《His Ex Wife》


 Chapter 1: The Divorce

    Chapter 1: The Divorce


    3 years ago


    My heart remains frozen to his day whenever I think back to the moment where the only man, I had


    loved had rejected me and for whom? To go lie in the bed of another woman!


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    "That''s just it! Don''t you ever see the mirror? Gosh have you even looked at yourselftely?" he yelled


    making every ounce of hope die instantly. Scott was always out at work andtely I rarely even saw


    him at home with inter-country conferences andte-night meetings that he was attending.


    I knew this rtionship hadn''t been working well enough at all since quite a few months- whenever he


    got home, either he went straight to bed without saying a word to me or he got into an argument with


    me and left the house. So, in order to reach the bottom of the matter, I had tried to start a conversation


    with Scott, this was supposed to solve any misunderstandings between us but his perception had not


    been the same about me anymore, it felt like he could not even stand me¡­


    I looked down at myself to see my clothes, what was wrong with a summer dress, I did not even gain


    an inch of gram ever since this rtionship trouble struck me, clearly it mattered as a question of death


    and life to me. HE mattered me like life and death¡­


    I give him a questioning look demanding an exnation, and he started yelling again in response,


    "See? That''s the problem! You are such an illiterate despite being the educated woman who graduated


    from the Cambridge..."


    By now I could surprisingly feel tears rolling down my eyes, warm tears flowing on my cheeks making a


    way to reach my neck. How could he point out my education? Despite being the smarter one at studies,


    I gave up my education though I wanted to pursue a Master¡¯s, just to be there for him, to be by his side


    when he had proposed to me on our graduation party. I wonder how things had changed so quickly


    between us, we had such a loving rtionship.


    I took a deep breath and approached him to the couch he was sitting on with his two hands holding in


    between the restless mind of his, his elbows resting on the ss table.


    I hugged his chest- he had always found it affectionate when I used to do it- and whispered, "Are you


    oka-"


    I got immediately cut off half from my phrase, he promptly pulled away from me, "Yvonne are you at


    least sane, what the fuck are you even doing?! Just never, ever get this close to me, I...." he paused a


    moment and stared at me for about a whole minute, boring imaginary holes in my body, then I


    observed his eyes well, they were full of boredom and exhaustion, as though he were tired or fed up


    me...it broke me, caused me an inexplicable anguish to see such distaste in his eyes for myself.


    The long pause that almoststed for eternity for me, ended and he spoke again, but this time his voice


    came more as a soft whisper, "I need...I need a divorce Yvonne, just don''t ask me why, you know I


    want the best for both of us and this marriage has cost me my social status, not that I care, but clearly


    this marriage has been a big mistake, and because you are my wife, I don''t want to keep you in the


    dark; I love another woman.."


    I froze instantly, there was no name for what I felt now, right this instant. Did he just say that he doesn''t


    love me anymore? And the best married years of my life had been a mistake for him?


    "I can provide you with all the money you want, trust me this is best deal any woman of your age will


    have craved for, the most luxurious life, what else do you want?"


    I could feel my heart shattering as he said each word and I was stunned to know that my first love Scott


    did bnce everything with money, had he once realized that I was not a gold-digger, that my crave


    wasn''t anywhere near his dor stashes, he would have understood me better. But now, looking at him


    stand tall in his pride, I did not even know what or who he was anymore. He certainly wasn¡¯t the loving


    husband, one that he used to be at the start of our marriage two years ago...


    "Scott," I started taking a deep breath trying to inhale some air in, "I know we can figure it out, we can


    save our marriage, and have a happy life together¡­we have just been too distant recently.¡±


    "No Yvonne!" he refused tly to my face, "I love Anna, I met her on a business trip to Italy 3 months


    ago, and things started getting out of control, that''s when I realized that you may have been the first


    woman and wife in my life but I never loved you, because if I had, I wouldn''t have had fallen head over


    heels for Anna, also she is perfect for the family and to manage the business, she is not just an Eco


    graduate you know.." he said eyeing me up and down.


    For the first time, I felt ashamed of who I am; maybe he had reason, maybe I didn''t deserve being in


    the position I was today, maybe I didn''t deserve to be Mrs Scott Anderson today...


    "You will receive the divorce papers tomorrow, make sure I get them back signed...or you are aware of


    how I can make you sign if Ie to my ways," he threatened and left the door hastily, as if in a hurry


    to reach an important meeting on time, leaving me to cry for hours in the dark evening, under countless


    stars watching me from above; hot tears wouldn''t just stop flowing from my reddened cheeks and I just


    sat there and eventually fell asleep after crying my eyes out...


    I had decided one thing though- I would not take a penny he was willing to offer and just get out of


    Scott¡¯s life. It would kill me to be away from him but it wouldn¡¯t make me any better knowing we stick in


    this empty rtionship when he loved someone else¡­

 Chapter 2: Getting Over

    Chapter 2: Getting Over


    3 yearster


    Yvonne''s POV


    "You know, I¡¯m just so lucky to have you angel, youplete me," he whispered almost out of breath


    as we had just finished the first make-out session ever since he returned home.


    I snuggled more into his chest, our finger intertwined perfectly together. "Do you ever think that we will


    grow apart?" i whispered into his chest, i don''t know why i asked such a question but i couldn''t hold my


    tongue before uttering those ungrateful words.


    He didn''t reply instantly, our long and deep breaths were the only sound the room was filled with, the


    wait eventually ended, "I''m not aware of it myself angel, but i cannot promise it..." he said thest part


    with a deep, husky voice, as if concealing a great pain.


    I wanted to ask him, to question him about it, why could he not promise me an inseperable rtionship,


    but i found myself tongue-tied, something in me halted and I felt my eyes, my eyshes getting heavy


    and heavier gradually and soon, without knowing, i immersed into great darkness...


    "Yvonne!!!!" the loudmanding voice brought me out of my reverie instantly.


    "Yes?" I asked fully rmed.


    "That adds to the fifteenthint of the week, you zone out as you always have and we lose


    customers!" yelled the manager, Herce.


    "No...I...I wa-was just tr-trying to-" he cut me off almost immdiately fed up of me, "Look Yvonne, I am


    aware of your financial status but this time, I can''t just let you work here despite your unalert


    behaviour," Herce said slowly.


    I nodded in understanding, this would be perhaps the thousandth job I''m sacked from. Mr Zachary


    Scott Anderson, my dear ex husband made sure to leave me without even a penny as i had refused his


    "golden offer" as he says it. But I''m happy despite the fact that I''m being sacked again, I''m happy


    because I''m feeding my stomach on my own hard earned money and not on that bastard''s cash.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    "I''m obliged dear, do you understand?" Herce said suddenly holding my hand, I felt awkward with my


    hand in his firm grip, he leaned closer and whispered, "You know because of your enchanting beauty, I


    don''t want you to leave, you know my room is upstairs and you hardly ever see someone hovering over


    there, so...how about we arrange your problem, you know this has to stay between us only..yeah


    baby?" he asked winking and let go of my hand, giving me a hint to follow him upstairs.


    If you aren''t aware of Herce, he is a huge pervert man, in about his middle thirties. I twisted my face in


    disgust, and instantly went to the staff room to get this stupid uniform off my body and got out of this


    restaurant as soon as possible without anyone noticing me.


    I kept walking on the deserted road and after about a good 50 minutes'' walk, I arrived home, I didn''t


    take a bus because I was right now so broke that I didn''t even have enough money for a bus ticket,


    about the house, it was not a huge mansion like Scott''s but just a small house, my elder sister,


    Jete''s house, she lived here with her husband, Gilert.


    I entered the key in the keyhole, and without making any noise, I tip-toed perfectly till I reached my own


    small room. Without turning on the lights, I got undressed and wore somefy clothes and fell on the


    bed slowly, closing my eyes, waiting for sleep to engulf me.


    Suddenly I felt a hand on my waist pulling me closer to the person next to me, my eyes promptly shot


    open and i quickly got off the bed and turned on the lights. On the bed, I saw Gilert who seemed almost


    drunk, he sat up and covered his eyes trying to adjust to the lights.


    "What the heck are you doing here?" i asked surprised.


    He got up and approached me, unable to keep a straight gait, he finally reached me and tried to put his


    filthy hands around my waist again and I immediately backed off.


    "What happened sweetheart?" he asked slowly, his mouth reeking of liquor, his eyes bloody, and his


    face wrinkled in a knowing expression.


    I thought that he misunderstood me as Jete and entered my room, unable to keep on mind that


    Jete is out of town right now, but his next words startled me.


    He leaned against the wall and whispered lowly, "You know Yvonne, I have always admired your body


    more than Jete''s, It''s so enticing, seductive.."


    I got back way further until my back was touching the opposite wall, the expression on my face was


    almost unreadable; Gilert, whom i had considered my elder brother, who supported me through my bad


    phase, actually never saw me the way I saw him..


    "Baby, let''s not waste time, the night is still young," he said approaching me, and came closer to me.


    I could see that he was maybe going to harm but i was so much under the shock that i froze, I couldn''t


    feel any of my body parts move. He sat down next to me and came closer to me, but i didn''t feel any of


    my organs respond to me, what the hell is wrong with me?! I cursed myself mentally.


    He came closer and closer to me, his alcoholic breath almost fanned my face, I turned my head to the


    other side and I had this sudden urge to kick his main sensitive part and run, run away from his hold,


    but my body betrayed me, it didn''t move at all. He leaned closer and put his dirty mouth in my neck,


    then went downwards and put his filthy hands around my cleavage, reavealing my bra, he bent down


    and inhaled my breasts; I felt unpure right that moment, I wanted to die, to get away from this ruthless,


    cruel world.


    Then realisation hit me, there was no other reaction or movement of his on me, his head was down,


    leaning on my cleavage, and i realised that he had passed out, bloody drunkard, asshole, pig! I thought


    of all other curse words i could and, I then assembled every ounce of strength and courage in my body


    to take advantage of this opportunity.


    I pushed him on the floor, and quickly got up to gather all my stuff, I took my clothes, some money and


    got out of the house.


    For thest time, I nced back at the house and promised myself that I will never evere back


    here, where my marriage shattered, where the rest of my rtionships broke down.


    And then, i did something i never imagined i would do, I ran and ran, with all the strength i had, with a


    strong will, my willpower was strong, too strong to evere back in this city, The New York City, the


    city that took everything that belonged to me...

 Chapter 3: Would you go on a date with me?

    Chapter 3: Would you go on a date with me?


    3 monthster


    Scott''s POV


    "Italy! Oh finally we''re in Italy Scott!" she squealed happily, her smile gave me a great satisfaction


    somehow.


    "Anything for you darling," I whispered and kissed her neck.


    "Scott, be a little patient will you?" she asked pointing to the people on the beach, even the old couples


    were watching us shamelessly, but i knew she adored it whenever i was begging for her body and she


    made me even more distant because she knew my eagerness.


    "I don''t care," I murmured into her neck and started kissing her all over again.


    She smiled andughed augh that made me want her even more, after another small kiss she forced


    me to go and buy her a pineapple cocktail, just to make me yearn more for her.


    I smiled and hurried to the bar of the hotel, I saw other girls in the bar, all ready to catch my attention,


    impressed by my body or maybe even more because of my money because I was a celebrated name


    in the world.


    I ignored them and went to order the drink for her to the only bartender i knew yet, Maria.


    "Another pineapple cocktail for Anna?" she guessed before i could even say a word. I smiled a crooked


    grin. "You grew smarter Maria."


    "Yea right," she smiled, and got back to assembling a few things.


    "Leaving for home already?" I asked, it was not even midday yet.


    "Yeah, Joanna''s feeling a bit under the weather," she said and i gave a sympathetic smile. Joanna was


    her only daughter, a bastard had divorced her and now she lived here in Italy, earning a living somehow


    to feed a little stomach.


    She walked back into the counter announcing, "Don''t worry about the drink, I''ll make sure it''s already


    on the way."


    I smiled and turned my back to the counter, now facing the beautiful green sea wondering how lucky i


    was to be here already, on my honeymoon with Aana. We had been recently married, I nced at my


    wedding ring, a simple grey silver enveloping my finger adorned to me by the love of my life.


    --


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    Yvonne''s POV


    3 months ago


    "Are you fine?" Zarke asked as he saw my eyes welling up upon the mention of Scott and his recent


    wedding news that had ckened every newspaper in the whole world.


    "Ye-Yes," I managed to utter quickly in between my sobs.


    I felt like the most neglected person on Earth right this moment, all i wanted was a new start which was


    only possible in a new country, so, I hade to Italy, where the most reliable ties of my contacts


    reside; my aunt Rosa and her son Zarke who had been settled in Italy for almost 25 years now, but my


    bad luck didn''t stop chasing me, it pursued me and surprised me with only unfortunate news. As soon


    as i had arrived, I heard about Scott being married which tore me, broke all existing hopes.


    "Sweetheart, it''s not how you think it''s going to be, life will go on with more hassles and measles and if


    you fall weak during this, how will you cope with maybe heavier problems?" I knew Rosa was right, life


    will go on just as it had, Scott was always the one who quickly moved on and i was always thete one.


    "I think I know just what you need," Zarke said suddenly halting my train of thoughts, seeming reflective


    about whatever he was thinking. I knitted my brows together in confusion, indicating my query


    concerning his words.


    He moved closer to me on the couch and said slowly, emphasizing on each word, trying to make


    himself convincing, "I''ll do a stic surgery over this face of yours, imagine Yvonne, new country, new


    face, new you. I know it might be hard to agree but think of it, it will be less harder to forget about your


    previous life with a new identity."


    "Oh my god!" Rosa eximed in a piercing voice, "and how about a makeover too? Well, what am i


    here for?" she finished with a wink. Of course, Rosa was a fashion designer while Zarke was to


    be a surgeon very soon.


    And that''s how, in the blink of an eye, I became Kia from Yvonne, a woman with a more boosted


    confidence, determined to let the world lie at her feet.


    -----------------------------------------------------------


    "Kia! Please go and fetch a pineapple cocktail for this gentleman waiting outside on the counter," Maria


    yelled in her thick Italian ent.


    "On the way," I said and got to work, it was getting heavier nowadays, not only my studies after which I


    could get a decent job, but the load of this work as well, yes, i was working as well to pay my tertiary


    studies to avoid being a burden over Rosa and Zarke. Anyway, i guess it''s just because of the peak


    time, when most tourists visit Italy. And, I was d to have been pursuing my studies in here, I know


    that leaving Cambridge without benefiting from any job offers was the biggest mistake of my life...no,


    actually believing and falling in love with Scott was the biggest mistake of my life, for which I''m still


    repenting.


    My arms covered with goosebumps all over, it was useless to even think about it, a waste of time, I


    wondered.


    "Your pineapple cocktail sir," I said reaching just in time at the counter.


    He abruptly turned around and the tray fell off my hands and fell onto the floor with the sharp ss


    scattered all over but I stayed immobile to it and was equally being engulfed with shock.


    I could bet that my eyes showed only surprise though he straightened up a bit, pretending to be


    indifferent, though he may have been startled to hear Yvonne''s voice.


    "I''m sorry, I guess I scared you," he said trying to appear unruffled in a flinching effort.


    I didn''t dare say anything, I just kept staring at him for a lengthy minute and then closed my mouth


    immediately as i realized my lower jaw had dropped.


    "I-I''ll m-make another one," I stammered foolishly in front of him as i got back to pouring the drink into


    another neat ss of wine.


    "You live here, in Italy?" he said, every bit of his voice pointing to skepticism. Then it hit me, he did not


    know it was me except that my voice matched to Yvonne, now i was Kia, and i felt extremely relieved,


    but all the while i could see his eyes were on me, as though examining my every move.


    "Yes," I said confidently. I thanked Zarke a million times mentally for the idea that did change my life


    forever. I could finally live like a normal girl despite Scott''s presence.


    "Thanks," he said as i handed him the cocktail. My eyes raging with curiosity as to why he was in


    Italy..as i remember he never liked to leave for any vacation ce, he was devoted to his work...but


    then that may have been because of Anna''s presence, I felt all the confidence draining all of a sudden,


    when i realized he was still here.


    "Do you need anything else sir?" I asked him and he did not answer instinctively, he looked like he was


    weighing his words very carefully before blurting them out.


    "Would you like to go on a date with me?"

 Chapter 4: Date with Ex-Husband

    Chapter 4: Date with Ex-Husband


    Scott''s Pov


    "Would you like to go on a date with me?" I asked her. I couldn''t hold my tongue knowing very well that


    i was being unfaithful to Anna but this gorgeous woman standing in front of me...was just so distracting.


    This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    I was used to being the honey girls hovered over like bees but her¡­she just didn''t seem to fit in the


    ordinary category of girls. What drew me more to her like a moth to a me was her voice, that same


    sweet voice that concealed suppressed emotions my Yvonne had.


    She spontaneously looked up, her beautiful green-blue eyes showed surprise, and as i stared at that


    beautiful face of hers, I realized how incredibly gorgeous she was, her amazing features were just


    made to define beauty. I had decided, no matter what happens, I want her!


    Kia''s POV


    I am astounded, so so much surprised, he''s gotta be kidding me! I thought. If he wasn''t aware, he just


    got married and is on a honeymoon with Anna.


    This is bad, I can sense something worse....but maybe it is a sign that he still belongs to you, my self-


    conscience spoke and I was even more startled to know that she is also by his side. This couldn''t be


    happening, this wasn''t supposed to be happening, not after three lengthy years of my life, if he had to


    come, he coulde back then, but now, it just won''t be me he will be with, besides who would want


    the old in Yvonne back...


    I didn''t even know what to answer, there he was, right in front of my eyes, looking as gorgeous as ever


    and here was i, debating my inner-self whether what to answer...finally, it took me a few minutes to


    judge my answer and i replied with a "yes".


    He smiled that slight smile that made all girls go wild, and then left a little note on the table, leaving me


    with just as much difficulty as dilemma i had faced three years ago. I unfolded the little piece of paper


    as it read, "I''ll be waiting for you at the beach tonight at 9."


    There was no doubt now, Scott Zachery Anderson has remained a jerk and will always stay one no


    matter what, but this time, I pledge to change that, gone is all the love, all the affection that existed for


    him deep within me, just the way he took everything from me, I''ll do the same to him, he should know


    that a woman is not just a stone he can crush beneath his powerful feet, he should be aware that Kia


    has a worth and is not a worthless zealot lover of his, and certainly not just an eco graduate Yvonne


    was.


    At the beach, 9:20 pm


    "I expected you toete," he said as I made my way to the little ssy table set on the slippery


    sand, decorated with sweet scented candles, beneath the moon and the stars and in front of the shiny


    blue dancing waves.


    I wish i was impressed by all this but to ount for my disappointment, it was just that i expected from


    him to offer that to his wife instead of dating another woman on the third month of his recent marriage.


    "I''m 20 minuteste if you haven''t noticed the time," I reminded him with an unaffected, casual tone.


    "I wouldn''t mind waiting for you, even if I had thest percent of hope about your showing up," he said


    admiring me as I sat across him, not giving him the time to pull my chair and giving me his killer looks


    while doing so, and expecting me to blush and all, but how much of a jerk could he be in one particr


    day?! I diverted my gaze from his face to the beach, how I ever wished when I was a teen to be with


    my Mr. Right one day, walking hand in hand on a cold night on the beach, beneath the stars...


    "Would you have some champagne mdy?" he smirked, showing the two neat sses of wine to me.


    He ignited my anger and surprise at the same time, as much as that amused me, it annoyed me at the


    same time. My hatred only scrambled up thedder, which made feel weird as well.


    "Haven''t you just been freaking re-married?" I blurted out, exasperated, emphasizing on the word re.


    His features tempted, then softened. He slowly said, "What happens in my life doesn''t concern you


    sweetheart, besides i do what i want to, no one orders me around.."


    Yeah right, I scoffed mentally, this guy is more amusing than a daily soap, I thought bitterly about how


    wily he was.


    As each second passed by, I could feel my stomach twisting and turning, it was maybe nervousness


    because i was scared of Scott, in the simr way as i had been always scared of drug addicts once in


    my childhood as if they were going to tear me open, I wonder why, but i always felt vicious against


    them, and now, him..


    We ate silently for a few moments, when he tried to make a conversation again, clearly trying to get in


    my pants. "I bet many men from Italy might have already told you this, but you''re breathtakingly


    gorgeous my darling, Kia.."


    "Thanks," I answered casually, and got back to munching the delicious pasta whilst observing the


    beautiful stars. These stars¡­ my littlepanions who knew my reality, who had shared my sorrow


    the night I was pleading and crying and ming myself for my bad luck that my ex-husband cheated on


    me. Suddenly i felt tears rolling down my cheeks.


    I had not even realized when my eyes welled up and why i couldn''t stop my treacherous tears from


    flowing. "Hey hey hey, are you okay darling?" Scott said approaching me. "Yes", I replied curtly before


    turning my head to the other side, avoiding his gaze at all cost.


    All of sudden, I felt his strong, muscled arms wrapping around my skinny and slender shoulders giving


    me greatfort. "No," I protested against his firm grip over me, but he was stronger than me and


    shadowed over my little sitting figure, refusing to pull away.


    I gave up trying eventually and rested my head on his rock-hard chest leaning in tofort despite the


    fact that i will heavily regret this in the future, despite all the woes he has given me, despite the fact that


    i hate him, but again, there''s a thin line between hatred and love..


    Oh Scott, why do you always do this,


    you are the peace of me,


    I wish i didn''t need..


    If our love is tragedy, why are you my remedy,


    If our love''s insanity, why are you my rity?

 Chapter 5: The Reveal

    Chapter 5: The Reveal


    Anna''s POV


    "The NNB news informs you in today''s episode about Zachary Scott Anderson, one of the dominating


    and powerful billionaires of New York. Scott Anderson, recently married to Anna Granger, was seen


    last night at a beach with a gorgeous hooker. Our sources say the woman is a waitress at the posh


    hotel where the new couple is now on their honeymoon. So, we would want to know what is the


    audience'' opinion is concerning this sudden mishap. Text us on 9889 or call us on 7887. We await your


    response, has Scott been fair enough to his wife Anna or should we support the young woman whom


    Scot was seen hugging affectionately o-"


    I shut down the TV, exasperated. Scott cannot do this! He loves me and only me, isn''t that why he left


    that loser Yvonne?


    I took my iPhone and dialled his number. It was already 8 in the morning and he was nowhere to be


    seen. I''d looked in the hotel gallery, the bar, the terrace, the beach but in vain.


    "Yes?" he answered with a sleepy tone.


    "Scott, where are you? I searched every nook and corner in here but you were no-"


    "Anna just shut up! Eat something and I¡¯m noting home...I-"


    "Are you drunk??"


    "Me, uh...." he took a long pause and answered, "no, I don''t, no drunk baby.." and startedughing


    stupidly. It only made my heart beat faster.


    "Scott tell me, where are you? I''ming right there," I said quickly.


    "uhhh....Santagona bar? Hahahahahaha Santa owns a bar Aana!!"


    I sighed in relief, I knew where that ce was, "Okay, just stay right where you are, I''ming," I said


    as I hung up.


    30 minutester


    I opened the bar door to be acquainted with the heavy and foul smell of alcohol. Many drunkardsy on


    the floor, among which i saw Scott. He was lying on a chair in an exhausted posture.


    I rushed to him as soon as i saw him, "Scott! Scott are you okay?" He reeked of liquor, i wonder how


    much of alcohol he consumed sincest night.


    He sighed and opened his eyes. He blinked a few times to adjust to the light. I bent down to his neck to


    pick him up and get back to the hotel but froze right that moment as he whispered in my ear, "Yvonne.."


    Last night- Scott''s Pov


    We''d finished the dinner and i offered to drive her home though she refused coutless times but i''m d


    i was obstinate enough; atleast we got to spend some more time.


    "Did you like it tonight?" I said attempting to break the awkward silence filling the car.


    Her head was still turned to the window but i could easily guess she was avoiding to see my face.


    "Mmh.." she answered. Women giving me silent treatment provoked me to do something i didn''t want


    to do but i kept my calm and focused on the road ahead.


    "Right here!" she said and we came to an aprupt halt. I looked around the deserted road but there was


    no single house to be seen.


    "Where do you live?" I asked out of curiosity.


    "None of your business," she said in a low tone, getting out of the car. Now, she was getting on my


    nerves.


    I got out of the car and shouted, "It is my business darling, a gentleman always leaves hisdy till the


    door," and I pulled her hand from behind causing her to fall into my mighty arms.


    She seemed pissed off and annoyed, diverting her gaze from me without saying another word and tried


    to free herself. I clutched her hands tightly and her shoulders touched mine gently, I was taken aback to


    see such a beautiful face. Her lips seemed like strawberry that i had the sudden urge to kiss her wildly


    and i just forced my lips over hers with authority. But she was too shocked to answer to my kiss. I let


    my hand slide to her back pulling her closer and tried to merge my mouth into hers. She froze,


    unmoved and determined to not kiss back.


    I pulled back and exasperated, yelled at her, "Kiss me back damn it!"


    I ran a hand through my hair and pulled her back, closer than before but this time, she pped me!


    I was dumbfounded, it was out of anyone''s imagination to do that to the mighty Zachary Scott


    Anderson.


    "Who do you think you are Scott? A greek god everyone will be willing to obey? And how many times


    will you do that, how many times?! Answer me damn it!" she screamed as her eyes started to well up.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    "Kia?..." I couldn''t find any words.


    Sheughed a scornfulugh. "Got fooled, didn''t you too? I knew from always that you preferred


    women with killer high heels and fakeshes, but who knew you might stoop that low for it? But then


    why did you marry me? What fascinated you about a in Yvonne?"


    "You''re Yvonne?" I muttered, hardly believing those words.


    "And i wonder what took you so long to recognize me, but well guessed that''s me, Ex Mrs Scott


    Anderson and..." she stepped closer, "I''m not a whore Mr Anderson," she whispered and walked away


    in the dark, her shadow fading slowly and then vanished all at once.


    ============================================


    External Pov


    Location: Shining Inc.


    "Is that Zachary Scott Anderson?" I asked in disbelief.


    "Yes sir," Warren, my secretary answered.


    I was beyond shocked, I had certainly heard about him being avish billionaire, but cheating on his


    wife on his honeymoon, you''re something else Scott, I thought wickedly.


    "Call this woman, if he can cheat on her with his wife on his honeymoon, then she has to be someone


    special, I want this woman," I said to Warren, thinking about what moves shall my new pawn deliver to


    help me destroy and erase my rivalpany, the Andersons''. There was a lot more to just destroying


    the Andersons, most of all I wanted Scott destroyed¡­


    Wee to the game Kia Laurence, I smirked.

 Chapter 6: A Friend from the Past

    Chapter 6: A Friend from the Past


    Kia''s Pov


    8 missed called from ''private number''


    8 missed calls?! I gasped when i saw that, not only because i wasn''t used to receiving missed calls


    from private numbers but also because i feared it was Scott or worse, it could be Aana...I slumped into


    my bed with despair, why had i told him that it was me? I could keep using a secret identity, Kia''s


    identity to get a revenge but no! I always have to screw things and worsen my situation..


    My cell started ringing.


    I nced down at my phone,


    ''Private number calling''.


    In apse of a few seconds, i hesitantly answered the call,


    "hello?"


    My heart was beating erratically in my chest radiating terror through my veins. I was almost certain that


    i would hear Scott on the other side, and no matter how much i could deny, i felt fearful but still ecstatic


    somewhere deep within myself about the fact that he would care to call and ask.


    "Hello there," said a cheerful, but husky masculine voice in a seductive British ent.


    Peculiarly enough, a wave of relief mixed with disappointment washed over me. Deciding not to show


    it, i continued, "yes?"


    The man chuckled on the other side before speaking, "I''m Eric Shining speaking from Shining Inc....and


    i need to meet you Kia, so will you meet me?" he seemed to ask hopefully and respectfully.


    But the word ''Shining'' had clearly deviated my attention, he was from Scott''s rivalpany, it made my


    heart stop for a second.


    "So?" he asked with hope, bringing me out of my regr zone outs.


    "Sure," I said without thinking and regretted the words as soon as they were out of my mouth.


    His mouth seemed to twitch into a cynical smile as he spoke again, "I''ll be there to fetch you, be ready


    by seven...see you soon...Yvonne." He freaking knew who i was! This left a startled look on my face


    and soon the line went dead. Only then did i realise what a big fool i was, I agreed to meet a stranger,


    and more specifically not just any stranger, but someone who was dangerous, someone who seemed


    to know everything about me...


    At seven


    I opened the door and the strong masculine scent of the stranger hit my nostrils. I looked up to see a


    devilishly handsome man standing in front of me. I stepped back as he entered with a smirk on his lips.


    "Who are you?" I asked as he sat on the couch right across from me. He looked too handsome but i


    deviated my attention to my fear and anxiety and added, "And most importantly, how do you know


    me?"


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    He grinned cutely if cute a was possibility to describe the stranger whom i had not very much time ago


    labelled as ''dangerous''.


    "I know everything about you Yvonne," he said half-smiling and it seemed as though he just


    remembered some sweet memory.


    Confused, i got straight to the point, "How?! And what the hell do you want from me??" i asked clearly


    annoyed.


    He leaned his back to the couch and watched me with a smiling face. Though i was beyond annoyed,


    his calmposure made my irritation melt away to some extent.


    After a moment, he spoke again, "You didn''t look bad Yvonne, you never did, you just chose the wrong


    man," he spoke, his voice dripping with regret and honesty in a weird way. His words caught me off


    guard as i processed them, he knew me and i knew him too...


    Realising what he had said, he straightened up a little, seeming nervous...? Well, that''s what it seemed


    to me and then continued, "Uhm well let''s get straight to the point, I''m here to offer you a deal, will you


    join me to destroy the Andersons''? I know you have gone through a lot, and this is the perfect


    opportunity to pounce on the prey Yvonne, I¡¯ll help you," he said reassuringly.


    "Why would you?! Who am i to you?" I snapped, not because I wanted revenge but not through him but


    rather because the way he spoke brought acent, satisfying sense of belonging, a caring I


    longed for a lengthy amount of time but maybe I was expecting it from the wrong person, and now that


    this stranger offeredfort, I¡¯m freaking out...


    He moved closer to me and took my hands in his as he spoke softly, "You''re my everything, you just


    never knew it." Strangely, it sent butterflies in my stomach, a feeling i experienced with Scott around.


    I looked into his eyes that offeredfort and... love strangely and asked in a defeated tone, "Who are


    you?"


    He smiled a little before starting, "Do you remember whom you met as your first room mate at the


    campus? The tall, not that handsome, geek boy?"


    I promptly reacted to that, "Battery!" It was what they called him. "Do you know him? How is he now? Is


    he okay?"


    Heughed before answering, "Of course, he''s changed too much, how would you even recognise


    him? I''m great Yvonne," he said sweetly before shing a genuine smile.


    But i sat like a frozen statue, widened eyes and a dropped jaw, it couldn''t be him...Battery, i mean Iyan


    wasn''t anything like that, i hated to call him Battery like all the others, he was just an ill-treated kid back


    at college.


    I couldn''t be happier, i had gotten epted at my dream college! And here i was, already at the


    campus. Everyone around me seemed so helpful and friendly, i couldn''t wait to dump my bags into my


    room and go out and socialise...


    Oh! The room! I forgot i was going to have a room mate! I started with the stairs to reach the 3rd floor


    eagerly. I couldn''t wait for this anymore and whoever introduced the concept of room mates was


    seriously a genius. I bet my room mate and i are going to have lots of fun too, just like best friends or


    wait, we could be one of the sorority sisters!!


    I was almost out of breath by the time i reached the 3rd floor with my heavy bag. But my mind was too


    upied to care about such things, i was going to have a roomie from now on, my legs were almost


    shivering with excitement.


    Thrilled, i raced till the door no. 149 and knocked. There was no answer, eager and impatient to meet


    my roomie, i knocked again thrice.


    After a moment, i heard some muffled movement behind the door. The door opened slowly and i saw a


    pale tall guy with thin sses open the door. He looked somewhat...scared? Of what though?


    "Oh I think I¡¯m knocking the wrong door, I was supposed to be assigned to room 149," i said politely


    with a smile.


    He didn''t smile back, and said before returning into the room, "This is room 149 and we''re supposed to


    be room mates..."


    What??? "I''m not supposed to share a room with a girl," i said taking out a paper on which the name of


    the girl was scribbled, "..some Iyana Virgin..?"


    He muttered something under his breath and turned to look at me. "My name is Iyan, the administration


    must have made a mistake."


    I was so not supposed and prepared to share a room with a guy. That was unfair!


    I came into the room and saw the two separate beds and the room was half well decorated with lights


    and books while the other half had stayed gloomy and silent and empty.


    "That''s your part of the room, you''re free to do whatever you want, i don''t care and you can ask me if


    you need anything," he offered sweetly.


    "I... I need to take bath," I whispered loud enough for him to hear. He chuckled a little and said, "It''s


    fine, the bathroom is right behind you and besides I¡¯m just leaving for the library anyways, take your


    time room mate," he said.


    For the next few days, we grew a little closer, he was fun to be with actually, I liked him. I hadn''t met


    Scott yet, i had seen him and his group of ''fighters'' as they called them. Scott seemed a bad guy, i


    mean a dangerous one... Everyone feared him. And then one day, i asked to hang out with Iyan round


    the campus but he refused.


    "I don''t want you to get hurt because of me, stay away from me Yvonne," he had replied coldly.


    But ignoring that, I still went out with him and i could notice all pair of eyes glued to us and


    embarrassed of having that much attention, he quickly tried to part ways, but i wasn''t giving up this


    easily.


    "Iyan just rx, they''re just jealous because we make such a good couple roomie!" I said humorously


    but he was in the serious mood.


    He was about to say something when his eyes widened from behind me, I turned to look at Scott and


    another 5 strapping guys with him approaching us.


    "So Iyana the virgin how are you?" Scott said in a mocking tone.


    "His name''s Iyan, the administration made a mistake," i corrected.


    Scott wore an amused look on his face turning to me, "Administration? No sweetheart, you need to


    thank me for honouring him with this name."


    "Let me guess, you are the bully here who acts like a douchebag and cannot survive without sleeping


    around, so you''re the man whore too," i said challenging his guts because perhaps i was more


    offended by his insult to Iyan more than Iyan himself.


    "Yvonne, it''s fine, let''s go," Iyan urged, defeated.


    "Hey Battery are you or are you not a virgin now? I mean if you can resist this hot babe then you are a-


    "


    I cut off Scott before he could continue, "Enough! Just go away, leave us alone!"


    Iyan held my hand in his,forting me and it sent butterflies in my stomach.


    "I''ll get back to you baby doll," he said with a smirk and left with the rest.


    That night i tried to ask Iyan a lot about what was happening and who was Scott and why were they


    constantly after him, but he just shrugged and said, "Ignore it."


    The next morning while i was having a bath, I heard something, like the click of a camera, but I ignored


    it thinking it might be Iyan in the room, by now, we werefortable around each other.


    When I got out, I saw the room was empty. Drying my hair, i suddenly saw Scott behind me, "When did


    youe in??" I asked startled.


    "Nice shampoo by the way!" he said and his expressions were wrinkled in mischief as he said that and


    suddenly his face grew serious.


    "Do you know what Iyan did to you Yvonne?" he asked suddenly.


    "What?" i asked ignoring his presence, continuing tob my hair.


    He approached me as he showed me the picture of my half nude back in my bathroom. "That''s you,


    right?"


    I was frozen for a moment.


    "He shared the pic with everyone on the campus but don''t worry, i have already handled the situation,


    everyone knows it''s him, not your fault.."


    Somehow, i couldn''t believe his words, in the past two weeks, i had known Iyan much better than


    anyone else and i believed he couldn''t do this.


    That night, when Iyan entered the room, he didn''t say anything. He buried himself in books while I did


    the same, deciding to maintain the silence in the room. Soon, sleepy enough, I switched off mymp


    and murmured, "Goodnight Roomie..."


    The reply was instant, "I didn''t do it Yvonne," he spoke in a low, honest tone, almost like he was on the


    verge of crying.


    I wanted tofort him, he sounded so vulnerable. But i was so sleepy but equally satisfied with the


    answer and i immersed into a profound sleep.


    The next morning when i woke up, he was gone. The other half space of the room was empty...


    ~~shback over

 Chapter 7: Plan in Action

    Chapter 7: n in Action


    Iyan''s Pov


    I could not believe she was here right in front of me, with a different face i had never seen before, and


    yet, it seemed so familiar, she still reminded me of her...


    I remember exactly 6 years ago when i had opened that door and had seen Yvonne, the shock and


    bewilderment I had experienced, the joy of seeing her back, of being lucky enough that the universe


    had understood my longing and pain for her and returned her to me, except for the fact that Yvonne


    wasn''t her, she looked just exactly like her.


    Even my ssy parents were ashamed to call me their son because I was not like Scott-my step-


    brother. Scott was the younger one; his mom Parm, an Italian woman and my father had had an


    affair for too long- of course it would have stayed that way: hidden- if Parm had not met that Jewish


    millionaire she fled to Australia with, leaving Scott under the legal custody of my father.


    My mother¡¯s reaction does surprise me at most times though, even though she found out about the


    affair, she had been too kind to ept Scott as her own younger son. She was angry with my father


    but her rage had no ce towards Scott or his mother. Scott was barely 7 when he had taken my


    mother away from me; his deceiving innocent face and pitiful state; just enough to melt my mother


    away from me.


    He grew up to be a pride for both of them, his social skills and good looks were talk of the town among


    the women and their daughters who chased my mother like bees obsess over honey. In the matters of


    money, Scott had always been ahead of me; sometimes I used to think he was taking too much interest


    in the financial status of my family, but my dad¡¯s heart and trust were easy to win with that keen interest


    of his; two birds killed with one stone.


    From where I stood, neither did I stay social with the rich affluent kids of my neighborhood and their


    parents, nor did I hold any interest in minting money. I spent most of my time in the library at both home


    and high school.


    For most of our childhood years, Scott had been a constant bully to me, he never even considered me


    his brother, but that feeling had not been mutual either way. Since we were good at academics, both of


    us got admitted to Cambridge, and father thought what a pride he had to hold in this- his both sons, in


    the best institute in town and soon would be ready to take over his international Empire.


    Little did he know, little did I know that Scott had snatched the one most treasured and beloved to


    me...and now he was doing the same with Yvonne, if not snatching, he had broken her, it was quite


    evident.


    "I cannot believe this.." she mumbled loud enough, disbelief flooding her eyes.


    "I want to help you Yvonne, i know what Scott did to you, he was a scumbag back then and he would


    always remain one..." I said spitting venom with every word I spoke.


    She seemed to ponder for a long moment and then finally nodded, looking at me, "I''m so happy to see


    you Iyan, I had thought I''d never see of you again," she said with acent and sad smile but i


    knew how i was going to erase that sorrow or at least how i was going to bring her vengeance from


    Scott.


    "Promise me you wouldn''t fall for him again Yvonne, I''m not imposing this on you, but I¡¯m determined to


    see Scott Anderson RUINED!"


    She sat still, lost in thoughts, "What''s he done to you? I hope nothing worse than what happened to


    me..." she murmured, drifting off.


    "I''ll tell you that...one day, when the time is right," I said as I began to think of her, before getting up


    brusquely, her stark lifeless eyes filling my head, just as thest I had seen of her.


    I handed her some documents quickly and spoke, "As from tomorrow, you would be our new Marketing


    Manager, I want you to work for me until he tries to contact you again, we will discuss the rest in my


    office. I''ll see you in London, you will be sent the ticket soon."


    I stormed out before she could say another word, only one name on my mind, her voice, herugh, her


    sorrow, her joy, her face that I had yearned to see, Marie...


    2 Weekster...


    "Sir, someone''s here to see you," my secretary Warren whispered softly to me.


    I looked up and said, "Send her in." I was expecting Yvonne since the day i arrived here in London,


    "finally..." I thought when I saw her entering my office, her fingers fidgeting with the handle of her purse.


    I smiled warmly and weed her to sit in front of me. Her face''s nervous smile indicated that she was


    still ufortable with this new me. Indeed, it was difficult for me to settle with her new face too, her


    older face reminded me of her but this new Yvonne was just really abination of the actual Yvonne


    and her.


    "It''s alright Yvonne, I''m not that ssy douchebag billionaire you read about on Wattpad," I said


    smiling.


    She looked at me for a second and then burst outughing loudly, "Right you know, I was imagining


    just that, from this addicting story called, "The girl he never noticed" where Jade-"


    I smiled while saying, "I bet I''ll constantly need to remind you to spare me those silly stories of yours."


    "Yeah right." she said rolling her eyes, ¡°but I had to point this out, you have changed so much¡­¡± she


    said, looking right into my eyes, her eyes then drifting to my hair.


    It suddenly reminded me of how she used to take off my sses and then give me a small kiss me on


    the forehead and smell my messy hair and her soft voice in my ears as she used to whisper ¡®I like you¡¯


    and then chuckle in my ear, kissing my cheek again.


    I turned my back abruptly as her soft chuckles and words filled my mind. It was time to get back to the


    man who was our culprit. My knuckles turned white as I imagined punching Scott in the face for what


    he did, but even that was too little.


    "Yvonne if you want to get back at the man who snatched everything from you, you''ll need to forget


    every moment, every emotion you had for him, right now I''m not talking to you as your older friend


    Iyan- he was too kind and too weak for taking revenge.¡± I spoke strictly as I felt her standing still behind


    me, staring at me.


    ¡°Today, I speak to you as Eric, Scott''s archenemy who is bent on taking revenge from him. I need you


    to get back at him, destroy him emotionally so much that he loses his mind, use your love not as your


    weakness this time, but your strength to get to him," I spoke as I turned to her, watching her get lost in


    thought, her face drawn taut with a strange mncholy.


    "But...I still love him...do you think I''ll be able to do that?," she whispered almost inaudibly, her


    uncertainty too evident through these words.


    "Yvonne I know you do, but before losing yourself in his love, remember what he did to you, he


    compelled you to such a vulnerable and pitiful plight, he''s the one responsible for all that''se to


    you¡­" I said,ing towards her to ce a reassuring hand on her shoulder, I felt so protective


    towards her, my hatred for Scott grew even more every time I saw Yvonne, she reminded me of what


    had happened to Marie, what happened to Yvonne herself and somehow I wanted to punch him in


    the face and crush his gutted attitude, wiping off that proud smirk he wore in victory.


    She did not even look up, though her shoulders loosened in defeat, "Yes, I- I mean you''re right¡­I''ll do


    that, but what if he never calls me back?"


    "He will, as soon as he sees you here," I replied, I knew Scott and because I knew him so well, I was


    aware that he will want Yvonne even more this time, because this time it had to do with his ego and


    that Anna wasn''t anymore than a fuck buddy to him either way, the girl was smart enough to get him to


    marry her.


    Yvonne was stepping into a lot without even knowing it, but this time she isn''t alone and what Scott


    doesn¡¯t know yet is that he will definitely not be the one winning this game.


    --


    A weekter


    Kia''s POV


    "Yes sir, I¡¯ll make sure that''s done as soon as possible," I said to Mr Yoko Humi, a Japanese investor,


    who was video calling through Skype right now because of an urgent conference.


    "Good," he said stridently and ended the call abruptly. I sighed in relief, who ever said that working


    wasn''t hectic? But I was thankful to Iyan to let me work for him, to let me be busy enough to get


    distracted from Scott. Whilst other times left me stranded and bereft thinking about what and why he


    had done all this.


    I was sitting in Starbucks, and since my work and coffee were both over, I got up to leave. I was just


    picking up myptop when I heard Scott''s voice from behind me.


    "Good to see you again!" he said venomously, I assumed he had already been here since a while,


    staring at me since a distance.


    I turned around to see the thing I sort of dreaded- the intense hatred in his eyes for me. But I had to


    swallow my pride this time, I knew I needed to, to put the n into action and once I would seed, I


    could easily walk off satisfied.


    "Scott...you should sit down," I said not meeting his eyes.


    I did feel he was angry but he took a seat and tapped impatiently on the table, waiting for me to say


    something.


    I hesitated for a moment then said, "How are you?" trying my absolute best to sound as casual as


    possible. I looked into his eyes, just frustration and anger, no other emotion for me. Somehow my


    casual tone made him rage.


    "How am I??" He asked through his teeth, getting up and pulling me up with him. He pulled me out of


    the cafe before nking me against the wall of the cafe in an isted corner, both his hands on either


    side of me.


    "Do you see me Yvonne?? Do you see yourself? You have changed for me! You changed your face,"


    he said touching my cheeks somewhat admiringly, "your hair, your smell," he said as he dug his face in


    my neck, smelling my hair.


    "You don''t even smell the same, but you look so much better Yvonne..." He said in an awe, he put his


    one hand around my waist and pulled me tightly against his body with authority, this time kissing my


    neck hungrily, "I want you back Yvonne, I want you back at any cost, just please let me make love to


    you baby, I miss you, there hasn''t been one day I didn''t think of you since you left me." He moaned and


    put my hair away, feeling the back of my dress.


    This time I was raging, but I controlled it...He was on a honeymoon with Anna and he was thinking of


    me? When he was making love to her every night when we were still married, were you still thinking ofProperty of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    me? If you had been, you wouldn''t have betrayed me in the first ce...but I held my tongue and my


    words buried in my heart, I have to y this game just like you do Scott, hiding my true face.


    I pulled away from him, I looked for ast time in his eyes, just once if there was any genuine emotion


    he felt, any old memory he still remembered of ours, but all I saw was lust. I had seen those eyes


    before with the same expression, stupid Yvonne had mistaken it for love but I won''t!


    "I love you Scott, I missed you so much," I said not meaning one word I said, regretting to have shed so


    many tears over this heartless man. "I want to get back with you, I want you back, I want us back..."I


    lied.


    "I''ll divorce Anna, that bitch separated me from you," he said caressing my cheek, his eyes still driven


    in lust.


    "Then talk to me after you have done that Scott," I said removing his filthy hands from my cheek and


    my waist. "I''m not the same Yvonne now Scott, you break my heart again and I promise you that I''ll


    destroy you," I said not being able to control myself.


    He looked rmed and dumbfounded, of course the older Yvonne never even spoke in this tone, but


    looking me up and down like a lecher, he agreed immediately. "Babe I''ll text you after I''ve sent the


    divorce papers," he said, leaning into me to kiss me.


    "We talk after the divorce papers love," I said squarely before leaving him to enter the cafe and get my


    belongings, I felt his piercing eyes on every move of mine, but honestly it didn''t matter, I didn''t care


    anymore, I guess I had to give a news to Iyan.

 Chapter 8: Devils from the Past

    Chapter 8: Devils from the Past


    It had been around three days since I had myst encounter with Scott, after which he had not stopped


    calling and texting; Scott was the impatient kind, not the kind who liked fighting for attention; if he


    wanted someone''s attention, he had to have it at any cost.


    But, for some reason, what happened that day between us and what I asked him to do: to divorce


    Anna...I just did not have the right feeling. For the least, I was not a home wrecker, the buried graves


    lied in the past, not to be disturbed. Even though Anna had wrecked mine, I had no intention to wreck


    her home; a husband, probably even children in the future- though it was a bit impossible to imagine


    given the fact that Scott hated children; who could know that better than me¡­


    However, with Anna around, I would never be able get close to Scott again and that was the only thing


    that remained certain amongst all the uncertainties surrounding me. Anna being a sharp woman would


    never tolerate him to fall for me again.


    In fact I wanted to speak to someone about this; in this situation at least, any ray of hope would bring


    back life to the dead leaf and I stood on the verge of losing it all again.


    I picked up my phone and tried calling him again for the 10th time. In thest three days, Iyan had not


    picked up a single call of mine, instead, he only replied to myst missed call with a "Busy now. Will


    reach you as soon as I am free".


    As I dialed his number, the phone rang again for a half minute and then reached voicemail.


    Exasperated, I cut his call and threw my phone on the bed. Maybe he was just busy after all. I


    desperately needed someone to talk to through this or being the weak individual with the plethora of


    feelings I possessed for the only man I had ever loved, all the emotions would surface again and


    destroy the rest of my life for good.


    My phone buzzed again, like it had several times in the past few days since Ist met Scott, with one


    more of his texts.


    Divorced her! I¡¯ming to meet you now, tell me where are you


    I sat down on the floor cross legged, my shoulders hunched in defeat and face twisted in disgust as I


    read his message. I couldn''t do this all by myself though.


    Suddenly I hated Scott for this even more, he didn''t have even one ounce of loyalty for any one woman


    he had slept with in his life. More than that, I needed Iyan to talk about this, for him to reassure me that


    this was the right thing to do, even though I knew that it probably wasn''t. Maybe he knew it too. I still


    wondered why he was so motivated to destroy Scott¡­he had probably been nothing more than a bully


    to him in college, but obviously, they did know each other from before I had even arrived in their lives.


    Easier said than done- wanting to destroy someone''s life!


    Even though you had open wounds of the same injury being a prior victim yourself.


    Scott Anderson calling¡­


    My phone buzzed constantly in my bed. Irritated, I picked it up and feigning the sweetest tone possible,


    I spoke, ¡°Yes Scott? How are you?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s done, we¡¯re meeting for dinner tonight at the Hungarian za Hotel, I had you sent the outfit for


    tonight, the most expensive dress I could find for the most gorgeous woman in the world.¡±


    ¡°But I have nned a-¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll pick you up at 8. Be ready,¡± he finished, totally ignoring my words and cut the call.


    This time I threw my phone harder and not on the bed but on the floor! I did not even want to go out


    with him¡­


    My doorbell rang and as I opened the door, there it was; the packaged fiery red dress with off shoulder


    sleeves and even a blind man could tell looking at how revealing it was meant to be, worn by any


    woman. With the dress, were red heels in a Louboutin Box.


    By sending me all this, Scott was paving his way to get straight into my heart¡­or so he thought. For


    me however, it stood as clear as crystal that he was giving straight indications for what he wanted- all


    he had was just a lust that remained insatiable even if it cost to the extent of destroying lives.


    Filthy minded jerk. But I was determined to not let him have his way this time. Sometimes you should


    let the person who has hurt you have a taste of his own medicine.


    I looked at my phone again, he was not even returning any of calls with at least a text now.


    Where the hell is Iyan anyway! I vented mentally.


    Iyan stood still in the graveyard, there was no one else apart from him because the majority of the


    tombs that lied here had once belonged to soldiers at war during the 19th century. The graveyard was


    found at the heart of an alienated vige in the west coast of Italy.


    She was buried right here, next to the soldier Tom Walton and Marie Antote, his lover; he had heard


    their love story a thousand times from her, a story of love, separation, pain and death¡­if only she knew


    what she was heading for by asking so much.


    On her tombstone, it read:


    Marie Lewis


    1991-2008


    It was actually the first time when Iyan hade back to Italy to visit her since that day; her grave had


    lied unvisited for thest 10 years. But apart from a father who had not spared her even when she was


    alive, who else would have taken the pain toe visit her dead¡­


    Iyan stood still, looking at her name, it had gathered some dust. Bending slightly, he brushed it off with


    his cold fingers and then slowly caressed her name. The winter wind blew stronger than ever at this


    time of the year and made a spooky hurling sound.


    But Iyan was long lost in thought to notice anything around him, a tall wave of memories from the past


    had flooded his brain. He looked at her name, he had always admired her name, it reminded him of


    soothing sea, her first name Marie tranted into ¡®Star of the Sea¡¯ from Latin. And so she was, just


    like a star, shining and glowing, so beautiful that one could not even take his eyes off of her once they


    saw her. That was probably the exact case of how it had gone by the day she had set foot in their high


    school 12 years ago.


    No one could forget that day, neither Iyan nor Scott.


    Because both had fallen in love with the same girl and right when they first saw her- it was love at first


    sight, but the story behind that first sight had been different for both of them.


    One brother saw vulnerability and fragility embedded with beauty and the other saw sadness and pain,


    to which his attraction had been almost, very instantly, inexplicable.


    Needless to say, Iyan was still in love with her. Getting over her was not an option for him but more


    than that, it was impossible for him. He caressed her name again once and spoke,


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be equal now Marie, I¡¯ll avenge Scott for everything he has done to you! He will pay for


    what he has done to you, I¡¯ll make sure of that¡­¡± he spoke through gritted teeth, spitting venom with


    every word he pronounced.


    ¡°If only you hade to me and not him¡­¡± a shadow of mncholy took over him but his proud smirk


    reminded him how Scott imed victory over the death of an innocent girl, the only girl he loved.


    His fists clenched as he thought about Scott but that made him think of Yvonne and the game he was


    pushing her in, a merciless game that had no ce for the emotions of an innocent girl. Suddenly his


    heart softened as he her face crossed his clouded mind, Yvonne¡¯s innocent eyes and her forehead


    always drawn taut with worry- it was so hard to see her smile recently, he kind of missed herugh from


    college days. They would sit for hours and justugh at the most irrelevant things around and more


    than Yvonne herself, he had always felt that he was with his Marie, that in the end, she was with him


    and she was happy.


    It was too fictitious to imagine because Yvonne and Marie were both different, even that face that


    reminded him of Marie was gone now and though it confused his technical mindset, there was


    something about Yvonne that made the corners of his stone-like heart melt and feel.


    Even now, it had been the same thing. It made him guilty and resentful in his own mind despite Scott


    being the viin -in this story ording to him- that he was pushing someone as innocent as Yvonne


    as his pawn to fulfill his selfish motives.


    ¡°I can¡¯t be weak now, not for you Marie, if only you knew I would have done anything for you back


    then, had you just told me everything. I would still do anything for you, even if that remains at the cost


    of an innocent or two.¡± He finished and got up straight to leave.


    For thest time he saw her name and imagined her sad face, he yearned to bury her in his arms one


    last time, to tell her that he was iplete and shattered after her death, that he was living as a


    lifeless man for the past 12 years, more empty than he had been before he met her.


    Small beads of tears started forming at the corner of his eyes and pain, craving, longing, regret all hit at


    once like an unexpected punch in the gut and he turned his back and walked straight out of the


    cemetery, not to look back again.


    The winter wind howled with more rigor this time but he was determined not to stop; he knew that if he


    would stop now, he would melt, tears symbolized weakness and he was done being weak this time.


    It was now time to deal with the living evil.This is from N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 9: First day of School

    Chapter 9: First day of School


    shback.


    You hardly ever find a girl -not to mention, alone- on the third abandoned floor of a high school on a


    dramatic Monday morning when she should have been in sses.


    More to say, she was crying.


    It was the weirdest thing that had happened in a while; not that the girl was crying but that there was a


    girl here, hardly anyone came around here.


    The floor was made up different ssroom sections that were now too old to use and were to be


    renovated, but renovations were not urring anytime soon. Some sses remained locked and a


    series of divided sses were open to walk in though theyid dusty and abandoned.


    Most kids of the school did not even know this part of school existed but it remained to the advantage


    of Iyan. He could stay away- clearly no one would be bothered by his absence- and stay alone.


    The sobbing grew quieter but continued nevertheless, Iyan waited for it to pass by and expected the


    visitor to leave as soon as they finished their business of ¡°sobbing¡± here.


    Some few minutes passed, he heard no sobs now but the girl hadn¡¯t left, intrigued, he got up and went


    outside. In one end of a corner of the ssroom she lied, curled up like a ball, face dug inside her


    hands that crossed across her feet against her chest in a protective way.


    ¡°Need some help?¡± he asked in a sarcastic tone.


    She jumped up at the mere sound of his voice, she must have been expecting this ce to be a ghost


    building. Iyan didn¡¯t me her.


    Wide open, engulfing and absorbing the stranger¡¯s presence, her ocean blue eyes were puffy and


    swollen, enclosed with a shot of red- probably from the lengthy sobbing. Stark and shocked, she looked


    right into his eyes, the pain in her heart still flowing like a river from her eyes.


    Iyan was instantly drawn to her at first sight, like a moth to a me. Her blonde locks were all over her


    teary face and dried tearsid stained on her pinkish hot cheeks.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked again, this time genuinely concerned.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine thank you,¡± she said trying be as cold as possible, but in reality she was feeling so weak


    that she was barely able to speak out loud.


    She spontaneously got up, not meeting his intense gaze as he watched her gather her wits and her


    open bag along with her schrly materials lying all around her.


    He stood still, watching her move weakly, her hands barely steady as she picked up everything.


    Fidgeting, she wore her bag at the back of her shoulder and turned to leave.


    He noticed what she was wearing, a polka dot red dot dress that hung too well on her figure. He


    immediately wondered how a basic dress as that could look still make her stand out in the crowd of


    thousands, at least ording to him.


    Coming forward, he offered right when she was about to leave, ¡°You can stay if you don¡¯t feel okay,


    don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll remain in my corner and you can be in yours.¡±


    Without any reaction to him or his words, she hurriedly moved out of that ssroom and descended the


    stairs.


    He barely had any time to get a second nce of hers as he stepped out of the ss and on the


    threshold of the abandoned floor.


    It was hard to forget her face though, he wished he could see her again.


    Over the next few days, he made sure to keep an eye open to all the sses that he followed, maybe


    he coulde across that new student that way.


    That did not go as nned, but he did suree across his half brother Scott. To his own surprise, he


    had seen Scott present in most sses for the first time. But he also noticed that even Scott had been


    on the look out for someone with his absent minded and inattentive behaviour.


    Iyan shrugged it off immediately thinking that must be some other ruse of his- getting better attendance


    to make up for his usually bad grades, at least mom would understand his effort. Of course, she new


    saw him even reaching there inparison to Scott, Scott was already the apple of her eyes and her


    eyes remained closed to Iyan, her own son.


    A week passed, the next Monday Iyan was in the library in the far off corner, barely visible from the


    entrance- he stayed quite the loner kid. All by himself, he sat down to finish the book he had started-


    The 100 poems of Rain. He gave poetry time only when he had finished studies and the weekend had


    been just enough to do that. For some reason, he thought of that girl again when he got interrupted by


    a voice.


    ¡°Hi¡­¡±


    He looked up to see Marie, unexpected as it was. Her blonde hair was neatly tied in a pony tail this


    time, her long hair flowing to the back of her hips. She looked different this time; thest time he had


    seen her, she was an absolute mess. She sat down and took out her wooden notebook. Or it looked


    like a diary.


    ¡°I had to apologize to you about how I left abruptly thest time. It was my first day here and all I can


    say is it wasn¡¯t a good day,¡± she spoke quietly, embarrassed, refusing to meet his eye.


    This part of the library had only two tables; on one they sat, and the other had remained empty, the rest


    of the library couldn¡¯t even be seen from here. But it was clear to Iyan seeing her rxed shoulders


    and non-fidgeting hands that she was probably morefortable here than that ghastly abandoned


    building where they had been only the two of them.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± Iyan continued almost immediately, ¡°Are you doing okay now? I don¡¯t see the pretty girls


    crying a lot you know,¡± he smiled teasingly.


    She looked up and saw his face, she instantly categorized him as appealing in the first look, this was


    practically the first time she was seeing his face. His dark brown eyes were covered and hidden with


    the thin rimmed sses he wore all the time, his nose fit perfectly on his oval face with fringes of his


    brown hair covering the start of his forehead. She took a good look at him and he smiled in response,


    he was not scared of the attention. She liked his friendly smile.


    ¡°First days can be hard you know, specially when you have moved for the first time in your life,¡± she


    said sadly.


    ¡°Crying does not mean that you¡¯re weak, it means you have a heart,¡± he said casually flipping through


    his poems book, he was looking for one that he had not read before.


    She looked at him again, her eyes shone with a small spark of shock. Heart. She didn¡¯t even feel she


    had a heart, her heart had stayed frozen and detached for far too long. He looked up and met her gaze.


    Her big blue eyes were so deep and intriguing.


    ¡°Are you always this serious?¡± Iyan asked mockingly.


    ¡°No¡­no it¡¯s just the studies I think¡­I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll do too well, moving here in the mid of the semester


    and the examsing in two months¡­¡± she lied.


    She wished she could show a less serious face, she really didn¡¯t want to ruin the chances of having a


    friend for the first time in her life, after what had happened with her only friend Katherine, she had not


    even dared befriend any other, the risk was too much. But this was a new ce, far away from Italy,


    she hoped things would change.


    ¡°Oh that¡¯s not a lot you¡¯re worrying about, I can help you out if you need the help in studies¡­I mean if


    you wouldn¡¯t feelfortable, that¡¯spletely alright too, I know I¡¯m just a stranger,¡± he bbered


    nervously, well what do you say to impress a girl whom you met crying in the first ce.


    She smiled in response, ¡°That will be too nice of you honestly, I am Marie Lewis by the way.¡±


    ¡°I am Iyan,¡± he said smilingly, ¡°your name is beautiful, what does it mean?¡±


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    ¡°Who knows?¡± she shrugged and asked, ¡°So let¡¯s start tomorrow? After ss, here itself?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± he said at the drop of the hat, he couldn¡¯t wait to see more of her.


    She got up to leave and took her wooden notebook in her hands. She liked him. He was kind and he


    seemed a lot like herself, lonely in the crowd, willing to tear away from the crowd.


    As she walked past everyone in the library, all eyes had been on her, some stared in admiration and


    some in lust but one thing was certain, she had gathered too much attention for a new girl.

 Chapter 10: He Still Wants Her

    Chapter 10: He Still Wants Her


    External


    For the date, Yvonne decided against the dress Scott had sent. The main goal behind that was to show


    him that he could now not just boss her around, things were going to be the other way around this time.


    She chose to go with an older and basic off shoulder red polka dot dress instead.


    She really wished she could somehow speak to Iyan again. For some strange reason, the presence of


    Iyan was reassuring and Scott¡¯s was stressful. It had been different in her marriage though but they still


    hardly got much time together, 3 years had easily gone down the line with being married to Scott and


    they still had such little memories together.


    Maybe because Scott had not even given her sufficient amount of time. Had he done so, he would not


    already have been both married and divorced twice.


    At sharp 8 pm, Scott stood right on Yvonne¡¯s doorstep, he rung the bell and waited, his car neatly


    parked across the street. He had been impatient to see her again since he hadst seen her, it would


    not be wrong to say that he was being consumed in her desire, craving the warmth of her body onto


    his.


    On the other side of the door, Yvonne fidgeted her fingers as a sign of nervousness as she stood


    behind the door but tried to keep her calm and attitude on point. She had been stressing over the mere


    thought of going out with him again. She recalled the disastrous date they had had in Italy, when Scott


    had been on a honeymoon with Anna. And then the making out at outside Starbucks, but Yvonne, like


    all other girls had her weak and strong side. Right now she felt like throwing herself in the bed and


    wearfy baggy clothes and just lie there infort, she just didn¡¯t feel strong enough to face him


    again.


    But she had no intention to show Scott her weak side again. She opened the door and saw him


    standing there, as usual, dressed in a dashing suit and tie, he did look good as always. She started


    with a casual ¡°Hi¡± to make the conversation light.


    But Scott was spontaneously hit with something else; a strong wave of nostalgia came over him as


    soon as he saw her in that dress; for a brief moment, he forgot about everything and went back to that


    first day when he had seen Marie.


    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    All the memories dug deep in the past about that girl came rushing to him.


    When he saw her for the first time¡­unconfident yet beautiful¡­


    When she was walking nervously down the hallway, trying not to attract any attention but was still the


    center of attention, including his¡­


    When Mark, a friend of his, had sneaked from behind, trying to feel her up as a prank and he had stood


    in the cornerughing with all his other friends¡­how he regretted that thing till today, that it had ruined


    his first impression in front of Marie¡­


    When she had flinched at just a slight touch of Mark, he should have known something was not right¡­


    When everyone had beenughing at her and she was named Virgin Mary of Edmont High¡­


    When she had run away to cry alone in some corner¡­


    All the memories came back flooding to him.


    Scott had felt protective like a shield to Marie right since that moment and for some reason, during


    his married years with Yvonne, he had been looking for Marie desperately in Yvonne but had failed to


    do so every time, which led him to an unending frustration and tragic and heartbreaking realization that


    he could never have her back. Yvonne was in all ways different from Marie. They had the same face


    but they had been twopletely different people with very evidently distinct personalities.


    He felt unsure now, for the date at the za, for the private setting arrangement he had gotten done


    specifically for her; the entire hotel floor was booked for just the two of them. It was very rare he had


    put this amount of effort in impressing a girl much recently, he had done that for just 2 women, Yvonne


    herself before their marriage and Anna¡­he waved her off of his mind immediately for today¡­


    She was dressed in the casual dress and still stood magnificent to the point, Yvonne was still pretty


    after the face of Marie had been removed.


    ¡°Should we go to the beach instead?¡± he asked uncertainly. In only a few moments, Scott¡¯s attitude


    washed away, his pride was not here anymore, nor his n to sleep with her tonight seemed like a


    good option. Thoughts from the past had him weakened at the core.


    ¡°If you would be okay with that¡­¡± Yvonne said suspiciously, he never behaved this way generally,


    unless his mind had been preupied with something important, but still, she had never seen him so


    uncertain before.


    He smiled lightly to her, it was pretentious, she made that out in a single minute and both reluctantly


    made their way to the car, their sexual tension had been there but for the moment, Scott¡¯s focus was


    awry.


    For the journey to the beach, Scott remained quiet. He did not speak for even a single minute but


    Yvonne didn¡¯t mind that. She was lost in her own thoughts about their empty and failed marriage and


    now with Iyan missing for more than 3 days, she had no clue if she even wanted to continue with the


    revenge n.


    The man sitting next to her made her feel nothing but regret. For thest two years of struggle, he had


    been responsible for all her pain. But then, she thought, destiny had many disguises, maybe it was


    meant for her to suffer all that throughout these years and Scott was just an excuse to lead her to this


    destiny.


    Her train of thoughts halted with the car, suddenly- they had arrived at the beach, tall and magnificent


    towers stood far in the distance in the east, the lights filled the view and reflected on the calm surface


    of the sea even from a good distance.


    From where their car was parked, they were only some walking distance away from the beach now. It


    was a moonlit night and the stars shone bright in the sky above.


    Scott behaved gentlemanly, he got out to open Yvonne¡¯s door. As she got out, she wondered if he


    behaved that way with all the girls he had been with after her, including Anna. How could she even


    forgive him for breaking the strong boundaries of her trust to go lie in the arms of and warm the beds of


    other women? She felt disgusted.


    ¡°We should go for a walk on the beach,¡± he said intently looking at the stars above.


    She nodded, not willing to speak to him because she did not have the mental energy to neither argue


    nor refuse. But he understood her enough to understand why she was so quiet, he did feel guilty for


    what he did, for wasting 5 years of her life¡­when he probably had not been this serious with her


    anyway despite marrying her.


    As they strode along the beach, Yvonne had taken off her red heels that now hung in her left hand- had


    her mind not been clouded with things from the past, tonight the moon was breathtakingly beautiful in


    the sky.


    Scott turned to look at her, she was matching her steps but she had a lot going on in her mind right


    now. To break the silence, he said, ¡°I think I owe you an apology.¡±


    ¡°Apology?¡± she asked unaffected, looking straight to avoid looking at him directly.


    ¡°For everything I¡¯ve done to you, I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± he said exining himself, but Yvonne felt nothing to that-


    Scott was a good actor, she had realized after all this. But she in no mood to acknowledge his acting


    skills; he was only heartless.


    ¡°So you think that your sorry can mend my broken life? You¡¯re right, go ahead!¡± She scoffed in bitter


    sarcasm.


    He stopped and turned to her, pulling her by the shoulder but she instantly flinched at his slight touch.


    Just like Marie had the day Scott had seen her. Her fragility guarded with her refusal reminded him of


    her again. He tried not to go in that direction once- it was only misleading.


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me,¡± Yvonne warned him.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry¡­All I want to is just talk,¡± he tried to say it convincingly and put both his hands


    away at once but he was yet to realize that once you break someone¡¯s trust, you cannot win it back


    easily unless you¡¯re convincing a fool.


    She suspiciously eyed his face now as he continued, it was hard to make out every single impression


    on his face in the dark, yet she had her attention focused on his expressions.


    ¡°I just have been unstable Yvonne, I have been so much like that¡­all my life, I met many women,


    before you and after you but when I was with you, I was not like this, my life was bnced, if not


    happy¡­¡±


    Not happy? She repeated mentally to herself with some degree of internal shock.


    ¡°My mom left me at the pity of my father and his first wife and son to go marry another guy. I had not


    been their legitimate child. My mom had been my only family and she threw me away, that small boy of


    7 had already been thrown into the merciless game of trust, mine was broken and I had vowed I would


    never be faithful to anyone ever again. When I met you, you made me realize of a longing I was not


    even aware I had. I was smitten on you and I had to have you at any cost. Even if that meant


    separating you from your family and friends and making you mine, yes, marriage was the only


    assurance I would have you forever.


    ¡°Though I¡¯ve never beenpletely honest with you¡­or myself, my life remainedplete but my


    heart was not at peace when I was with you. When I didn¡¯t have you at start, I had the illusion that


    having you wouldplete me and you became my obsession. I even got rid of Iyan so I could have


    you all to myself- I was the one who had leaked your pictures on campus that year.¡±


    Yvonne stood in shock as she tried to absorb every word that she was hearing from his mouth.


    ¡°But as soon I had you, I realized you were just not what I was looking for¡­¡±


    Warm tears formed at the back of her eyes, rejection and pain filled her heart to the brim as she broke


    out in an unstable voice, ¡°Then w-what were you looking for when you married me Scott? What are you


    looking for?¡±


    He met her eyes feeling regretful and but certain of what he wanted this time and spokecently,


    ¡°Marie.¡±

 Chapter 11: Coffee with Iyan

    Chapter 11: Coffee with Iyan


    shback


    Time went slower when you had a friend in this strange ce, UK was just so cold and lonely ever


    since Marie came here and her father was barely visible at home and she was grateful for that, she¡¯d


    chose to be away than in hispany at any moment in time.


    Marie¡¯s father was amongst the richest men in London at that time, most bear witness that he had


    worked extremely hard to get where he was. His power was known to all;petitors had to think twice


    before even thinking aboutying a finger on him- he was even rumored to have risky tie-ups and deals


    with the Russian Mafia.


    But for Marie, he had only been Mr Rupert John Lewis, she could not even utter the word father for


    him, he meant nothing to her, she had thought of that very vehemently at times when she was all alone.


    She hated him and the more time passed in this strange country with these strange and unfriendly


    people, her hatred grew worse, not only towards this new ce but most of all her father, whose


    presence made her tremble like a leaf.


    Things had been different back in Italy before her mother died, both her mom Lucy and Marie were a


    big happy family, or so they used to think. Her mother had been a beautiful British woman but her roots


    had been Italian. She had never told her why she had brought her away from her father and nor did


    Marie ever ask. She was happy to have just her. Working as an administrative clerk for the local


    school, they did well to make ends meet and lead a peaceful life but her mother had withheld the fact


    that she had leukemia from her daughter.


    The cancer had been eating her up since 4 long years, her mother had stopped responding to


    treatments much recently and Marie had no single clue about that, she did notice her mother get


    tired easily those days but her death had really brought to her the harsh and merciless reality of life.


    After her death, she found out that her mother had already known she would not live long and had thus


    arranged for her to live with her friend Jane only till she became an adult. But fate had another n for


    her, Rupert Lewis had somehow taken official custody of his only heir alive and had specificallye


    to fetch her all the way to Italy after the death of Lucy.


    Since then she had lived with Rupert in his grand mansion but she had been nothing more than a


    lifeless body. What happened to her was restricted to only 4 walls of that ill-fated mansion.


    She did not even have the permission to step out of the home her father had brought her to, she could


    not even muster up the courage to do so, it would kill her, more likely, he would kill her. Her father was


    a notoriously dangerous man and just so much more than that.


    She missed her family when they had just her mother and herself, Marie¡¯s father had long left them


    right after her birth. It would be safe to say that he did not even exist for her and now his existence


    made her even more ambiguous.


    Now that she had decided that she would enroll in school and give her exams, she had taken a firm


    decision that she was not going to let him control her life. She would study, graduate, get into college,


    have a degree, stand on to her own two feet, have a life and a happy one, just like her mother had


    always wanted her to have.


    Sometimes though, she used to think about how things could have been different had her mom still


    been alive just like she was thinking now, waiting at the caf¨¦ for her new friend, Iyan.


    ¡°Always so serious¡­.¡± Iyan touched her shoulders from the back startling her, but Marie flinched


    fearfully at his mere touch as he sat down next to her.


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± she heaved a heavy sigh of relief, an expression of fear evident on her face.


    Though he had meant to only surprise her, she had been startled, as if she had been unexpectedly


    scared by a ghost.


    ¡°Are you okay? You almost jumped up when I touched your shoulders¡­¡± He asked concerned as he


    sat down in front of her.


    The caf¨¦ was buzzing with teenagers mostly their age and college students. It was the closest caf¨¦ to


    the school. Instead of the library, Iyan had thought Marie being the shy and reserved type of a girl


    would be much morefortable to interact with him in a ce full of people, where she wouldn¡¯t feel


    alone and more secure with him,pared to the library where there would be just the two of them¡­


    ¡°Yes, yes I¡¯m alright, it¡¯s just I¡¯m not used to this,¡± she made up, a bit embarrassed to have behaved


    that way.


    ¡°You seem so fragile to me, like a ss doll you know,¡± he observed trying to cheer her up, ¡°on second


    thoughts not that, much more beautiful than a doll,¡± he said thest part with a smile, meaning the


    words.


    This was practically the first time she had heard apliment that she had liked and approved of, she


    immediately had butterflies in her stomach and a small pink blush formed on her cheeks.


    Looking down she said, ¡°I have problem with Math¡­probably my weakest subject.¡± Her notes and the


    book had already been on the table but she had been far too distracted to focus thinking about her


    broken past.


    ¡°And my strongest!¡± Iyan shed a smile, confident.


    ¡°You¡¯re the teacher then,¡± she said smiling and added, ¡°All other subjects remain fairly manageable for


    me¡­oh! And also Literature, I just haven¡¯t finished the stories, that¡¯s practically the first exam and I


    don¡¯t even know what to write¡­¡±


    ¡°Hey chill out dude, literature¡¯s even easier, it¡¯s like reading a book and then giving out your opinion


    along with some constructive criticism,¡± he added.


    ¡°Wait¡­I¡¯m a girl, not a dude,¡± she eyed him, confused.


    Laughing, he added, ¡°It¡¯s a gender-neutral term Marie, I do that to most people because I¡¯m not really


    good with names.¡±


    ¡°Oh! but you remember my name, you just said it,¡± she said with a sarcastic smile.


    ¡°I can¡¯t forget your name, I love it, specifically even more after knowing what it really means,¡± he winked


    in a friendly way, ¡°it¡¯s not easy forget things you like knowing the value they hold,¡± he smiled.


    ¡°And what does it mean now?¡± she asked, intrigued.


    ¡°So, I looked up your name after we met yesterday and it trantes into Star of the Sea,ing from a


    combination of Danish and Latin. I thought your parents must have been very thoughtful when they


    were choosing a name for you.¡±


    ¡°Mother!¡± she rified spontaneously, ¡°Not my dad. Only my mother chose my name,¡± she said


    mncholically, as she thought of her father and then feeling Iyan¡¯s eyes on her, she changed her


    tone, ¡°I am no star though, my mom had always been fascinated by the color of my eyes, maybe that is


    why,¡± she said stating the obvious.


    ¡°Your eyes are indeed the prettiest I have ever seen,¡± he noticed looking into her eyes.


    Her blush grew deeper and her cheeks turned a deeper color of pink.


    She ignored thepliment and asked him instead, ¡°So who else do you have in your family?


    Siblings?¡±


    All smiles and good humor vanished from his face within a second. He did not want to talk about this.


    ¡°A brother and parents,¡± he managed to quietly mention however so she wouldn¡¯t notice anything


    awkward.


    He instantly took up the book she had on the table and started jotting down the chapters that were


    going to be covered in the uing exam. ¡°Logs, quadratic equations, differentiation, circr


    measure¡­¡± he muttered slowly while he scribbled at the back of the book. She watched him as he


    wrote all the chapters, he was so serious in studies maybe, but that was a thing Marie liked in guys.


    She had not really been involved in having crushes for too long, back in Italy, she had a busy life with


    the household chores and her mom and school work and all but in the opposite sex, she was attracted


    to intelligence and maturity, she was indeed a sapiosexual. She was too mature for her age herself, but


    that could be med on circumstantial crisis that she faced as well.


    This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°We start with quadratics first today, easiest of all,¡± Iyan mentioned, flipping through the pages of that


    chapter, ¡°By the way let us see how much help you need, if you do well, then good otherwise we might


    have to dedicate more hours to this.¡±


    ¡°Oh I assume so¡­¡± she said reluctantly, she could not be out of home for too long when her dad was in


    town. He wanted her at home. She felt sick to the core thinking of that but tried to distract herself


    nevertheless.


    --


    The one and a half hour flied in Iyan¡¯spany. Marie was beginning to understand the concepts in


    a much more clear manner now, probably because his exnation had been really the best of all the


    ones she had previously had. All the while, she felt grateful for a helpful and nice friend like him.


    ¡°See? Now you just rece all the values of the constants in the quadratic form, by the way, you


    can bring a calctor for this paper so don¡¯t waste your time if you can¡¯t make out the sums faster, time


    will run by super fast once you¡¯re in that exam hall,¡± he exined, pointing the pencil in his hand to the


    quadratic questions.


    She nodded with understanding. Iyan had been exining and making her work questions on the


    chapter all along, that clearly aided her and with much practice, she could catch up with all the chapters


    she had missed before joining school.


    ¡°Got it,¡± she said confidently when she finished thest sum that involved an exponential equation.


    Iyan smiled, teaching brought him satisfaction, in fact that is why he used to go tutor on all weekends to


    orphanages. But today his satisfaction had been different than that. He was happy to have gotten to


    spend time with her but he wanted to know her more, know her personally.


    She looked up, her eyes sparkling with joy as she got that sum right too.


    ¡°You should have told me it¡¯s that easy!¡± she said happily.


    ¡°Oh should I have?¡± he raised an eyebrow, smiling back at her.


    ¡°Kay now let¡¯s have some coffee, I¡¯m tired with all this,¡± she got up- satisfied with the studies- and


    turned to go order for their coffee when he pulled her hand; his skin was soft on hers hut his grip was


    equally tight.


    Butterflies rose in her stomach as she felt his soft hand on hers.


    It was more than just that however, he got up too and forcefully made her sit back with both his hands


    on her shoulders. Though she resisted to sitting, she could not help, Iyan always wore clothes that did


    not exactly reveal his body, covered up with cardigans but in actuality the way he pushed her to sit


    again made her realize how strong and muscr he actually was.


    ¡°You¡¯ve done enough, now sit back and rx and tell me what you want,¡± he spoke softly, his face


    close to hers while the caf¨¦ buzzed with more customers. His hands were ced gently on her


    shoulders, holding her back from moving.


    ¡°Cappino,tte, mocha, hot chocte?¡± he asked removing his hands now.


    She was still blushing but determined not to show it, she replied, ¡°A hot chocte with whipped cream


    and chocte sprinkles and marshmallows on top- suits the cold weather!¡±


    He smiled her at her childish order. ¡°Right away ma¡¯am!¡± he saluted and got lost in the long coffee


    queue.


    She smiled to herself and then thought back to Kathy, this was her first friendly hangout since she had


    left Italy¡­.and Kathy.


    Both Kathy and Marie used to have so many of such friendly dates when they hung out together.


    Kathy was her best friend in the whole of Italy, her only moral support after her mom had died and


    suddenly, a surge of guilt took over her for what happened with Kathy.


    The street outside the caf¨¦ was in a solid jam, cars honked while the traffic jam grew dense, it was


    when office time got over¡­she immediately nced at her watch: 6 pm!


    She panicked thinking what would happen if she didn¡¯t get home in time, she had been so lost in her


    own little world that she had gotten distracted from her tragic reality; she gathered her books and notes


    and quickly threw it all in her bag and instantly hopped out of the caf¨¦.


    Few minutester when Iyan came back to the table where Marie had been, the other half of the


    table was already empty.

 Chapter 12: The Decision

    Chapter 12: The Decision


    The drive back home to Yvonne¡¯s home had been a quiet one, she was not really able to digest what


    she hade across today. Scott was still in love with someone else, someone who had destroyed her


    marriage, it was not Anna, it was the girl he had mentioned today, Marie.


    Marie how dare you¡­she thought bitterly to herself, barely able to control her anger.


    Scott halted the car right in front of her doorstep. She looked at him onest time, his stoic face and


    heartless eyes were fixed to the road and he waited for her to get out of the car. This time she did want


    revenge. More than ever before.


    He really had destroyed her life, time and herself. She wanted to make Scott Anderson realize how


    much of emotionalmitment it took to love someone, to put that person above everyone else, to


    dedicate your life so loyally and blindly to someone who just did not care about you the same way,


    someone who was just testing you out like you were a trial product!


    It inted her anger but she did her best topose every bit of her and ced her hand on to his


    pretty reassuringly and said softly, concealing all her anger to herself, ¡°Scott, the past lies behind us,


    but today you need is a friend more than a lover and even though you never loved me, I did. With all


    my heart and my love was enough for both of us. Probably always will be¡­I¡¯ll be there for you if you


    need me¡­¡±


    Yvonne gently tapped his hand that was ced on the staring wheel, she felt his hand loosen on the


    wheel but nothing more than that, his face did not give away a single thing he was feeling at this time.


    Giving up, she got out of the car and closed the door behind her.


    She was sick of him and now, with her back against the car and Scott, she was standing on her own


    feet yet the ground did not feel stable beneath her feet and she felt numb inside- lying did not make her


    feel good but her anger found ways to justify her lies.


    A man like Scott deserved nothing but lies, just what he had given her, her ego reminded her.


    Without looking behind, she walked straight to the door and locked her door as soon as she got in. A


    few moments after closing the door, she heard the car¡¯s engine rumble and speed away. Internally she


    felt as if Scott had been indecisive to leave at all, they had been married for 3 years, that was the least


    she could make out, still feeling a tad bit connected to him.


    She threw her bag on the couch and lied on the carpeted floor. She felt too weak but she at least she


    was clear now- she wanted nothing! Absolutely nothing to do with Scott Anderson.


    The n was simple, slowly win his trust, y with his feelings and leave him broken, he shall sow


    what he has reaped- tit for tat, only then will we be even and over Scott, she thought vehemently. She


    knew whose help she was going to take in this; the only guy who had been- to say the least-


    understanding to her or had simr motives. After all, an enemy¡¯s enemy is your friend.


    A satisfying smirk took over her face as she thought about how she was going to execute her n this


    time, she knew how to push Scott¡¯s buttons and thus, she knew exactly what she was going to do.


    --


    It was almost 2 am by now and Scott drove faster than he did on average, at a deadly speed. He was


    far from Yvonne¡¯s home, his own or even the city.


    He did not know where he was driving to but his confused mind did not halt him. Generally driving fast


    aided him in thinking but today he was nk, in fact; he did not know what to make of today. He did not


    even know what had happened with Yvonne today. Nothing went as nned.


    Unlike what the world thought of him, Scott was no stone though. Tonight, his palm had turned sweaty


    when Yvonne waspassionate towards him. He hated to admit it but he had controlled his urge to


    pull her into his arms and kiss her, her care was enough to draw him back. But he had not done it.


    When he had mentioned Marie in front of Yvonne, he had wanted not to do so in the first ce


    because he knew that the mention of her name would not mend any things now, yet when he thought


    about his first love, his tongue went beyond his control. He wanted her name on his tongue, to taste her


    name, to taste her¡­but Yvonne¡¯spassion and care made everything about what he had been


    feeling all evening just wane bit by bit. Memories of the past faded from his memory like a nosedive.


    Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    He didn¡¯t want to risk it this time, he did have the realization that he had hurt her enough, he would take


    it all slow, maybe friendship was the only bond that would bring his lonely heart back to life. He tried to


    forget about Marie and the past, it was hard to shake everything off his mind even now, specially


    knowing what he had done to her, maybe that is why his desperation to see her was worse, to


    apologize to her for what he did.


    But something was clear to him too, like Yvonne, he wanted to focus on only Yvonne this time. Just her,


    only one woman in his life. And they would just begin by friendship. He felt lighter thinking he would


    have her again in his life. He had already made many mess ups like leaving Yvonne and marrying


    Anna. Anna had been nothing like her, their rtionship had nothing but a huge void outside bed, that


    Scott could not fulfill while time remained.


    With theing back of his ex-wife, he did know internally that he had even lost interest in mending


    things with Anna. This time, without reminding him of Marie, he saw Yvonne for what she really had


    been- a gorgeous girl with a heart too kind for the beast that he had be. He had wasted time, a lot


    of time looking and mistaking attraction for love.


    In truth he had been wanting something with an obstinate desire, that he knew he could not have. He


    pushed on the elerator in the frustration.


    Marie would nevere back¡­


    But she could have been yours if only you had tried to understand her¡­


    She would have never forgiven you had she been alive¡­


    The word repeated themselves in his mind over, and over again, he was speeding beyond 120 km/hour


    now.


    All the thoughts of what he had done to her clouded his mind and a surge of guilt took over him again,


    her tear-stained face stood so clear in front of his eyes, almost like it had happened just recently.


    ¡°How could you Scott?¡± her weak voice broke out in his ears from 10 years back. He still remembered


    how she was crying beyond control¡­he had never seen her after that, he just could not.


    He elerated even more, the road turned a bit blurry- a small tear ran down his left cheek, he had


    been in pain all these years knowing he was a freaking coward, that he was a beast, that he had killed


    someone and not just anyone, someone he loved more than his life.


    Before he knew it, two bright white shlights of a caring towards him blinded his sight- he realized


    a caring right in his direction in full speed; unknowingly, he had entered a one-wayne.


    The jungle road he had been driving on had been dark and he was too consumed with his own feelings


    to pay attention to any road signs.


    Oue: he crashed into the car and had lied wounded for hours in semi conscience but before he


    lost all consciousness, he picked up his phone to type something¡­maybe hisst words.

 Chapter 13: Do you like Soccer?

    Chapter 13: Do you like Ser?


    shback


    It had been a busy week for Marie. After dumping Iyan in that coffee shop, she had tried to avoid


    him- the reason was simple, what would she even tell him if he asked?


    Luckily they did not even have the same sses together. It became easier to avoid him as well that


    way. She had been unintentionally looking for him though, she kind of wanted to see him, for the least


    to say he was her only friend.


    She sat at the football ground of the school during the lunch. Hardly any boys came to this corner of the


    ground though, she sat in the far east corner of the ground, beneath the shadow of arge tree. Her


    wooden notebook was with her, she never separated that notebook from her, she thought of what to


    write today though.


    Some boys were already on the ser field practicing by now, she looked up and saw the blonde boy


    again.


    He was probably the most attractive boy in her ss or the probably the entire of Edmont High- but that


    was not her opinion, it was of all the girls in her ss. Most drooled over him as soon as he entered the


    ss she had not failed to notice. And some even remained ready to throw themselves his way to have


    his attention. But since he always sat behind her in most of their sses together, she was not really


    able to know what all the girls had found so specific in him.


    Some rare times, she had felt him intently watching her non stop from the back where he sat in most


    sses, it had made her a tad bit ufortable in the beginning, but then again, she was used to this


    kind of attention- she had been getting lots already, most boys never stopped staring at her in


    whichever room she entered.


    Marie had shrugged off on his presencepletely however, he was the boy who had stood


    laughing in the crowd when she was being pranked on the first day at school. He was thereughing at


    someone¡¯s weakness and it did not make him a good guy, that is all she knew, she had not cared for


    more.


    Marie sat cross legged on the ground and as she picked up her pen to start to write in her notebook,


    she felt someone running in her direction and before she could even make it out, the ser ball hit her


    knee with all the force.


    ¡°What the¡­!¡± she had muttered under her breath, getting up spontaneously and starting to rub her


    knee. Her face had turned into an awry expression by now, her eyebrows drawn together in pure


    irritation.


    First the prank and now intentionally attacking her with the ball, she felt angry- they were clearly taking


    her in for the long game, testing her patience.


    Scott was the one running after the ball, to stop it of course but the ball had been quick.


    He approached her panting a for breath and as he bent down to pick up the ball from her feet, she


    moved a step away from him.


    He shed a teasing smile as he got back up and looked back at her, ¡°Too fragile, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    He saw her little nose fluff in anger like a popcorn, she was so pretty, up close however. Watching her


    from the back was not going to do anymore, he would want to see her face everyday now.


    ¡°YOU don¡¯t get to tell me what I am!¡± she said strictly, clearly irritated.


    ¡°Woah girl, chill out, it¡¯s just a ball, see?¡± he turned the ball around his fingers like a professional


    football yer, showing off his skills to her. He knew that impressed all the girls.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care, what have you guys taken me for?! You think I¡¯m just some toy you can toss and throw


    ording to when and how you like it?? Bully and use ording to your needs??¡± she was


    exasperated, ¡°you don¡¯t know me yet¡­¡± she said thest part looking straight into his eyes with utter


    seriousness.


    Amused, with a small smile on his face, Scott stood there watching her, damn was she a feisty chick-


    just his type.


    He came a step closer to her and said with pure amusement and curiosity in his tone, ¡°Then tell me


    who are you.¡± He was firm and fascinated but just as serious as she had been, he met her eyes with


    determination.


    By saying that, he caught her off guard. It was not what she had been expecting from him. Confused,


    she did not even know what to say to that.


    ¡°Okay do you like ser?¡± he asked suddenly seeing her face expression switch from annoyed to


    thoughtful and serious.


    For a moment, he had her distracted. Her face impressions had turned from serious to unclear within


    seconds, she could not read him; was he being nice or still a bully like she had made up his image in


    her own mind?


    His hazel green eyes were deep and just so strong to look at in one go. He made her feel


    ufortable and nervous for a weird reason. But it was not in the sense she had been taking it; he


    was not trying to bully her, she realized it.


    Her brows twisted in confusion and she stepped away from him, still staring at him- trying to read him


    from a distance for a fraction of a second and then she chose to break the eye contact.? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    She picked up her bag and her notebook and left the ground, not looking back at him.


    ¡°Hey! No one told you it¡¯s rude to leave a conversation like this and go?¡± he yelled behind her as she


    moved away nervously.


    Scott¡¯s curiosity had just grown by now, he smiled to himself- for some reason, he had perceived her as


    vulnerable more the first time he had seen her; over the next few days, his perspective about her


    changed to the ignorant type but after today, she had his attention. He wanted to know her


    better¡­

 Chapter 14: Detention with the Bully

    Chapter 14: Detention with the Bully


    shback


    ¡°You know I¡¯m not a ghost right?¡± Iyan¡¯s voice was almost always startling for Marie. She mentally


    cursed herself, she should have known he would be in the library.


    Almost two weeks had gone by since their encounter at the caf¨¦. She had been feeling pretty guilty


    after that incident, leaving abruptly. Her father had left for Texas that night regarding some business


    and had luckily left her only a note- he had not even bothered to meet her, but she was relieved. She


    had been still relieved that he was not back in town yet. The days got shorter in her joy.


    ¡°You scared me,¡± she said heaving a sigh of relief, looking at him.


    His hair was damp and he was probably back from the gym, he had his water bottle in his left hand and


    a sports watch in his right hand blinked, indicating a tiny green light, his Adidas duffel bag also hung on


    his right shoulder. It is strange to notice this but someone you¡¯re attracted to looks even more attractive


    when their hair is wet- Marie agreed with that infamous opinion.


    Standing there, right in front of her desk, Iyan looked handsome. His face glowed with sweat and his


    hair was slightly damp with sweat as well, but even though he wore a thick maroon cardigan with dark


    grey sweatpants, she could tell he was one of the fittest guys here in school. She wondered why


    everyone noticed Scott more than Iyan.


    She pretended not to pay attention to him as he took a seat in front of her. It was just lunch break but


    Marie had chosen toe here in peace; at least she would avoid the neglect she had been facing


    at the local lunch hall at the school. Making friends was one hill she was just not ready to climb yet.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have any sses today?¡± she asked casually, not looking at him. She was indeed referring


    to the gym bag and she noticed that he was not even wearing the school badge.


    ¡°Since Edmont High follows streaming and I¡¯m in stream A, the smartest of our batch, we¡¯re kind of


    already done with the sybus, so now we can work out in peace, no more sses for us,¡± he


    exined with a rxed attitude.


    Scott and Marie had both been in stream C. They could be considered average if not poor in


    academics that is, grade wise. But she didn¡¯t want to be in stream C. There were many reasons for


    that; the students were too rowdy and neglective about their studies unlike Iyan, most kept staring at


    her like she was an alien but no one had bullied her yet, which was strange given she was a new


    student and the drama that had taken ce on her first day. With the foul prank Mark had yed on


    her, she had expected their bullying to get worse- on the contrary they fell to the silence.


    Most of all, there was another reason- Scott. Every time she used to be in ss, he had been boring


    imaginary holes in her body with his eyes always on her- or so she felt- even from a remote distance.


    The only problem: she was not able to catch him red handed; as soon as she would turn to see if he


    had been staring, he¡¯d look away almost like it had never happened. It was beginning to irritate her


    now.


    ¡°What is the requirement to get promoted to stream A?¡± she looked at Iyan with focus.


    Iyan was moved by that. His face clearly lit up at the thought of her being with him in the same ss


    was a good way to remain close to her, he liked her more than enough to want to see her everyday


    without pause.


    ¡°Well the procedure is simple- you get a B or A in 6 out of 8 subject in the finals¡­And nothing but a


    friendly reminder, it doesn¡¯t start with dumping the friends that try to help you out,¡± he mentioned


    sarcastically.


    Rolling her eyes and then smiling to him, Marie swore not to do it again, ¡°Won¡¯t dump you without


    letting you know first the next time I promise.¡±


    He broke out in a smallugh and smiled to her. ¡°Even if you dump me, I¡¯d still manage to follow you


    somehow,¡± he said in a yful tone and winked.


    Her stomach took a turn again- it was obvious. When a guy says something like that to you, it makes


    you feel special- given the fact that Iyan did not even talk to any other girl- and makes you even more


    attracted to him.


    Ignoring his words though to not give him even the slightest indication that it affected her, she


    continued, ¡°So when will you be free to tutor me again?¡±


    ¡°Hmmmm¡­.¡± He faked a thinking process, ¡°tonight?¡±


    Her eyes widened at the word tonight¡­


    ¡°The school is closed at night, isn¡¯t it?¡± she uttered.


    ¡°Exactly, if you want to switch to stream A, then you¡¯re going to have to burn the midnight oil. And see,¡±


    he nced at his smart watch and tapped on the calendar icon, ¡°you¡¯ve only got¡­2 and a half weeks


    from exactly today! That is surely not a lot of time,¡± he warned.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± she said reluctantly and before she could agree to a yes or a no, the bell rang.


    Lunch break was over but she now had math ss with Mr Moore. Apparently, Mister Moore was a


    recement teacher after the Mrs Barry had gone on maternal leavest week. Marie did not know


    all the teachers too well but she certainly this Moore guy would not even pay attention to her; she was


    horrible at math.


    Anxiety surged in her heart as she took all her materials from the table and hurriedly promised Iyan to


    confirm about the studies-at-night nter. She could simply text him about thatter.


    Nervous, she arrived at his ss panting. Mr Moore was not here yet and the stream C kids were still


    contributing to the unending ruckus in the hallway, some had not even gotten in the ss. She looked


    around for Scott- he had been such a constant stalker that she had just about gotten used to him but


    when she didn¡¯t find him, she was a bit relieved and she took her seat right in the front bench.


    The ruckus outside the ss got louder by the time Mr Moore arrived. He wore a pair of waist high


    pants and a shirt so well ironed that it was tucked insidepletely well from all angles one could


    imagine. He was tall but his bell bottom pants made his legs taller than his height- metaphorically of


    course.


    With a sharp nose, his ck thick rimmed sses hid his eyes as he yelled at all students that were


    outside and immediately ordered them all to get inside and take their seats. The severity of his voice


    was enough to get all of the Stream Cs running in like rats and hiding in their corners. As soon as he


    had entered the ss, the ss fell to a deafening silence.


    Marie noticed his wheatish skinplexion and his sharp features with a rigid and unchanged face


    expression. Moore was a white name but he was definitely a mixed race, Indian maybe. His dressing


    sense was also quite entric.


    Observing all students for a long moment in silence, Moore continued, ¡°Had you not been in a paid


    school, I knew just the way to straighten up spoilt kids like you!¡± he spit.


    ¡°But paid schools take money to pamper you kids! So lucky for you but if I find any single one of you


    loitering in the hallway when it is my ss, you¡¯re having an F in my next ss test and for your


    information, I don¡¯t joke when I speak of marks,¡± he emphasized on hisst words hinting utter


    seriousness.


    Mark, the prank guy, was the first to oppose him, ¡°Sir I don¡¯t think you have the authority to do that, we


    have rights as students.¡±


    ¡°Detention till 4 for you!¡± he shouted and finally started his math ss.


    Cruel and merciless, Marie had thought but she was d at least someone wanted to bring some


    change- that joy quickly turned to nervousness as soon as he pointed to her in the first row where she


    was sitting alone.


    ¡°You, blonde girl in the first row! Stand up and tell me the summary of all the rules we use when using


    logs,¡± he ordered.


    Her heartbeat had turned faster than a train right then, she felt all the eyes on her as she managed to


    mutter in a low voice, ¡°I-I don¡¯t know sir.¡±


    Even from the back of his sses she could see him raise his thick ck eyebrow in questioning


    suspicion.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± he repeated in a reprimanding tone.


    ¡°I am trying to catch up with-¡± she was cut off right before she could even continue further.


    ¡°Detention till 4 for you too!¡± hemanded without looking at her and turned to the whiteboard to


    write.


    Hopeless and embarrassed, Marie sat back down, her cheeks glowing a red brighter than a tomato.


    She felt so conscious.


    ¡°She¡¯s new, she has just moved in this city,¡± someone broke the silence in Moore¡¯s ss in a defending


    tone. It was Scott, Marie¡¯s face turned to the entrance door of the ss as she saw him.


    Apparently, he had just arrived, he stood still at the threshold of the ss, his hair unkempt and clothes


    covered in mud. Everything about him screamed messy but his eyes were calm and his face


    expression toocent, determined to argue.


    Moore was now facing him in utter annoyance, ¡°And you arete why? Mister¡­?¡±


    ¡°Scott Anderson, I was practicing on the field for the uing inter-college ser game,¡± he said


    quietly without really opening his mouth at all, like he did not even want to answer the teacher.


    ¡°Right, detention for you too. Out of my ss now.¡± He said strictly to Scott but Scott wasn¡¯t really the


    type to follow.


    ¡°I have all my right to follow your ss sir, you cannot just kick me out,¡± he argued and went to sit


    beside Marie on the first bench itself, quite to her surprise too. She didn¡¯t really approve of that but


    she couldn¡¯t do much in the position she was in, either.


    Moore turned to face Scott and his eyes widened in disbelief, Scott was questioning his authority and


    by doing so,pletely insulting him in front of the whole ss.


    He yelled this time and emphasized on each word to make it loud and clear, ¡°That girl and Scott


    Anderson,¡± he pointed to Marie and Scott, ¡°Both, out of my ss, right now! Go to the detention


    room!¡±


    Marie stared at Mr Moore in horror, she had not even done anything this time.


    ¡°But sir-¡± Moore cut him off again by spitting out the words, ¡°OUT RIGHT NOW!¡±


    Scott got up from the seat egoistically, ready to leave the ss and seeing Marie who was barely


    even moving in shock, he pulled her by the hand and straight out of his ss.


    Her stomach twisted and turned in nervousness when he was doing that- all eyes including Mr Moore¡¯s


    remained glued to them. Scott was clearly used to the attention but Marie was shaky by now, feeling


    even more exposed. More than that, she felt infuriated towards Scott Anderson- first he got her


    punished because of his rebellious attitude and now, he was confirming her deviant image by dragging


    her out of the ss.


    As soon as they were out of sight and far from Mr Moore¡¯s ss, she got rid of his hand that was still


    tightly clutching her arm.


    ¡°How dare you touch me and how dare you drag me out of the ss without my permission?¡± she


    roared at him in apleteck of belief. They stood in the middle of the hallway, Marie stood facing


    him directly. Now she was going to the center of mockery for everyone at school and all because of


    him.


    Scott, however, did not even have a single expression on his face, a small mischievous smirk formed at


    the corner of his lips when he asked her, ¡°You wanna skip detention and go have a beer instead


    maybe?¡±


    She watched him in utter bewilderment, ¡°Unbelievable!¡±


    ¡°Gosh you might need more than one beer! Okay, what about whiskey instead?¡± he added in an


    attempt to tease her.


    ¡°I do not even drink!¡± she retorted and turned away from him, making her way to the detention room.


    He had already gotten her into enough trouble but this time, she didn¡¯t want to be in the limelight again,


    at least because of him.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    She felt her catching up with some running and he walked right beside her, ¡°Okay cool down, if you¡¯re


    heading to somewhere we won¡¯t get caught, you should know I don¡¯t do more than kissing on the first


    times if you have something else in mind.¡±


    ¡°Huh? I¡¯m heading to detention room! You can go wherever you want, I don¡¯t care.¡± And she had meant


    it, he was the middle name for trouble, at least for her.


    Both of them got into the detention room that was at this time, during the secondst period of the


    school, empty. Not even one person who would keep an eye on to the punished.


    Yet, Marie went and plunked into a random middle seat of the room and took out her wooden


    notebook, she wanted to write again. She thought of Iyan. Had he been here in this ss, she probably


    would have felt morefortable in hispany and maybe she would not even have faced detention.


    Instead, she nced at Scott who tried to find a good seat around her, why was she even stuck with


    him in the first ce?


    ¡°Seriously, go! I¡¯d inform the one in charge that you got sick or something and had to leave,¡± she


    pretended to be nice, but she was still a bit irritated at him.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m officially detained right now till exactly 4,¡± he argued again and settled for the seat right


    behind her, all other seats were just dusty. ¡°Unless you want to take advantage of this empty room or


    go have a beer or two as I had proposed,¡± he said with a wink.


    She had turned around to convince him but hearing that, her brows knitted together in confusion and


    disgust, she preferred not to say anything and turned away; her back facing him. She was going to


    focus on just writing now and so she began, soon losing herself in her thoughts.


    When she looked at her watch, it had almost been an hour since they were here. She nced back at


    Scott and to her surprise, he had already passed out on the desk. He slept like a baby and looked so


    much more peaceful asleep. She tapped his head gently and smiled to herself- he was such a kid.


    Right then her phone buzzed and as soon as unlocked her phone, her heart stopped- it was a text from


    Mr Rupert Lewis.


    Get home Marie, now.


    Before he could wake up, she got up and left the detention room, she probably had more important


    things to attend to than detention.

 Chapter 15: I Want to Ruin Him

    Chapter 15: I Want to Ruin Him


    I¡¯m just another promise you couldn¡¯t keep Iyan¡­she hadughed in pain, herst words before she


    drew in herst breath in- it jolted Iyan from his sleep, he was still on his way to New York.


    Peace and calm were far from Iyan this night, it was going to be a torturous one he had thought as he


    sat on his private jet and it was no lie. Warren, his secretary had been with him the whole time, he


    asked Warren to get at the back of the ne, Iyan had been in no mood forpany now.


    His eyes were red and puffy from theck of sleep and his mind numb from her thoughts, she had


    never gone away from his mind but it felt today, he had actually absorbed the reality of her death. She


    was indeed gone and she would nevere back. He recalled the night she had died in his arms,


    feeble and weak, barely any energy left to fight at all.


    The night she had told him about Scott¡­


    His knuckles turned white as he thought of Scott again, he couldn¡¯t wait to be in New York.


    Yvonne woke up to the sun already being out since hours. Someone was ringing the doorbell since a


    long time. Still half-asleep, she got up and reached the door clumsily.


    ¡°Hello dear, Oh my, I must have woken you up,¡± it was Mrs Irene. She was a frail olddy who lived


    next door to Yvonne. Nothing went unnoticed from her eyes, she was quite a gossip but Yvonne liked


    her anyway, she had a very pleasant personality.


    ¡°No no, that¡¯s alright,¡± Yvonne smiled at her, her hair was messy and eyes a bit puffy, ¡°Come on in,


    would you like to have tea?¡±


    ¡°Oh no dear, I just wanted to tell you that I actually have to rush to the pension office but there might be


    a tenanting, just let him know I¡¯ll be back by 3,¡± she requested.


    ¡°Or you could just call him?¡±


    ¡°You know how much I hate this new digital world of phones and emails! Why can¡¯t people write letters


    anymore? You know how romantic it used to be back when men dropped anonymous letters, they had


    feelings! These mails and texting you youngsters do is so robotic!¡± she exaggerated.


    Yvonne made a smallugh out of that, ¡°I¡¯ll keep an eye if anyone¡¯sing,¡± she reassured Mrs Irene.


    ¡°Thank you dear,¡± she leaned forward to kiss Yvonne on the cheek, that¡¯s one thing Yvonne really liked


    about her, she was so English, she reminded her about her mother. Yvonne¡¯s mother like Marie, had


    died when she had been 17.


    After Mrs Irene left, Yvonne came back in to realize her small bag and her heels fromst night were


    still lying in the living room. She turned on her coffee pot to boil and meanwhile, cleaned up the mess.


    Finishing that, as she was pouring coffee into her mug, her mind got back to what had really happened


    with Scott.


    Thinking back tost night, it felt like a dream to her. She thought about what had happened and then


    one name came to her mind, Marie¡­ The bitter words came back.


    You are just not what I was looking...


    A stark pain arose in her heart and it stung like a thousand bees had bitten; Scott¡¯s words echoed in


    her ears, she was not even in love with Scott now and yet it stung like hell. She had loved him for far


    too long¡­but nothing mattered to her now, he did not matter to her anymore, she had fully convinced


    herself of that. But what he had done to her life mattered and she would make sure he realizes what he


    has done.


    The anger, the frustration she had felt, all came back to her at once.


    It was not Anna who had destroyed her marriage like she had earlier thought, it was probably not Scott


    either. The only one responsible for that was Marie¡­


    How dare you Marie¡­taking my life away from me...the grip around her coffee mug tightened. She


    was too distracted for coffee now. She let the mug stay by the sink and looker for her phone.


    Even the carpet was a mess, she could not even find it anywhere. She heard it buzzing though, it must


    still have been on vibration mode. It kept buzzing for another minute until she found it under the pillow


    on the couch.


    18 missed calls from Iyan and 1 unread text.


    She was d to see Iyan finally get back to her, she was a bit mad at him though for reaching out to


    her sote. Before calling him, she opened the unread message. It was from Scott.


    I¡¯m sorry for everything¡­


    Something stopped inside of her when she read that text from him. But, it did not make her feel


    anything, Scott could never be truly sorry for what he had done, she knew him better than anyone- he


    was a maniptive man and he could stoop to any level to get his means straight. His text invoked no


    other emotion than anger. Yes, she was angry, so angry at him. First you y around and when you¡¯re


    done with the game, you say sorry- and his game? Her life! He had been ying with her life and her


    emotions the whole time. He was probably doing the same thing now.


    She exited the messages app and she realized she just could not think clear anymore.


    Without really realizing, she had dialed Iyan¡¯s number and she waited for him to answer.


    ¡°Yvonne¡­¡± he said her name as if he had been relieved to see her call.


    ¡°Iyan, you were not here,¡± she said sadly.


    ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m in New York now, if you had not picked up, I was going toe see you right away,¡± he


    said.


    She did not answer, after a small pause, she said, ¡°Can youe actually? I might be in need of a


    friend right now.¡±


    Iyan acknowledged how serious she sounded and replied, ¡°I¡¯ll be there in half an hour and I¡¯m bringing


    food so don¡¯t eat, okay?¡±


    She could not even say anything but instead just said, ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    Iyan hung up and ordered his secretary to get the best Thai food in town, she loved Thai food, he


    recalled back from college days. In reality, he wanted to see her, strangely enough, he had been


    missing her. She was the only girl he had interacted with after Marie and for obvious reasons but


    today, even he needed a friend.


    Around an hourter, Yvonne¡¯s door bell rang again and Iyan stood there in casual clothes, just a tee


    shirt and shorts and shoes. He was also wearing the thin rimmed sses, just like a pair he used to


    wear back in college. He had brought food too. Well what more could a guy to win a girl¡¯s heart?


    ¡°You look¡­weird,¡± she noticed, taking the Thai food from his hands and inviting him to sit in the living


    room.


    He grimaced at that, ¡°You know girls would lie t just to see a deity like me descend on earth¡­but I


    choose to bless your noble home today child!¡±


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    Yvonne couldn¡¯t hold herughter in as she heard that, she realized it had been a long time since she


    had even stretched her cheeks that fully to smile at all. On the other hand, even Iyan was d to hear


    herugh, he wondered how long it had been since he had seen herugh. Truth was he knew that


    even he was not able to give her as much time as he had previously thought with the whole Scott thing


    going around.


    ¡°Here,¡± she said handing the bowl of Thai fried noodles to Iyan and ced one in front of her. Both sat


    on the couch.


    ¡°You¡¯re still a clown you know,¡± Yvonne remarked, smiling to Iyan.


    ¡°Yes I know, God I¡¯m hungry!¡± he said and they both attacked the noodles.


    After they finished eating, Yvonne started the serious talk- she knew she could not avoid it forever.


    ¡°Scott had invited me on a date yesterday,¡± she stated nervously to him, ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t know


    what he wants with me anymore, he did not take me on a fancy dinner or tried to seduce me to get me


    to sleep with him, that¡¯s what Scott does with every woman he has been with. But yesterday, almost


    like I saw something different in him¡­he said he didn¡¯t want me¡­¡±


    Iyan¡¯s lips pressed in a thin as he listened quietly. He did not want to give any hint to Yvonne about the


    extent to which he had been poising his hatred against Scott.


    ¡°I know that you want me to avenge him and all but if he doesn¡¯t even want to be with me, I don¡¯t think


    I¡¯ll be suitable for your n,¡± she said thinking of who Scott really wanted- that slut Marie¡­


    ¡°Forget about the n Yvonne, what do you want?¡± Iyan asked her in a stringent tone. He was not


    ying around like Scott, about anything he said, that was a clear point.


    It took Yvonne by surprise but she knew the answer to that question, thinking of Scott and his hurtful


    words that came to her mind again about wanting to be with someone else, she said,


    ¡°I want to ruin the life of Zachary Scott Anderson. I want to ruin him,¡± she spit out.


    A satisfying smirk formed on Iyan¡¯s face as he heard the emotion and the hatred in her voice.


    ¡°Then, keep this goal in your mind and go to him Yvonne. If he doesn¡¯te to you, then you will go to


    him,¡± he continued exining to her, ¡°Men are fools Yvonne, a woman can make a man do whatever


    he wants, women decide the boundaries, not men. You can make him do whatever you want, even fall


    for you again¡­¡±


    Yvonne listened to him, but her mind was elsewhere, she wondered if she could wane the effect that


    Marie must have had on him.


    ¡°Do you understand me?¡± Iyan brought her out of her thoughts.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll try to do as you said,¡± she said firmly. She did not know exactly how she would do that but all


    she had in mind was that she was not going to let Scott get away with taking her life away from her.


    ¡°Good, I¡¯ll leave now, it¡¯s not a good sign to be around your house if you will remain in contact with


    Scott after this.¡± Iyan knew Scott had the eyes of a hawk.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Yvonne nodded thoughtfully to that and just as he got up to leave, she asked him, slightly


    unsure, ¡°Can I call you if anything goes wrong, I mean, just in case?¡±


    Iyan put a hand against her cheek in a reassuring way and said with a small smile, ¡°You don¡¯t have to


    ask Yvonne, you never have to ask¡­¡±


    Yvonne was not expecting that and so wasn¡¯t Iyan. He quickly took his hand off her cheek and added,


    ¡°I should leave now,¡± and opened her door.


    Before leaving, he reassured her that he was going to be with her and he¡¯d keep a regr check on


    her.


    ¡°Call me if you need to,¡± he said before leaving.


    As he sat on his driver¡¯s seat, Iyan¡¯s phone buzzed. It was a new mail on his official email address.


    Only employees in hispany and clients had ess to this mail.


    URGENT


    I need to see you. I have the information you are looking for.


    R.L

 Chapter 16: The Encounter

    Chapter 16: The Encounter


    shback


    Iyan was restless that night. He had been waiting for Marie¡¯s text, his poetry book lied open and


    unread on his bed. He had tried to read the lines but nothing had gotten registered in his brain.


    Maybe I should call her, he thought.


    Or maybe she is about to text¡­


    He waited a bit longer.


    As minutes ticked by, his anxiety got worse. It was 9:15 pm by now. He wanted to see her and he could


    go to her right away; he did know the address anyway- after seeing her for the first time, he had studied


    the list of all newly enrolled students in school and there had been just one girl who had been admitted


    to their batch: Marie Lewis, 21 Lees Street, PensonVille, London.


    It was maybe just his own attraction towards her that was pulling him but he knew he could not resist


    the urge to see her¡­but it would probably not even have deem appropriate- he thought- what if she


    took it the wrong way¡­


    In moments of uncertainty, he often tried to leave his mind nk for a minute and then choose the first


    option that came to his mind- it was his easiest way out, he was not really the type to waste time


    contemting the pros and cons of everything; thinking too much ruined it.


    So, he sat on his bed and looked outside the window, it was a beautiful half-moon with some dim stars


    spread across the sky. His room was too dark, no lights were on anyway- his mom would have


    assumed Iyan had long passed out and Scott and his father never bothered toe to him anyway-


    and the moonlight filled the corner of hisrge room with enough light. It was easier for him to sneak


    out anyway from the window, his room had been thergest one in the corner of the ground floor.


    He closed his eyes and tried to not think of anything and the first thing that came to his mind was big


    blue eyes, filled with curiosity and some strangely hidden sadness. He tried to look at them longer, but


    they disappeared as soon as they came. He had gotten his answer- he got up and picked up his phone


    from his bed and grabbed a jacket just in case; it was a chilly night outside.


    Marie did live pretty far from his home but he could walk, he was agreeable to walk under any night


    that offered this kind of view, it was refreshing out of his world of books.


    In about 30 minutes he reached PensonVille and he stood on Lees Street. All he had to look for then


    was then the house number 21. But he realized, it was not a house, it was a huge andvish bungalow


    with a metal gate he could not cross even with all his might. He noticed however that there had not


    been any security person on duty right now, which was strange.


    He hoped she would pick up his call as he dialed her number and she did, on about the third ring.


    ¡°Iyan,¡± she said unexpectedly.


    ¡°I¡¯m outside your house,¡± he said. ¡°Just wanted to talk for a while if you don¡¯t mind.¡±


    ¡°M-my house??¡± she did not conceal the shock in her voice, her father had been home since afternoon


    and she tried to think about how she could break any rules and get out of the house to meet him


    anyway.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was just a bit restless, I wanted to see you¡­¡± he spoke with boldness, like he had not been


    afraid to show her that she mattered to him.


    Her stomach turned again, she was not expecting him to care that much, or at all, like everyone else.


    ¡°I¡¯ll get out in a minute,¡± she said without even wanting to say it; she knew very well that her father


    Rupert would never let her go out at this time.


    ¡°Cool,¡± Iyan smiled on the other side.


    Marie tip toed out of her room and stood outside her father¡¯s room, the wooden door did not really


    give it away whether he was awake or not. She pressed her ears against his door and heard carefully


    for any sound but she was relieved to listen to his soft snores from the other end of the room. There


    was no other sound in the entire bungalow, it could easily pass for a haunted mansion had Marie not


    been there; but then again, even she remained a permanent prisoner trapped inside the four walls of


    this house.


    She got out the majestic wooden mansion door slowly without making any noise at all and walked the


    garden to open the metal gate. The mansion did remind her of how the older British mansions must


    have been made- a symbol of pride and richness.


    Iyan had been standing a bit far from the gate, his face lit up as soon as he saw hering.


    Though she had been nervous and scared about sneaking out without the permission of her father, she


    was grateful to see him as well. She closed the metal gate as soon as she had opened it in case her


    father could see outside. Iyan was the only good thing that had happened to her here, a good friend-


    she thought- she could count on.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry¡­¡± he came toward her exining, ¡°I was just anxious, I got the feeling that you were


    probably not alright, you did not even text so¡­¡± and his doubt had not been wrong, Marie had been


    crying all afternoon that day. It had happened again today and she could do nothing to stop it.


    But she lied immediately, again, not meeting his eyes, ¡°No, nothing like that even happened, I was just


    so preupied with chores that I forgot to text you,¡± she did not even need to exin because the way


    he was now observing her bodynguage, he knew she hiding her secrets.


    ¡°Look up,¡± he said to her pointing towards the moon, distracting her from her lies, ¡°we should definitely


    go for a walk in this kind of night,¡± he insisted.


    She looked up to see the moon, it was even bigger and so bright in the sky now. She looked at Iyan


    then- the moon acted like a torch letting her see how he was looking at her, it was in a sort of


    admiration and she was not wrong. Iyan wanted to hold her hand, she was looking so beautiful, her hair


    was made in a messy bun and strands of her hair stuck to her cheeks as the cold winter wind blew. Her


    eyes were still breathtakingly gorgeous and consuming at the same time.


    Without even thinking more, he moved closer to her, so close that she was now just about a step away


    from him. He didn¡¯t mind the proximity- her blue eyes widened though realizing how close he had


    come- and slowly, he removed the strands of her hair from her cheeks and safely tucked them behind


    her ear. He stepped away after that and asked her again with a small smile.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    ¡°You look worn out, a small walk up the hill,¡± he pointed to the upward way it made from Lees Street,


    ¡°would not do you bad; it would be refreshing for that empty brain of yours,¡± he teased touching her


    head in a yful way.


    ¡°Hey!¡± Marieughed, all seriousness washing away, but she nced back at the aloof bungalow


    and realized her father was still home and herugh vanished.


    ¡°I wish, for the walk, but I cannot,¡± she smiled sadly at him. She was barely 5 ft 5 inches while Iyan


    stood taller, around 5¡¯8, almost the height of model.


    He observed her for a bit and then took off his jacket, she was shivering. He covered her shoulders


    with the jacket like a gentleman. Through his small and intent observation, he could indeed make out


    that she did want to go to this walk, or maybe just get away from her home but her reluctance was not


    letting her do so.


    He came even more closer to her this time and this time, bent down a bit to whisper into her ear,


    ¡°You might just like breaking the rules sometimes.¡±


    Iyan smiled to her after that and suddenly took her hand in his, intertwining their fingers together. His


    grip on her hand was tight and he was aware that he was taking her by surprise- her eyes widened


    again at his actions- and pulled her up the hill.

 Chapter 17: The Moonlight

    Chapter 17: The Moonlight


    shback


    They reached the top of the small hill Marie¡¯s house was located on, the road was all worked up in


    new and undamaged cement, leading to this entire view of the city of London. Lights filled the skyline


    for both of them, Marie was instantly mesmerized. Her left hand was still tightly held by Iyan and


    strangely, as they had been walking up the hill, he had been caressing her hand with his thumb slowly,


    in a very caring gesture. Marie had not withdrawn her hand from his grip.


    He had even asked if she was feeling cold again or if she wanted to get back but she had nodded a


    ¡®no¡¯. She had gotten kind of lost and with Iyan¡¯s total attention on her, she had forgotten about her


    father and that haunted mansion whose ve she had been for so much time.


    ¡°Have you ever been up here?¡± Iyan asked as he watched her face go from neutral and worried to


    carefree and happy. She was so happy to see the lights.


    ¡°No, obviously not. Had I known this is what exists here, this spot would have be my regr hang


    out ce,¡± she looked at him, her eyes glowing with the joy.


    He chuckled softly, ¡°Okay what do you like better? City lights or stars?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re actually asking me that?¡± sheughed in return and both of them sat down cross legged on the


    wide road. It was the end of the road right then, reaching the top of the hill. No vehicles would be


    coming therefore, that remained clear.


    ¡°Yes, see if I like a girl and I want to take her out someday, I should know what she likes first, shouldn¡¯t


    I?¡± he asked her, raising an eyebrow.


    Her stomach turned again- butterflies! This was literally happening a lottely, specially in Iyan¡¯s


    company.


    ¡°I see,¡± she said, not reacting to what he said, ¡°Who is this lucky girl you want to take out to a date


    then?¡± she asked teasingly before shifting her focus on to the gaspingly beautiful view in front of her.


    Iyan chuckled again in response to that, he noticed her bodynguage; her shouldersy rxed now


    and her body was not tensed anymore like it had been when she had just opened the gate in front of


    the mansion.


    ¡°Well, there is someone,¡± he said shifting his gaze away from her and to the view now.


    ¡°Wait, I realized I have never even asked you this but you¡¯ve never had a girlfriend before?¡± she turned


    to him, her curiosity on peak.


    ¡°Hm, no,¡± his answer was short and very honest. The girls Scott and Iyan had evene across had


    been through family friends and cousins and all of them had gone for the better choice- Scott. Apple of


    the eye of his mom¡­he used to think scornfully.


    ¡°How¡¯s that even possible?¡± she rejected his answer. From how she saw him, he was a very handsome


    guy and she knew this fairly well that had he been Italy, he would have been the hot topic in her school


    for all the girls. ¡°Lying won¡¯t make you more of a saint you know,¡± she said sarcastically to tease him.


    ¡°Haha okay, I¡¯m not lying, I am aware of the fact that I do get attention from¡­some, at least,¡± he


    mentioned with a dramatic pause, ¡°But, you know I want to do a lot in life, so much that I don¡¯t think I


    have the time to y the games most people y at our age. Liking, dating, having sex, moving on and


    this vicious cycle that repeats¡­it¡¯s too cruel throwing yours and someone else¡¯s emotions like this. Not


    to mention, it¡¯s also a bit time consuming,¡± he exined.


    Marie¡¯s eyes were watching just him now, her attention had been long drawn from the lights and the


    stars.


    ¡°So what do you want, I mean other than the guys and girls of our age?¡± she asked him, she really


    wanted to know what he thought of.


    He smiled and hesitated for a bit, ¡°Its...It¡¯s not much to be honest. I don¡¯t want a lot and I don¡¯t have


    many expectations from someone I would date in the future. What I really meant to say is that I don¡¯t


    want to waste time- time is preciousmodity- and I don¡¯t have the patience for the whole dating then


    breaking up and all over and over again. If I¡¯ll be with someone, I¡¯ll invest myself fully andpletely


    with her and just her. She would deserve all my time. Not a question about that.¡±


    Marie had been listening quietly, concentrating on all the words Iyan said and then smiled at him in


    response, ¡°The one you¡¯ll choose to be with will be extremely lucky Iyan.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about that,¡± he shrugged, looking at the view again. It was probably the first time that he


    was sharing his thoughts with someone like this, without any fear of being judged.


    ¡°Okay, tell me something, what kind of girl do you want?¡± she asked, all her interest focused at him.


    Iyanughed harder at this question, ¡°I have not even thought about this actually.¡±


    ¡°Well think now,¡± Marie insisted, the glee in her eyes was clearly not going to go away until she had


    her answers Iyan noticed.


    Clearing his throat, he continued, ¡°Well, I just want her to be my really good friend, our understanding


    and humor, level of maturity could match. She¡¯s attractive or not, doesn¡¯t matter, she¡¯s skinny or


    chubby, doesn¡¯t matter either, she has a bad past or not, none of this would matter to me more than


    herself. I don¡¯t expect some princess for myself, just an ordinary girl for an ordinary guy like me,¡± he


    finished.


    The more Marie got to know about him, the more she began to like him. She wished she would find a


    guy like him one day and live happily ever after with him- only, the reality is too distinct from fairytales,


    we don¡¯t have wishing wells that will grant us what we wish for exactly, who could know that better than


    Marie herself¡­


    ¡°Well, enough about me! Tell me how many sexy Italians you have hooked up with,¡± Iyan smiled at her


    teasingly.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    That caught her off guard, her face twisted in revulsion as she thought about the repugnant sight of her


    actually hooking up with any guy at all, let alone an Italian. Her nose scrunched up in disgust as she


    looked at Iyan, ¡°I have not hooked up with anyone! Actually I haven¡¯t even kissed anyone before,


    hooking up is still too farfetched,¡± she argued defensively.


    Iyan broke outughing, she had literally taken his small sarcasticment to literal heights of


    seriousness.


    ¡°Chill silly! Your eyes had been wide open when I¡¯d gotten just inches close to you in front of your


    house, how would you evere to terms with kissing anyway,¡± he mocked her,ughing again.


    Marie¡¯s eyebrows were now knitted together in pure annoyance, this was plenty to drive up her nose.


    She passed him death res as he continued tough for a moment.


    ¡°It¡¯s a matter of choice, I didn¡¯t find anyone worthy of kissing yet!¡± she rebuked.


    Heughed harder at that, ¡°You know your reason does not even make half as sense as you imed it


    should have in the first ce,¡± it made him crack even more.


    Marie had had enough, she decided to get up to leave but as soon as she away from him to get up,


    Iyan pulled her hand tightly and intertwined his fingers with hers to hold her back. Because it was


    sudden and unexpected given she could not resist against his strength, she fell against his chest and


    her hair were now all over his face.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she apologized immediately getting away from him. Embarrassed, she slightly shifted away


    from Iyan and stood by her will not to look up at him, it would grow to an awkward moment.


    Iyan on the other hand observed her sideways, looking at how cheeks had turned to a pinkish red color.


    He did not want to make her ufortable but he could admit to the fact that he did want to kiss her


    passionately.


    Instead, he controlled his urge and said, ¡°It¡¯s been a really chilly night,¡± and looked at the stars above.


    They had grown brighter by now, the moon hid behind a very big and dark cloud but it continued to


    gleam.


    He looked back at her, she was nervous again now, he wondered what she could be thinking of. Slowly


    cing his hand on her pale cheek now, he made her face him directly this time and smiling at her,


    Iyan noticed, ¡°Your cheeks are cold, give me your hand.¡±


    Taking her hands, he rubbed her palms with his to create some warmth, though it seemed a bit childish


    but she still smiled at him. These small gestures of his were too endearing for her to forget, no one had


    ever done that to her, not a guy at least.


    Without really thinking, she slowly leaned into him and closed her eyes, waiting for him. Iyan was not


    expecting that, but he could not resist further to her enthralling face in the star light. Her cheeks and


    nose both were pink by now, maybe due to the blush or the cold could also be a contributing factor. He


    gently pressed his lips against hers and slowly, he entered her mouth. Their tongues intertwined


    together, searching for each other like two hungry souls united- Iyan¡¯s hand reached her back and he


    held her firmly and protectively in his arms as he kissed her slowly.


    She melted like ice cream in his arms and for some reason, Iyan felt how fragile and delicate she was


    on the inside. That moment was perfect, nothing stood in between both of them, and they were both


    lost in their own world, too far from reality.


    It was a small moment but a far too significant one for Iyan because it impacted him very deeply and its


    impact was going to remain with him for a very long time- he had it engraved in his mind; whatever


    woulde forth, he would protect Marie from everything.


    Little did he know what Marie¡¯s fate had in store for her¡­

 Chapter 18: Hes in the Hospital!

    Chapter 18: He''s in the Hospital!


    Present


    Yvonne thought a lot after Iyan had left. She did not know how to approach Scott again afterst night,


    he had been very ignorant to her. She had to bow to her ego if she really wanted to get even with


    Zachary Scott Anderson. But hisst message that had said sorry came to her mind.


    She wondered if he had melted after her caring speechst night and then came about that it was Scott


    she was talking about, if only he had a heart¡­


    Yet, she tried to not think of that- thinking about that would have made it worse- and opened her phone


    to call him. He did not pick up the first time. Restless by now, she tried his number again and it was


    picked up at the very first ring this time.


    ¡°What do you even want Yvonne?¡± Anna replied, irritation slicking off her tone in every word.


    Yvonne¡¯s mouth was agape by now, she did not even know what to make of this. Just yesterday Scott


    had announced his divorce with Anna and today they were already back together? She rejected this


    theory thinking about what Scott had saidst night about that other girl but that still did not answer the


    questions that rose one after the other, like bubbles in a soda, in her mind.


    ¡°Anna? What are you doing with Scott? Where is Scott?¡± she asked inplete disbelief.


    She heard her sigh in annoyance hearing her myriad of questions before she replied very strictly to her,


    ¡°If you¡¯re so bothered to know,e to Welkor Cornell Clinic, emergency unit, room 908,¡± and hung up.


    Yvonne would have asked what had happened but Anna was not really the type to let information out


    very easily but she could guess that it was not something good that had happened, no wonder she had


    been feeling very uneasy since the morning- she had probably not even stopped thinking about Scott.


    She quickly got dressed in her casual blue jeans and formal green top and got a small purse that did


    not exactly match her outfit, but she had no time to get a perfect match for clothes right now, this was


    no trip to the mall. She braided her hair and quickly sprinted outside the door to get in her car. At least


    she knew how to drive, it was a small car but sufficient to get her around.


    As she drove to the clinic- which was an hour¡¯s drive away, the thought of calling Iyan crossed her mind


    but she assumed he was already busy, it was too early to bother him for things like this. She preferred


    to deal with all this on her own.


    When she reached the clinic, it was already 6 pm by then. Her stomach grumbled as she struggled to


    find a parking; she was already feeling too nervous¡­Scott, his ex-wife¡­It was just not something she


    had her mind prepared for but she walked in the emergency unit anyway.


    Not being able to find anyone she knew around the busy corridor of the - Anna, that is- Yvonne asked a


    nurse where room 908 was and she pointed to the end of the corridor. She still tried to look around for


    Anna but no sign.


    As soon as she entered the room 908, there he was, the richest man in New York City, Scott Anderson,


    lying on the patients¡¯ bed like a child. He looked anything but powerful right now, rather he was pitiful.


    But Yvonne was in shock to see him like this.


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    Scott¡¯s head was heavily bandaged, his forehead was barely visible due to all the bandages. His left


    hand also lied fractured, well positioned on hisp so he could not misce it. His eyes were


    peacefully shut, he would not wake up soon; with the thin saline pipe injected in his unharmed right


    hand.


    Just then, Anna entered the room with a young man in a white coat, he had X-Rays in his hand and he


    seemed to be exining them to Anna when he stopped, looking at Yvonne now.


    ¡°Hellody, how may I help you?¡± the man asked her withplete politeness.


    Anna¡¯s face was turned into a total grimace by now, it was so evident that she did not even want to


    stand Yvonne.


    ¡°You¡¯re actually here,¡± she spit out vehemently throwing a death re to Yvonne but Yvonne¡¯s attention


    was divided and torn between the doctor and Scott.


    ¡°What happened to Scott Anderson?¡± she asked, her voice was filled with nothing but concern at this


    moment.


    ¡°You are...?¡± the young man looked at Yvonne questioningly and then looked back at Anna like he


    relied better on her. But Anna only looked away in return, she was on a totalck of manners.


    ¡°I¡¯m his Scott¡¯s ex wife,¡± Yvonne said calmly, ¡°What happened to him?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± the doctor took a long pause and then looked at Anna, ¡°I thought you were his ex wife.¡±


    ¡°Both of us are, okay? Or do you want to know anything else as well?¡± Anna retorted loudly and rather,


    irritatingly and rudely to the doctor, almost frightening him.


    Rolling her eyes, Yvonne exined, ¡°I am his first wife, Anna is his second wife, they got divorced just


    yesterday.¡±


    Anna made a face over that but chose to remain quiet. This was not the first time she was seeing


    Yvonne, she had been watching Yvonne since she had gotten after Scott in Italy. Of course, she had


    known her far before then as well. Her strategy to seduce Scott and break his marriage would not have


    been sessful if she had not first observed Yvonne and tarnish her image first in Scott¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Alright¡­¡± the young doctor now moved towards Yvonne, she seemed like a much morefortable or


    in his mind- safer option than Anna at the moment.


    He started exining, ¡°In the ident Scott Anderson hadst night, it was only luck that saved his life,


    his death was definite in any other case. But surviving a fatal ident like that has not left him


    unharmed.¡±


    The young doctor, who was actually bearing the tag of Dr. Lrk, now showed Yvonne the X-Rays of


    Scott¡¯s head, specifically focused on the brain, ¡°The ident actually caused him a fair amount of


    damage to his internal brain structure known as the limbic system. Temporal lobes in this brain


    structure have been broken, generally these structures lie deep within the center of your brain and


    thus, the hippocampal function has also been affected. The limbic system actually controls all your


    emotions and memories and patients who suffer this kind of damage can either be victims of retrograde


    or anterograde amnesia.¡±


    Confused and unable to absorb all this information at one go, Yvonne asked again, ¡°So Scott has


    amnesia now?¡±


    ¡°We cannot say at this stage, the X-Rays that we took right after he was brought here indicate high


    possibilities of Amnesia but he has not regained conscience till now. He has already been unconscious


    since the past 8 hours, if he does not regain conscience by tonight, I¡¯m afraid it might be a temporary


    coma.¡±


    Yvonne could not even believe her eyes, her body did not have the energy to stand straight, sheid


    against the wall for support. The man who lied in front of her had given her nothing but pain, betrayal


    and misery all her life and yet, she prayed that he gains conscience by tonight. She did want revenge


    but not from a man who was feeble and unable to even walk.


    Dr. Lrk reluctantly put a hand on Yvonne¡¯s shoulder looking at how seriously she was going to take


    this, ¡°He is not brain dead though, which is a good sign¡­It¡¯s going to get better, hope for the best.¡±


    He then turned to Anna and asked if she was ready to sign the papers about the patient¡¯s future


    responsibility and custody. She looked at Yvonne for a long moment, expecting Yvonne would interrupt


    but Yvonne did not. Finally, she nodded and left the room along with Lrk.


    Yvonne gathered herself and went to Scott to have a closer look at him.


    A man who had been perfectly alright, his ego and his power well decorated on his shoulders and


    women lying at his feet, was now just vulnerable and weak, at the mercy of God if He chose to give


    Scott another chance, another breath, another life¡­


    She could barely even look at him anymore, she decided to leave the room but she found a boy


    standing at the door, lost. The boy was around 10, his dark blue and hazel eyes were beautiful but he


    was all alone, Yvonne assumed he must have lost his parents.


    She gave him a reassuring smile, walking towards him and then slowly caressed his hair as he


    innocently looked up at her, ¡°Mom¡­¡± he uttered.


    For some strange reason, Yvonne felt as though she had been in living in aplete void as though


    she had been longing for something she had not even known before, like the word that this small kid


    had unknowingly uttered to her was going toplete her.


    She bent down to look into his eyes and ced a hand on his cheek lovingly, ¡°Where¡¯s your mom?¡±


    she asked him with the sweetest tone she had had in a while and it was not even fake. The boy stared


    with his big and bright eyes right back at her in a total confusion and Yvonne felt the strange urge to


    wrap her arms tightly around the boy and just not let him go.


    Right then, he was pulled back by the arm very roughly by Anna who yelled at him, ¡°Emmett! What did I


    tell you about speaking to strangers?!¡±


    Even the people that stood in the corridor could hear her from afar and the corridor mmed up for a


    small while with Anna¡¯s loud irritable tone. But Anna did not really care. With her off-shoulder yellow


    dress that was cut off right before her knees- which was not exactly suitable for a hospital- Yvonne


    made out that Anna was the attention-seeker kind.


    ¡°Rx Anna, it¡¯s just me,¡± Yvonne reminded her, getting back up from her knees.


    ¡°Exactly Yvonne, it¡¯s you¡­¡± she said bitterly.


    The boy looked back at Anna, confused, ¡°Mama¡­¡± he got close to her as if to hug her.


    ¡°DON¡¯T TOUCH ME!¡± she gave him a tight p across his face without thinking. Emmett turned to


    Yvonne in tears and ran away to the start of the corridor.


    Anna could now receive dirty nces from all the people that stood in the corridor, the women, couples


    and elderly, all stared at Anna in horror. Not to mention so was Yvonne¡¯s case, her face twisted in


    disbelief.


    ¡°He¡¯s just a kid!¡± Yvonne defended Emmett and then jumped up at the sudden realization, ¡°You have a


    kid?¡± she asked Anna not believing what she was saying.


    ¡°None of your business Kia¡­¡± Anna said exasperated and then looked behind her; Emmett was


    nowhere in sight. She felt a small surge of panic and realized that Emmett was her only source of


    ie at this point in time. Thewsuit she was nning against Scott for a share in his property


    would get dyed because Scott was now injured!


    She rolled her eyes -she was having to handle kids to earn money, like she was some sort of


    babysitter- and turned towards Dr. Lrk saying she wouldplete the formalitiester on. She could


    not fathom where he could have gone and quickly ran after Emmett with her 6 inch thin heels. She was


    show for all those who stood in the corridor¡­


    Meanwhile this small encounter with Emmett left Yvonne onto a long trail of thoughts, did Scott already


    know Anna before their marriage? Is Emmett Scott and Anna¡¯s child? Is Emmett the reason Scott hates


    children? Then why did he marry Yvonne in the first ce?


    Questions were numerous and Yvonne had answer to not even a single one of them- but she had time,


    a lot of time until she decided to wait for Scott to gain conscience, only he could answer her now¡­

 Chapter 19: He wakes up

    Chapter 19: He wakes up


    Later that same night


    His head felt heavy, so freaking heavy¡­the splitting headache felt like someone had been constantly


    smashing his forehead with a huge rock over and over again. He scowled loudly in pain, sitting up


    immediately and holding his head between both his hands. It had been an entire 24 hours after he was


    gaining conscience now, probably more.


    The room he woke up in had a more than a creamy texture perfectlyid on the thick walls surrounding


    him, it seemed like a deluxe room, withfortable couchesid across the room and a woman was


    sitting there. She seemed like a young woman, he couldn¡¯t see her face though, she had probably


    fallen asleep, her face was still buried in the magazine she may have been reading, her back was


    facing him. He did not care about that right now.


    He ced his hand around his face and for some strange reason it felt weird, his jawbone seemed


    thicker now, he had even grown a beard, he felt the pricking hair on his face- his jaw, his cheeks,


    nothing remained unscathed from the hair that had grown all over his face, his mind boggled with


    unending confusion. He tried to recall what hadst happened but nothing came to his mind, he tried


    again and his eyes narrowed, his forehead wrinkling in uncertainty.


    Nothing came to him, nothing that could exin why he was lying in a hospital bed with half his head


    bandaged.


    Frustrated, he punched the bedside table in anger with his right hand that was heavily bandaged as


    well. The loud thud made Yvonne jump in her sleep. She heard Scott wincing in extreme pain, he


    cursed his bandaged hand, the blood was probably oozing out by now, his bandaged hand could not


    hide the resurfacing of a few red spots.


    ¡°Fucking hell!¡± he scowled, trying to hold his hand steady in a straight way but failed. The pain grew


    unbearable by now and Scott felt his head bursting.


    Yvonne rushed to hold his fragile hand and she carefully rested his hand on the wide bed handle that


    was specifically drawn to hold a wounded hand.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    ¡°You are such an idiot!¡± she reprimanded, not looking at him and now she held his shoulders with both


    her hands and pressed him against the bed now elevated to match his sitting posture.


    Though Scott had a wavering focus, divided between a fractured hand and a headache that was


    practically killing him on the inside, he still managed to notice how beautiful the girl in front him was. He


    was seeing her for the very first time yet his heart refused to agree that she was new to him. He felt like


    he was strangely used to her presence.


    The headache did not stop, he now ced his hand on the left side of his head and screamed, ¡°Fuck!!¡±


    Yvonne, on the other hand, seeing how painful it had grown for him along with the damaged hand that


    he had just injured again, instantly rushed out of the door to call Dr Lrk now, she wondered if he had


    still been on shift, thest she had seen of the young doctor was during the evening and now her wrist


    watch ticked 1:20 am.


    It had been seven long hours since she had been at the hospital. Yvonne had not left the hospital and


    Scott¡¯s side for a single moment. It was not that she cared about him- in all these years, she had


    neutralized the feelings that had once been too intense towards him. More than that, she knew Aana


    would not care for him as much, it was evident, she had brieflye back with Emmett to sign the


    formalities and then left Scott on his own. Maybe she relied on Yvonne too or maybe she was just done


    with the whole drama.


    Though Yvonne could have done the same, she did not want to, she just could not be that heartless in


    return- it did not really have anything to do with her personal life but rather she stayed for the sake of


    humanity, she knew in times like these, one needed someone of their own- at least she could give


    Scott the reassurance of her being there for him.


    Some minutester, Dr Andrew stood in Scott¡¯s room; he was apparently the senior of the young Dr


    Lrk and he was the one who had handed the case of Scott to him. Dr Andrew was a smart surgeon-


    the best of Welkor in fact, it was already impressive that the man had achieved this position in histe


    thirties.


    The nurse who had apanied the doctor and Yvonne to the room was already undoing Scott¡¯s


    bandage by now while Dr Andrew insisted Scott to swallow a painkiller for the headache, after which he


    only felt slightly dizzy but luckily the headache seemed to fade. He seemed to focus better now, almost


    like his memory had started functioning again.


    ¡°Why did you punch the table Scott?¡± Dr Andrew asked him politely. Yvonne stood beside the doctor,


    she recalled how she had called him an idiot earlier and felt guilty for that, she hoped Scott had


    forgotten about it.


    ¡°Where is my mom? Is she alive?¡± Scott asked looking at Yvonne, his head felt lighter after the strong


    painkiller that had already started affecting him. His attitude was still unchanged towards people


    though- he hadpletely ignored the doctor.


    Yvonne¡¯s eyes widened at the scene, she wondered if Scott was just pretending not to know about his


    own mom. Andrew continued nevertheless.


    ¡°You had been alone in the ident Scott, how do you feel now?¡± Andrew asked him softly.


    ¡°Alone? Is this some kind of a sick joke? Where the fuck is my mom?¡± he red angrily at the doctor


    now. Yvonne felt a small surge of unease taking over her, he really had lost his memory.


    ¡°I am certain, you had been alone,¡± Andrew reassured, not a single line of offence on his face. He had


    to confirm however knowing Scott was highly likely to experience amnesia. ¡°Scott, tell me what year is


    it?¡± Dr Andrew asked him.


    Scott¡¯s eyebrows twisted questioningly but he answered anyway, ¡°2009 of course! Now would you


    bother telling me where my mom is?¡± he asked again, irritated. This time, he looked at Yvonne and


    asked Andrew, ¡°And who is this woman in my room?¡± he asked pointing at her directly.


    Yvonne could already feel the unsettling vibe in the room consume her. She did not even know how to


    answer to his constant queries. She knew that the death of his mother had always been something that


    Scott did not mention a lot, even to her, he rarely mentioned her. But, in reality he had never been able


    to eat up the fact that he had valued the worth of his mom- step mom- Julie Anderson, after she had


    left the world.


    Scott¡¯s memory had halted in hisst moments with Julie. The month had been in November and they


    had been traveling from the Upper East Side where their penthouse was located to Manhattan for a


    fashion show. Scott¡¯s girlfriend then, Samantha was the showstopper model for that show and Scott


    had been all excited about it, just like his mother.


    Samantha was the first girl that Scott was able to look at after Marie¡¯s death in 2008 and Julie had


    been happy about it. In fact, she had wanted things to work out between Samantha and Scott, she was


    the daughter of the famous fashion designer Monique after all, Julie¡¯s friend. Scott and Samantha had


    gotten to meet at their fashion sess party in London and soon Scott had moved to New York to be


    with her.


    His mother¡¯s n was simple though- hitch Scott off with Samantha and get them married as soon as


    he would descend upon the throne of his father; at least one of her sons would settle down the way she


    had wanted to. Julie had heartily disliked Marie and she knew her obsession had driven both her


    sons crazy, she cursed that girl- her death had brought her nothing but joy. But she could not see Scott


    the way he had been after her death- gloomy. Iyan had clearly cut off all ties from the family after


    Marie¡¯s death and though he was Julie¡¯s own blood, she had only felt pity and regret for losing a son


    over that wretched girl.


    The day that was stuck to Scott¡¯s mind, it had only been a second¡¯s distraction when Scott had been


    driving; the lively conversation with his mom was about to be thest conversation. Julie was just about


    to mention the party she was nning about Samantha where she wanted to announce their


    engagement when in a sh, the Mercedes they had been driving had been upside down, it was Scott¡¯s


    fault again; he had been elerating beyond speed limit on the road and he just could not control the


    vehicle. Julie had died on the spot in that ident.


    Now, Scott¡¯s big blue eyes stared into his wife¡¯s, demanding an exnation. Yvonne was unsure of


    whether she should even tell him about the death of his mother or the tragic marriage they had had or


    about the divorce he had gotten from his second wife just a day earlier¡­


    Andrew took charge instead, cing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, he continued, ¡°Scott, listen to


    me very carefully, you are in the year 2020. 11 years away from 2009 now. Tell me of thest moment


    you remember,¡± he asked.


    Scott faced absolute confusion in this position, disbelief flooding his eyes.


    ¡°Year 2020¡­¡± he murmured under his breath not believing it. He genuinely had no memory of all this


    time just passing away.


    Taking a moment to absorb this shock, he went on, his face perplexed, ¡°Thest I remember before


    opening my eyes here is my mom. She was right next to me and I was driving, we were going to


    Manhattan. And I suddenly lost control when a car overtook me on the road, I was trying to control my


    speed and we had a bad crash, that is all I remember.¡±


    Andrew went on asking him some basic questions such as his mom¡¯s name, his birthce, his date of


    birth, the year he graduated high school etc. And the surprising fact was that all his memory gave him


    was till that day of ident, when he had lost his mother.


    Yvonne¡¯s stomach twisted and turned at the fact that she would have to start over again- he did not


    remember anything- getting married to her, meeting her or what he had done with her. She wondered


    whether she should tell him about his mother or not- it coulde as a shock to him but she could not


    conceal anything from him anymore; he was not her husband anymore.


    ¡°Where is my mother now? Is she okay?¡± Scott had dumbed his tone down by now, it came more as a


    concern than an order, he felt at aplete loss¡­anyone would if they had just lost 11 years from their


    lives on one fated random day!


    Dr Andrew nced back at Yvonne and suddenly, she grew conscious that both, even Scott, were now


    looking at her.


    ¡°She¡¯s dead, she died right then that year on that day of the ident,¡± Yvonne blurted out before she


    could think any further.


    The hurt that reflected in Scott¡¯s eyes was almost instant and vigorous. The regret and shock of her


    death was not something he was ready to take yet. For the moment the shock of her death had


    overwhelmed him; his eyes grew teary. He controlled it though and asked for all of them to leave. Even


    the nurse stood in silence watching Scott. Respecting his privacy, Andrew indicated Yvonne and the


    nurse to get out and followed them.


    Right before leaving, he reminded Scott to not force his nerve cells to remember or hurt himself again,


    patients with amnesia were unpredictable at times. He left Scott alone with his thoughts and his self-


    suffering filled with guilt- he had killed his mother.


    Once outside his room, Dr Andrew started exining Scott¡¯s case to Yvonne.


    ¡°Scott is suffering from retrograde amnesia, he has forgotten all events of his life, practically everything


    after the incident with his mom. His memory is stuck in the year 2009 when he was probably much


    younger¡­¡± Andrew said analyzing Scott¡¯s state.


    Though Yvonne was quite in a lot of shock herself after listening to all this, she tried to control her


    shock, someone had to be responsible and mature right now to handle the situation.


    She asked Andrew, ¡°Doctor, will he be able to get his memory back soon enough?¡±


    ¡°I cannot say Yvonne, in these cases we do not like to give fake reassurance to the closed ones of the


    patient- some patients regain their memory after a month, some take years and some never


    remember¡­Looking at Scott and his mental state right now, he might take long to regain his memory,


    till then someone will have to be there for him all the time, to help him adjust with everything that is new


    from 2009; I mean the digital world, and his personal life as well. He might get depressed if he is not


    able to cope with things as they are at present. As you saw him, tragic news is very sensitive to him


    and may cause damage to his nerve cells if he is not protected.¡±


    ¡°Doctor I¡¯m his first wife, I don¡¯t know if I am suitable for the job you describe, his ex-wife Anna may be


    in a better position to handle him,¡± she said confused.


    Andrew looked at her seriously this time, his dark brown eyes fixated on her with unwavering focus,


    ¡°Yvonne I know about the messed up life of Scott Anderson, the divorce with his wife Anna had been


    the hot topic on every news channel till yesterday. Personally, I know I might be asking you a lot but I


    don¡¯t think you should put him in the hands of Anna if you want him to get the care that he needs as an


    amnesia patient,¡± he stared at Yvonne¡¯s puzzled face.


    Without further ado, he added sternly, ¡°You can help him heal and I don¡¯t think you should withdraw


    from that having the heart of a human.¡±


    Opening the file he had in his hand, he started scribbling something on the front page and continued,


    ¡°We will keep him under observation for 3 more days and after that, I¡¯ll let you sign the discharge


    papers, make sure you just bring him to the clinic every 2 weeks for regr scans and check-ups,¡± he


    finished not even looking at Yvonne.


    Dr Andrew was stubborn and it remained unchanged that he was not going to take no for an answer,


    who could argue with him, he was a professional in the field.


    But that did not help the current situation of Yvonne- her eyes widened again at this, but it had already


    been decided before she could even say a word- despite her own wishes; she would be the one taking


    Scott home, it was not going to be Anna this time.

 Chapter 20: Are you my Wife?

    Chapter 20: Are you my Wife?


    Anna had been in constantmunication with herwyer bar-atw, Jean Oliver, the best divorce


    lawyer in New York. Her fees was all she could afford but it was worth the risk, the share she was


    prying from Scott wouldpensate all her effort- the lengthy and effective nning she had ensured


    to separate Scott from his first wife Yvonne. She did not have any personal grudges against Yvonne but


    she did not like her, she just didn¡¯t. Anna¡¯s own personal life had been veryplicated since her


    childhood- being an orphan was not easy; at least being a girl who was an orphan was not easy. Being


    brought up in a small vige in Nebraska, life had been all but easy. The only thing she could take


    advantage of in a remote ce like that was education and Anna had not missed out on that.


    To get where she was, she had to step over many; good or bad and now, where she was, the ex-wife of


    the most powerful man in New York and that tag came with reputation, fame and most importantly,


    notoriety. Money woulde too, she was certain, that is the reason she had hired Jean- thedy


    barrister could just about manipte anyone; that was the skill that afforded her lifestyle.


    ¡°I sent you the medical papers Jean, he¡¯s in WelKor Cornell! What now?¡± Anna had been arguing with


    herwyer on the phone since half an hour now.


    ¡°Yes and until his doctor confirms that he is perfectly healthy to step in the case, being a patient, the


    court will rule in his favor. Right now, I cannot freeze his properties or assets, all I can do is file the


    case, the rest of the procedures would take time Anna,¡± Jean replied roughly.


    ¡°And what the heck am I supposed to do until then? Sit and wait for him to get better?¡± Anna shouted


    on the phone sarcastically.


    ¡°Do as you please, let me know when Scott Anderson is perfectly fit,¡± Jean cut the conversation short


    and added, ¡°Till then, I¡¯ve got other clients to attend to,¡± and cut the call.


    Anna¡¯s mouth opened wide in surprise; she had paid Jean more than half of her fees by now and that


    was how she repays her?! She threw her iPhone on the wooden floor and the loud thud of it falling


    made small cracks on the fragile screen.


    ¡°This fucking bitch¡­¡± Anna shouted in exasperation referring to Jean.


    ¡°Language Anna!¡± someone said from behind her, and Anna toned down her anger immediately.


    She plunked down in despair, on the huge puffy sofa in thevish office she was in now, it was evening,


    almost everyone was almost gone.


    ¡°I¡¯m even running out of the money you had given me¡­I might require some more,¡± she reminded him,


    with a hint of skepticism in her voice. She knew how to get more money out of him, everyone had weak


    points and she knew his- she was guarding his secrets now.


    ¡°You¡¯re only getting money because of Emmett. The money I have given you till now is only to take


    care of the kid and I know how you have been doing it,¡± the husky and deep voice spoke from the dark


    corner he stood in facing therge ss pane that showed half the city from this height, ¡°Taking him to


    the hospital was not a good idea,¡± he spoke strictly.


    Anna¡¯s face turned sour, she wondered how he must have gotten to know about it.


    ¡°Raising your hand over him was worse,¡± his voice got even deeper.


    ¡°I-I thought you didn¡¯t know, he was b-being a mess and I didn¡¯t know wh-what to do¡­¡± Anna exined


    nervously by now, her hands fidgeted with the corners of her purse. She could not afford offending this


    man, he was her only ie right now with the divorce case in pending too.


    The shadow of the man turned around and he came close to Anna this time, his face was still barely


    discernible in the dim lighting of the office room. He leaned over to where Anna was sitting until he was


    totally shadowing her, just inches away from her face. His mint breath fanned her orange face covered


    in foundation and blush.


    His oval face and blue eyes were not something Anna had been used to, yet, he reminded her of Scott


    in many cases; she did not even know his name though. But she chose to draw that thought away for


    now.


    ¡°Listen to me very carefully Anna, if you ever touched Emmett again, trust me, I¡¯ll make people forget


    you ever existed at all!¡± he said emphasizing every word, looking into her eyes.


    His intimidating posture did cause Anna to flinch for a minute, she had not been expecting that, more


    than that, she knew how well he meant his words; his threatening words would be reality if she did not


    abide by them.


    The man stood straight now and buttoned his dark blue zer before heading back to the corner where


    his grand office table had been, he took out his cheque book and signed a nk cheque with his silver


    Shaeffer pen that shone in the dim corner. He threw the cheque on the sofa where Anna was sitting


    and turned his back towards her again. Her face full of make up was just disturbing and annoying to


    him.


    ¡°Fill in any amount you like,¡± he ordered her as Anna greedily picked up the cheque and quickly ced


    it carefully inside her purse.


    She got up cheerfully, forgetting how intimidated she had been just seconds ago from this guy and


    said, ¡°I¡¯ll keep you on any update over Scott.¡±


    He did not say anything, this stupid woman was not the only source he relied on to get any new


    information over Scott. It was enough if she would handle Emmett, already like she was doing a great


    job at that¡­


    Right before she was about to open his office door to leave, he said loud enough for her to hear without


    even turning around, ¡°Get a new phone.¡±


    Anna looked back at him and wondered what kind of a guy he was, shedding money away like water,


    she had been with Scott, even he would not give a penny to a stranger he barely knew. She wondered


    whether this mysterious billionaire knew about her own back story- even if he did, he would know that


    she was harmless to him; all that mattered to her was money- she was ready to be anyone¡¯s until she


    got what she wanted, and those dor bills are the only things that brought joy to her.


    But he intrigued her strangely enough, she wondered what it was that he wanted and then what


    rtionship he could have had with Emmett.


    She shrugged all these silly thoughts away¡­Everything was good until she had money, she grinned at


    the nk cheque she had gotten from him; it was now in her hand as she stood on the lift to go down.


    Scott had been under the observation of the specialist Dr Andrew. He was still shaken at the thought of


    her mother having died 11 years ago; he could still not believe Marie had been gone for so long now


    and he was still trying to make sense of who this young woman who had been selflessly caring for him


    since the past 3 days was.


    He had tried to ask her this on different asions, but she had denied his question, sometimes she


    had an urgent call to make and on others, she turned a deaf ear to his words, but the nurse had


    informed him that she would be one taking him with her, and he was certain about one thing- he was


    not going to just walk out the clinic with a stranger he knew nothing about.


    The door of his private ward opened again- the door was securely locked and only essible to


    specific people whose fingerprints had been stored in the system- it was Yvonne. Being a VIP patient,


    only 4 people had ess to Scott¡¯s private room- his in charge specialist, a nurse who came to check


    on him from time to time, Dr Lrk who oversaw the reports and Yvonne, whom Dr Andrew trusted


    now with Scott.


    Yvonne had been tirelessly serving Scott¡¯s every need but every time he tried to make a personal


    contact or interaction with her, it freaked her out. She just did not feel like she was ready to answer him


    about his tragic life- if only his life had been as straight but it just was anything but straight- loving


    someone, marrying someone else and then divorcing that woman to marry someone he still didn¡¯t love.


    She had wondered in these past few days if she should just blurt it out that she had been his wife.


    But looking at his condition, torture him with guilt was thest thing she wanted to do to him.


    ¡°Dr Andrew says you should get ready, you¡¯re better now but you need rest, and you get home now,¡±


    Yvonne said looking at Scott.


    There was one thing he liked about Yvonne though he did not even know her yet- that he could just


    keep looking at that face of hers without pause all day, she was that beautiful. It was practically the only


    thing that attracted him otherwise he did not like those who did not obey to him- authority was in his


    blood.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t answered me, who are you to me? I feel like I know you, like I am used to your touch but


    my mind¡­it¡¯s almost like I¡¯ve never seen you yet I know you,¡± his words seemed so genuine as he


    spoke with his forehead wrinkling in confusion again.


    It had been only a few days since his ident but Scott, from the young boy that he felt he was, stuck


    in 2009 at the death of his mom, to the man he was 4 days ago, the man who had admitted to Yvonne


    that he had probably never loved her, Scott had aged. Maybe it was his uncertainty and anxiety that


    had been eating him up from inside, she could try to understand what he was going through. For some


    strange reason, despite all her feelings having neutralized for him, she had wanted to bury him in her


    arms and assure him that nothing was wrong, that she was there for him.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    But the words he had said that night immediately came back to her and that name¡­Marie,


    resounded in her mind like a bell ringing in a temple.


    She sat next to him reluctantly and patted his fractured hand inpassion before she started, ¡°Scott,


    it is not easy to make you understand what I am to you,¡± she was not sure where she could lead this


    conversation with this opener but before she could even continue, she was cut off by Scott.


    ¡°Are you my wife?¡± he asked with curiosity, Yvonne noticed his eyes strangely lit up at that thought but


    his face expression remained rather neutral. It surprised Yvonne how he could even get to this but she


    could not deny what the facts were.


    Yvonne smiled sadly at his words and was about to reply that she was rather his ex-wife, but the words


    of Dr Andrew came to her mind, and she held her tongue. Scott still having a fresh wound to his


    nervous system was not in the position to take shocking news all too well. She knew instinctively that


    she would have to lie about this- though she did have no wish to, but the circumstances hadpelled


    her to this.


    ¡°I am your wife, Yvonne Scott Anderson,¡± she said looking into his eyes.

 Chapter 21: My father

    Chapter 21: My father


    shback


    Marie had not stopped thinking about her first kiss after the incident that had urred yesterday or


    last night if she put it correctly. When Iyan had dropped her back home, he had insisted she keeps her


    jacket even though it was already cold for him too.


    The moment she had stepped on the threshold, she had been scared Rupert Lewis would already be


    there, waiting for her, but luckily nothing as such happened. Rupert had been in a deep slumber, and


    she had also quietly gotten into her own room, locking it just in case he did wake up, and she lied in her


    bed, unable to sleep.


    She knew she was dragging it till too far but she had been drawn to Iyan, she had indeed felt it a few


    times that he understood her, without her having to say a word at all. She imagined if he really liked her


    that much, the blush from her cheeks refused to leave her alone with her thoughts and her cheeks


    heated up at the thought of his arms engulfing her, protecting her from the world while he held her still,


    kissing her.


    The night fell and the day was already here, at 6 am sharp, the knock on her door startled her, bringing


    her out of her reverie. She realized she had not even slept all night.


    ¡°Out of the room, on the breakfast table,¡± Rupert yelled on the other end of the door.


    ¡°Yes sir,¡± she cried from in bed, her heart was in her mouth by now. Everything about Rupert Lewis


    struck fear in her heart, the kind of fear she could not get rid of, even if she wanted to.


    She had no other choice, this was the routine she had to follow every day when Rupert Lewis was at


    home, breakfast at 6, news at 7 and leaving for work at sharp 8. At night, he was already on the dinner


    table at 7.30. He liked to follow the clock¡¯s rules very strictly and made sure Marie did too.


    Marie stood up, she felt a bit weak because of theck of sleep, but still got up and brushed her teeth


    to reach the breakfast table that was on the ground floor.


    Rupert was in the kitchen when she arrived at the breakfast table. It was a grand table that could easily


    amodate more than 20 people at once. She took the seat as far as she could, on one far end of


    the table and waited. It was the rule of this house, the one who was in the kitchen could not be


    interrupted or else the one interfering would receive punishment.


    And thus, one could easily make out that the rules of the house were made by Rupert for his own


    convenience and could be broken only by him- after all, who else knew about the rules he had made up


    anyway¡­


    Marie recalled the first time when she hade from Italy and tried to prepare breakfast for her


    father as a gesture of peace, after all, who else was she left anyway in the world but that had been her


    first mistake: entering the kitchen without asking Rupert. And the punishment that she had gone


    through, still made her heart sit every time she thought of it.


    Indeed, Rupert had locked her in the cold freezer for 3 hours. That is just how he was, he reacted well


    and normally when everything went his way, but one had to let things get out of his control to see what


    he really was- sick to the core.


    Rupert got out of the kitchen now, he ced the benedict omlette and some orange juice on the table


    and sat right opposite to her. She waited for him to sit down, no one could start eating until he did.


    Rupert John Lewis was a man now in his fifties, he had not gotten married after his rtionship with


    Marie¡¯s mother, Lucy. She had been thest woman he had been attracted to and he was


    heartbroken after she had left. He was still as fit as a fiddle, he really took care of his diet and physique,


    that was probably the reason he did not age much, his face barely had any wrinkles upon them and his


    nose sat sharp, like that of a wolf dog.


    He swallowed a bite from his te, his fork still in his hand and knife neatly set aside. He was


    observing Marie now, she had been quiet and somewhat nervous today. He could tell looking at her


    bodynguage. Something about the way she sat right now, in front of him made him want to throw her


    right now on this table and make her scream; the fear she felt, the way she trembled when he was


    inside her turned on the animal inside Rupert. But it was something else today.


    ¡°Anything on your mind honey?¡± he asked strictly.


    His voice alone made Marie jump up. She had really been lost in her own world of thoughts.


    ¡°No,¡± she said hesitantly and started munching her breakfast forcefully, she knew Rupert liked the te


    to be finished, he did not tolerate wastage.


    Her father did not say anything, but he kept an unflinching eye on her all the while she had been eating.


    After their breakfast, Rupert insisted that he dropped her to school which she denied, but she knew that


    her opinion would not hold water. He was adamant and as soon as they got to school, Marie was


    about to hop out of the car anyway, she could not bear the presence of this man for any further, it made


    her sick.


    Right then Iyan appeared out of nowhere from amongst the crowd of the studentszily creeping their


    way inside the premises of Edmont High. Iyan could not sleep all night either, it was evident, his puffy


    eyes had big eye bags underneath them but the glow on his face was unmatchable to anything else in


    the world. He had been waiting at the gate for Marie to arrive, though he did not have any sses


    today, but he just wanted to see her once before she got inside school.


    But first, he got to see the luxurious Benz in which Marie arrived, her father being the driver. From


    inside, Marie had already seen him approaching and she prayed inside her mind that Iyan did not


    come this way, she did not want her father to know about Iyan at any cost.


    But Iyan had already seen her, he made his way to Rupert¡¯s car, smiling along. Rupert had been sharp


    to observe the boy very well, a teenager of around Marie¡¯s age, maybe older and the smile he had on


    his face let out all his feelings towards his daughter.


    ¡°Good morning sir, I hope you¡¯re doing fine,¡± Iyan bent to the car¡¯s open window on the side of the


    passenger seat where Marie sat. He looked at her and smiled even wider, ¡°How are you?¡±


    Marie kept quiet. She knew what a ruckus that would cause, her legs shivered thinking of Rupert¡¯s


    wrath. Rupert¡¯s face grew stern however seeing Iyan and he observed both of them for a long moment


    before speaking.


    ¡°Who are you I might ask?¡± he looked at Iyan.


    Iyan¡¯s face grew taut with consciousness, ¡°I¡¯m a ssmate sir, I just wanted to show Marie around


    and help her with a few subjects as well,¡± he exined, hoping it would work.


    But nothing was going to work in this case. Rupert knew the type of girl Marie was, she would


    receive a lot of attention in schools and any other ce she would go to, that was the reason he


    wanted to keep her just to himself, locked up in his cage for his own use- his attraction to her had been


    instant the moment he had seen her in Italy and he had decided that very day that she was his, only


    his.


    ¡°My daughter doesn¡¯t need any of your help, you can go now,¡± he ordered Iyan, giving him an


    authoritative and threatening look. Marie understood well enough what that meant.


    Iyan looked at Marie to see if she wanted to react to that but she refused to look up at Iyan, she knew


    she just couldn¡¯t, what would she tell him anyway¡­Looking back at Rupert who was still stern upon his


    words and his death re intact.


    Assuming she just had really strict parents, he decided to leave but said to Marie whose eyes were


    still glued to her feet, ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you in the library,¡± and went away.


    As soon as the boy was out of sight, Rupert looked at Marie and she felt her gaze harden upon her,


    he ced his hand on her shoulder and pressed it hard enough for her to wince out a soft cry and said


    to her,ing dangerously close to her, ¡°No other love in the world is like the love of a father has for


    his little girl¡­¡± His hot breath fanned the side of her face and she kept her face down, a tear rolling


    down her cheek by now.


    He caressed her sharp shoulder bones with his thumb and Marie could not even help flinching. Her


    stomach turned in nervousness whenever the thought of him forcing himself upon her came back to


    her, it had happened that night after he had locked her inside the freezer, she could not forget that night


    even if she had wanted to.


    He removed his filthy hands from her, and his fingers curved the staring wheel now as he looked


    straight and ordered Marie, ¡°Be home before 3.¡±


    She nodded and got out of the car as quick as she could. The car stormed away with a ruffle. She felt


    weak standing on her own feet this time, she wondered if she even had the strength to go to her


    sses, her torturous moments inside that house came back to her, one after another and she just did


    not feel like she was ready to face all these children or most importantly, Iyan right now. She turned to


    the gate and went to the back garden of the high school.


    This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    There, she chose a small corner that was barely visible, she decided that she needed the bunk and the


    break from the sses today. She sat on the grass, in the shadow of arge tree and got her wooden


    notebook out. She started writing.


    ¡®Dear diary,


    If mom had been alive, I would have never been handed over to this beast¡­I wonder if she is still


    watching over me. But I¡¯m not going to fail her, she wanted me to study well and go to college and build


    my own life- the circumstances might be tough right now, but I have to be strong, she was strong too,


    only for me. She kept fighting with a disease like leukemia to give me a better life, to provide for me, to


    be my strength and I have to do that too, I have to fight, to be my own strength¡­


    Dear diary, I have to tell you about someone else, his name is Iyan. Iyan is my first friend in this ce,


    he is really kind and caring to me, he makes meugh too. Oh, how I¡¯ve forgotten tough with a


    friend¡­What happened to Kathy still kills me on the inside, Iyan is my first friend after Kathy actually¡­I


    really like him. He¡¯s smart and sarcastic and he seems a lot like me, lost and trying to find his way¡­¡¯


    ¡°Do all girls do that?¡± she got interrupted by a voice that now stood right over her. She shut her


    notebook immediately and looked up to see Scott. He had a ser ball in his hand and he turned the


    ball around his hand, while he watched her write in that notebook, of course, focusing on the ball, he


    could not quite notice what she was writing and neither could he read upside down.


    ¡°What are you even doing here??¡± Marie shouted at him in exasperation and immediately started


    collecting her things to get up and leave.


    ¡°Why do you dislike me so much?¡± Scott asked her with a teasing smile.


    Not looking up at him, she retorted, ¡°Dislike is not the word, hate is, I hate you Scott,¡± she rified now


    looking up at him. He was extremely irritating if he did not already know about this.


    Scott¡¯s grin just grew wide in return, he was so pleased as he answered her, ¡°There is a thin line


    between hatred and love Marie Lewis.¡±

 Chapter 22: Good Friends

    Chapter 22: Good Friends


    shback


    ¡°How can you always be so sure that people like you that much Scott?¡± she asked sarcastically.


    He chuckled proudly in return. He still had the ball in his hand.


    She rolled her eyes and asked him, ¡°And what are you doing here anyway? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be


    in ss yet?¡±


    ¡°Well, I could ask you the same question, we are in the same ss for your information,¡± he said as he


    sat down and made himselffortable on the ground, he threw his bag on the warm grass and put his


    ball aside and now, he just observed her, she still looked gorgeous, her face drawn taut in confusion.


    ¡°You know, you should learn how to chill, a bottle of wine or two wouldn¡¯t hurt,¡± he proposed looking at


    her.


    She watched him seriously, he was really a jerk. Without answering his silly queries, she got up with


    her wooden notebook now inside her bag, when Scott¡¯s mighty arm pulled her down to where she was


    sitting again.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± she asked irritated at the extreme now.


    ¡°You!¡± he replied strictly and then changed his tone as heughed, ¡°Look at you! So serious and you


    call this a bunk¡­¡± he mocked her.


    ¡°I never invited you to this bunk!¡± she retorted, ¡°and besides, you¡¯ve distracted me from what I was


    thinking anyway so now, I might even go to ss.¡±


    ¡°What will you do in ss anyway? It¡¯s better to be here, in the garden,¡± heid on the grass and


    rxed, his ballid aside as he crossed his legs and closed his eyes.


    Marie watched him for a second, unsure of how to react. She sat down. Despair had not been as


    evident as before now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if what I¡¯m even doing is right, I should not have bunked any ss today,¡± she said sadly.


    Scott opened his eyes to see her expression, she was serious about that. He sat up and said, ¡°Close


    your eyes.¡±


    ¡°What? Why?¡± she asked confused.


    ¡°Just close them,¡± he asked her again calmly.


    Eying him suspiciously, she reluctantly closed her eyes.


    ¡°Now what?¡± she asked. Internally she felt like he was going to propose some silly game to light up her


    mood but he had to know that nothing was going to pacify her this time.


    He smiled though looking at her innocent face.


    ¡°Tell me what your favorite ce is,¡± he asked.


    ¡°So the game you choose is 21 questions?¡± she asked sarcastically immediately opening her eyes.


    Scott immediately ced his palm over her eyes, ¡°Cheater! I told you not to open your eyes! Now I¡¯ll


    make sure you don¡¯t open them,¡± his hand was ced firmly to cover her eyes.


    ¡°Okay okay,¡± she said still confused.


    ¡°So yes,¡± he continued, trying to remember, ¡°What is your favorite ce back in your home town?¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± she thought for a while, her mind running in the streets of Italy, where she was brought up,


    ¡°the waffle ce in Rome, it was not too far from my house, it was called Stefano Waffles, they had the


    best ice cream in all Italy,¡± her tone had now quickly switched from sad to excited.


    He smiled and then continued, ¡°What is your favorite ice cream vor?¡±


    She chuckled and then answered- his hand still covering her eyes, ¡°I like anything that has chocte in


    it, just not white chocte or dark chocte, the milk chocte is the best¡­¡±


    ¡°Ought to remember that!¡± Iyan muttered under his breath.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked, and he quickly moved to another question to divert her from that.


    ¡°Which is your favorite part about nature?¡± he asked.


    She took a long moment to answer this, contemting over the nature part, ¡°We¡¯re surrounded by


    nature in all ways we can imagine and personally, I like things the way they are, natural. But specifically


    thinking of nature reminds me of nts,¡± she let out a smallugh, ¡°I don¡¯t like flowers though, they


    make me sad because people pluck them and then they wear out. People say they love flowers and


    yet, they don¡¯t realize that if they really loved them, they should let the roses, the lilies, orchids, tulips


    just grow,¡± her lips curved a small smile, ¡°It¡¯smon sense, if you love something, you should just let


    it grow.¡±


    She continued, ¡°My favorite part in nature, in nts is the cactus- they represent warmth, protection


    and longsting love. You would ask why, it¡¯s because the cacti nts survive really harsh conditions


    and yet they stay unaffected, strong and unconditional. In some cultures, they evenpare cactus to


    maternal love- strong and protective.¡±


    Scott was listening to her carefully, as much as he was interested to know her, her intellectual only


    impressed him and attracted him further.


    ¡°That is a very deep analysis,¡± he pointed out still watching hercent face, his hand still carefully


    ced over her eyes, ¡°and what is one thing that you would never do no matter what?¡± he asked her.


    Her smile disappeared now. She was taking his silly questions quite seriously by now anyway.


    ¡°I would never give birth to a child,¡± she said in her most serious tone possible.


    Her answer pushed Scott¡¯s curiosity to another level now.


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t you?¡± he asked her.


    She let out a small smile and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think that I would be able to give my child a good father and I


    would never want him or her to lead the life that I have led- with a single parent or suddenly discovering


    your father at the age of 16. An innocent child just doesn¡¯t deserve this,¡± her tone grew sarcastic and


    mncholic at the same time.


    It threw Scott under some confusion though, he removed his hand from her eyes and let her adjust to


    the daylight and asked, ¡°What if you found a great guy? I know there are good guys and bad guys, but


    what if you found out your soulmate and you fell in love with him?¡±


    She scoffed at that, ¡°And where do you think I¡¯ll find that genius?¡± she asked sarcastically.


    This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    Scott stepped closer to her and looker her in the eyes to build up the drama as he said intensely, ¡°You


    could just be looking at him right now¡­¡±


    Marie tried to keep a serious face to that, but she could not even hold it in for more than a few


    second and she burst outughing, her joyfulugh filled his ears.


    ¡°God you¡¯re the most self-obsessed person I¡¯ve evere across,¡± she said in between herughs.


    Scott didn¡¯t care about what she was saying, he was just d to see how she wasughing now. If it


    was one thing, he had to realize this fated Wednesday, then it was that whatever happened, he just


    couldn¡¯t bear to see Marie sad.


    When she had stoppedughing, she looked at him and smiled, ¡°I think we will be good friends Scott


    Anderson.¡±


    In only a matter of minutes, Scott had managed to distract Marie from all her woes regarding her


    father and forget about Iyan.


    Scott only smiled in response to that, he knew they would be good friends and a lot more than just


    good friends.


    --


    Since the morning, Iyan had been patiently waiting for Marie at the library and his attention had not


    even been in the thick 300 pages¡¯ physics book that lied in front him, untouched.


    He had been on the constant look out for someone and she just hadn¡¯t showed up. He wondered if he


    her father had asked her to stay away from him, or if she had felt too nervous after their kissst night.


    Whatever the matter was, he was not going to just let her go. He waited impatiently for another 5


    minutes before he quickly assembled his things and stormed out of the library- he was dying to see if


    she was okay. Surely the tone in which his dad had addressed him, he must have reprimanded Marie


    too. He should have thought about that earlier.


    Iyan looked for her in all her sses, even in the cafeteria as it was close to lunch time now; but he


    didn¡¯t see her anywhere in the entire Edmont High. Finally, he went to the admin office and found out


    that she had not even attended any one of her sses since the morning. This only got him worried.


    He wondered if he should go to her ce right now, after all he did know where she lived. He did not


    even know if she would be home right now or where exactly she would be¡­


    He called her a few times but even her phone was switched off. He felt truly troubled, maybe he was


    the reason she must have been upset, he thought.


    Though it was not what she had wanted, he had decided he would have to do it again, he would have


    to visit her again tonight to find out why she was avoiding him.

 Chapter 23: I am Married!

    Chapter 23: I am Married!


    Scott¡¯s POV


    I could not believe it, the young woman that had was there for me through this, caring for me without


    even looking at herself since these 3 hectic days, was my wife. It felt weird, tasting the word wife on my


    tongue. I was married to her, as shocking as it came to me, I was so d that I was able to make


    something useful out of my life, marrying someone like her- kind and beautiful. Julie Anderson, had she


    been here with me, would have been the proudest of me; I wondered what had happened to


    Samantha, we could have been a thing, but I knew even then that it would probably have notsted


    long, she was not marriage material that girl.


    I looked at Yvonne, Yvonne, that name¡­It did not even ring a bell in my brain but, I felt like I had been


    used to saying that name many times. I was thrilled on the inside, married! She was the girl who was


    finally able to tame someone as wild as me.


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    My bewilderment was barely controble with all types of questions popping inside my mind and yet all


    I could do was hold both her shoulders in my hands- my fractured hand hurt a little, but I didn¡¯t let that


    hold me back- and say, ¡°You are my wife!¡± as if confirming her statement again. My eyes had been


    wide with excitement and joy but hers only widened in surprise, like she was not even expecting this


    kind of reaction from me.


    It was not easy being a patient suffering from amnesia. From thest few days, I had been mentally


    trying to ept that I have aged this much, that beard suited my mature face, that my body seemed a


    lot stiffer than when I used to y ser in Edmont High. And of course, anything that reminded me of


    school was not without Marie. She was like a dream to me right now; I had not even finished


    mourning her death yet¡­ore to terms with what I had done to her. That was all that remained


    clear, that I was a murderer¡­and now within days, I was a husband too, to a loving wife who loved me


    and cared for me this much.


    Looking at Yvonne just made all that fade, her face and her eyes were so soothing, calm and peaceful;


    but that peace was more of a kind that before a storm, too quiet. I wondered if the news of my ident


    made her like this or if she had always been like this, even this trait of her was attractive.


    ¡°How many years have we been married Yvonne?¡± I asked her not being able to wait, ¡°Do we any have


    kids?¡±


    She stared back at mepletely stupefied, I wondered if I had asked her too much. She then tried to


    quickly conceal her behavior and looked straight, not looking at me, trying to think.


    ¡°Married¡­It¡¯s been 5 years well,¡± she ced her hands around her shoulders nervously trying to think


    and then noticed my fractured hand in myp, she rested my wounded hand on the wide handstand of


    the bed. ¡°And we don¡¯t have any kids Scott¡­¡± she said quietly.


    ¡°No kids?¡± I asked in a bit of a shock, ¡°Do we have a happy marriage?¡± I really hoped she would say


    yes, I did not want to be a bad husband. This is all I could think of now, I wished I was not a bad


    husband or had a bad marriage because of my past, I would not have wanted that to impact my future


    life.


    Yvonne¡¯s face had been neutral, but she looked at me again, this time, gauging my face carefully for a


    small moment that seemed tost eternity for me. As soon as that ended, she smiled and ced both


    her soft hands reassuringly on mine and said, ¡°We had a great marriage life, I mean we have a great


    marriage life¡­¡±


    That was all I needed to hear, I looked into her eyes, her beautiful blue eyes were so deep, I could just


    drown in them, I wanted to just keep watching her. Her eyes were also strangely simr to Marie¡¯s.


    But instead, I smiled to her and pulled her into a tight and unexpected hug. She was taken aback at my


    action, but she did not hold back, I hugged her to my chest, tight enough for her soft hair to fill my face


    and her fragrance was enthralling, I felt like I wasplete. I was so lucky to have her.


    I thanked God that at least he had given me Yvonne if he had snatched my mom Julie and Marie


    from me, there was nothing more I could ask for.


    --


    External POV


    His hug seemed like it had been from an entirely different person, Yvonne thought. She was hesitant to


    respond to his hug at first, but she did hug him back- all she could think of right now was that he


    needed her. Of all times, now when he had no one. It was ironical how even money could not fill the


    void of having someone to call your own, in your life.


    She then broke the hug and got up to call the doctor, leaving the room immediately but before that, she


    did not fail to notice the satisfactory smile that had curved on Scott¡¯s lips. He seemed innocent, maybe


    he was, back when he had still been a young adult. In fact, she met him 2 years after this ident, in


    college, when he was her senior.


    Dr Andrew reminded Yvonne to bring him for the regr check-ups and to keep him away from tragic


    and shocking news that could affect his slowly healing nervous system. She could not promise that but


    she had to do it anyway now. She collected all the documents from the office including his medical X-


    Rays and then went to Scott¡¯s room where he sat ready on the edge of the bed waiting for her. As soon


    as she entered the room, Scott got up and grinned at her like a child. Almost like a man lost at sea had


    finally found a shore. She felt guilty looking at him joyous like that.


    As they walked towards Yvonne¡¯s small car and out of the clinic now, Scott asked, ¡°Did we grow poor in


    the recent years¡­? I mean¡­¡± he said looking at Yvonne¡¯s car.


    Yvonne chuckled, ¡°It¡¯s not called being poor, and you¡¯re not poor Scott, you¡¯re the richest man in New


    York,¡± she stated, helping him inside the car. She carefully ced his heavily bandaged hand on his


    lap.


    ¡°Then why is it that my wife has a small car like this?¡± he questioned authoritatively, watching her as


    she got in the driver¡¯s seat.


    They were both driving to Yvonne¡¯s house by now.


    ¡°Financial Status is not everything that defines you in life, I have high principles, like not being


    interested in your money,¡± Yvonne said, focusing on the traffic, it was always busy on these roads.


    Scott¡¯s eyes had been fixed on her though, he felt impressed and proud of his choice, looking at her-


    beautiful, philosophical and a safe driver, he made mental notes to himself. She was different from all


    the girls he had met until now, or at least till he had remembered until 2009.


    But he scoffed at her words right now, ¡°How can you bring in the financial status when all of what I own


    is already yours, you have right over everything, over me¡­¡± he felt internally happy saying that.


    Yvonne¡¯s lips curved to a small smile at that, she looked at him and said, ¡°No I don¡¯t Scott, I don¡¯t have


    to¡­¡±


    Scott was about to ask her why she was saying all this but Yvonne¡¯s phone started ringing. Yvonne


    nced in the rear-view mirror where her purse lied on the back seat and asked Scott to ignore it. They


    were about to reach anyway.


    She assumed it must have been Anna who had found out about her taking custody of Scott but then


    again, Anna wasn¡¯t the type to bother to call and ask either.


    --


    Iyan was in his office even now. He stared at the snap he had been sent on mail. It was of an old and


    ragged piece of cloth, he had seen this somewhere, material of a dress. On someone.


    With the snap, the mail said.


    I know everything that happened 12 years ago. Contact me on 9080-0888.


    R.L


    He did not know if he could believe this stranger. He could be anyone, but he knew what had happened


    to Marie. He knew what Scott had done to her but even after her death, Iyan had always known that


    there was something more to the story than he saw. He had been looking to unveil the truth since years


    now- had he not started out on this quest, he would have never found out about what Scott had done.


    Iyan zoomed the piece of rag and watched it with all his focus- there was something about it that


    reminded him of her¡­suddenly, his doubt confirmed! It was indeed Marie¡¯s dress, it looked


    something like what she had worn on prom that year. Everything had changed between Marie and


    Iyan after that night.


    Curious, Iyan picked up his phone and dialed the number he was given on the mail. He could not wait


    any longer, he had to know what had happened that night and exactly what had happened 12 years


    ago with Marie.

 Chapter 24: I love her

    Chapter 24: I love her


    shback


    Marie had gotten home early that day, since she had bunked half the day anyway at school, she had


    thought that she would just get inside her room before her father got home and just think, think about


    all that happened recently, think about Iyan.


    Whenever his name came to her mind, her stomach filled with butterflies, his possessive touch, the kiss


    they shared, the feelings she felt he had for her¡­it was too much to absorb, something about the way


    he felt for her, just drew her more to him every single time she thought of him.


    But today was not the day she could think of all this. Rupert had already been home. In fact, he sat in


    anticipation waiting for her to get home, he was sitting on the lengthy L-shaped couch of the ptial


    living room of his vi. It waspletely mental to think of, but Rupert had finished work all too early


    today just to get home and confront his daughter about that boy he had seen in the morning. Thinking


    about him even being close to Marie made his blood boil, she was only his.


    As soon as Marie turned the keys of her house and opened the door, Rupert stood up, alert and


    attentive to the noise the old wooden main door of the house made as it opened. She locked the door


    now,pletely unaware of the man standing behind her. Rupert was very sneaky, probably due to his


    profession too.


    Before she could even turn around, Rupert twisted her arm from behind and nked her forcefully


    against that wooden door, her back facing him.


    This is from N?velDrama.Org.


    Marie winced in pain as his grip on her arm tightened to not let her move at all, Rupert was a


    previously army trained professional, his grip could not be escaped or broken until he allowed for it.


    He grew close to her ear and asked her in his husky and deep voice, ¡°Who was that boy that came to


    you in the morning?¡±


    Small beads of sweat formed on her forehead and her heartbeat raced inside her chest, pounding


    uncontrobly. She was still recovering from the shock as she managed to say in pain of her arm still


    held in his extremely tight grip, ¡°He is just a ssmate father¡­I don¡¯t know him¡­¡±


    ¡°Tell me the truth bitch!¡± he shouted in her ear and twisted her arm further as he drew in dangerously


    close to her.


    Marie was crying by now, still wincing in pain, hot tears flowed down her red-hot cheeks as she


    defended herself, ¡°I am telling you the truth, please let me go¡­¡± she could not stop crying.


    Rupert could not sense if she was telling the truth, but he buried his face inside her crux of her bony


    neck, she smelled so good, he wanted her beneath him right now, screaming in pain.


    ¡°Get this straight inside your head, you are mine and only mine! Nothing will change this!¡± he let out as


    he started licking her ear, his grip still tight on her arm and she shrunk to the agony, her heart still


    racing.


    This man struck fear inside her heart but right now, all she felt was disgust, she was disgusted to stand


    here, with him having all control over her body and the pain she felt was not only physical, but her pain


    was also all withheld in her heart, a heart that could no longer love or feel anything other than torment,


    horror, and misery. At the mere mention of this man.


    As his other hand lingered the back of her dress and caressed the back of her bra and then her hips,


    he loosened his grip on Marie¡¯s arm and his hand started groping her breasts from the front in an


    unsatiable thirst.


    However, Marie now felt sick to the core, her tears flowed endlessly at her vulnerability to stop all this


    from happening again. She wished she could just get one chance, she wanted to flee from this man,


    far, far away. Even that was not possible, Rupert Lewis was indeed her legal guardian after her


    mother¡¯s death, she would be his responsibility until she turned 18 and she could hardly wait for that


    day.


    His hands now snatched her backpack and threw it away as he hungrily pressed himself against her;


    she tried to fight against his grip on her and get free of his hold but failed miserably against his mighty


    grip. Suddenly, she experienced an unexpected nausea and she copsed in Rupert¡¯s hands, losing all


    conscience¡­


    --


    Iyan stood underneath her house now. He had been trying her cell since he had been looking for her in


    the afternoon now. But no response, her phone was still switched off.


    He could not even wait any longer, he knew what he had to do to see her once more.


    Iyan had mounted the gate of the bungalow she lived in, without making any noise and once he was in,


    he tried to figure out which window was hers. All windows of the bungalow were wide enough to let a


    man climb inside but all of them were covered with thick curtains drawn over them and they were all


    dark anyway.


    Except for one window.


    Iyan decided to climb to the first floor to see if it was Marie¡¯s room. He did get the thought that it was


    probably not the right thing to do but if he had to be there for her, he would do anything to fulfill his


    words, even if that meant climbing her window at 1 am in the middle of the night.


    With some difficulty, he was even able to climb up the first floor and there he saw her, lying inside her


    bed peacefully. Though what surprised him was that she was still wearing the uniform that she had


    been wearing in the morning when he hadst seen her.


    He wondered if she was okay and after some peeking to ensure she was all alone, he opened the


    window and stealthily got inside. The room of her door was closed but the first thing he did was lock it


    anyway just in case her dad decided to drop by.


    After that, he sat down on the edge of her king-sized bed as he watched her, she was in a deep


    slumber. He got a bit closer to her and ced his right hand over her forehead to see if she had any


    fever and he realized that her body had been burning up. Her golden hair was a mess and her cheeks


    had been hot and slightly pink, and her forehead was also hot. She seemed to be having a high


    temperature. It worried him even more.


    Iyan quickly got up and covered her with the thick quilt thatid on one side of her bed. He didn¡¯t want


    her to get worried about exams or practically anything at all. He could easily make her pass those,


    even if anything else would bother her, he would be there as a shield before anything got to her.


    He held her palm in his and caressed her hand, he wanted her to get better. If there was anything she


    would have asked for, he would have made sure he gave it to her. Iyan was not the type of guy who


    relied on his parents¡¯ wealth; he believed in himself, and he knew that he would be able to do pretty


    good on his own.


    But looking at Marie and how attached he had grown with her; he had this faint idea in his mind that


    life could be a lot better if he could have her with him in the future. He could already picture her in


    his future ns, maybe even as a life partner, it was probably too intense he knew but his feeling was


    just as strong as well.


    That¡¯s when he realized, he loved her.


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