Chapter 286 I Have Met Him
I received a phone call from Shay half an hour ago. Shay mentioned that Courtney left the banquet hall and that her phone was engaged. That’s why he’s calling to ask whether she has returned home. Then, he repeated what had happened in the cocktail party to me. “Fortunately Shay and Casey were present to smooth things over. They didn’t let things get overly embarrassing for Courtney.” Oliver wore a complicated expression as he stared at Alexander and probed, “Are you telling me that you believe what they said?”
Alexander’s gaze darkened. He seemed to be deep in his thoughts and he did not hear what Oliver said.
“In any case, I do not think it’s true.” Oliver answered his own question. He held his tea cup as he stood up from the couch. Then, he made his way to his room while speaking to Alexander meaningfully. “Sometimes, you may not witness the strange combination of coincidences in person, but you can’t be sure when fate unknowingly binds you with somebody else’s path.”
Alexander did not pay attention to Oliver’s words. Once the living room fell silent again, he walked to the master bedroom entrance. He was about to knock on the door, but he froze halfway as his hand hung mid-air for the longest time. Although I do not know what happened in the banquet hall, it is not difficult to guess. When the farce was taking place, I was answering a call from Mr. Harry in the washroom. Then, I bumped into Kelly when I was stepping out of the facilities. That explains why she said those things. I can’t believe I didn’t even bother to ask where she heard that story from.
He felt utterly upset and remorseful, especially when he recalled the vow he made to Courtney last night—he had promised to protect her well under those complex and horrible circumstances. He could not help but feel ashamed of himself.
After her shower, she stared at her room door as she dried her hair with a towel. Nevertheless, it was exceptionally quiet. She could not sleep for the entire night; instead, she tossed and turned on the bed. The moonlight shone through the gap between the curtains from outside, making the air seem cold.
The temperature has steadily decreased now that the month of October has come and gone. In reality, Courtney already felt the chill during the walk to the building after leaving Isaac’s car. In any case, compared to how cold my body feels, a human’s heart is even colder. I think a person’s heart is a scary thing. It doesn’t matter how much time has passed because those people from the past don’t seem to change. If I think I’ve changed, it might be because I haven’t known them well enough in the past. Isaac is timid whereas Vanessa is evil. Therefore, they are still involved in those matters, which includes the little-known accident that happened six years ago. I try to use time to bury the secret, but it remains there in silence. In fact, it is almost as if it is waiting for the right time to destroy me. I am not sure whether Alexander knows about what happened at tonight’s cocktail party. If I have a choice, I hope that he stays oblivious to this incident. Once it involves the incident six years ago, it will cause the most sensitive issue I currently face to arise.
The early winter rain lasted all night.
It was still dark when Courtney woke up the next morning. The temperature had dropped drastically by 10 degrees, causing her to wrap herself with a thicker woolen coat.
The minute she was done with her shower, she walked out of her room. She had originally planned to avoid Alexander by leaving the house earlier than usual, but she unexpectedly saw a figure on the couch.
Truth to be told, it was a sorry sight to see him asleep on a two-seater couch in his six-foot frame. His legs were dangling off the armrest of the couch and he only covered himself with a woolen blanket. He did not even change the clothes that he wore last night. In fact, she felt chills just by looking at him.
After a moment of hesitation, she approached him to shake his shoulder. “Go back into the room to sleep.”
However, Alexander remained motionless, as though he was sound asleep.
“Alexander.” Courtney frowned and she jabbed at his shoulder. “I don’t have the time to fool around with you. I need to leave now. You have to get up and sleep in the room.” He still did not react to her words.
She was stumped for a while before she suddenly reached out to check his forehead and her heart clenched painfully. He’s burning up. The temperature dropped 10 degrees last night. How could he not freeze in his sleep since he’s barely wearing anything warm?
She woke Oliver up and the two of them managed to drag Alexander into the master bedroom.
Once they were done, Oliver sat on the carpet to catch his breath. “Hang on, I did not lock the door last night. I have to give it to him—he refuses to sleep on a bed and instead, he chose to sleep on a couch. Besides, why didn’t he switch on the heater?”
He swung his arms while complaining loudly since he barely did any physical activity to start with. He almost spent all of his energy after dragging Alexander, who was almost as tall as he was, from the living room to the bedroom. In fact, he felt as though his bones were about to break into pieces.
Courtney glanced at him while tucking Alexander underneath the blanket. “That’s enough. He might not even know where the heater is if you were to ask him. I need to head to the company later. Give him this medication when he’s awake later. Please help me to keep an eye on him.”
Oliver nodded while mumbling to himself, “I am really a nanny now.”
“What do you mean by being a nanny? Can’t you treat him like an older brother?” She was merely making a casual comment, so she did not notice the sudden strained expression across Oliver’s face. He was staring at Alexander with a complex expression.
After the door in the living room was closed, the house fell into silence once again.
Oliver stood up from the carpet. After straightening himself, he stood tall while looking down at Alexander from above. He seemed as if he was trying to figure something out from Alexander’s face.
The vibration from Oliver’s pocket pulled him back from his thoughts. “Hello? Mom,” he lowered his voice. After that, he walked out of the room before closing the door behind him. “I am busy with school. I’ll head home when the winter break starts.”
The gentle voice of a woman answered him over the phone, “You haven’t been home for six months now. I can’t even contact you through your phone in the last two months. What have you been up to? I asked your teacher and she claims that you are often not at school.”
“I have been conducting an investigation and survey off campus,” he lied without missing a beat. “Although I am doing my Undergraduate, Postgraduate and Doctorate in one go, I still have to write my thesis. Otherwise, I won’t be able to graduate. Furthermore, I will have to study abroad next year. I can’t possibly leave at ease without completing my thesis.”
“Each time I ask you to come home, you will use your thesis as an excuse to silence me. Fine, I will stop asking you. If you are happy to stay on your own, it’s fine by me then. I can’t be bothered about you.”
“Mom, do you miss me?” Oliver softened his tone. He reassured her with a rare childish and loving attitude. “If you miss me, I’ll head home tomorrow.”
“That is not necessary. Who wants you home? Didn’t you mention about falling for a girl previously? I am fine as long as you take her home for an introduction during your winter break.”
At the mention of that, Oliver answered bitterly, “That might pose a challenge because she doesn’t fancy me. She already has a boyfriend now.”
There was a pause over the line. “Well, I suppose that is expected. You are sloppy and you can’t even coax a girl. It would be strange if she falls for you.”
“Mom, am I your biological son?” He had mixed feelings at that point.
“You are adopted.”
He was at a loss of words at her response.
After chatting about mundane daily stuff, Oliver turned to look at the master bedroom door and asked tentatively, “Mom, do you want to celebrate the New Year’s in Melrose City?”
“Why are you asking this out of the blue? I do not want to go there. Haven’t I told you that in the past?”
“Well, don’t you want to meet him?”
There was silence on the other end of the line before the voice answered, “I have already met him.”
