The sharp cry of a newborn echoed through the dimly lit room. The air was filled with anticipation, the tension breaking only when a voice announced, "Young Miss Rivanka, it's a healthy boy."
Rivanka, exhausted yet radiant, let out a breath of relief. She wiped her damp forehead and turned her gaze toward the small bundle in the doctor's arms. "Tell Williams…" she murmured, her voice weak but steady. "Tell him his son has arrived."
Far from the room, deep within the skies, a private aircraft soared through the night. Inside the luxurious cabin, a man dressed in a sharp, tailored suit sat in silence, gazing at the city lights below. The message arrived through his private communicator, a quiet beep followed by a crisp voice.
"The young master has been born."
A rare smile touched Williams' lips as he leaned back in his seat. His voice was calm, yet carried an unmistakable authority. "Turn the plane around. We're going home."
The pilot responded immediately, altering their course. As they neared the destination, the aircraft's instruments flickered, systems recalibrating to the hidden coordinates. The surrounding air seemed to distort, an invisible threshold crossed as they entered restricted airspace.
Beneath them, an immense island emerged from the vast ocean, shrouded in secrecy. A marvel of technology and architecture, the land was an impenetrable fortress hidden from the world. Towers lined the perimeter, high-tech defenses standing vigilant. Soldiers in sleek combat gear patrolled the grounds, carrying weaponry far beyond modern comprehension. At the heart of it all stood a grand estate—its towering structure making even Buckingham Palace seem modest.
The aircraft shifted seamlessly into VTOL mode, descending onto a sleek landing strip. The moment it touched down, a convoy of armored vehicles approached, their engines humming with silent efficiency. The door of the plane opened, and Williams stepped out, his presence commanding immediate attention. Without a word, the awaiting personnel escorted him toward the grand estate.
As he entered, rows of servants bowed in unison. He acknowledged them with a mere nod before striding through the lavish halls. The air inside was warm, filled with the faint aroma of lavender. He reached a set of ornate doors and pushed them open, dismissing all attendants with a wave of his hand.
Inside, Rivanka sat upright, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She clutched the newborn tightly, her hands trembling—not with fear, but with overwhelming joy.
Williams walked closer, his usual stoic expression softening as he gazed at his son for the first time. Gently, he reached out, taking the child into his arms. The baby stirred, tiny fingers curling instinctively around his father's hand. A chuckle escaped Williams' lips—a rare, genuine sound that filled the room.
-----------------------------------------------
Alexander woke up with a start, the remnants of the dream still vivid in his mind. He took a deep breath, steadying himself. Today was his first day at university, and he had a speech to give as the top scorer. Shaking off the lingering emotions from the dream, he sat up and called out for his parents.
Silence.
Frowning, he stood up and walked out of his room. His parents were almost always home in the mornings. He assumed they had gone out for something and thought nothing of it. Opening his cabinet to get his clothes, a paper fluttered to the ground.
His eyes fell on it, and as he picked it up, his heart clenched.
Adoption papers.
Alexander stood frozen, his mind struggling to process what he was seeing. His hands trembled slightly as he stared at the document. He felt as if the ground had been pulled from beneath his feet. His entire world—the life he had known—suddenly seemed like a lie.
But he didn't allow himself to break.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, he quietly placed the paper back into the cabinet, shutting it as if that could erase what he had just learned. Taking his uniform, he got dressed and left the house as if nothing had happened.
On the way to the bus stop, he met his best friend, Anurag, who had been with him since kindergarten. They took the same bus to Howard University in Washington, D.C., where they had both enrolled. As they stepped off the bus, Alexander's eyes instinctively searched the crowd, and then he saw her—Serena.
The girl he had loved since childhood.
For a brief moment, the world seemed to slow. He had spent years longing for her, yet here she was, unaware of his silent affections. He couldn't keep his gaze on her for long, though, as another familiar presence made itself known.
A hard slap landed on his back. "Daydreaming about her again?"
Alexander groaned as his other friend, Krarth, laughed beside Anurag. The two of them had always known about his feelings, and their teasing never ended. Anurag was already chuckling, watching Alexander's flustered reaction.
Alexander didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He decided to ignore the idiot who had just hit him, knowing that any protest would only make things worse. Though they were his friends, they had done more harm than help in this regard. It was the perfect metaphor—why fear enemies when you have friends like these?
The university's opening ceremony was scheduled for the late afternoon due to an unexpected delay, giving program participants extra time to prepare. Since students from multiple countries had enrolled under a new policy, the event was meant to be more inclusive. As always, Alexander was thoroughly preparing for his speech.
He sat on the first-floor balcony, reviewing his notes, when he noticed something below—Serena and her friends were practicing a dance routine.
Somehow, fate had a way of placing them in the same space, no matter where he went. His eyes lingered on her movements, completely captivated. He wasn't studying his speech anymore; instead, he was committing her dance to memory.
An idea struck him, and before he knew it, he had pulled out his phone to record her performance. Just for his idiotic brain, as he told himself.
Unbeknownst to him, his so-called friends had been watching the entire time. And worse, they had started recording him recording her.
When he was done, feeling oddly accomplished, he turned—only to see Anurag and Krarth grinning at him, holding up their phones. His stomach dropped.
"Delete that," Alexander demanded, already knowing there was no way they would.
Krarth smirked. "What if we show it to her?"
"Hell no," Alexander muttered, knowing that his lack of physical strength meant he couldn't even attempt to take their phones away. As usual, he was completely at their mercy.
He had just lost his mood to study as he started scrolling through his phone, still scared of what those two idiots—rascals—would do.
A familiar presence approached him. It was Serena's younger sister. Given that they had practically grown up together, having studied in the same schools since childhood, they were quite familiar with each other.
She had followed her sister to the university for the day since their parents were out and, upon spotting Alex, casually walked over. "Honestly, my sister and her friends are a joke," she said, shaking her head with a smirk before laughing at her own words.
Alex chuckled lightly, setting his phone aside. "And yet you willingly tag along with them?" he teased.
"Well, it's either that or stay home bored out of my mind," she retorted, plopping down beside him.
The conversation flowed easily, drifting between school memories, mutual friends, and harmless gossip. For a while, Alex found himself distracted from the weight in his chest, laughing at her exaggerated tales.
But as the laughter died down and she got up to leave, reality settled back in. The emptiness he had been trying to ignore clawed its way back.
As he watched her walk away, he leaned back against the railing, staring at the sky. The day had just begun, but deep down, he knew—nothing would ever be the same again.