Thus a staring contest ensued.

Now that my full attention is on him, I've noticed that Louis looked a little bit haggard. His face looked a little bit pale and eye bags started to form, though his handsomeness didn't decrease at all. If it's all about appearance, Louis and Lance look like twins. The only visible difference was that Louis' hair is pale blonde while Lance's hair is golden blonde.

As I goggled at the handsome kid, he finally decided to talk for the first time today.

"I don't love you, Maria." His voice sounded a little raspy.

I could feel a p.r.i.c.k of pain on my chest.

'Oh s.h.i.+t, Maria stand down! Let Teuful take the helm!'

I know very well that the pain in my chest comes from the subconscious love that the old Maria left behind. In my mind, in almighty Teuful's mind, love was a word to be used but never to be acted upon.

In a matter of seconds, I was able to calm my inner conflict and faced Louis with a smile full of ridicule.

"So Louis, did you cry your heart out to your mommy and daddy begging them to cancel our engagement?"

He bit his lower lip and had a sour look on his face.

"Bwahahaha! Seriously? You did that? You're such a kid!" I held on to my stomach as I laughed my a.s.s off. Ungraceful, yes, but d.a.m.n it's so good to make fun of this conceited kid.

"What's the use of this engagement?! We don't love each other!" He roared.

I shot up from my seat, grabbed his collar and yanked him towards me so his line of sight will align with mine. He froze the moment he saw my glacial eyes.

"If you dare to raise your voice on me again, I will make sure to give you a proper reason to do so."

My gaze slowly went down.

When he noticed where I was looking at, his face went pale and he reflexively covered his treasures. I pulled him forward and made him sit on the bench then I leaned towards him with my hands on each of his side, preventing him to escape. From another person's point of view, it would look like as if I was hugging Louis, except that my hands aren't on him but are actually holding on to the bench.

Louis' eyes were wide open due to my sudden action and due to the close proximity of our faces. As he looked up to me while I looked down on him, we could feel our breaths mingle with each other.

'He blushed… He's really still a kid… Let's tease him a little bit more.'

With that in mind, my knee went up and was now in between his thighs making Louis feel alarmed as he looked down on my knee. However, I didn't budge with my position and just smirked at him.

"Hey kid, listen up."

His head once again looked up towards me with a cautious look on his face.

"Do you think that we're in a fairy tale?"

He blinked.

"Do you think that love is all that matters?"

He blinked again.

"Let me tell you about reality." The smirk on my face disappeared and a stern expression was left.

"Love won't make the world go round especially, the world of the rich which sadly you are a part of. In our world, love is a marketing strategy while marriage is a transaction. Be careful on where you invest your feelings because mind you, it's not just you who's going down. On your shoulder, you carry the name and reputation of a Hamilton."

Louis eyes quivered as he looked at me in shock. I couldn't help but chuckle at this helpless state of his.

"Well, if you truly wish to cancel the engagement then I won't mind. Besides, I don't want to be married to a kid." I moved closer to him so that my mouth was near to his ear and whispered. "So? Will you stay as a kid or grow up and be a man?"

He laughed bitterly then he spoke.

"So if I cancel the engagement then I'm a kid?"

I moved back and shrugged.

"As far as I know, only kids would run away from responsibility. The moment we got engaged, I became your responsibility, kid."

He frowned and clenched his fists in frustration.

"You're hesitating because of your love for Harlot?" I asked as I eyed him.

Louis looked like as if he realized something. "You know that I like Charlotte yet you're not showing any intention of breaking our engagement… Do you love me that much?"

I laughed but I didn't speak any word as an answer thus I expect that he took my wordless reply as a yes.

'h.e.l.l NO! I am no longer the old Maria. Frankly, I also want to cancel this engagement but that would give him the freedom to fully support and protect Harlot. Furthermore, if I keep Louis on my side then…'

I looked at a nearby tree and the corners of my lips rose up wickedly.

"Maria?" Louis asked, perplexed by my smile.

My arms snaked their way around Louis' neck and I sat myself upon his lap. With an overbearing tone, I commanded.

"Shut up kid and be my man!"