Olivia
I could hear something.
What was it?
Whatever that was, I was too lazy to pay attention to it. My eyes were too heavy and the sound stopped. Thank God for that.
And there was the sound again. I realized it was the sound of my phone. I lazily woke up. Sitting on the mattress and grabbed the phone on top of the nightstand. Receiving it without bothering to see who the caller was. “Hello?”
“Hi, Olivia.” My eyes immediately fully opened.
“Stewart?”
“How are you doing? Are you busy now?”
“N-No. No, I was…just sleeping.”
“Oh, sorry for waking you up. Um, I just want to ask you if you are still in Vegas.”
“I am. Why?”
“Well, actually I got myself a short holiday and I thought of going to Vegas tomorrow. Can we…meet up?” Great, what should I do with this? It would be impolite if I rejected him but I was currently on holiday with Blake. But…
After what happened recently, Blake was possibly not in the mood for a holiday.
“Y-Yeah, sure. We can meet up.”
As soon as I replied to him, Stewart was silent for a moment. “Did something happen to you?”
“Um, I can’t…really say. I had a little argument with my father.” Not little though.
“Is it okay if I take you tomorrow?”
“It’s okay. I’m thinking of leaving him alone for a moment.”
“Okay then. I’ll be there around lunchtime. Can we meet up at your hotel’s restaurant?”
“Sounds good.”
“Great. I miss you, Liv.” Ah, jeez. Why he had to say that? “I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye!” We ended the call. I probably should spend time with him. I needed some distractions. I didn’t want to face any dramas with Blake. That would be stupid. Blake would never open any room for arguments and he would win eventually.
I looked outside and it was already dark. I checked the phone and it was already ten o’clock. My stomach was growling. I jumped out of the bed and headed to the kitchen.
The room was in complete darkness. I walked out of the room and saw the sofa bed was empty.
Blake hasn’t come home and for me now…this was for the best. I didn’t think I could shut my mouth if he was looking for trouble.
I decided to order something for dinner. I called through room service that I wanted salmon and it was delivered to me thirty minutes after I called.
Blake hasn’t come back even after I ordered dinner. I had no idea where he went but maybe I didn’t want to see him tonight. I should calm myself down so I could face his tomorrow morning. If he came home.
The baked salmon was delicious. And while I was eating, I was thinking back on how Blake reacted to Mr. Graham. I witnessed him like he hated Mr. Graham from the bottom of his heart. Blake despised him. I rarely saw Blake acted that way and I hoped he would explain to me.
To me, Mr. Graham was my saver. Even though it was just as simple as saving me from almost falling into the pool. If he didn’t grab my hand, I would probably walk back to my room looking so wet and embarrassing.
After I finished dinner, I put the plate on top of the table and I headed back to my room. I washed up and changed into my pajamas and went back to sleep.
For a few hours, I couldn’t sleep. Well, I just slept for more than eight hours recently and there was no way I could sleep now. I turned my body left and right but it was useless.
I sat on the mattress, thinking about Blake. Some part of me was worried about what happened to him. There was no way he would leave me here, right? Maybe it was the same as our first fight. He was cooling himself down and then he came to pick me up. Right, Blake?
When I heard the front door was opened, I immediately jumped down the bed and headed there. I was relieved when I saw Blake walked in. He saw me and looked quite surprised.
“Olivia? Why are you still awake?” he asked worriedly.
“Um, I just had dinner and I can’t sleep.”
“Well, maybe because you fell asleep after what happened.”
“Yeah.”
The tension between us became awkward. I didn’t say anything. Blake didn’t say anything. We stood at our place without moving.
“Where were you?” I asked after I increased my courage to ask him that.
“Just driving around. I wanted to clear my head a bit after what happened. I…I’m sorry for saying all those stuff to you. I shouldn’t do that.” See?
“I’m sorry too, Blake. I know you’re just worried about me but I was too childish to accept that. I let my ego taken over me.”
Blake smiled gently at me. Even in the dark, I could see him smiling at me. “It’s okay, sweetie. I understand for you to say all that because you don’t know anything.”
I wanted to know. I desperately wanted to know. But I knew Blake. He won’t tell me. It was his business, not mine.
“Have you had dinner?”
“I have. I ordered through room service. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, it’s okay. You can order anything you want.”
“Have you eaten?”
“I have. At Veranda downstairs. You should try it. The foods are delicious,” he informed. Well, I guessed I could meet up with Stewart tomorrow there.
We were in silent mode again. Maybe I should just let him in and not talking at the front door.
“You’re not sleepy yet?” he asked and I shook my head. “Sit in the living room, Olivia,” he told and he went to the pantry.
I went to the living room. Sitting on the couch while waiting for him. When Blake returned, he brought a glass of plain water for me and a glass of red wine for him. He sat right next to me and he swallowed some of his wine. I grabbed the water and drank some as well.
“Taylor was my old acquaintance,” he started. “He was someone who I don’t want to remember at all. I refuse to meet up with him again. And he is my sister’s fiancé.”
I understood now.
That was the reason why I thought his surname was familiar to me. When I met Cindy for the first time, she introduced himself as Cindy Graham.
“He was a good friend of mine until he destroyed everything,” Blake continued. “He accused me of something that was never done by me. He left without any explanation. He put the blame on me.”
“What had he done?” I asked.
Blake drank some of his wine again before he continued, “He impregnated his own friend and left.” Once he said that my heart let out a single hard beat. I swallowed hard. It couldn’t be, right?
Blake turned to me. “He is your father, Olivia.”
I couldn’t believe this.
I was shocked.
I couldn’t say anything.
I just met my real father. The man who abandoned me and my mother. The man who had never bothered himself to pay some respect to my mother, both at her funeral and even when she was already at her eternal resting place.
“Olivia?” I could hear Blake was calling out to me but I was still in shock. To me, when Mr. Graham saved me-he was the nicest adult I had ever met besides John. He looked like a good person. And perhaps a good father if he became one.
I was wrong.
He was the worst father I ever knew.
Blake sighed and I turned to him again. “This is why I never told you about him. I know you will be disappointed. I don’t want to see you getting hurt.”
I didn’t know what to say. Just a while ago, I thought of him as my savior. Now after Blake told me about him, he had become the devil of my life.
“Does he know that you adopted me?”
“He knows but that’s just it. Only knowing but never do anything. Not even bothered to come to my doorstep and asked me if he could take care of you. Saying that he will take responsibility for the mess he had caused.”
“Would you do that? Letting me go to him?” I asked again.
“…No. Taylor will not be able to take care of you. He didn’t even admit to his parents that you are his daughter,” Blake explained. Come to think about it, Mr. Graham said he never had a child of his own.
Everything was clear.
He didn’t want me.
What a disaster.
My biological father didn’t want me.
I was trying to hold back my tears. I knew my father never cared about me but when I saw him back there. On how he didn’t show any emotions when he found out that I was his daughter when Blake confronted him; proved everything.
I couldn’t contain it anymore. I started to cry. It was so clear that my own father had abandoned me. If he cared, he would ask me back from Blake. But he didn’t. He was just standing there and letting Blake taking me with him.
“Olivia,” Blake called but I immediately ran back to my room. This time, I didn’t lock it and slumped myself to bed. Sobbing hard to the pillow.
Some part of myself was relieved I had seen how my father looked like. The reality of him didn’t want me; hit me so fucking much.
“Olivia,” Blake called again but I didn’t respond to him. I knew he was at the door. I could hear his footsteps coming closer to me. The bed was shifting and I could tell he was laying his body behind me and he wrapped his arms around me. Practically hugging me from behind.
“This is the reason why I don’t want to tell you. I know you will be breaking down like this when you saw the man who had abandoned you and Chloe. Although you already know that your father doesn’t care about you but it would be much harder when you faced the man himself.”
It was just too sad for me.
I was hoping a little bit that he would apologize and explain to me why he abandoned me when I was still inside my mother’s womb. But the reality was so cruel.
My father was the villain of my story and he would continue his role as one.
“I promise you, Olivia. I won’t let anything happened to you. I won’t let your father hurt you. I will protect you,” he swore and he placed a kiss on my temple. Continue hugging me.
I continued to cry inside Blake’s strong and gentle hold and eventually…fell asleep in his arms.