Painful Passing
Liam
The background voice not only confirmed my guess on Emma doing something sketchy, but the last thing I expected was her with Peter. Even after that, they had burst out of the empty room on the anniversary celebration night, I was certain Emma didn’t willingly go in there with him; he must have forced her. I didn’t even have to question her to know that.
But after hearing his voice in the background and with the way she had cut off the call, I doubted if she was being forced. There were different voices violating my mind after that call, a part of me believed this was too much to conclude there could be something between them, and then the other was soft and subtle, but reminding me Emma was Fiona. She would never do that to me, certainly not with the one I hated the most. But Fiona also knew about my hatred for Peter, yet she left with him. What are the chances Emma won’t fall?
“Hey there,” A cold wet soaked into my shirt to my skin, drawing me out of my thoughts. I jerked a little, lifting my head to meet with Grace, who had a small smile while she looked down at me.
“Thank you,” I muttered, taking the cold water she offered and turning the cap open. The afternoon was hot, and I was dehydrated, but too lost in thoughts and worry about Emma.
“I’m sure you’ve reached out to Emma.” Grace began before settling beside me. She must have left the room for some air, which also meant Grandma was sleeping. She had woken up for a while; she had even tried to reach out to me, but she barely had the strength to. It broke my heart seeing her that way. For someone who has parents' issues, I have found comfort in staying close to her.
I nodded in response to Grace’s statement.
“I’m sure Emma and Grandma are grateful, and have been thanking you, but I want to say thank you on behalf of all of us.” She paused.
This was the first time we were both seated alone having a conversation; she had drooled over me the first time I visited, however, I could tell she was the least interested in me. If anything, from the way she always looked at Selena despite their fake ass looking arguments, she seemed to admire Selena. Even when we got here, she had been looking out and asking why Selena wasn’t here.
“You’ve done so much for us, you brought a spark that never existed to both Emma and Grandma’s lives, and I don’t think any of us will be able to repay you in a lifetime.”
“I consider y’all as family, why would I need to repay?” The word family would usually feel strange when it was directed at the Andersons, but with Emma and Grandma, I felt like I belonged, like I had the experience of an actual family.
“So it’s certain now, I’m having a billionaire as my in-law.” Her eyes sparkled when I met her, and it made me chuckle, almost forgetting about Emma and Peter.
“Should I be bothered that I will be getting bombarded by your girlfriend every day?” I raised a brow, and eyes once bright with excitement were replaced with shock.
“H-How did you-”
I hid back a smile. I had noticed their chemistry on the first day they both met, fighting and all, but I hadn’t failed to notice the side glances that were soft with hidden smiles and the subtle touches whenever they were close to each other. What I did not understand was their reason for fake fighting and why Selena had not yet visited. The Selena I knew would have made her way here earlier, but the minute Grace and Grandma were settled, she left and only dropped messages asking about Emma and Grandma.
“You didn’t do a great job hiding it. Why hide it in the first place?” I mean, this is the 21st century, there are fewer homophobes, so anyone could love who they want.
But her gaze dropped, and it made me doubt if I was right; perhaps they didn’t feel the same way.
“It’s not just my call. Selena isn’t sure about Derek; she’s a new one.” She pursed her lips and nodded as if trying to come to terms with it.
I didn’t want to pry further; if not, I’d ask why Selena wasn’t here. So instead, I patted her back slowly.
“I’ll go check up on Granny.”
Grace nodded while I took over the shift. Immediately, the room door clicked open, Granny’s eyes fluttered open, and I froze, regretting not putting effort to make less noise. She had an oxygen line still connected to her nostrils, but when she parted her lips to speak, I rushed to her.
“You should rest some more.”
But then she still struggled to mouth, while also struggling to sit up It didn’t take long for me to understand what she was requesting. I poured water from the glass jug into a glass cup before supporting her to sit up, then giving her a sip. I wasn’t chugging down a whole glass after surgery, so I just gave her a little.
“Thank you.” Her voice wasn’t clear, but I could hear sounds now; it was broken and low.
“Emma,” She tried to call out with her cracked voice, but I understood she was asking for her granddaughter. My chest felt heavy. And I didn’t know how to answer. Fortunately, the door swung open and Emma walked in. My shoulders dropped, feeling relaxed that I did not have to begin giving excuses, but then another figure walked in, not Derek, not Grace.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”