Chapter 65 You again?
CHAPTER 65
You again?
ANDERSON
The silence that followed felt suffocating. No one moved at first. The air in the room was thick with shock and tension, as though even breathing too loudly would make everything worse. C stood frozen, her eyes wide, her thoughts clearly scrambling to catch up with what had just happened. The young man beside her shifted slightly, uncertain, his earlier confidence completely gone. Vivian stood at the corner trying to clear the bed to ease the tension that flowed through the room.
Anderson remained at the doorway, his presence dominating the space. His expression had settled into something controlled but that control felt fragile, like it was holding back something far stronger beneath the surface.
“This…” he repeated slowly, his voice quiet but far more dangerous, “is what goes on behind closed doors?”
C swallowed hard, finally finding a bit of her voice. “Dad, I—”
“Don’t,” he cut in sharply.
The single word was enough to stop her completely. Vivian stepped forward, placing herself slightly between them, her tone more urgent now. “Anderson, this isn’t the way to handle it.”
He didn’t look at her. Instead, his gaze remained fixed on C and the boy beside her. “You,” he said, directing his attention to the young man. “Who are you?”
The boy hesitated, clearly unsure of how to respond. “My name is—”
“I didn’t ask for your name,” Anderson interrupted. “I asked what you’re doing in my house.”
The tension tightened further. The boy straightened slightly, trying to gather himself. “Sir, I didn’t mean any disrespect—”
“And yet, here you are,” Anderson replied coldly.
Vivian exhaled, stepping closer to him. “Enough,” she said firmly this time. “You’re turning this into something bigger than it needs to be.”
Anderson finally turned his head toward her.
“Bigger?” he repeated. “You think this is small?”
“It’s a mistake,” Vivian insisted. “She’s young—”
“She’s careless,” Anderson corrected.
C flinched slightly at the word, she came down slowly from the bed with the bedsheet still tied to her body. The room fell quiet again for a brief moment, the weight of his judgment settling heavily.
“Get dressed,” Anderson said finally, his tone
C nodded quickly, her hands trembling slightly as she reached for something nearby. The boy followed her lead, both of them eager to move, to do something anything to ease the intensity of the situation.
Vivian turned slightly, lowering her voice as she spoke to Anderson. “You’ve made your point. Let it go for now.”
But Anderson shook his head. “No,” he said. “This is exactly the problem.” he was now facing her fully.
His voice was quiet, but more focused. “I leave this house trusting that things are handled,” he continued. “And instead, I come back to this… chaos.”
Vivian’s expression hardened slightly. “You’re blaming me for everything.”
“I’m holding you accountable,” he replied.
The distinction only deepened the tension between them.
Before Vivian could respond again, Anderson stepped back from the doorway.
“Out,” he said to the boy, without looking at him directly.
The boy didn’t hesitate. As soon as he was properly dressed, he moved quickly toward the door, avoiding eye contact as he passed. The moment he stepped into the hallway, he didn’t stop his footsteps fading as he made his way out of the house entirely.
C remained behind, standing awkwardly in the center of the room. She looked smaller now. The girl with the sharp mouth can't even say a word. Anderson was known for his stupid anger and that alone scared her. She said her last prayers off heart because she knew this wasn't going to end well.
The earlier atmosphere had completely disappeared, replaced by discomfort and quiet embarrassment.
Anderson looked at her again, his expression slightly softer but not by much. “We’ll talk about this later,” he said.
C nodded, unable to meet his eyes.
Vivian stepped closer to her daughter, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Go get some rest,” she said gently.
C didn’t argue. She moved quickly, toward the bed, as if putting physical distance between herself and the situation might make it easier to process
Anderson turned away. Without another word, he walked out of the room.
Vivian followed him, closing the door behind them softly this time, as if trying to undo the force of what had just happened. She walked behind him like a maid guarding a prince.
She crossed her arms, watching Anderson as he walked a few steps ahead before stopping.
“You didn’t have to handle it like that,” she said.
He turned to face her again. “You again”.
“What do you mean, are you bored of me”. Vivian snapped.
“Okay tell me, he said putting his hands on his waist, how would you have handled it?” he asked.
“Privately,” she replied. “Calmly.”
“And pretend it didn’t happen?” he challenged.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “But not like this.”
Anderson exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. “This house is falling apart,” he said quietly and turned to leave, but Vivian still trailed behind him.
Vivian’s expression changed slightly at that.
“It’s not falling apart,” she insisted. “Things are just… complicated.” she added, talking behind him.
“Complicated?” he repeated. “Ruby is out there with a man we barely understand, and now this—”
“Stop bringing Ruby into everything,” Vivian cut in.
“I won’t,” Anderson replied firmly. “Because it all connects.”
Vivian looked at him, frustration was evident now. “You think everything is a problem,” she said.
“No,” he corrected. “I think you’re ignoring them.”
The words landed harder than expected. For a moment, Vivian didn’t respond. She simply looked at him, her expression shifting from frustration to something quieter, more conflicted.
Anderson’s tone softened slightly, though the seriousness remained.
“I need to know what’s going on,” he said. “With both of them.”
Vivian sighed, looking away briefly.
“Not everything is as bad as you think,” she said.
“Then explain it to me,” he replied.
But she didn’t. And that silence, once again, spoke louder than words.