ANISHA'S POV
After a short while the old man came out and said to me, "let's go."
"I really wasn't expecting to put you through so much trouble." I said truthfully.
He just laughed and continued walking.
"Here, you may have a look inside the Maybach Exelero." He handed over some keys to me.
What!! Was the car his? Oh no! Seems like I had greatly underestimated the man! Never in my wildest dreams would I ever have guessed that he owned that car. Not that he was not worth of it, it was just that I had assumed that whoever owned that car must be some very rich person. Calculating in my mind, I ended up concluding that the artist probably charged an arm and a leg for his services, thus he could easily afford such a car. Hesitantly I opened the door and looked inside. The artist urged me to get inside and I did. The interior was immaculate. Everything was pure white, with a touch of ocean blue here and there. The leather seats smelt wonderful. It did not look like it had ever been used before. I looked at the dashboard and saw various buttons whose functions I could not have guessed. Some of them were labeled, while some were not. The steering wheel was covered with leathery blue finishing, and it was all clean and tidy. I saw various compartments and I did not open any of them, in case the old man had his private items there.
"Like what you see?" a very familiar voice spoke. Startled, I quickly looked outside and my eyes met his. Of course, I drowned in his eyes which looked like they were piercing right into my soul. He lips slowly curved into a smile…a beautiful smile. Did anyone say we cannot use the word beautiful to describe a man? Why? I could not understand why the word could not be used; for what stood before me was nothing but beauty. Clad in an immaculate white suit, with a white shirt and a black tie, Dylan stood there like an angel sent straight from above. His hair was combed neatly, with his facial features perfectly displayed. The creator had indeed arranged them in a perfect way, such that no matter how many times I had seen him, his beauty did not seize to captivate me. His eyes looked like they were sparkling diamonds, and staring into them left me hypnotized. I lowered my eyes to view his lips, which he, at that same time, pursed into a thin line and then broke into a broad smile. His broad shoulders, although covered by the shirt and suit, were made clear in my eyes, for I more than once I had seen those firmly packed muscles and strong arms that always held me with much love and care. My eyes moved down to his broad shoulders, and I agreed in my heart that the man was given it all; the brains, the face and the body. I continued to stare at him down to his slim waist and his entire body before his voice disturbed me….
"You're stripping me naked with your eyes,"
Oh no! I was so embarrassed that I looked away and covered my eyes with my hands. The artist! Did the artist hear Dylan saying that? I looked up and, he sure enough read my mind and said.. "he's gone."
"Huh? He's gone? Gone without his car?" I was puzzled.
"Well, Miss Meyerton, the car is yours."
I remained seated on the leather seat and wondered if I had heard correctly. The car was mine? How? Did it not belong to the artist? He was the one who brought out the car keys, wasn't he?
"Oh, I thought the old man owned it. He had the car keys."
"He had them because I gave them to him, and asked him to do and say everything that he did and said."
I thought my ears were deceiving me. Slowly I raised my hands and rubbed my ears gently, and I looked at Dylan, who laughed softly. He walked around and took the passenger seat, and smiled at me, "drive us home, Miss Meyerton."
"I...I cannot. This is too much for me!" before I knew it, tears of joy and gratitude had welled up and fallen down my cheeks. Dylan quickly came around and took me in his arms. Both of us were standing just outside the car. I failed to control the tears and they ran freely. I asked myself over and over what I had done to deserved that gift, and I failed to get an answer.
"Dylan, I cannot take the car. It's too much. You shouldn't buy me such expensive gifts," I said in between my sobs. Just then, I realised that my tears had greatly soiled Dylan's pure white suit. Feeling very embarrassed, I touched the soiled part and apologized timidly.
"Don't worry, I am happy to be with you. That's all that matters to me" he was still smiling.
He wiped off my tears and was about to say something when I blurted out; "the portrait! Dylan! Did you have to do that for me? It's too much!"
"Well, you need a portrait. I need it to hang in our mansion."
"Our mansion?" I asked with a smile.
"Of course. What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours."
"But I have nothing," I murmured in humiliation.
"You have a lot. You look down upon yourself. Get in the car, my sweet lady, drive us home".
I felt that I was too emotional to drive, unless if I wanted the both of us to end up involved in an accident. I was too excited. Too shocked, too ….I could not explain. I told Dylan and he just laughed it off and took the driver's seat. Sitting there next to him, I felt like I was in a dream. It surely felt like a dream, and I had no intention of ever waking up from it. Dylan took my hand while his other hand held to the steering wheel. I did not know what to say or do, except…
"Stop, please Dylan, let's stop."
"Is everything ok?" he asked.
"Yes. Please take pictures of me in the car. I want to send them to Val and Ms Meyerton."
Seemingly amused, Dylan obeyed the command and he found a space to park the car. He took many pictures of me and when I went back into the car, I sent a number of them to Ms Meyerton and Val. Of course, it did not take long before my phone rang. Valentina went on and on about how blessed I was to meet and fall in love with Dylan, and she encouraged me to show him a lot of love, to always respect him and be the good girl that she had always known me to be. Valentina went on and on and in the end she handed over her phone to Ms Meyerton. Ms Meyerton, on video call, smiled brightly and congratulated me on the new car. She ended by saying, "we have a surprise for you too."
I could not help but wonder what it was. They told me to be patient. By that time, our car had parked in front of a very lovely hotel. It must have been one of the Octavias' hotel, I was not too sure. My concentration was on the phone, and Dylan silently excused himself and stood outside, scrolling through his phone.
The phone was held by Valentina, and in the video I saw Ms Meyerton holding on to the chair handles. I immediately realised that she had not been sitting in her chair all the while. She pressed hard on the chair handles and brought herself up to the standing position. And she started walking. One…two...three steps. Oh my word! I was speechless! I did not know what to say.
"When did this happen?" I screamed in great joy.
Ms Meyerton and Valentina explained that from the first day that Dylan had met Ms Meyerton, when him and I went to Hallowcave, he had organized for the best physiotherapists to attend to Ms Meyerton. He had also paid for the best medical care from Whyte Silver Rays Medical centre; and, knowing that I would object to it, he had asked the two not to mention a word to me. So Dylan had gone out of his way to make sure that Ms Meyerton gained her ability to walk again? To think of it, even her speech had greatly improved, and I had just not paid too much attention to it.
When Valentina was done explaining it all, I ended the call and went to hug Dylan so tight as I thanked him over and over…and over again! I totally failed to control my emotions; he had to take me back into the car and tried to help me calm down. What he had done for Ms Meyerton happened to be the greatest gift he had ever given, for Ms Meyerton meant a lot to me. I was touched and humbled to know that he knew how much Ms Meyerton meant to me, and he was willing to hold her with that much value. And he informed me that he had planned for us to have a meal at the hotel. It was all so beautiful. Everything was just but beautiful. Oh Dylan! What on earth did I ever do to deserve such a man!