The next morning I woke up late. Nathan is standing by the window all ready for the office, sipping from his coffee mug. There is a breakfast tray on the coffee table.
"Good morning," I say to him as I get up from the bed. He turns and nods at me. I freshen up and eat my breakfast. Nathan sitting on the bed with his laptop, "I'll be taking a day off from the orphanage." I inform him. I think it would be better for me to stay away from both Dylan and Nathan.
"Really? Will you be able to stay away from your Prince Charming?" he says sarcastically.
"Will you stop? What are you jealous of?" he keeps his laptop aside and paces towards me making me take steps back.
"I don't get jealous." he says, "I don't have to get jealous. All I am worried about is you spilling everything to that boy toy of yours. I am telling you, Grey do not test my patience right now. You promised me that there will be no ex-boyfriend trouble, I hope you keep that promise." When he is finished I have no intention of replying to whatever bullshit that came out of his mouth.
I stare in the distance not saying a word to him. Can't he trust me? His interference is increasing day by day. I don't even get why he is so bothered by me telling Dylan anything. It's not like I will run off with him.
"Say something," he says quietly.
"You are suffocating me." he moves away, "Not physically Nathan, mentally you are suffocating me. You put restrictions on me but do whatever you want to do! You had a girl drop you at the hotel, you were flirting with her, and you were about to sleep with her! And then the very next day you kiss me without my permission! You made me believe you used me to clear out the situation and then yet you expect me to follow whatever you say!" I am outraged. He can't just say whatever he wants and expect no reaction.
"I'm sorry," is all he says. His short replies are driving me crazy. I let out a groan and move past him.
"April," he stops me, "Talk to me!" he demands.
"Talk to you?! You don't know how to communicate! Why do you even what to talk to me anyway? You hate me! And you just want me to open up to you so that you can use my vulnerability." I look at him with blazing eyes. He keeps a straight face and doesn't say a word. My eyes try to find him but he avoids them. I groan and walk past him.
"Wait." He grabs my arm, "Calm..."
"Don't you even dare to calm me down!" I cut him. I want to slap the crap out of him.
"Let's move out..." he suggests.
"No!"
"Grey!" he says, "You have to think..."
"Nathan! Don't boss me around!" I yell, "You are such an..." I'm cut off by him hugging me tightly. I try to pull away but he strokes my hair shushing me.
"Please calm down!" he says, "I'm sorry for bossing you around. This is what you wanted right? Me supporting yourself like Dylan? Are you fine now?"
"I don't want you to behave like Dylan," I whine and pull away from him. He can be comforting, but I pull away anyway. He doesn't resist my pulling away. He reaches for my hand but I pull out of it.
"Okay..." He raises his hands, "I know you don't trust me. But, can you give me a chance at redemption? I am not as bad as you think."
"Maybe you aren't and to be honest I never believed you were. I know your life upended after we got married. But Nathan so did mine." I open the door and get out of that room. I find Venessa walking up the stairs in the same clothes as last night.
"The famous walk of shame," I wink at her. We both laugh at each other. We end up talking in her room for a while, more about her relationship than mine. I am thankful to her, she always senses the vibe.
"Okay, enough chitchat. Why are you still here? Are you avoiding Dylan? Or are you avoiding Nathan-Dylan drama?"
"All of the above."
"You need a drink."
"It's 10 a.m."
"Oh come on. When you have that much drama in your life, it's okay." I bow my head to her. We get a bottle of wine from downstairs and chat a bit longer. About everything and everyone. Venessa knows a lot of gossip.
After our happy hour, I decide to go to the orphanage. I remembered that I didn't join the orphanage for Dylan or anyone else I joined it for the children. I walk to the orphanage and find Dylan kneeling at the entrance hugging a little boy.
"What happened?" I ask him.
"I cut!" he sobs pointing at his elbow. I sit down next to Dylan and wipe his tears.
"It's okay baby. Aren't you a strong boy?" he nods vigorously and smiles at me. God, children are so hard to handle, but at the same time very simple.
"Come on now go inside." Dylan rubs his back. He runs inside, leaving us smiling at him.
"So, when are you going back?" I ask him as we go inside.
"Till Christmas," he replies. He avoids any further conversation and walks off in the opposite direction. It's good he doesn't want to talk because I don't either. I summon the children who are in the play and we rehearse. Dylan's part is up but he is nowhere in sight. I send a boy to call him but he sends a message saying he is busy. I decide to free the children from the rehearsal and walk around the orphanage on my own. I find Dylan on the roof looking at the horizon.
"Hey stranger," I say and he turns.
"Hey," he reciprocates, "Rehearsal done?"
"We are just missing out on a prince. You know Ethan will eat you for breakfast if you don't rehearse, right?"
"I'm not in the mood."
"What happened?"
"I called Amy." He turns and faces me. I gulp hard. If he called her then she must have told him the truth. Oh no no, this can't be happening.
"She told you?"
"Worse. She thought I already knew. I called her yesterday after my interaction with Nathan. I knew something was off from the beginning, but stupid that I am I thought you would tell me if you were in trouble. You know I thought I was still part of your life, that I mean something to you."
"You do mean something to me." I say in a voice filled with despair, "But I couldn't tell you, Dylan. This was my mess."
"Your mess? How the hell is this your mess? This is your parents' mess. How could they do this to you?"
"No! They just proposed it to me. This was all Robin's idea. He threatened me. He wanted Dad's company out of the picture. Dylan..."
"Come with me."
"What? Where?"
"Come with me to London. Let's give our relationship another chance. Divorce him."
"I can't do that. If I divorce him, the media will know this marriage was against our will and Robin's company will take a huge hit. After that God knows what he will do to take revenge on Dad. I can't..."
"April, I love you!" He cuts me off. I get overwhelmed by emotions as the words leave his mouth. No, he didn't just say that. How dare he say that? Not after everything has happened. Love was the least of our problems. He has no right to say this to me anymore.
"Get out, Dylan." He steps closer to me but I move away. "Please just leave!"
"Just like that? You are not even going to finish this conversation?"
"There is no conversation to finish. If you expect me to say it back, I won't. A lot has happened since we broke up. I am a different person now."
He paces closer to me until our faces are inches apart from each other, "Yes, you are. I know deep down you still are my April. You and I are meant to be. This should never have happened, this always was about you and me. We should be together." As he says those words, I spiral into a flashback...
I turn in my bed only to collide with the half-naked man sleeping next to me. The sun rays crept into the room from the window and I lay next to the love of my life. This was perfect. I run my fingers through his hair and kiss his chest.
"What got into you this morning?" Dylan wakes up.
"I love you. You are the one. Do you know how people say there is one person made for everybody? You are the one for me." Dylan smiles and kisses me.
"Marry me." He says and my smile fades away.
"What?"
"You said it. We are meant to be. We should be together, forever." Dread settles in my stomach and I wonder if I brought this upon myself.
I snap out of my thoughts and find him staring at my lips. His face was centimetres away from mine. As he is about to close the gap between our faces I push him away. I can not, I will not cheat on Nathan. I don't want to. I run downstairs, the same question running in my mind, did I bring this upon myself? I keep running until I collide with someone. I am so restless, I apologise but don't even look at the person.
"April! Are you okay?" Nathan's concerned voice reaches my ears and I snap my head towards him.
"Nathan," I whisper. My breathing was heavy but after seeing him here, I can barely breathe.
"Hey, hey..." He comes closer to me, "What happened? Did someone try to hurt you?" He was so concerned. I don't even realise when I start crying. The guilt is too much. "April please talk to me." He looks behind me and finds Dylan standing there. I see his expression turning dark, "Did he hurt you?" I don't answer, I am crying and shaking. I move closer to Nathan and hug him.
"No," I finally manage to get out. "Just hold me please." I feel his hands engulf me in his arms. Why do I feel so safe with him? No one has ever made me feel this safe around them.
"It's okay, whatever happened, it's going to be okay." He comforts me. I realise what Nathan might be thinking and panic build inside me.
"No no no. Nathan, I didn't. It's not what you think..." I pull away.
"Shhh," He pushes me and removes a hair strand from my face, "I never thought you did. I know, I know my wife." He reassures me. He knows. The feeling of safety was back. He pulls me into him and gives me a quick hug.
"What are you doing here?" I ask Nathan as he fills a glass of water from the water cooler.
"I was on my way back when I had an urge to see you. Thank God that I did." I look down and wonder how wrong I had taken this person to be. There is so much good in him. He hands me the water and moves closer. His fingers lift my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes.
"I promise you I will let you handle whatever is going on. Take your time, I will stay out of it. And we don't have to talk about it, ever." He says sincerely, "How's that for giving some space?" He winks at me and my lips curl into a smile.
"You look pale." I notice.
"Uhh, I must be dehydrated." He dismisses me, "I'll see you later."
I distract myself for the rest of the day by taking care of the children. When it's dark I rush back home. When I reach I find the main door is locked, I ring the bell multiple times but no one opens the door. I call Nathan repeatedly but he doesn't pick up. I call Venessa and Anna but they don't pick up as well. Where is everyone?
I sit down, my back resting against the door. I'm so tired. I close my eyes and sleep immediately takes me over. I wake up to sunshine falling on my face and my head resting on someone's shoulder. It's Nathan. He is sleeping beside me calmly and I'm wearing his jacket. His arm is around me.
I run my finger along his cheek. He looks so peaceful but his skin is burning. Oh my God, he has a temperature.
"Nathan! Wake up!" He doesn't respond. I check his pockets for the keys but they are not here. I get up and ring the bell but looks like no one is home. What do I do? I take Nathan's head and make him lie on my lap. I check my phone but it is dead. Where is everybody?
I take Nathan's hand in mine and wait for someone to come home. In a few minutes, an SUV pulls up in front of the house and Anna and Robin get out of it.
"April? Nathan?" Anna squeals, "What are you doing outside?"
"Darling, lower your volume." Robin tells her, "Nathan is sleeping."
"He forgot the keys." I answer Anne, "He is sick."
"Sick?" Robin kneels in front of Nathan and keeps his hand on his forehead. "Anna, he is burning. Open the doors, we should take him inside." Robin carries him inside and makes him lie down in the nearest room.
I sit beside Nathan, who is still unconscious, till the doctor arrives. The fever is one hundred and three degrees Fahrenheit which is pretty alarming.
"I have written down the medicines. No need to worry, nothing serious." he pats Anna on the shoulder. Anna is on the verge of crying seeing her son unconscious burning with fever. Even I hate seeing him like this.
David brings his medicines from the market, I read the prescription as Anna sits beside him, holding his hand. Nathan opens his eyes after half an hour. His dull green eyes meet mine and a smile appears on my face.
"Sweetie, how are you feeling?" Anna asks.
"I'm.." he starts to get up but groans, "Not perfect."
"That's okay. You never were."
"And yet I am better than you." He retorts in a hoarse voice.
"Shut up. Remember your medicines are in my hand, Walsh." I snap. Anna giggles seeing us fighting like kids.
"I'll leave you two kids by yourself." she smiles and moves out.
"Get up." I instruct him, "Eat your breakfast and take your medicines." I turn to move out. He grabs my wrist.
"Help me," he says. I help him get up. I keep my palm on his forehead to see if he still had a fever and he did. He takes his medicines and lies down again.
I take the breakfast back to the kitchen. When I come back Nathan is on his phone talking with someone in his weak voice. He motions me to be outside as it is important. I disobey him and snatch his phone away hanging it up.
"What the fuck?" he yells, "Grey! It's important! Gimme my phone back!"
"No, you need to rest." I keep his phone in my jeans pocket.
"Grey! Gimme back my phone!"
"No, April you can keep the phone with you." we hear Robin's deep voice. He enters the room and sits beside Nathan, "Son, I appreciate you doing what you are doing for the company but never at the cost of your health." he keeps his hand on Nathan's shoulder, "I am giving you a week off for rest. I have already told your secretary to transfer your calls to my phone." I smile at the two. This is the first time I have seen them have a moment.