After another tiring day at work, I finally arrived home. I am relieved to hop into the shower and sleep until I realize today is the day I have to go to my sister's house. I packed my bags the previous night but I don't want to make the drive.
I suck it up and drive there in my work clothes. Today should be the day Mr. Madden lands from his trip up North. I absently think as I drive. I groan once I realize I am thinking about work even after I've left the building. That's how it always is. I take work with me home every day. I can never escape it. Maybe visiting Saiya will prove to be a good thing in the long run.
Two hours later I'm pulling up to her driveway. I lift my suitcase out of my car and walk up to her front porch. I ring the doorbell and wait in front of her brown door that's accompanied by golden edges. The welcome mat lay beneath my feet.
I'm standing for only a few minutes before the door opens and my sister barrels into me. I release my suitcase and nearly fall. "You're here! I was wondering when you were going to show up!" I give her an awkward pat on the back. I was never one for hugs.
She grabs my suitcase and drags me inside. Her house hasn't changed since she moved here but it certainly looks tidier. The blankets on the sofa were neatly tucked and the dust that would usually lay on the coffee table was nowhere to be found. Even her 46-inch flat-screen looked shiny. The kitchen that was directly across from the living room was spic and span. The island in the middle of the kitchen shined as the marble was wiped clean. Her hardwood floors were swept and mopped.
I was sure no dirt would lie on my feet if I were to walk around barefoot. "I'm assuming you didn't clean up for me," she fidgets with her fingers before looking at me with worried eyes. Those eyes always meant the next words out of her mouth were going to make me angry.
"Promise me you won't be angry,"
"Don't say anything to make me angry," I cock an eyebrow. I pinch the bridge of my nose as a headache starts to form. I had finally gotten off work earlier than usual. I was going to get a decent night's rest. Honestly, no matter what she says, I don't think I can muster the energy to get mad.
"Remember when I said there was someone I wanted you to meet and something I wanted to tell you?" she is stalling and wasting my time. My annoyance levels quickly start to rise. "No, it's not like that wasn't the reason for this visit," Saiya takes a deep breath before she says her next words.
"I'm engaged," I don't say anything as I try to process what the hell she just said. When the hell did this happen? I knew we didn't talk much but I didn't think it was to this extent. "Soren, please say something,"
I shut her up by putting my hand up. "You never told me you were even seeing someone," hurt was clear in my voice. "I'm sorry! I didn't know if we were going to be serious or not,"
"Clearly he was serious enough to have proposed to you! And your relationship was serious enough to where you accepted it! Where in that time did you not think it was going to work out? Where in that time did you think to tell me?!"
"I'm sorry it just happened!"
"Just happened? How long have you known him?!" her reply was so soft I nearly missed her answer.
"A year," a sadistic chuckle escapes my lips. "You're marrying a man after knowing him for one year! One year you didn't tell me you were seeing anyone?"
"Oh my gosh, this isn't about you! All you do is criticize me and all my choices and you wonder why I never told you!"
"So your solution was to never tell me and then spring your engagement on me last minute not telling me anything until I arrived."
"Yes, because whenever you're mad you always shut me out instead of talking with me. Then we end up not speaking for months! You're so busy you haven't even contacted our family!"
"Speaking of which, do they know? Have they met him?"
"Yes, they have," I stand up and walk out the door. "This is what I'm talking about! You're always running away!" I don't give her a response. I'm not running away from anything I just need some time to gather my thoughts. As I keep walking I encounter a park. I sit on the swings and let the motion of rocking back and forth soothe me.
The sun had nearly set showing how early I had gotten off work. My raven hair flows around my face. What little light remains from the sun glows upon my hazel eyes. I'm still in a white button-down shirt and black jeans. I had long switched my heels out for slides. I hummed to myself as the realization that my sister wouldn't tell me about her relationship because she was afraid of how I would react, dawned on me.
Had I really been so out of touch with my family? I try to recall the last time I spoke with my family. It's been...six months. Damn. I put my work above the people I cared about. It wasn't on purpose it was just how things turned out. If I didn't see someone every day I would have no chance of contacting them as I work every hour of the day.
I don't know how long I stay on the swing but by the time I stop, my butt is sore and the sun has completely set. I slowly walk back to Saiya's house. I hadn't realized how far of a walk it was until I only made it back after ten minutes. Upon arrival, I see a black sedan. My eyebrows scrunch. That car wasn't here before. I don't know why but it looks familiar.
Deciding knocking would be pointless, I open the door and welcome myself in. I walk down the hallway before I enter the clearing where the living room lies. I stop dead in my tracks as I see familiar black hair and catch a whiff of cologne. There stood Mr. Madden kissing my sister. The sight makes me nauseous.
"What. The. Hell." I whisper. Apparently, that was enough to catch their attention. His arms, which were snaked around Saiya's back are now laid on her hips. As he opens his eyes I nearly rethink my conclusion.
The dark abyssal eyes I am used to seeing every day were filled with light and...love. Was this really Mr. Madden? The asshole who would barely acknowledge my existence and treat me with cold eyes. His eyes found mine and there was no denying it was him when his eyes dimmed to a glare.
I always thought he was a man incapable of love come to find out he simply hates me. What did I ever do to deserve that glare?
"Please tell me that's not my boss you're kissing," I ask Saiya but keep my eyes on Mr. Madden. Gosh, it doesn't even feel right to call him that outside of work hours. Saiya's eyes bulged. "This is your boss?" I squinted my eyes, trying to get a grasp of this discovery.
"You either never cared to remember what my job was or never thought to ask where he worked or who he was. Because if you bothered to retain any of the information you would know that he is indeed my boss."
She grimaces at my words. "As in the asshole of a boss, you would tell me about when you first started working? The one you condemned to a heart attack every day?" His eyebrows cock at this discovery. I inhale a deep breath and cover my face with my hands.
This is it. This is how I lose my job. I would be a fool if I thought he wouldn't fire me because I'm the sister to his fiancee. The words sound wrong in my head. How did it come to this? Saiya clears her throat.
"Jason this is Soren, my sister. Soren this is my-" I cut her off. "I-I know who he is. I'm not ready to hear you say it though." Mr. Madden's hands remain entangled in Saiya's blonde hair. Her hair wasn't as long as mine which reached past my lower back but it was long nonetheless. Her blue eyes look back at me in fear. Fear that I wouldn't accept whatever they have.
I desperately didn't want to prove her right, but I can't wrap my head around it. How did he find the time to meet her? She lives two hours away! I never thought Mr. Madden was the type to propose so easily. Did he truly love her or was he playing with her feelings? I quickly shake the thought out of my head, remembering how he looked at her when I walked in.
"Does mom and Dylan approve?" I ask. She nods her head. "Do they know who he is?" she shakes her head no.
"Are you happy?"
"Yes," she speaks with conviction though I know it didn't come out as strong as she hoped. With that information in my head, I make up my mind. Saiya is right. This isn't about me and whoever Mr. Madden or Jason is to me outside of work has nothing to do with my job. It is clear the Mr. Madden I know and the Jason that Saiya knows are two completely different people. With a heavy sigh, I walk up to Mr. Madden.
"It's nice to meet you, Jason," I outstretch my hand to shake his. He returns the gesture and we shake hands. His hands are rigid and strong. This makes me realize that in our two years of knowing one another, we had never once made physical contact. "It's nice to meet you too, Soren."
I am stunned as my name rolls off his tongue. He's always called me Ms. Heartfelt if he addressed me at all. I don't say anything else. I take my luggage to my room and pick an outfit to sleep in. I take out a black tank top and black shorts along with my black cardigan. I take my towel and make my way to the shower down the hall.
The bathroom is regular. The only thing missing is a tub. There was only a shower in its place. I turn on the water. I strip myself of my work clothes and hop into the steaming shower. I soak my hair and my body in the burning water. My muscles relax under the heat. The glass door fogs up and I can no longer see the bathroom.
I spend twelve minutes in the shower before getting out. I dry my hair with the towel and then wrap it around my body. I pick my clothes off the floor and open the bathroom door. My face collides with a hard chest. My clothes fall out of my hand and I rub my nose in pain.
"What the hell?" I look up to see Mr. Madden's face staring down at me. His hand is up as if he was about to knock. His eyes no longer held color and I wondered if his soulless eyes were especially for me. How lucky am I? His eyes roam down my figure. My towel isn't long as it doesn't reach my knees. The cleavage of my breasts is showing since they are tightly pushed together making them seem perkier than they are.
How did I go from rarely making eye contact with the man to him seeing me in nothing but a towel? My hair still drips with water. A blush spreads across my face as I crouch and pick my clothes off the floor. I don't risk taking my hand off the towel, afraid it might slip.
We maintain eye contact for a few minutes until I get annoyed. "Can you move? You're blocking the exit," I say with irritation. He says nothing and backs up. I slide past his figure and into my room. Is every encounter going to be awkward? How can Saiya love the man when he barely says anything?
I slip into my underwear and clothes. It isn't until I am putting my clothes in my dirty bin that I realize my underwear is missing. Horrified at this realization I quickly scramble to the bathroom. "I'm sorry I forgot my-" I stop in the middle of my sentence. I don't know what made me barge in instead of knocking.
His shirt is completely unbuttoned as it hangs on his forearms, his pants unbuckled and held low around his waist. He stares at me with yet another glare. "I just-I," words couldn't form in my mouth.
Mr. Madden has always been attractive but this was...holy shit. I clear my throat and crouch to pick up my underwear. His crotch was right in front of my face and I get a better look at the many abs he has. With a shaky body, I leave the bathroom.
I really hope he isn't staying the week as well. I won't be able to handle it if these situations become common.