If it could only be simple as a "yes" or "no" question then there would be no problem. But the problem is that even if the question needed to be answered by choosing only between the two, the questions requires a different answer and that is the problem. There is no "yes" or "no" if there are full of uncertainties going on around. Once you chose an answer there is no going back. You only need to move forward.
Whatever Audrey needs, Aiden will comply. Whatever it is name it. He's willing to give everything to her even his own life. For him there was no justification to what he has done in the past and it has hunted him ever since. It's not just guilt that's hunting him but it's his innocence that was being torn apart hoping that it was all just a bad dream.
He was used on just looking at her at such distance. He had watched her grow from afar and he was satisfied with it. But as time passed by, slowly the patience that he's been trying to hold in is starting to grow into something more. Greed.
He started wanting to be with her even just for a moment though she sees him as a stranger, a mere classmate that's enough for him. He couldn't want any more just by being with her but still, he began wanting more. He was slowly being eaten by his desires.
So much that he wanted to be with her, he made a deal with his father. He knows that he won't let him go easily. He knew the responsibility that had to take, as his heir. He was his puppet. It's like he was born not in order to chose his own path but rather to follow the path that was already being prepared for him. He had choices but those choices were never as easy as "yes" or "no".
It's like they're communicating with each gaze and stare. There were no words but there was a connection that only the two of them can explain. But when he looked at her and saw that she's uttering something, he's trying his hardest to try and read what she was trying to say. He looked at her intently but it was no good. He's really no good at lip reading.
Startled, his phone started ringing. He was hoping to see Audrey's name on the screen but it was someone who he expected not to call him. It's his father.
"What do you need?" He said.
"I need you here for a week."
"What do you need me for?"
"I need to be gone for a couple of days and I need you to finish some documents for me and make a couple of business deals in my stead."
"I see. When do you need me to go back?"
"Right now."
"What?!"
"I don't think I need to repeat myself again. Be here today or I won't let you go back there for good."
"I…understand."
"Good. Tomorrow is your cousin Pierre's birthday. No need to worry about buying a gift. You can see a small box with a ribbon at my office later. Take it and say that it's from you."
"Okay."
"Do you have any questions?"
"If I finish early can I go back early?"
"Yes, if you can." His father hanged the phone then.
It was hard to believe that it was a conversation between father and son but that's how it goes for Aiden. Honestly deep inside he hopes that his father would treat him better and not like he's just another one his subordinates.
He knows his father too well and defying him is one of the least things that you'd want to do right now. That's why he went to the airport immediately and booked the earliest flight as possible.
He was then about to message Audrey to tell her that he'll be out for a couple of days for he fears that if he doesn't say a thing, she would surely misunderstand everything but then something unexpected happened.
A boy went running towards him and bumped him making him drop his phone. He was about to pick his phone up but it seems that the odds were not on his favors today. Somebody accidentally stepped on it and cracked the screen. The girl apologized enough that she even wanted to have it repaired but there was no time for having it repaired or even buying for another one. His flight will soon leave.
The moment he stepped out of the airport there was already a car waiting for him. This happens all the time. When he entered, he saw a folder with his schedule neatly organized. He immediately rescheduled everything feeling trapped. He desperately wanted to go back now and wanted to clear things with Audrey knowing that she must have misunderstand now his sudden disappearance.
That very day he immediately boarded the plane again for a meeting with one of their investors. He wasted no time and made sure that every second counts. This was nothing new to him. Some try to belittle him since he's young but he wasn't bothered by it. He's a prodigy and knows the different ins and outs of every business deal and it was easy for him.
When he went to his father's office, his father had already left. There was indeed a small box with a ribbon reminding him to go to his cousin's birthday party tomorrow. Pierre was like a brother to him. They were close ever since they were little. He often tells him that he wishes for him to be his real brother and so does Pierre.
He took the box and opened it up. He saw that it was a Louis Moinet Tourbillon limited edition watch. He looked at the 18k rose gold materials and saw how it was beautifully crafted. He took it out and gently touched it as he deeply sighed.
"He knows that I have always wanted to have one of this. But he never gave me one."
He returned the expensive watch and closed the box and sat on his father's chair. He then placed both of his elbows on the desk, clasped his hands together and leaned his forehead on to them. He slowly closed his eyes and a thought of Audrey started running on his mind like a sweet dream.
It wasn't that long when a sudden knock on the door woke him up and realized that he needed to finish all of this fast before he loses his only reason to live.
"Audrey, wait for me."