Chapter 3 Something happened
Andrew's POV:
After the casino, I went straight back to my penthouse, still confused and infuriated with what just happened. I never expected to be
It had never happened that a girl had stuck in my mind. Sure, I've punched for saving her ass but instead, she did not even apologize for her bruteness. had my more than enough share of girls. Girls had never been a problem for me,
I'm gifted by God in that category. But as soon as the nights are over, girls also vanish away from my mind. But that casino girl. For some reason, I couldn't get her out of my mind. And the reason was not that she was a pretty fairy or that I want her in my life or any other bullshit like that. No.
The reason was simply her attitude and rudeness. Also, the problem can be my ego too. Never had a girl treated me like that. Hell man, as soon as I was in sight, girls put on their masks of being pretty and delicate creatures. I didn't like that fakeness but I didn't like this originality too. I was still lost in the events of tonight when I heard the sound of the doorbell, I got up from the couch and went to open the door. But as soon as I opened it, I thought that I should have acted like no one was home. Because on the door was no one other but our own Jacob rivera. The First Aid box in one hand and a carton of beer in the other.
"What are you exactly thinking at the moment?" I asked him, my eyes narrowed.
"Woah, slow down. Don't misinterpret my intentions. I just came here because I thought in a time like this, you would need a shoulder to cry on." He said with a wink.
"Seriously Jacob?" I groaned.
"Of course, bud. I came to nurse your pretty nose with Aid Kit and your bruised ego with a beer."
"Fuck off, idiot." I turned back into the house and Jacob followed me into the living room.
"So, what do you want? Should we watch some sad romantic movie and get wasted? Or should we write some grief-stricken poetry for your broken heart?" He asked innocently. I rolled my eyes and said, "You sure are enjoying the show."
"Tell me. Who that girl was? And why did you bother to help her?" asked Jacob while opening the beer bottle and offering me one.
I took the bottle from him and feigned innocence, "Who are we talking
"Ohh come on, Andrew. Even the bruise on your nose hasn't healed yet and you are already acting as you have forgotten all about her?" He raised his brow.
Realizing that there was no going back, I told him the truth, "I don't know who the hell she was. I didn't mean to help her. You know me, I don't poke around in other people's matters. I just thought that she was in some kind of help. So, I just thought... I just didn't want to cause a scene in my casino. That was all to it."
Jacob was silent at first but then started laughing hysterically, "I didn't want to cause a scene in my casino" He mimicked me, making a weird face.
Giving in, I replied frustratedly, "Ughhhhh, she was such a rude, impolite, and ill-mannered girl. Only if she was some boy then I
would have told her why to never mess with Andrew davilla."
Not caring about my threat, Jacob carried on, "So, after years of searching from under the carpet to the mountains of Himalaya, we have finally found someone daring enough to mess with Andrew davilla." Said Jacob with a mischievous look in his eyes.
I had nothing else to say and there was no point in telling him that I had nothing to do with that girl and I, for sure, was not fantasizing about her. Let him enjoy his theories for now.
That night, we drank the whole carton Jacob had brought with him, all the while he kept making fun of me and in return, I kept throwing daggers with my eyes towards him. Not like he cared about them.
Going to the gym was an imperative part of my routine. I needed my daily exercises to clear my head of all the mess life was throwing at me. At exactly 8 pm, I made my way into the gym, changed into my gym clothes, and got on with my exercises.
OxyGym was the most lavish gym in the area; with spacious set-up, rubber flooring, and all the equipment one could desire in the gym. My absolute favorite part of the gym was the portion where a line of treadmills was arranged in front of a wide window overlooking the exhiMaryting and refreshing greenery that feels exquisite while exercising.
For a straight one and a half hour, I indulged myself in exercising, making my way from treadmill to weight lifting to rowing machine. I focused on my exercise, without interacting with anyone, and everyone knew very clearly to stay
away from me, I didn't even have a trainer; I was not a newbie to need one. I liked this peaceful time of the day but today was not that peaceful because of the spoiled girl who was constantly refusing to vanish from my thoughts.
No matter how hard I tried to
focus my mind away from her, but somehow she always crept back into my mind. As far as I understood, the reason was her rudeness. How dared she punch me in front of all the influential people at my casino? That too when I was trying to help her. Also, the rude chick never even bothered to apologize. I was itching to show her who I was or what I could do to her for her little bravery act.
I knew nothing about her, but there was this strange urge inside me to know everything about her. I tried to tell myself that this was only because no one else had ever dared to insult me like that. I just wanted to punish her for her deed. More than that, I wanted to teach her some manners and ethics.
As I was going to do my last exercise of the day on the pulldown machine, I glanced
towards the door and spotted the man I loathe. Just the sight of any member of the Roberts family made my blood boil.
There, at the door, William roberts was standing, his line of sight straight at me. There was a time when he was like my brother and now was the time I couldn't even tolerate his presence in the room.
But I refused to give him the satisfaction of irritating me and decided to go on and complete my exercise. I carried on with the pullover machine, not giving him even a speck of my attention. After a moment, I realized a shadow looming behind me. I knew who it would be even before glancing back but I was determined not to acknowledge his presence. Even though the rage was storming inside me, I pulled on the mask that I was not bothered by at all and continued with my workout. After the interval of a few more minutes, I heard him say my name. Just the sound of my name coming from his mouth was enough to vent smoke from my nose.
Without replying to William, I stood up and went to the changing room. I was about to take a shower to get rid of sweat when I saw him standing near the door of the changing room. His lack of gym clothes made it clear that he was not there for the workout. More like, he was there to talk to me but for what and why I was not sure. And I was in no mood to make a little chat with him. Not now, not ever.
"I wouldn't have come here if you would have bothered to reply to my texts," said William in a tiny voice.
"Just so you know, one does not reply to one's texts because they do not want to talk to them," I snapped at him.
"I know you don't want to talk to me and, trust me, I wouldn't have reached out to you in the first place if it was not necessary."
"I don't care what you have to say. Just fuck off." With that, I carried my gym bag and walked towards the exit. Never had I ever left the gym without taking a shower but that day was different. I couldn't stand the sight of him. Anger seething from my body, I threw my bag in the trunk, got into the back of the car, and told my driver to take me back to the penthouse.
Inside the penthouse, I threw my bag on the floor and started pacing in the foyer. I could literally feel the anger bubbling through every nerve of my body. No one could make me this angry except William because I had never trusted anyone as much as I trusted him. But how did he pay me back for my trust and my love? By betraying me? By joining hands with my enemies? And just look at his audacity, after stabbing me in the back, he had the boldness to come in front of my eyes. Like, hell man.
I needed to calm down, I shouldn't behave this way. He was no one important to me now. No matter what he did, I should not react this way. I was supposed to not be bothered by him, just like I acted in the gym.
All this sweat was not helping the situation, so I decided to take a cold shower to calm my nerves. I entered my bathroom, passed the sitting sofa and a table of magazines facing the window, and went straight to the shower area of the bathroom. I turned the setting to the ice-cold water and stood
under the cold stream. I tried so hard not to allow all those nightmarish thoughts and events into my brain, but I knew all my efforts would be in vain, so once again, I welcomed all the pain to rattle me. All those flashbacks of twelve years ago were pouring into my brain and I couldn't help but let them devour me.
Twelve years ago, I was living happily and freely like every other teenager of my age and class. I was 13 years old with a predictable life full of happy moments. I would go to school, play soccer with my friends, come home to my loving parents, cuddle with my dog, watch TV, and then go to bed at 9 pm. Although my life was predictable I enjoyed the safety of that predictability. I was the happiest kid until one day. The day that changed me forever, that took away everything precious from me.
I was at home playing with my dog, the maid was making me snacks. I was getting bored but I was still happy because mom and dad would be home soon, returning from a charity event.
I knew the exact moment when it all happened. How can one forget the instant their life flipped upside down? I was savoring the chicken nuggets in front of the TV, snuggling with my dog when the phone rang. I thought the maid would pick it up but it kept ringing. At last, feeling annoyed for having an interruption, I went and received the phone.
The person on the other side of the phone was speaking rapidly, giving me all the wrong news. One part of my mind was finding a thousand reasons to not believe him; he might be lying to me, pranking me, or even calling the wrong number. But the second, much larger and much conscious part of my brain was grasping all the little details and joining them together to shape
the horrendous truth I was refusing to admit. Kessley.... charity event... road accident... city care hospital... not in good condition.
It felt like blood had frozen in my veins, all the air whoosh out of my lungs, I wobbled down on the floor in the useless crying pile. I kept crying and screaming until hannah, another maid, came to me. I was so afraid when Hannah picked up the phone but also felt a little hope that she might listen to the news differently than mine. But the look on her face confirmed to me that she heard what I did,
which only increased the volume of my screams.
The time after that phone call felt so rushed and blurred. I went to the hospital with Marianna. We rushed into the emergency room to meet the doctor. The doctor told us that my parents were driving home when a truck came crashing them, the impact was so forceful and horrible that the car was fully destroyed, leaving my parents in no better condition.
The doctor also gave us the news that my dad died at the spot and my mom was being treated with the mere chances of survival. I kept listening to the doctor. I no longer cried, I didn't even know what to feel, what the truth was, and what a joke. I was in a shocking and numb state.
My mother was going through a delicate surgery with only a 10% chance of survival. I was the student who achieved more than 90% in all subjects, the value of 10% was unknown to me until now because now, I was holding that 10% in my clenched fists with all my strength. After 15 hours of surgery, the doctor told us that it was successful, but the chances of survival are even less. The sound of the ringtone jerked me awake from the haze of the past. I turned off the shower, grabbed the towel from the rack, wrapped it across my waist, and left the bathroom to answer the phone.