Aileen
“Do you think ignoring his calls like that was a good idea?” Marshall asked in a worried tone. “He sounded quite angry.”
“So, what? I don’t care about his petty anger,” I replied, going through the magazine he had in his car.
He paused briefly before replying, “You may not care about his anger. But, I do.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s my Alpha and you are his daughter. We both don’t stand on the equal grounds, do we here?”
His words made me look up in his direction.
He was right. We…. aren’t the same if we consider our positions in Dave’s life.
“In my whole life, I’ve never disobeyed his orders. But, you made me do it.” He added, in a tone of grief.
“Do you regret listening to me? Then, why did you do it anyway? I didn’t force you. Did I?”
I sounded a lot harsher than I meant to. Why am I taking out my anger on him? He’s the one who helped me out in every situation.
“No, you didn’t force me,” he replied, glancing in my direction. “Nor do I regret my decision. I’m just saying that I disobeyed his order for the first time because of you. I wouldn’t do it for just anyone out there. You are special.”
I’m…. special? The way he said those things sounded so cool and genuinely made me feel a bit special.
“Why am I special to you? Because I’m the Alpha’s daughter? Or is there any special reason behind it? Is my rank all that it matters to you?”
“Aileen, why are you talking like that?” he frowned, stopping the car at a side. “You know I never thought of you highly just because you are in a higher rank than me. I always thought of you as someone precious, like Becky is to me.”
“I’m your sister now?” I murmured to myself, staring down at my hands. “Why am I even feeling awkward over it?”
What the heck is going on with me?
He started driving again, and this time both of us were silent. The moment I open my mouth, I keep blabbering nonsense. It’s better to stay silent than arguing all the time.
If I think about it, there’s no need to feel bad about it. He doesn’t think of me as a friend like I do. He’s doing his duty like always. There’s no special relation between us. I was dumb for thinking that way.
“By the way, I didn’t ask about it before. But, why are you even angry at the Alpha in the first place?” he asked, staring at me. “Did he do something to upset you or what?”
My hands were starting to get cold when he asked me those questions. How do I tell him about the problems going on between us? Our relationship which I’ve kept hidden from the whole world, how can I let him know about it?
“Aileen? Why are you silent? What did he do to make you angry?” Marshall continued. “Is it something you find hard to tell me about? If that’s the case, don’t worry, I won’t judge you for it. I’m only going to listen to your problems and give you advice based on it, nothing else than that. So, feel free to tell me your worries.”
Oh, how I wish, it was that easy to talk about. Then, there wouldn’t have been any problems in the first place.
It’s because of how complex is our relationship, we can’t express our feelings in front of others, nor show any affection. Just because he’s….. my stepfather.
If only I was born a few more years earlier, then maybe I could tell him about my feelings towards him as an adult woman, and not a little girl. Our timings were so bad. It’s not fair.
“Aileen?” Marshall’s nudge on my shoulder brought me back to reality. “Why did you zone out suddenly? I was asking you something.”
“Oh…uh….” I was lost in my thoughts again.
“You seem a bit different. Is everything going alright with you? Did anything happen at college?”
His question made me recall the conversation I had in the girl’s bathroom regarding me. I wasn’t thinking about it too much, but it was really getting to me. Everyone keeps hating me for no reason, even though I do nothing to cause that reaction.
“No, nothing that great happened,” I replied. “Everything is normal”
“Hey, do you want to grab some burgers?” Marshall asked, stopping the car out of nowhere.
What?
I looked out to see him parking in front of a fast-food shop.
“I’m feeling a bit hungry. If you like we can go together?” he suggested with an endearing smile which I couldn’t refuse to.
“Sure, why wait?”
“Thanks.”
He went out and opened the door for me. Then took a table and the waitress came to get our order.
“What would you like to order?” she asked politely.
Marshall went through the menu and looked at me. “What do you want to eat, Aileen? It’ll be my treat.”
“Your treat? No, no. I’m the one disturbing you lately. I can’t let you pay for the meal. It’ll be on me.”
He chuckled in response. “What are you talking about? Whether you pay or I pay, it’s your dad’s money which we are using. So, it’s the same.”
“No, it’s not,” I retorted. “You are using the hard-earned money which you get from him as salary. Meanwhile, the money I get is free money. You can’t call it the same.”
“So, what? It’s just some paper anyway.”
“It may, but it holds value like no other,” I replied, going through the menu. “I’ve been through tough times because we didn’t have enough money. I know the value of money more than anyone. Two normal burgers with double cheese, chicken nuggets, and juice. Yup, that’ll be all.”
“Double cheeseburger, nuggets, and juice got it. Your order will be ready in a few minutes. Thank you.” the waitress left leaving the two of us alone.
“I really don’t get you sometimes,” he added, sounding a bit impressed. “One time, you act all bratty over any reason, and one time you act so mature that I forget you are younger than me. How is it possible for one person to have two different sides?”
I placed away the menu, and replied, “Nothing is impossible for women. They can be any type they want to depending on the situation.”
His lips curled upwards into a smile when he asked, “Does it only imply on you or some women in particular?”
“Who knows? Is it your first time coming here? Or do you come here often?”
“Hm…. not that often. I come here once or twice in a year.”
“Oh, with whom? Your girlfriend?”
He chuckled folding his arms. “Nah, I don’t have one yet. I used to come here with Becky often. This is her favorite burger shop in town. She loves eating here.”
“Oh….. I see….”
He’s quite the family guy. Doesn’t have a girlfriend, but is fit which means he doesn’t train to impress women. Now, that’s surprising. And he also hangs out with his sister, it’s hard to find a guy like that anymore.
He doesn’t know how rare he is.
“So, when was the last time you two came here?” I casually asked, but then suddenly, the smile on his face faded away in the blink of an eye.
What happened? Did I ask anything wrong?
His gaze lowered as his head sunk low. “Actually….. she stopped going outside also after the bullying incident. And even if she comes out, it’s after much hard work. She’s going through a trauma which we haven’t been able to help her recover from yet.”
“I see….”
I feel bad for both Becky and him, cause he’s not suffering any less because of the bullying incident. He wants to help out his sister, but can’t. And the guilt that’s gradually accumulating every day makes it hard for him to get by.
He always comes to help me out whenever I ask him to. What can I do to help him out?
There must be a reason he brought me to her favorite place to eat her favorite food. And that must be……because he’s missing Becky and the time they used to spend together.
Guess, I need to act up quickly. I can’t let her keep sitting at her house for too long.
Don’t worry Marshall, I will keep my promise to you.
After that, the food arrived and we started eating. And as he said, the food was really good as he mentioned. No wonder his sister liked eating there.
“You eat so messily,” he mentioned, reaching out his hand to wipe off the ketchup smeared over my face.
After that, he examined my face to see if anything was remaining.
“Hm…. all clear now. That’s better,” he looked content after that.
“Are you a neat freak? You don’t have OCD right?” I asked while chewing on my food.
He blinked twice hearing my question. “Huh? Why would you even come to that assumption? Just because I cleaned up your face?”
I nodded.
He bursts out in laughter.
Why does he find everything that I say funny? I’m not a comedian, am I?
“I’m sorry to disappoint you,” He replied, stopping his laugh. “I’m not a neat freak nor do I have OCD. But one thing I can say is,” he paused for a second before continuing, examining my face. “I love watching you eat. You look so cute when you stuff your face with all that food, like a hamster.”
It took me a few seconds to process what he said. But, when I did, I felt like my cheeks were on fire out of embarrassment.
Did he just compliment me by calling me cute or insult me in some way? But, hamsters are cute, aren’t they?
God, he’s so good at flirting. My heart almost skipped a beat when he said those things with a smile. He’s not to be underestimated.