The moment Ryzel settled into his seat across from Ceres and Zeus, his expression darkened. His gaze locked onto them, radiating silent disapproval.
But Ceres merely arched a brow, utterly unfazed.
Then, with a playful glint in her eyes, she turned to Ryza.
"Hey, Ryza," she called, voice laced with amusement. "You still haven't liked my My Day stories on Instagram. Have you seen them?"
Ryza scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"Please. Not everyone is obsessing over your engagement ring post," she retorted with a sneer.
Ceres smirked.
"So you have seen it," she mused, shifting in her seat... almost perching on Zeus's lap just to catch a better look at Ryza's expression.
Ryza's jaw clenched.
"And so what if I have?" she snapped. "It's not like I'm interested."
"Ohhh, that explains why you've already posted ten My Day stories this early in the morning," Ceres teased, her voice dripping with mock understanding. "Are you trying to outshine my engagement post?"
She gasped dramatically, placing a hand over her chest.
"Should I share your stories on my feed instead?" she added, eyes wide with feigned concern. "That way, people might actually notice. Because from what I've seen… it looks like no one has."
Ryza's face burned.
"Not everything is about you!" she snapped, her frustration barely contained.
But Ceres wasn't done.
Without sparing Ryza another glance, she casually reached for her phone.
Zeus, already well-acquainted with her antics, immediately caught on. The moment he saw her open the camera, he swiftly plucked the phone from her grasp.
Ceres didn't protest.
Instead, she smirked and let him do as he pleased.
Zeus lifted the phone, adjusting the angle effortlessly. Ceres leaned in slightly, watching the screen, waiting for the perfect shot.
And there it was... Ryza, furiously stabbing her fruit with a fork, her face twisted in irritation.
"Ryza, look!" Ceres called out sweetly.
The moment Ryza turned her head...
Ceres leaned in and pressed a kiss to the corner of Zeus's lips.
Click.
The camera shutter went off.
The result?
A picture-perfect moment of sweetness between her and Zeus… and Ryza's completely stunned expression frozen in the background.
"What the... ?!" Ryza sputtered, her fork clattering onto her plate.
Before she could react, Ceres smoothly took her phone back and began typing.
With a wicked grin, she read her caption out loud:
"First breakfast as an engaged couple with my Beasty. 💍❤️"
She hit post without hesitation, making sure to tag Ryza.
Within seconds...
Ryza's phone exploded with notifications.
Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding.
The sound was relentless. Her screen lit up repeatedly with an endless stream of alerts.
Ceres, however, remained completely unfazed.
Unlike Ryza, she never activated notifications for her social media accounts. With the sheer number of followers she had, she would lose her mind if she received alerts for every comment, like, or mention.
She turned to Ryza with a bright, saccharine smile.
"There," she said cheerfully. "Now your account is busy. You'll probably get millions of notifications today."
She tilted her head, her voice filled with faux sympathy.
"I know that's never happened to you before. You should thank me... I'm in a good mood today."
Ryza looked absolutely livid.
But before she could fire back, a sharp voice cut through the tension.
"You should stop spoiling her like that."
All eyes turned toward Ryzel, his gaze fixed intently on Zeus.
Both Romos and Zeus looked momentarily taken aback by the sudden remark.
"You let her get away with everything," Ryzel continued, his tone laced with disapproval. "That's why she thinks she can do whatever she wants. You're making her unruly because you keep indulging her."
Zeus's jaw tightened for a moment, but he quickly composed himself, his expression returning to its usual calm.
"Thank you for your concern," Zeus said smoothly. "But you don't need to worry about how my fiancée acts. And I will treat her exactly how she deserves to be treated."
He let his gaze linger on Ryzel before shifting momentarily to Ciena, then back to Ryzel.
"We are not the ones you should be worried about," Zeus added, his tone sharp but measured. "You should start treating your fiancée right instead. You've been ignoring her so much that she's the one actually acting up."
Ryzel frowned, his brows knitting together in confusion.
But before he could respond, Mr. Clark spoke up.
"What do you mean by that, Zeus?" Mr. Clark turned to Ciena, a questioning look in his eyes. "What does he mean by 'acting up'?"
"Don't listen to him, Dad." Ryzel was quick to dismiss the accusation. "Ciena would never act out. She's a well-behaved girl."
At that, Ceres caught the slight smile that tugged at Ciena's lips. She was obviously pleased with Ryzel's compliment.
"Well-behaved?" Zeus repeated, his brow arching as a smirk played on his lips. "Maybe. But not well-mannered."
Ryzel's expression darkened. "What are you trying to say?"
Zeus leaned back slightly, a knowing glint in his golden eyes.
"Well," he began casually, "you've all been sitting here for quite some time now, but she still hasn't introduced her aunt, her sister, or her father."
A heavy silence fell over the table.
Zeus shifted his gaze toward Narciso, making sure the Clarks fully understood whom he was referring to.
"A well-mannered woman would never forget to introduce her family," Zeus continued, his voice dangerously smooth. "Especially to her fiancé's family. After all, they're about to become your family too, aren't they?"
The Clarks froze.
Disbelief flickered across their faces as realization dawned.
The strangers sitting at the Monteverde dining table weren't just guests... they were Ciena's blood relatives.
Mrs. Clark, still visibly shocked, turned to Ciena, her voice laced with confusion.
"Her father?" she echoed, her eyes wide. "But… Ciena's father is dead. How is this possible?"
The brief flicker of satisfaction on Ciena's face from Ryzel's earlier compliment vanished instantly.
Her complexion turned pale.
Ceres leaned forward, her voice smooth yet pointed.
"You should ask Ryzel, Aunty," she said, shifting her gaze between Mrs. Clark and Ryzel. "After all, he has known for a long time that Uncle Narciso is alive. He even had a conversation with Nissan before."
Ryzel's eyes widened in shock.
"What?" Romos finally broke his silence, his voice firm.
A moment ago, he had merely been watching, quietly observing Ceres's antics, knowing she was just toying with Ryza.
But this was different.
"You knew?" Romos asked, his normally friendly demeanor replaced by something far more serious.
And when Romos Monteverde turned serious, people listened.
"I… I don't know what you're talking about," Ryzel stammered, his eyes darting toward Ceres before flickering back to Romos. "Uncle, Ceres must have misunderstood something. How could I have possibly known that Ciena's father was still alive?"
Ceres tilted her head, her lips curling into a slow, challenging smile.
"Are you saying I'm a liar?" Ceres challenged him, her voice smooth yet laced with quiet danger.
Ryzel had done plenty of reckless things before, but he wasn't stupid enough to call Ceres a liar in front of her father.
She could be spoiled, a bully, and undeniably unruly... because she was all those things.
But liar? Dumb? Stupid?
Those were words that Romos Monteverde would never tolerate being used to describe his daughter.
Ryzel opened his mouth, searching for a way to defend himself, but before he could say anything, Ceres spoke again.
"Here's a very interesting story, Mommy, Daddy," she said sweetly, flashing her parents an innocent smile.
Though confused, Romos and Cielo immediately gave her their full attention.
"Seven years ago," Ceres began, her voice smooth and almost playful, as if she were telling a bedtime story, "there was a girl named Ciena. She ran away from home after her father begged her to wait just one more year before going to college. Money was tight, and he needed time to save. But brave, clever Ciena couldn't accept that. So she left home and traveled for two days to reach New York City, searching for her mother."
Ceres's eyes gleamed with amusement as she continued.
"When she found her mother, she also discovered something heartbreaking... her mother had lost her memories and now had a new family. But her mother was rich. So, summoning all the courage she had, Ciena introduced herself. She told her mother that she had no intention of disturbing her new life, but she had no choice… because her father had died."
A heavy silence settled over the table.
"Her mother welcomed her with open arms and gave her a life of wealth and privilege. For five years, Ciena lived comfortably. Then, one day, her younger sister managed to contact her, checking in to see how she was doing."
Ceres glanced at Ciena with an almost pitying look.
"Ciena told her she was fine," she continued, "though she struggled to make ends meet as a housekeeper. Her younger sister worried about her and insisted, over and over, that she would visit Ciena in the city as soon as she saved enough money. But Ciena refused... she didn't want her sister to suffer in New York like she had."
She paused for effect, letting her words sink in before continuing.
"Instead, she started sending her sister money... ten dollars a month. It was a lot for someone living off a meager salary, but she didn't mind. She just wanted her sister to save enough for college, so she wouldn't end up like her... a housekeeper."
Ceres tilted her head slightly, her expression unreadable.
"Then one night, Ciena's sister called her. She didn't know that Ciena was still at work. And unfortunately, her employer answered the phone instead."
She let her gaze slowly drift toward Ryzel.
"He took Ciena's phone and yelled at her sister, scolding her for calling during working hours. He warned her not to disturb Ciena anymore."
Ceres leaned forward slightly, resting her chin on her hand, her lips curving into a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
"And the name of that employer… was Ryzel Clark."
A tense silence followed her words.
The room felt impossibly still.
Ceres turned to Ryzel, her expression one of innocent curiosity.
"So I wonder, Ryzel…" she mused, tapping her fingers idly on the table. "You broke up with me eight months ago."
She tilted her head slightly, her golden eyes locking onto his.
"And yet, you were able to talk to Nissan late at night more than a year ago... when she called Ciena."
Her voice was deceptively light, but there was an unmistakable edge to it.
"What exactly were you doing then?"
She raised a brow, amusement flickering across her face.
"Because as far as I remember, we were still together at that time."