Weston rolls on his back on the bed. He pulls the duvet closer to his body. Somehow, it doesn't feel all cold this morning.
He forces his eyes closed even though his brain is urging him to open them. He doesn't want to yet. He will do anything to go back to that dream.It's a jolly good dream. Back then when he first met Ivy. The way his body felt. The way he went weak in the knee. The way he stuttered as he tried to ask for her name. The way his heart ceased for a second as he heard she ran away from home. The way…The way his head went blank on the day she confessed to loving him. The way he almost died of anxiety on the day she told him she was pregnant with Hannah.The way he thought his fast beating heart was going to explode when he saw his daughter. The way his daughter felt in his arms. The dream…He will go back to it. He should. He must.Only that the damn irritating motherfucking footsteps in the room will not stop
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I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 93
Weston and Jose meet at the front of the door. Jose looks around before pulling Weston in. He leans on the door and stares at Weston.“How did you know?” Jose asks, his voice in a whisper.“What?”“Don't play that shit with me, man. You know what I'm talking about.” “I had a hunch,” Weston says, trying to sound as flippant as possible.“Unless you're some fortune tellers, there's no way you really knew without getting a tip.”Weston looks sharply at Jose, he nods his head slowly. “That doesn't sound like a bad idea. I could open a shop and read people's future. How about you become my first client? You could make some testimonials—”“Westonnnnnn!” “Okay. Cool. I heard from someone.” Weston grabs his towel. “Who? From…Santiago?” Weston looks at Jose in surprise. “You guessed correctly. But…with all your hate for him, how come he's the first person who came to your mind?”“
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 94
“Hey, man, what have I got to do with this conversation?” Weston asks.“I'm sure she's telling you stuff behind my back. I'll wipe ‘em too,” Santiago says, his eyes on Lorette. Weston notices Lorette roll her eyes, her lips form like she wants to say something but she looks away from Santiago.“Let's get a cab, my legs are aching,” Lorette mutters. Santiago stops a taxi pulling over. Again, the two argue on who is going to sit at the front seat. Weston can swear he's never felt so embarrassed in his life. The taxi man clears his throat. “The seats are pretty much the same.” “They are not the same. Only the boss sits in the front seat,” Santiago says. “And who's the boss here?” Lorette asks. “Bitch, I was born two seconds before you,” Santiago says. “That doesn't count. We were both born in the same minute!” Lorette fires. Having enough of it, Weston grabs the person closest to
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 95
“Let go of my hand, you stupid idiot.” “This is going to get all serious if you try to use physical assault,” Weston says.By now, a few people are starting to gather. “Give me my money!” The woman shouts.“I will give you, just tell me—”“Give me my money, you scam!” She shouts. “Give me my money today!” Weston looks around helplessly. Who the hell carries ten million dollars around? Why the hell won't she just tell him her account number? “Give him his money, mister,” a nosy woman in the crowd says. “Please tell him to give me my money!” The woman shouts.“Damn. To think men are going around destroying our dignity,” a man spats.“Very soon, people are going to start saying we men are scams,” another guy says.“Why won't he pay her money?” Weston just stands there hearing the insult going in and out of his ears. A few people are dragging his clothes. It feels like it's
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 96
Inside the restaurant, Santiago and Lorette keep trying to avoid making eye contact with Weston. Weston bites on his lower lip. He picks up the menu and looks at it. “Salmon looks good,” Santiago says. Weston glances sharply at Santiago. “Salmon?” He's sure Santiago mentioned once that the worst food anyone can ever offer him is salmon. No matter how great it's cooked. “Huh, yeah. Salmon.” Lorette glances at Santiago. Santiago sighs and drops the menu. “I give up. I'm no match for you two. Okay, Weston, you caught me. What the fuck is going on?” Santiago asks.“I'm so sorry, guys. I didn't mean to embarrass you two,” Weston says.“That's not what I asked, bro. Anyone who thinks of you as an embarrassment is living with zero point two percent of his brain.” Weston smiles. “I…um…I had a girlfriend, something like that.” “A girlfriend? Not a wife?” Lorette asks.“We didn't get mar
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 97
Mateo smiles. “First off, I'll love to say I owe women everything I am today.” “Oh, why do you say that?” The interviewer asks.“My mother is a woman!” The interviewer laughs. “Of course. My mother is a woman too.”Mateo smiles. “So, right from the moment I was a kid, I had always wondered how I could pay back womanhood for bringing me to a great world like this and then…I got this idea twenty years ago and my life has never been the same.”“Fuck you,” Santiago swears. “Wow! That's…” the interviewer in the video says, “that's breathtaking.” “Thank you.” “So…” the interviewer adjusts on his seat in the video. “There have been rumours flying around, perhaps you have heard about them. Um…so people are talking about how women have been dying in your community, can you say something about that?” Mateo smiles again. “Thank you so much, sir. I have done more interviews like this than I can count and ther
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 98
Lorette shakes her head and stands up. “You two are…” she shakes her head again. “I'm short of words.” She walks off. “Where is she going?” Santiago asks.“Okay. I think that's enough. She might really get mad,” Weston says. They both laugh again.Weston taps on the play button. A guy in a lab coat is standing by a table. “What you're seeing on the table is the human long and short intestine,” the guy in lab coat says.“I think I'm going to puke,” Santiago mutters. “You've got that stuff in your stomach too,” Weston says back.“Mr Mateo,” the guy in the video continues, “have donated a lot of these intestines to our laboratory. And they are the ones that the owners gave to him.” “Mr Mateo donated a human brain to us!” Another guy in a lab coat says.“Without Mr Mateo, I wouldn't have seen a human brain in real life!”“Kudos to Mr Mateo!” “Science is nothing without Mr Mateo!”
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 99
Santiago inputs the passcode and opens the door. The three of them go inside. Weston goes over to the projector in one of the bedrooms, he turns it on while Santiago prepares the guns they need to carry along. About ten minutes later, Lorette displays what she found out so far on the projector.“He loves to get a massage every time he just arrives at his house,” Lorette says. “So far, he hasn't employed the help of a therapist twice.” “So…you're saying one of us should give him a massage?” Weston asks.“Whosoever that person is, it must be someone who is strong and quick and sharp…” Santiago says. “So…Weston, you do it.”“He doesn't do male therapists,” Lorette asks.“Then the idea isn't going to work,” Weston concludes. “You two, have you forgotten? I'm a woman too,” Lorette says.“We can't allow you to do something as dangerous as that,” Weston says.“What?” “I know you want to
I Am A Multibillionaire Dad 100
He dials Santiago's number. “Where are you?” He asks when Santiago answers the call. “At the balcony.”Weston hangs up and goes to the back of the house. Santiago is lying on the grass under a decorative tent, his face up in the sky. Weston clears his throat and goes beside Santiago. He lies beside him. “When we were kids…we used to stare at the sky together anytime we were angry and frustrated,” Santiago mutters. “You have quite a history together,” Weston mutters.“How could she come up with that plan, Weston?” “She's one of the few people I can't read their minds.”For a long time, they both stare at the sky in silence. “We have to do this for us,” Weston finally breaks the silence. “If we force her to change the plan, she might think we don't respect her decisions.”“You know Mateo, Weston. You know him better than all these.”“I bet you know Lorette more
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“I have now,” Weston drops the picture frame on the sofa and carries Hannah in arms. “How is that? Did they disappear and come back?” She asks. “Daddy, how do people become people? I have not seen anyone jump down from the sky. Are there places where people go to pick babies? Daddy…answer me…” she whines as he carries her in the car. “Which of them should I answer first?” “When I grow up, can I become an actor? I will be on the screen. Will you watch my movies?” “Of course. Why won't I?” About two hours later when Weston drives to his parents house, Hannah is sleeping in the back seat probably tired of rambling for hours. He smiles as he parks the park and wakes her. “Have we arrived?” She asks, looking at him sleepily. Weston nods. “Big pop and lala are waiting to see you.” He helps her get out of the car and holds her hand. He's barely climbed the first step leading to the house when his mother rushes
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Later that evening, Weston is in the sitting room, watching Lorette and Hannah have one of their long funny conversations as they prepare for a visit to his parents. “When I grow older, I want to be a museum tour guide,” Hannah says. “Didn't you say you want to be a make-up artist some minutes ago?” Lorette asks as he helps her into her shoes. “I can do that as a side job. When I don't have clients in the shop, I'll quickly go to the museum,” Hannah says. “What about the online cooking tutorials? How are you going to have time for that?” “Oh…that? Daddy, I can shoot videos at midnight, right?” Weston frowns. “When are you going to sleep then?” “I can sleep for two hours.” “Two hours?” Weston asks in horror. “Yes. I am going to shoot the cooking tutorial videos for like two hours. Another two hours, I'll use it to shoot videos for my dance clas
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Three days later, Weston knocks at the door of a hospital room before going in. The patient on the bed raises his head. He stares at Weston then at Hannah whom Weston is holding.“You're okay?” Weston asks before realizing it's the dumbest question to ask a person on a hospital bed. “Yes…?” Jose answers. Weston can't really tell if Jose is trying to play dumb too or he doesn't know what he's saying. “Hannah, meet Jose, he's one of the best friends that daddy has,” Weston tells his daughter. “And, Jose, this is my daughter.” Jose's mouth parts slightly. He closes it a few seconds later and smiles. “She…she looks young.” Weston chuckles. “Young? What's a five year old supposed to look like? Old?” “I…sorry. I mean. Shit. You have a sure way of taking me by surprise.” “You think so?” Weston strides to Jose's bed. He drops the fruit basket in his hand on the table. “Last time I checked, you did some
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“Hey, Santiago,” his godfather says once there is an answer at the other end. “How are you, sir?”“I…I'm sorry.” His godfather shut his eyes. “What the fuck did you do again? I already told you I got Weston and Lorette covered. I have Weston's kid with me, I'll use her to—” “That's not it,” his father cuts in quickly. “I…um…I told Weston about Dylan.” For a lot of seconds, there is silence at the other end. “Where are you?” Santiago's voice is unbelievably too calm for the revelation. “Home, of course.” “Let's talk face to face.” Then the line goes off. The phone falls from his godfather's hand. He runs his hand through his grey hair. “You have a kid?” “Am I supposed to answer that?” “If I knew you had a kid, I'd have abducted her and used her against you. I had no idea at all.”What? Is he out of his mind? His godfather raises his head and looks at Weston. “Once San
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Weston can tell from the look on her face that there is something more. He waits for her to tell him. “I stumbled in on San and his father arguing one day, San was kind of telling his father to keep shut if he doesn't want his ass in the pool.” Weston waits. He's sure she isn't just telling him just for telling sake. There must be something more. He waits a while longer, forcing his damn brain not to think his daughter is five and she's with fucking Santiago. “He hates it when people snitch on him,” Lorette adds. “Kind of…he…” she lets out a deep breath. “Sorry. I just…I had no idea I'd be telling this to anyone.” For some seconds, she stops to get her emotions back together. “Even if San tells me something as little as what he ate last night that nobody knows about, he doesn't want me to tell anyone. When…I think we were sixteen when I first realized it. He told me he was fooling around with a girl and I kind of jokingly told the girl to tak
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Weston stops the car and runs his hand through his hair. “I begged you, apologized to you, did all sorts of things but you still didn't agree to get married to me, so why do you keep asking about your daughter?” “When did you apologize to me?” There is silence at the other end before Ivy starts to talk. “Okay, since you want to hear it, I'mma tell you. If there is anything I regret, it's having Hannah. I thought you would dump me for some other women later if I didn't have a child for you since you don't really seem all that ready to get married to me. I needed something to assure me you're not going anywhere and getting pregnant seemed like the best deal.” Weston bites hard on his lower lip. “You must have figured this out but I stopped using contraceptives without telling you. But I'm starting to realize it's all stupid now. If I knew Hannah was going to be a burden to me, I wouldn't have gotten pregna
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With rage, he dials Santiago's number. “What the fuck do you think you're doing?” He shouts. “Hey, you wanna make me deaf or something?” “Whatever shit you're up to, you should know better than to involve my daughter.” “What can you do?” “Where the hell are you?” “Not so easy, bro. Not so easy. I need to spend some time playing with Hannah and getting to know her before we come to an agreement of what to do. Till then, stay anxious.” With that, the line goes off. Weston dials the number again, it doesn't ring. Obviously, Santiago blocked him. He dials another number. “Find out where that fucking bastard is.” “Alright, sir.” He dials his father's number. “I need to find out where Santiago is.” “Okay. Is everything okay?” “No but I don't have the
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Weston comes out of his car. It's been more than thirty minutes since the cop pulled him over but he's not responded to him since then. The other cars he pulled over before Weston's are long gone and the cop doesn't seem like he has anything he's doing at the moment. “Excuse me,” Weston calls the cop’s attention. The cop glances at Weston. “I'll attend to you soon, I'm quite busy.” “If you're not going to come check whatever it is that you want to check, I might as well start going. I didn't do anything wrong in the first place.” “You didn't do anything wrong?” The cop scoffs. “Was that how you were supposed to put on your seatbelt? Was that how you were supposed to fasten it?!” Weston frowns. “What?” Is there a certain way to fasten seat belts? “Come with me,” the cop says, already walking to Weston's car. They get to the car and t
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“Daddy was smiling in the picture Abigail gave to me. And, daddy only smiles when he is with people he likes.” Santiago chuckles again. “How old are you?” “I am five years old. How old are you?” “Me? I'm the same age as your father.” “Daddy is…um…twenty five. You're twenty five?!” She asks in surprise.Santiago nods. “Yeah. Why?”“Daddy said monsters are old, like five hundred years old. And Father Richard said only monsters kill people. Does that mean you're a young monster?” The smile dies off Santiago's face. “I'm not a fucking monster.”“‘Fucking’? What does that mean? Do you have a dictionary? I'll look up the meaning.” “I mean, I'm not a monster. That's the meaning.” He glances at Hannah to see her staring at him. The glasses on her face feel like some gadget she's using to scan his thoughts. “What…” he clears his throat. “You can't see without your glasses?” She sighs. “It's a lon