Chapter 9: His past

The door to Chairman Adams' private ward opened, and Adrian walked in, followed by Michael. Chairman Adams, who had been browsing through his phone with a wide grin on his face, expression quickly switched to a startled one as he tried to hide his device. However, he gave up, knowing his grandson had already seen through his facade.

“What?” Chairman Adams asked half-defensively.

“Grandfather, please tell me you’re not pretending to be ill again,” Adrian said, frowning deeply.

“Yes, I am. I wanted to see my grandson. Have you forgotten that I have two grandsons?” Chairman Adams replied in a grumpy tone. Adrian pinched the bridge of his nose and shut his eyes, trying to calm himself. 

“Grandfather, it has been ten years—ten fucking long years. Please try to forget about him! He himself said he wouldn’t be coming back, and we should forget about him. Why won’t you grant him his wish?” Adrian said, frustration evident in his voice. He was exhausted by his grandfather's constant troubles.

“I won't. It would be best if you don't come the next time you hear I have been hospitalized, because, like today, I might be faking it. You, stone-cold bastard! I know you never called him; for 10 years, you never called your brother. The two of you grew together in the same womb; he's your fucking twin brother. How could you be so heartless?”

“Why call him?! Huh?" Adrian asked, passing a frustrated hand through his hair; he hates arguing with his grandfather, especially about his past. "Why call him when he made it clear he didn't want anything to do with us?!” Adrian growled angrily. Chairman Adams clutched his chest at Adrian's words and said in a pained voice.

“You son of a bastard, get out; you want to kill your grandfather, like you killed your mother! Get out!” Adrian’s body trembled slightly, his jaw clenched tightly, his hand in his pocket fisted at his grandfather's words. His eyes turned bloodshot as he shook his head.

Without uttering another word, he turned and exited the room with long strides as Michael hurried after him. However, Adrian's swirling emotions skyrocketed when he saw the familiar back of the woman he had been looking for for months disappear at the far end. He followed her.

~

 

Anastasia decided to take a walk after Diana fell asleep. She could tell that her friend hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep the previous night. Upon reaching the antenatal ward, she noticed a beautiful painting of a cute baby boy on the wall and stopped to admire it. Gently, she caressed her stomach and whispered, “My baby, Mummy promises to be...”

“What did you just say?” Adrian’s baritone voice interrupted, causing Anastasia to stiffen. She turned only to find Adrian’s bloodshot eyes fixed on her, his gaze lowering as he took in her appearance.

“Adrian… What are you doing here?” Anastasia stammered.

“I see you finally got what you wanted. Now what? Are you waiting for the perfect moment to strike?” Adrian asked in a dark voice that sent shivers down Anastasia’s spine as he stalked toward her.

“What are you talking about?” she asked, taking a step back.

“Oh, you know exactly what I mean.” Without hesitation, he scooped Anastasia into his arms and made his way toward the elevator, ignoring her protests to be let down.

 

~

 

“You bastard! Where are you taking me?” Anna yelled at Adrian when he sat her into the passenger seat of his car on reaching the parking lot.

“You'll find out soon enough,” Adrian replied, leaning in to fasten her seatbelt. Just then, Anna sat up to try to get out of the car, and their faces came together, resulting in an unexpected kiss. They both remained stiff, gazing into each other’s eyes.

“I'm sorry, I was getting out..." Anna said, but Adrian grins like a maniac as he slowly brushes his thumb over his lips, his piercing gaze fixed intently on Anna's flustered face, the tension of their earlier kiss still swirling in the air around them. He reached for the seatbelt and fastened it around her slowly, his face a few inches from Anna’s, a deliberate gesture that sent a shiver down her spine. He smirked and shut the door, seeing he had successfully distracted Anna.

Anna, still reeling from the unexpected intimacy, came to her senses when Adrian's car moved forward. "Hey! Stop the car; I'm not going with you!" Anna said, with panic in her voice, but without even a glance in her direction, Adrian stepped on the accelerator, his eyes fixed on the road as he sped out of the parking lot. “Umph,” Anna grunted, being pressed against the car seat with her heart racing. She turned and looked out at the blurred world rushing past the window.