CHAPTER 45: THE JOURNEY.
Convincing Tom wasn’t as easy as Raphael thought it would be. Damn, that kid had a root of stubbornness in him. He had to plead and say all sorts of soft words just to pacify him but all to no avail. Plenty of times during the moment, he had to remind himself that he was the boss so why was he doing this exactly? But then he is his son and he just couldn’t resist pleading with the cutie pie till he agreed.
Evelyn arrived in front of Kira’s doorstep with a few things.
“Thank you so much for having him over.” Evelyn appreciated it again.
“It’s no problem.”
“His friend might call and want to visit him or the other way round, please accompany him.” She added.
“Don’t tell me what to do with my godson. Come on, be on your way, don’t keep Raphael waiting.” Kira gave her a small push. Evelyn bent and kissed Tom’s forehead before entering the cab that took her straight to the airport.
It was already evening but the flight wasn’t going to take long…maybe just two to three hours. On getting to the airport, she dialed Raphael’s number and he gave her the location of where he is. Two men came to meet her on her way and helped carry her luggage even though she insisted that it was unnecessary.
She could see Raphael standing close to the boarding pass. He was dressed in blue thick shorts and a white top could be seen beneath his black jacket. His hair was perfectly in position and he was wearing a pair of transparent glasses that gave him the look of a professor and then a mask.
He had his phone in his hands and seemed invested in it. In a few words, Evelyn couldn’t help falling more for his appearance.
As her heels sounded closer to where he was standing, Raphael looked up from his phone and pulled down his mask. His eyes were greeted by Evelyn’s ethereal presence. His eyes sparked imaginative hearts as he put his phone back into his pocket. He smiled warmly at her and she returned it.
“You look graceful, my lady.” He complimented her. Evelyn looked away in shyness and did what any other girl would have done in her position; put a few strands of her hair behind her ear.
“Thank you. You look…” She glanced at his outfit again and her eyes locked with his for a few minutes, he still had the smile on his face but deep down, he was desperately waiting for her compliment. He spent hours trying to look this good for her.
Evelyn’s brain seemed to have locked itself inside the wall of echoes as it couldn’t provide any other words apart from the famous ‘handsome and gorgeous’ she had been hearing. She just wanted to say something less cliche but…
“Handsome…Uhm, you look eye-catching.” She managed to say and Raphael’s smile broadened, forgetting that they were in public. Evelyn looked around, she could feel his gaze still on her and that made her feel…kinda special because there were many ladies around that were eyeing him even though he was wearing a mask but he paid less attention to them.
She cleared her throat and Raphael smirked.
“Shall we?” He asked her and Evelyn nodded.
In a few minutes, they already boarded the plane and took off. Evelyn closed her eyes, breathed out, and reopened them again. They were seated in the first class and they were the only ones there. Evelyn was sitting on the other side while Raphael was on the left side. As usual, he had brought his work along and was already working on it.
He glanced at her and indicated to her to come over. She did so and sat beside him.
“I can see that you are somehow jobless sitting down there so why don’t we discuss something.” He offered and she eyed him. The way he said ‘jobless’ somehow made her cringe within.
Raphael turned the laptop towards her view and her eyes ran through all the things on it. She exchanged looks with him, well she was surprised.
“Is this another ongoing company that no one is aware of?” She asked him.
“You could say that. It’s mine and again, aside from Jeremy and my friends, you are the only one I have told. So what do you think? I need to make it a booming business in a few months. It will come as a shock and it will be unexpected but it’s yet to stand alone, for now, I still need some time. Anyway, everything has to deal with planning, right?”
“Yeah, I agree.”
“So, what do you think?”
“The name is okay and the logo is stunning. Are you planning to go into architecture alone or is it going to be a multi-business theme?” She inquired and he scratched his forehead.
“That’s the major problem, I have not been able to come up with something tangible despite the different options dancing in my brain.” He confessed.
“Hmm, I see. Anyways, whatever option you decide on, it should be something that you will be able to handle. Let’s see if there is anything I can help you with.” She replied in a determined manner and put her chin forward with her hand supporting it from below. She was in the business manner…they were both in the business manner.
_*_*_*_*_*_
Erica walked to and fro in her room after dialing Raphael’s number for what seemed to be the third time. She gasped and threw her phone on the bed in frustration. She needed not to behave like this seeing how he was indifferent towards her but she couldn’t help it.
She was totally in love with him and she wanted to make Raphael reciprocate the same to her. That was why she had been trying to figure out his likes and dislikes all over again.
She wasn’t scared of losing because no matter what, she had been recognized by his parents as Raphael’s potential bride and she was going to be his but yet, she needed to make a move on him to win him totally.
Then it passed her mind, she quickly grabbed her phone again from the bed and dialed Vegas’s number.
“Hello, Erica. How are you doing?” He asked when the line was connected.
“I am good. How was your day? Are you home yet?” She replied to his questions.
“Yeah. How may I help you?”
“Actually, I have been trying to reach Raphael but I haven’t been able to for the past few minutes so I don’t know if you are aware of his whereabouts.”
“Oh, I believe that it must be because he is in a plane.”
“In a plane? Where is he heading to?” She asked surprisingly.
“He is going to attend an auction in HY City and will probably stay there for two to three days.” Vegas kept answering honestly because he had no reason to play his card of mischievousness at this moment.
“Ha, I see. Can you perhaps send me the details if you have them?”
“Sure, my future sister-in-law.” He teased, causing her to chortle.
“But please, don’t inform him about it. I just want to make it a surprise.”
“Sure. Let me check things out here.” Vegas ended the call and five minutes later, a notification from him popped in on her phone containing what she needed. She smiled gratefully and placed another phone call to her manager.
“I changed my mind. I will attend the auction in HY City as their special guest on behalf of my Uncle. Set my traveling arrangements for me, thanks.” She gave her instructions and muttered,
“Raphael darling, I am coming for you.”
_*_*_*_*_*_
Richard was sitting in front of his father, they were both in a staring competition with none of them willing to back down but their stares held different meanings to each of them.
They had the same features and could perfectly fit the description ‘THE APPLE DOESN’T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE’.
Richard’s father, Henry Gulf, was the first son of the family and handled half of the family business on behalf of the Matriarch and his business. He was always wearing a stern look and never had time for jokes or bonding with the rest of the family but he still loved them as he ought to.
Richard respected Henry a lot and saw him as his hero right from when he was a kid but as he was growing up, he began to see things in a different shade of light. He wasn’t always there for him so his opinions didn’t matter but his disciplinary actions were always there to tell yet Richard was ready to risk it all.
After a while, Henry relented and poured himself a drink and also aided Richard in doing so.
“You are nineteen already so drinking shouldn’t be a problem as long as you take the right quantity.” He said as he shook the bottle gently in front of Richard and put it down on the table in their midst.
Henry took a sip of his and cleared his throat to speak.
“I heard that you have been involved in a few scandals during my absence, true or false?” He started.
“Do I have the heart to say the opposite of what your wife has told you?” Richard replied.
“You need to understand one thing, young man, that you are not the only grandchild in this family and as you are seeing everyone one of us here, we are trying to present ourselves in a good manner and make sure that our garment doesn’t get soiled. Your brother has been performing well, why can’t you just follow in his steps!?” Henry scolded dryly.
“Why is it that everyone, especially the males, must be in business? Can’t I do any other thing that fetches comfort and money for myself?” Richard retorted.
“Business rules the world, son! It does! Anything else is not good enough.”
“But people are making it in another profession even better than this business.”
“Well, guess what? You are not other people! You are our son! Your mother and I are trying to build you for a better future because business is what suits you the most. I can’t have my son stand amongst my peers’ children feeling left out because of his unwise decision. If you can’t walk on this path then you should be ready for the implications that will follow.” Henry threatened him.
“Can’t you at least support my dream?” Richard said defenselessly. He knew what the implications were, he just wasn’t expecting it to pop up all of a sudden in the middle of their conversation.
“No, I won’t support a dream that is only created based on the present thinking and not the future thinking. That is all I have to say and I hope to see a positive change, son.” Henry concluded, giving no room for a debate. He stood up and exited the Veranda.
Richard’s throat dried up and his eyes stung from being filled with tears. Someone peeked at him from the other side and it happened to have been no other than the Queen.
“Poor child.” She muttered under her breath.
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What’s your say about this? Thank you for reading.