The Devilish Assassin Meets The Angelic Detective

The Pool Party continued at the Centennial Resort. Everyone stayed over until evening. Staying true to his words, Erick stuck to Elle's side like a tattoo. He ignored other women who were trying to catch his attention.

On the other hand, some guests already took their leave and said goodbye to the celebrant. Members of the Joint Task Force and some relatives remained in the venue. The venue was reserved until 10:00 pm.

After soaking in the pool for a whole day, now everyone continued the birthday celebration by singing along with Karaoke. While everyone was having a good time, Allen was preparing for his confession.

There was also a certain guy who was still waiting for the right timing to meet Marie. Members of the Joint Task Force never left Marie's side for the whole day that's why Black Shadow couldn't show up in front of her.

Now, he was waiting for this party to end. He felt bored already. He just spent his time playing mobile games on his phone to lessen his boredom. Black Shadow averted his gaze to the people who were singing and dancing with the music.

'[email protected]! These guys… Are they partying until midnight?!'

Everyone was having dinner when Elle's phone vibrated. It was an overseas call. Elle frowned when she saw the caller I.D. For some unknown reasons, she became anxious, hesitating whether she should answer the call or not.

Erick also noticed that Elle's phone was vibrating.

"Hey, I think someone is calling you," Erick told her, nudging her shoulder.

{ Supremo }

That's the caller I.D. appearing on her phone screen.

Elle nodded at him with an awkward smile before she stood up and excused herself to answer the phone.

After several minutes, Elle returned with an indescribable expression on her face.

"Hey what's wrong?" Erick asked her, sensing the changes in her mood.

Elle smiled at him faintly, shaking her head.

"Nothing serious. By the way, Erick… something came up. I am afraid I have to leave first. Thank you for today. I really had fun."

"Are you leaving already?" The disappointment was written all over his face.

"Yes."

"Alright… I will drive you home." Erick stood up and was about to inform his team when Elle stopped him.

"No need! Just stay with them. I have to go somewhere. It's work-related. Sandy and I are working on an important project."

Erick was reluctant to let her leave alone but Elle insisted on letting him stay and be with his team.

"Don't worry, Chief Lee… we will see each other this Saturday. Did you forget?" Elle paused and leaned on him, whispering.

"Our date!"

Elle winked at him after saying that. And with that, Elle was able to persuade Erick to stay.

"Alright, see you on Saturday. Take care. Call me once you reach your apartment, alright? Let me know if you arrive safely." Erick said, reminding her like she was a child.

"Yes, Chief!"

After saying her goodbye to Erick's colleagues and the celebrant, Elle left the Centennial Resort in a rush.

***************

After dinner, the group went back to jamming and singing. Everyone was very occupied when Marie received a secret note, written in a piece of paper.

[ Go to the Centennial Resort Garden… I will be waiting for you. ]

That was the message written on the note but the sender forgot to put his name that's why Marie had no idea who had sent it. Out of curiosity, she followed the instructions and Marie secretly proceeded to the Centennial Garden, just a few meters away from the pool area.

It was already dark but when she reached the garden, she saw several candles lining up on the ground, forming a pathway going to the center of the garden.

'Wow… beautiful!'

The faint lights coming from the candles matched with the different flowers around gave off a romantic vibe. She continued to follow the path until she reached the center of the garden.

In the middle of the garden, there were also several lighted candles that formed a big heart shape. And at the center, she saw a man holding a bouquet of roses, smiling and staring at her intently.

"A-Allen?" Marie mumbled in confusion.

"What are you doing here? You were the one who sent me the note?" She asked him.

Allen just nodded with a gentle smile on his face.

Marie was bewildered. She was frozen in her spot. Deep down inside, her heart started to beat rapidly. She had a nagging feeling about this. She could not understand but she was really nervous as of this moment.

Little did she know, just like her Allen was very nervous right now. Then she saw Allen scratching his face, feeling a little bit shy.

"Ahem… this is also part of my birthday surprise for you." Allen said to her sincerely.

Allen approached Marie, pulling her gently towards the center.

"This is for you." Allen handed the bouquet of red roses over to Marie.

"Thank you." She accepted it with a smile.

After that, there was a moment of silence. Both of them felt the awkward atmosphere surrounding them.

After a while, they met each other's gaze and ended up bursting into a peal of laughter.

"Argh… this is so awkward!" Allen mumbled.

Marie let out a soft giggle and said "I know right."

"Anyway, a birthday party without a gift is not complete," Allen stated, picking up something at the back pocket of his jeans.

It was a jewelry box. He stretched his arm as he opened the box while showing it to Marie.

A silver necklace with a half crescent moon pendant came into her view. 

Marie gasped in surprise. "Wow, it's beautiful and it looks expensive… I didn't know if I should accept it or not. What if you will try to use this to blackmail me once we get into a fight?" Marie said jokingly to lighten the mood.

Allen chuckled. "Dummy. I won't do that. I am giving this to you as your birthday gift!"

"Alright. I am just kidding. You don't have to call me, Dummy!"

They burst out laughing once again.

Then Allen suddenly stopped laughing as he became serious. He mustered all his courage to do this.

"Marie… I have something to tell. Will you hear me out?"

Badum! Badum!

"S-Sure… tell me."

Allen looked straight at her eyes. His gaze lingered on her face for a few seconds before he spoke up.

"Marie… I don't know how do you feel about me. But I have to tell you this before I end up regretting it."

"The truth is… I like you Marie, not just a friend… but more than that. No… that's not the right words…" Allen was having a hard time putting his feelings into words. He was really nervous.

'[email protected] Allen! Don't mess this up! Be a man!'

Allen took a deep breath before he continued.

"Marie, I love you! I think I've loved you since we started working together in the special task force. I kept this for a long time now."

Marie had no words right now. She was shocked by this sudden confession coming from her colleague who was also her good friend.

"I was planning to confess my feelings for you after solving our last case but that unfortunate incident happened." 

"You lost your memory. So… my confession got postponed." Allen said to her then letting out a soft chuckle.

"So now, I decided to confess… I hope you will give me a chance… don't worry. You don't have to answer me right away. I will not force you to love me… but please… give me a chance to show you how much I care about you… how much I love you."

Marie was tongue-tied. She had mixed emotions right now. She was confused. Just a few days ago, she met with a certain guy named Brandon Stone who claimed to be her man. He asked her to start all over again.

And now, Allen who was her former colleague and her good friend at the same time just confessed his feelings towards her.

She didn't know what to feel nor what to think right now. She felt like she was torn between the two men. She had not given Brandon Stone her answer yet and now Allen was also asking her to give him a chance.

'What should I do now?'

**********

Unknown to them, what was happening in that garden right now was being witnessed by Black Shadow. He heard everything.

When Marie left the venue going to the garden, Black Shadow was following her behind. He thought it was a perfect opportunity to meet her since she was alone.

But he didn't expect that a certain someone was already waiting for Marie in the garden. Black Shadow even wanted to commend Allen for the effort he put into for this surprise.

He had to admit that Allen was so thoughtful and romantic, preparing everything like that. He felt insecure about himself. He had not thought of doing things like these for Marie.

What made Black Shadow feel more defeated was Allen told Marie that he loved her in which Black Shadow couldn't tell her that since he didn't believe in those words anymore.

Without waiting for Marie's response, Black Shadow started to walk away with a heavy heart. He couldn't describe what he was feeling right now. 

Is he mad? Angry? But with whom? To the guy who had just confessed to Marie or to his own self?

"Black Shadow… you are really a pathetic loser." He mumbled to himself, smiling bitterly.