay now." She announced, slapping her cheeks lightly as she smiled once again.

"Yes, I'll be okay." When she retracted her eyes away from the rear mirror, Zoey whispered before starting the car's engine. Without another word, Zoey immediately sped away.

On her way to the XI Corporation, Zoey's mind wandered as her eyes narrowed. Slowly, she reduced her speed and glanced at the rear mirror again. "Hmmm…" She hummed, pondering about a certain matter in her mind.

"Right…" She clicked her tongue, nodding her head as if she had decided on something. She drove until she found a spot where she could pull over. Without further ado, Zoey reached for her bag and grabbed her makeup pouch.

"Just to be safe…" She murmured to herself, rummaging her make up pouch as she looked for something that she could use. What she picked in her hands was eyeliner, red lipstick, and blush on.

"This will be enough…" She nodded. Zoey then raised her head back to the rear mirror, adjusting it to see herself properly with comfort.

First, Zoey picked the eyeliner and dropped the two on her lap. She then began lining her brows, pressing a little harder so the color would stick for long. Minutes later, Zoey giggled seeing her brows thicker than normal.

It was eye-catching, people would see her one-inch thick eyebrows first as it was drawn to be ridiculous. "Hehe… he will have the shock of his life." Zoey snickered, imagining the horrified expression of Matthew.

She didn't stop there because Zoey picked up the blush-on next. Zoey pressed the brush on the pink substance and then brushed her cheek. She placed layers and layers of blush on her cheek until they were as red as an apple.

"Pffft--!" Upon seeing her face, Zoey pursed her lips into a thin line as she held her laughter in. Before she could laugh out loud, she decided to put the red lipstick on. "I would have chosen a darker color if I had one. I guess I will have to buy more make up next time." She commented, shrugging her shoulder before applying the lipstick.

Zoey first applied lipstick to half of her lips. However, although she looked horrendous at the moment, she thought having less lipstick wouldn't compliment her excessive blush-on and eyebrows. Therefore, upon enough consideration, Zoey decided to apply lipstick on her lips, purposely applying a few centimeters over the outline of her lips.

"There!" She clapped her hand, smacking her red lips as she pouted in front of the mirror. "Am I gorgeous?" She asked, batting her eyelashes coquettishly before she burst out laughing.

"Aiya…" When she stopped laughing, Zoey sighed deeply. "I think I'm lowkey crazy." She muttered, shaking her head as she placed her makeup back on the pouch and threw it on the back seat. After all, Zoey was just crying earlier but now she was laughing. Who wouldn't question her sanity?

She glanced at herself for one last time before she continued on driving. 'Hiding my face behind this thick make-up is a good tactic to avoid anything." Zoey nodded approvingly as she felt no shame showing herself like this.

Why? Because aside from the great business ventures and achievements of the great XI Corporation, people were more intrigued with Matthew's love life. Although he was rumored to be gay, and his face remained mysterious to the public eye, all women he had business association with -- even celebrities that were hired by the XI Corporation -- had dating rumors with him.

In other words, if Zoey was seen inside the XI Corporation Building, particularly, bringing food for him, she wouldn't be surprised to see her face on an article's first page. That's the last thing she wanted, having a high-profile that would intrigue Inigo if ever the news reached him.

If that ever happened, her efforts in protecting him in the shadows would be for naught. Inigo would surely come after him if he noticed that Matthew was important to him. 

Zoey only snapped back to reality when she saw the huge "XI" logo plastered on the towering building. "I hope Mom is not there…" She prayed as she sighed heavily, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel as she slowly headed to the XI Corporation's direction.

Soon, Zoey reached the XI Corporation grounds, finding a parking space on the nearby restaurant. She knew the process of the cars entering the said establishment. Hence, to save herself some trouble being held because of her weird facade, it would be easier if she entered through the lobby.

For the last time, Zoey checked herself on the rear mirror again. Seeing that her make up was still fine, she grabbed the paper bag full of food and her bag before she hitched outside. 

Zoey looked around. Once she did, she already caught the passerby's attention. She noticed their weird gazes, causing her to feel free and high-spirited. "Hehe~" She giggled, skipping her steps towards the towering building.

"Gosh… she looks like a troll!" Someone commented which reached her ears.

"Troll, who??" She sassed, scoffing as she flipped her hair to the side. "Whatever. You don't understand aesthetics." She ignored, continuing on her steps.

'My Mister will surely be surprised~! I'll give him the most memorable first date ever~!' Zoey cheered, giggling sneakily as she ignored the comment she heard.. She didn't mind the odd eyes and whispering as she passed by people.