Noah's head felt like splitting in half. He could not even remember what had happened last night. He looked around the room, and rage filled his nerves.
The woman, still sleeping soundly beside him, looked disgusting in his eyes. Noah felt like vomiting at the sight of the woman and the idea of what could've happened between them last night.
Noah immediately sits up and wakes her up. She slowly opened her eyes, blinded by the rays of the sun that were eating up her sight. The woman did not recognize the man. Not until she recovered her vision. She's fucked up.
She jumped out of bed and covered her naked body with the comforter, leaving the man sitting on the king-sized bed naked.
"Shit." he cursed. Averill covered her eyes and sat on the cold floor.
She could not breathe well. Her mind is full of whats and whys.
What the hell happened last night?
Why is he here with her?
What did they do together to wake up naked to each other?
And what will happen now that something might really have happened?
Averill smiled bitterly. She could still remember how Noah looked last night at the engagement party. She couldn't help but admire the man, albeit being her twin's boyfriend or... fiance.
But what the hell would happen now? How did they even end up in this situation?
Noah appeared again, lazily wearing an oversized shirt paired with sweatpants. He rushed to her and squeezed the woman's jaw. "What the hell did you do?"
She could not respond. Fear? Maybe. Her heart is starting to beat faster as he glares at her. His deep obsidian-like eyes are piercing holes in Averill's body right now. He's burning with rage and disgust.
"I-I a-also do n-not know w-what happened..." she said, almost whispering. But Noah cannot believe her. Not when he knew this woman loved him and was probably obsessed with him. He harshly pushed her and grabbed her hair in annoyance.
She groaned in pain. She could feel her scalp hurting as he pulled her hair even more. Averill realized the situation well. And she can also understand where he's coming from, but this is simply not right!
He did not even listen to her... just like when she defended herself six years ago. He only listens to her twin sister.
"I am so done with your bullshits, Averill," she flinched. He doesn't call her her pet name now. He's outraged. She needs to explain to stop the misunderstanding immediately.
"Listen to me, Noah. I really don't know what happened. I am a victim here as--- Y-Yanna..." she gulped. Noah's eyes widened, and he turned around.
There stood the woman he loved, with her eyes wet with tears. "Yanna, let me explain."
"DON'T TOUCH ME!!" she was breathing heavily and glared at Averill, who was still naked on the floor. Yanna let out a sarcastic laugh. "I-I... I know that you hate me, Avi. I know that! But... h-how dare you? HOW DARE YOU?!"
"What happened here?" Liam rushed inside when he heard his sister shout. Puzzled, he looked at the three people inside the room and grasped the situation.
"I trusted you; I love you even though you hate me. How can you do this to me, Avi? What the hell did I do wrong to deserve this?" Yanna couldn't breathe well. She was a miracle baby. Even though born on the same day, Yanna was weak while Averill was healthy; the reason why Yanna was loved and cared for the most by their family despite Avi being the youngest. She never felt the privilege of being the youngest. She often has her meals alone while her family is busy attending to Yanna's needs, albeit the girl is also showing signs of being a healthy kid.
Avi, at the young age of three, realized one thing. You will be loved and cared for more if you are weak. She then tried various things to get her family's attention. She ran through the rain, caught a cold, went to her mother, and asked her to sleep with her, but she deliberately declined. Yanna had trouble sleeping that night because she was scared of the sounds of thunder.
Avi jumped off the stairs and had her left arm broken. She went to her father and asked him to go with her to the hospital because she was scared to go alone. He refused. The girl can go with the nannies he hired. And he needs to go to Yanna's tea party, she just recovered from a common cold, and he promised her he'd be with her that day. The twins were just ten at that time.
When she was eleven, they had a family picnic, Avi was playing with Yanna, and they fell together in the mud because Yanna kept running while holding her hand. She scraped her knees with the shattered glasses hidden beneath the ground. She forced a smile though she wanted to cry because Yanna was giggling.
She knew if she cried at this moment, she'd get scolded. When her brother saw their state, he rushed and checked Yanna's condition. She just laughed at him and said that they were having fun. Liam scolded her for being so clumsy. He then looked and glared at Avi. "I told you not to cause a mess because Yanna is weak,"
Avi then realized no matter what she does, Yanna is more important.
So she started living her own life. She aced every exam, became the valedictorian of her class, and entered college at the young age of sixteen. Avi never shared those with her family. She knew that everything she does is reported to her parents, but even a simple dinner to celebrate her milestones did not happen.
She graduated college and entered the entertainment industry; Avi thought she was a good actress all her life and wanted to try it. She's bored with life. She combined her acting career with managing the company she started without her family's knowledge.
Everything went well until Averill was called home in the middle of her business trip. Oh? Her parents are calling her home. She was delighted. Maybe they heard about her success in the industry. She's been doing various projects and was gaining millions of fans.
Maybe, just maybe, her family finally looked at her.
Who is she kidding, though? She forced a smile in front of her family, with a not-so-new face dining with them—Noah Darius Dalton, a billionaire whom she admires regarding her business. And the man she had loved since college, since four years ago; he's here, smiling brightly, holding her twin sister's hand carefully, as if she'll shatter at the slightest touch.
"Yanna, believe me, I really don't know what happened. Brother, Noah, please listen to me, hmm?" Avi cried. But the tears that left her eyes only added to the annoyance that Noah and Yanna were feeling. Liam kept silent. He wants to understand his sister; he wants to believe that she's innocent, but he can't find any reason to do so.
"Avi, you--- Yanna!!" Liam rushed to Yanna. She fainted. Again, Liam felt blank in his head. His weak, fragile sister is here again. He thought she's been really healthy these days, but now... he sighed. He immediately carried her and rushed outside.
"Averill Hursen!!" Noah was fuming with rage. "Leave." He swallowed hard, trying to contain his anger. "Leave before I kill you,"
He rushed outside and called his secretary to clean things up. He went straight to the hospital, leaving Avi there, bleeding, alone in his penthouse.
Three weeks had passed since the incident.
Avi flew to New York for a shoot. She could not concentrate at all. She took the leading role in the drama, but the production couldn't progress because of her.
She's pale. Well, she has not had her meals since last night, and the sun is setting at the moment. She's feeling nauseous, "Are you really alright? Did you eat?" Sam, her manager, asked her. She just shook her head, holding on to her manager's arm for support.
"I told you to at least have a salad! How many times do I have to tell you that your health is important," Avi just nodded. She can't help but laugh in her head. Someone is caring for her health.
"Let's stop this. We need you in perfect shape. How could you be so careless? Let's go. We're going back to the hotel,"
"No, we need to finish the shoot---Blaargh,"
"Avi!" Sam shouted in worry. She never saw Avi in this state. She's even vomiting! Sam called the other staff and helped her with Avi. Averill looked at her and smiled softly, "I'm fine, don't worry, let's continue,"
She tried standing straight but immediately held Sam's arm. "Your hands are freezing cold in the middle of summer, and you're what? Fine? Ken! We're leaving. Avi isn't in her best shape," Sam told the director.
Ken really likes Avi as an actress. She's one of the best he's seen so far, and he couldn't help but worry. He had known Avi since the first time the woman entered the industry. It has been four years, and she's someone strong. Seeing her in this state makes him sad. Avi is one of the few people that Ken became fond of. He wants to treat her as her daughter if she would allow it, but Avi is the independent type.
"I told you, I--"
"Avi!!" Sam panicked. Averill suddenly fainted with her nose bleeding!
'Shit,' Ken rushed to them. He carried her to his Porsche. "I'll meet you at the hospital," Ken told Sam and drove to the nearest hospital as fast as he could.
He was walking back and forth in the emergency room when the doctor approached him. "We need to talk,"
"How could you be careless with your wife's pregnancy? She could've had a miscarriage!" Ken was silent. He could not process what the doctor had told him just now. First, calling Avi his wife. Second, pregnancy? Is Averill pregnant?
The doctor discussed everything with him. Ken called Luis, his best friend who owns this hospital.
"I need a VIP room right now," Luis didn't ask anything when he sensed his best friend's tone. He's really in deep thought right now.
Ken fixed the blanket on Avi's body. Luis was just looking at them. When Ken finally paid attention to him, he cleared his throat and asked, "Did you get her pregnant?"
"Shut up. Averill's twenty years younger than me. For Pete's sake, I treat her as my kid. I'm just fucking annoyed right now,"
"What happened? You rarely ask me for favors,"
Ken sighed, the talent he's been taking care of and the woman she's been treating as her child in the industry is now here, lying weakly on the bed. Pregnant with a child, he doesn't know whose child is. He's simply annoyed with the man that got his daughter pregnant.
He dialed Sam's number, "I want to meet Avi's family,"
The next day, Ken flew back to England to meet Averill's family, whom he never saw in any awarding that Avi attended. He couldn't understand why she never invited them despite her remarkable achievements as a youngster in the industry.
He arrived early. He glanced at his wristwatch and at the door that suddenly opened. Ken smiled. "Ken Hills, I'm glad to meet you,"
"Oh, I know him, Dad," the girl with shoulder-length hair said. Ken was surprised. She kind of looks like Avi though his daughter is way prettier. He smiled at the thought.
"You're that Ken Hills, right? The director of the most renowned films for the past twenty years,"
"You flatter me, Miss?"
"I'm Yanna Hursen, I actually want to enter the industry too, but my family firmly refuses," she laughs. Ken silently looked at her from head to toe. He smirked, 'You wouldn't survive with that looks and figure,'
They were served luxury meals and started eating, "You must be wondering why I troubled you," Ken suddenly said. William Hursen looked at him.
Ken knew this man. He's one of the best business tycoons in the medical industry.
His best friend often praises this man, but he's different. He only sees this man as an irresponsible father. Ken cannot help but feel annoyed whenever he remembers seeing Averill collapsing.
"I am handling your daughter, Avi,"
"Avi? Averill is an actress?" Yanna asked. Liam glared at her. She then pursed her lips. But what was that? Her twin sister is an actress? She's not a fan of watching movies. Thus, she never really saw one of her sister's movies.
Or maybe Avi hasn't made a name in the industry yet, which is the reason why she never heard of such news.
"And what about our daughter?" Isabella asked, putting her utensils down. She doesn't want Yanna to hear any of her sister's achievements in the industry because she will surely force them to let her in too. She's too fragile for that harsh field.
"She's carrying a child, and I wish her to be married to the man who got her pregnant to avoid further scandals that could tarnish her name... your family's name at that,"
An uncanny silence filled the room.
Averill woke up with an unfamiliar ceiling. She groaned in pain when she tried to sit. Sam entered the room and was surprised to see her awake. "Avi! My god," she helped her sit and gave her a glass of warm water. "I'll call a doctor. Wait here," but Averill grabbed her hand. "W-What happened?" her hoarse voice sounded so weak to Sam's ears. She caressed her cheek and smiled. Sam doesn't know what to tell her. Averill looks like a frail figure in Sam's eyes at the moment. A young girl, eighteen years younger than her, had to experience this. She got a bright future ahead, and she couldn't imagine what her reaction would be once she heard the news of her pregnancy. What happened? Averill is the type of woman who refuses to date anyone despite it adding a boost to her image. She simply refuses to enter into any relationship. Was this connected to what happened to her last time? When Sam saw her walking lifelessly three weeks ago? That was her sister's engagement party if Sam recall
Noah tossed and turned on his bed all night. He couldn't get a wink of sleep at all. His mind kept returning to the image of Averill walking away from him at the hospital to take care of the reporters. 'She set that up herself to corner me, tsk.' "Here is your schedule for today, Sir-- did you not sleep well last night? Come to think of it, you asked me for a plane ticket and canceled it at the last minute," Karl complained. He had been Noah's secretary since he was in his teens, and he had already memorized the character of the young man. He's not the type to change his mind at the last minute. "What did you talk about with Ms. Averill Hursen?" "Our marriage," Noah casually replied, like what he said was as simple as watching a movie together. "Your what? Are you insane? Didn't you say you love her sister? You even proposed to her!!" Karl cannot wrap his head around what's happening. Marriage? With that woman? Averill is a lovely girl, but she is someone that Noah hates to the
Everyone has their own wedding preferences. Be it in church, beach, garden, or even yacht. Someone can even get married while scuba diving as long as they can get their wedding administrator to deliver the ceremony. Throughout the generations, silly and creative ideas about weddings have been brought to light. And every woman has their own dream wedding. A wedding where they can get genuinely emotional. A wedding they will never forget for the rest of their lives... A marriage that came out of their dreams. Even Averill Hursen, who never really cares about anything fancy, has her own dream wedding. It wasn't anything grand. It won't be about a vast church with gracious decorations nor a lavish wedding to which everyone was invited. Averill never thought of any of those. She... she just wants to get married to the man she loves. The man she dreamt of marrying every night she knelt and prayed. The man she never thought she'll marry... 'A week? Sounds good,' she thought when she hea
Averill has been staring at the ceiling for hours now. She didn't sleep at all, be it excitement, or maybe she just could not sleep. It is understandable. It's her wedding day. She tried getting up and instantly felt dizzy. She pushed her arm against the wall for support and closed her eyes. 'I need to prepare early,' It would be a simple wedding. A few of Averill's senior and junior colleagues sent a confirmation for their presence. Well, they could not decline despite their busy schedule... A famous director will not take on their projects if they don't attend the wedding. Averill got closer to them... she naturally attracted them with her pure personality. Most of them even attend her fan signing and movie launch. Averill's eyes widened when she saw Sam and Ken in her unit early in the morning. "It's thirty past five. What are you doing here? The wedding will be at four in the afternoon," "And when will you prepare? You are beautiful, Averill, but let us do this to make yo
Chapter 5 The waves of reporters subsided after Noah ran through the door. They eventually followed him and left the place with no more than three reporters who stayed with Averill. Her eyes were glued to the place where she last saw Noah. His back vanished into thin air, "Ms. Averill Hursen?" She regained her trance as the camera's flash hurt her eyes. She then smiled at them and continued walking in the aisle. To the altar, without the groom waiting for her. 'It was supposed to be like this anyway. He doesn't love me. Of course, he'll choose his sick girlfriend,' Every step seemed like a thousand pounds that'll make a hole in the ground. At last, Averill takes the last step onto the altar. The noises from around the chapel became visible to her hearing, but she stayed composed. Averill hugged her manager and director before they unwillingly let go of her hands. She walked to the altar alone. Faced the priest and held the bouquet of white roses tight. "Should we wait for the g
Noah arrived with the sun setting. He walked out of his car and went inside the huge villa. He found no one welcoming him. It was oddly quiet. He wrinkled his nose and looked at his phone. It's a weekday, so helpers should be around by this time. He walked around the place and finally found an old woman carrying a tray of cookies. She recognized him immediately and greeted him. "What are you doing here, sir? If you would let me ask," "Where is that woman?" he hurriedly asked. "That woman? Oh, you mean your wife, sir?" She laughed awkwardly. She was confused for a moment but smiled at Noah. 'My wife? Hah! She's going around announcing that absurd thing?' "Forget it. Lead me to her," she simply nodded and led Noah to the garden where Averill was staying. They are meters away from it, but Noah can visibly hear the laughter from the place. He felt light in his heart, and surprisingly, it catches his attention. At the sight, the woman who caused him so much dilemma is laughing with a
Noah opened her eyes when the ray of sun landed on it. It's morning. And the weather is already calm. He looked around the room and found a beautiful woman— sleeping beside him. Her long lashes cast a shadow on her face when the sun's rays visited it. 'Last night...' Noah doesn't know what to feel about what happened last night. *** The staff running around stopped when they saw Noah carrying Averill down the stairs. They looked like a fantasy couple, like a prince who saved the princess from war. They all smiled inside their hearts before continuing what they were doing. Noah went straight to the dining and carefully placed her on her seat. He was about to leave, but Averill did not let go of her. "Must I feed you now?" he sarcastically asked. No one was inside the dining but the two of them. "The utensils are too heavy for me," she told him. Averill let go of his shirt before trying to eat by herself, but her weak wrist gave up. The spoon fell on her lap along with the hot porri
As Leah had told them, after a week, they both moved into the new mansion that Noah's parents had bought. It is a huge one for Noah's preference. He's a minimalistic type, and all the fancy decorations, paintings, sculptures, and luxurious displays that welcome them in the hallway give him a headache. Noah hands his coat to the maid that reaches for it before heading upstairs. There is a lot of room, it's a two-storey mansion, but the land it occupies is quite big. 'Why would they buy this big of a mansion when we'd only have a child?' Noah checked each bedroom before proceeding to the master's, as he presumed. There's one huge bed in the middle, and unlike the interior downstairs, the room suits his taste. Everything inside is how he wants a room should look. The colors were neutral, almost the earthly ones. There are few plants that accented the place, and the huge glass window with thin curtains from the ceiling down to the floor is just perfect for his preference. The only t
Noah woke up early and left the villa before even Averill got up from bed. He left a note on the table and a massive box in the living room. He drove to a building not too far from the villa he bought. “You look relaxed. Are you even sure about this?” Karl asked him. Brian and the gang are also there, preparing for Noah’s wedding. The man in his white tuxedo smirked, “Never been sure in my whole life, Karl.” “Tsk.” He went to his stylist and asked for a perm. Brian went beside Noah and tapped his shoulder, “You need to buy me a yacht if she doesn’t say yes.” “That woman loves me. You buy me twenty-five percent of the shares in your new business.” “That’s pretty— tsk, deal. Might as well be your wedding gift.” He followed and excused himself after receiving a call. Noah smirked, realizing who called his casanova friend. “Clayton,” “I will attend your marriage. I just need to finish this.” “That’s why you should have told her what you felt.” He stared at Noah and ignored him after
Averill’s POVI was busy reading through the reports about my hotel. I had left it to Leon for a long while. Funny how I told him he was fired, but he kept coming to the company and managed it while I was busy doing things for myself. I would have never come this far without him.“Coffee?” Leon asked. He placed a hot coffee macchiato on my desk. He could pass as a barista, if not a lawyer. I thanked him without looking at him because my eyes were still busy reading. I can’t help but focus on these things.“I heard about his proposal,” I stopped scanning through the files, looked at him, and smiled. I raised my brows, waiting for what he would say next. “Why did you reject him?”“Do I need a reason not to?”“You love him—”“How’d you know that?” I smiled. Leon stared at me before looking away, putting down his coffee. “When you fired me, you were too emotional. Aren’t you being emotional as well when you rejected his marriage proposal? I thought you loved him and that you sacrificed
“I love you,” Noah muttered as he kissed her deeply. He kissed her passionately, moving his lips gently as he caressed the back of her head. Noah continued until the two of them were out of breath.He stared at her golden eyes, “I love you, Avi.” he repeated, claiming her lips once more. “I love you,” he whispered between their kisses. Averill tried to push him, but he gently pulled her to his chest.He hugged her and buried her face in his body. “I love you.” Again, he told her. Averill still has yet to respond to him. Noah loosened the hug as he gently held her shoulders.Noah looked at her and wiped the tears that fell from her eyes. His thumb gently against her cheek as tears fell from his pitch black eyes as well… like crystals under that sunny afternoon… they cried.“A-Are you c-crying?” Niana approached the two of them. Noah and Averill looked at their daughter, who was also about to cry, confused as to why her parents were weeping. They smiled, gently slipping their hands agai
Noah’s POV I stared at my daughter, sleeping soundly on my lap. She had played all day with the dog we brought from Hawaii. We’re currently in the UK. Thankfully, she wasn’t looking for her mother much. I just won’t have any more excuses had she asked once more. I have a hunch on where Averill might be, but I want to give her more time. I don’t know why she had not even met with Niana. I know she loves our daughter. I know she loves her with all her heart and won’t abandon her. No way that is not the Averill that I know. The Averill that I fell in love with has so many flaws… but she’s not an irresponsible mother. She’s sometimes selfless to the point where even I would pity her helplessness. Averill is a woman who would not care even though she’s hurt. And she’s also the type of woman who would stand firm if anyone vital to her was hurt. I did not love her because she was perfect but rather because she was so perfectly imperfect that even though her flaws were visible, her pure
Averill woke up with someone stroking her hair. “Noah?” Surprised, she saw Noah beside her, sitting on the bed. Looking at her, smiling with his teeth. “Good morning, Avi.” “Avi?” Averill looked at Leon, who was currently feeding her. It had been a day since she was admitted. She fainted after donating blood to Noah while she was injured. “Did Noah wake up?” Leon shook his head. He tried feeding her again, but Averill looked away. “You need to eat.” “I did my best. Why is he not waking up?” “His body needs rest, Averill. And you do too. Eat, I am begging you.” “I’m not hungry.” Leon sighed at her response. After fainting from fatigue, she did not sleep a wink overnight. She would have stayed by Noah’s door if she had not fallen to the floor. Waiting for the man to wake up. Noah’s grandfather came later that evening. He deliberately stopped Averill from coming to Noah’s room. He was so mad when he heard what had happened to his grandson. “I told you enough to get away from my
Leon drove as fast as he could when he heard the news about Averill. He could not believe they had just left the woman there. He heard about Noah’s condition but still! Was it too hard to get the woman as well? Leon parked recklessly in front of the cafe. Some men barged in his direction, attacking him with metal pipes, but he was way faster than these men. He punched and kicked and pushed… It took him five minutes before he could enter the facility. And his blood boiled when he saw Averill looking so lost in one corner. He scanned the room, and there was Kyle, looking at Isabella fiercely. Looked like they had an argument. “WHO KILLED MY DAUGHTER?!” Isabella shouted. Leon looked around again and saw a woman lying dead on the floor. ‘So she died. What a waste.’ Leon thought, thinking about the charges he could have done to put the woman forever behind bars. “You’re still thinking of Yanna in this situation? For Pete's sake, Isabella! They are holding you as their hostage!” “I do
Kyle’s eyes were sharp as he stared at the woman’s crying face. His jaw clenched as he gritted his teeth. He could feel his muscles tremble in anger. Why is another man touching what was his? Why are they touching Isabella? What is going on here? He could not think straight. He stared at the gun in his hand and looked at the three people that were left on his side. In an instant, he pointed the gun at them. Karl was alarmed by his sudden movement but was immediately caught off guard when Kyle killed the three remaining people on his side. Why? Why did he kill them? Karl could not wrap it around his head. Why would Kyle Jackson kill these people when they are his allies? This is crazy. Kyle Jackson is an absolute madman with lots of screws lost in his head. Karl signaled his men to approach Averill and Noah. Kyle is yet to notice them. He is still busy looking at the men which he killed. “One more step, and you’ll follow them.” Karl’s men halted. Was he watching? Jackson was watch
Averill looked at him with wide eyes. She could feel her entire body go cold as she trembled hands touched Noah. “Are you okay?” Noah asked, still worrying about the woman, albeit the circumstance. “What are you even saying? Why did you do that?” She cried, Averill saw Yanna pointing the gun at her, but Noah was too fast to cover her from the bullet. And in a blink of an eye. Everything happened. “No… no… no, no, no, NO!!” Everyone looked at Kyle when he started acting odd. His eyes shake as he stares at the two people on the floor. One is covered in blood while the other is covered in tears. Kyle’s hands were shaking. He pulled his hair and glared at Yanna. “You! “How dare you!” he shouted. “How dare you touch my target!” His eyes were dark as he pinned his nails on Yanna’s arms. He could see nothing but the fact that Yanna pulled the trigger against Averill, and it hit Noah. His targets were touched by another person. Kyle is this type of crazy person. He never wanted anyone t
Mason did not move, Kyle was too swift that he did not notice him in front of him and grabbed his gun. They fought with each other as Kyle’s men started swarming with the other men that were left in Noah’s group. Chaos started to sip in, plates and glasses were shattered. Tables were wrecked. Chairs were thrown.It was total chaos inside while the men fought each other. Noah hugged Averill in one corner. “You should have not said that. You were provoking him!” “Why are we here, Noah?”“What?”“We’re here to get Yanna. But what are you doing?” Averill looked at him. She pushed him away from her. “Stop protecting me. When we learned about Kyle, we expected this already, that’s why we asked Shiloah to bring her to New York.”“Averill—”“If you’re gonna tell me to be careful. I am. I am already doing that so stop being a coward. We just need Yanna. You’ve let her loose for so long.” She stood up and walked away, she grabbed a stick and went her way to Yanna.Kyle was there, sitting by th