Chapter 73 - Home

"Anj?" Oliver glanced at the passenger's seat at a red light when his sister did not respond after his third call. Angela did nothing except stare at the dashboard, her face blank and her eyes empty.

He reached and patted her arm to get her attention and when she looked at him, he raised a brow in question. "You okay? What's wrong?"

"Oh…" She blinked fast and composed herself as she nodded. "Yeah. Just tired."

"You sure?"

Curling her mouth into a smile, she reassured him, though her eyes didn't seem to agree with her lips. "Yeah. Can you wake me up when we get there? I want to rest my eyes."

"Okay…" Oliver stared at her for a bit and watched her turn towards the window, hugging herself as she closed her eyes. He turned up the heater to warm up the car as it was still drizzling outside. He couldn't tell what was wrong with her, but it's not the first time that she keeps things to herself, so he could only let her be, thinking that she needed some peace and quiet.

Although Angela had her eyes closed, all she could see in her mind was the sight of Gael when she left. His face, his boyish smile when he didn't suppress himself from enjoying something, his mischievous smirk when he's thinking and wants to tease her, his cold, dark stare when he's annoyed or mad about something—all the images of himself when he was with her ran in her head like a flashback. 

She couldn't deny that she was already missing him when it hadn't been that long since she last saw him. However, she wished that she had properly said farewell. But thinking about it now, maybe it was for the best that it ended like that… Because she wouldn't know what she would have done if they had really said their goodbyes to each other.

Her eyes fluttered open and caught sight of a small blinking object up in the sky, then she wondered if it was his plane. New York was only a couple of hours away by plane, but it was over a thousand miles away in distance—too far. A crazy thought popped in her head: What if she flies—but she brushed it away, thinking that it was absurd. Her life wasn't some romance novel, and she wasn't that desperate—thankfully she wasn't.

…

Su Mansion at Oakwood in the outskirt of Mayne City, Esmea

The mansion sat in a four thousand square meter land—a two-story traditional design with luxurious detailing surrounded by greens and a colorful garden. The siblings arrived home at one in the morning. Entering the mansion through the large brown double doors, they were greeted by the butler who told them that their father had already fallen asleep waiting for them, so the butler informed them to be up early for breakfast as per their father's instructions.

Turning to his sister, Oliver said, "Glad you're back. I'm so exhausted… I'll catch up with you tomorrow?"

Angela nodded and hugged him briefly. "Thank you." 

Then, she headed towards her bedroom and sat on the edge of her bed as soon as she entered. The sheets were clean and there wasn't a speck of dust in the bedroom as the servants cleaned it regularly even when she wasn't around, so it always looked the same whenever she came home.

Home… That was odd. She had spent most of her life in this mansion, yet she didn't feel like she was actually 'home' this time.

Letting out a sigh, Angela dragged herself to the bathroom and took a bath. Pressing a button on the device next to the tub, a violin instrumental of a pop song sounded from its speakers. Then, she sat in the tub for several minutes to relax. She didn't want to let the ill feelings within her last for a long time. 'Whatever this is, this has got to stop,' she thought.

When she was done, she changed into a comfortable sleepwear and blow-dried her hair while checking her calendar for the next month on her tablet. She had to fix her schedule as there were things that needed to be taken care of that she was supposed to do a couple of days ago. It was almost three in the morning when she finished.

"Ah, right…" she muttered, remembering that she hadn't gotten back to her best friend Nina's message from earlier that day telling her that she had good news regarding her books.

Grabbing her smartphone, she contemplated whether she should text her as it was already dawn and she worried that she would disturb Nina's sleep. Thinking that she should at least leave a message, she started typing.

[Angela: Hey, sorry I couldn't get back to you earlier. I just got back home at Oakwood. Lunch tomorrow? I have something important to tell you.]

After hitting send, she was suddenly reminded of Gael, annoyed that he didn't even tell her that it was his birthday. But then again… Maybe she just wasn't that important for him to share that part of his life.

Angela tapped her phone screen and checked her call registry—sure enough, his phone number was there. Before they alighted the plane, he had called his number using her phone. She thought of sending him a text, but in the end, she decided against it. What's the point? She didn't want to start something that would obviously go nowhere. Besides, it was already late and he was in flight. 

She sat on her bed and put her phone to the side as she began organizing her calendar. In Nina's text, she was told to free at least two weeks for the month of September because she had an exciting project to work on. She trusted her best friend to make decisions for her regarding her novels, so she didn't question.

Just then, her phone rang and she grabbed it without looking at the screen, answering the call almost instantly, "Sorry, Nina! Did I wake you? I should have texted you in the mor—"

"It's me," said the man on the other line. 

His voice was slightly rough and deep—it was so familiar that a strange rush of warmth coursed within her. With widened eyes and a racing heart, she dropped the tablet and hesitated when she uttered, "Gael…"

Angela heard him release a breath, and then she felt her throat swell up. She could imagine Gael softly chuckling before he replied, "I told you I was gonna call."