For a moment, I am confused.
Of course, the card belonged to Jace Greyson. That shouldn’t create any issues, because my frickin name is Jace Greyson. Had Coraline hit her head somewhere? Was that the reason why she was acting so goddamned strange today?
“I knew that you were up to something sketchy,” Coraline goes on to say, “This card is clearly not yours, you have stolen it from somebody. Who did you steal from? Do you know how much these cards are worth?”
“What? I didn’t steal it, because that’s my card, and that’s my name,” I insist, “I’m Jace Greyson!”
The waiter looks in between us, and his brows furrow, “Sir,” he addresses me, “this is a very valuable card, and the miss’s claim is a serious offense. I don’t think I can let you go. We thought you were wealthy upon your initial reaction to our mistake, but now I’m starting to think that it isn’t the case.”
Why, the gall…
I step forward and grab the card from Coraline’s hand, making her yelp, and read the name on the card.
Jace Greyson.
What was she so confused about?
And then it hits me
I wasn’t Jace Greyson always. When I was in high school, my surname was different. Instead of using my father’s surname, I was using my mother’s surname. It was only after graduating that I changed my name to what I was using now.
So, everyone in High school, including Coraline and Jon knew me as Jace Pastor. But Jace Pastor didn’t exist anymore. I was Jace Greyson now.
“I changed my name after I graduated,” There’s a lot of history and secrets between the circumstances of my name which I do not want to reveal to anyone, so I decide to keep it simple, “In high school, I was using my mother’s name, but now I’m using my father’s name.”
“Oh, how convenient,” Coraline spits, her eyes narrowing even more, “No ordinary person can get their kid a card like this. Who is your father?”
I sigh, “I don’t know how I’m supposed to convince you of this.”
“You know what, folks,” the waiter looks in between us and puts up his hands, “I’m just going to let you two figure it out. The bill is paid so I got no obligation here.”
With that, he leaves me in the parking lot with Coraline.
“You know, I felt sorry for you before, but not now,” Coraline seethes, “You’re clearly a thief. I thought you were better than this, Jace. You used to be a decent guy.”
“And you used to be a smart person who could see the truth when they see it,” I snap back, “Also, don’t act like you’re all high and mighty now, what you did in the restaurant is still wrong.”
“I don’t believe you. You stole that card from someone rich,” she takes out her phone from the purse slung across her shoulder, “I should call the police now.”
“What? Are you crazy? You’re taking this too far!” I screech, not fancying the idea of getting entangled in a police investigation in the middle of all the other drama in my life.
I shove my hands into my hair and turn away from her, my mind racing to find a solution for this. All around us, the twilight was turning to night. More and more vehicles come to park in the restaurant parking lot, and music starts to come from the reception room. Clearly, the Alumni Association party was going on. So why is Coraline out here arguing with me rather than going in and having fun with her friends?
God, there’s nothing I won’t do more than for her to leave me alone to go home.
Finally, a thought buzzes in my mind. It’s not a particularly good one, in fact, I do not like it at all. But it got the potential to work.
“Look, I got an idea,” I state.
“I’m listening. What is this great idea you’ve conjured that can prove who you are?”
“Look, I loathe to do this,” I sigh, “But go to dinner with me.”
“What?”
“Go to dinner with me, and I can show you I am who I really am,” I reply, “I’ll call my driver now to pick me up, and he’ll set things straight. I’ll use this card and prove to you that it belongs to me.”
Coraline blinks at me, “You want me to go to dinner with you?”
“I don’t like it same as you clearly do, but that seems like the only option that’ll keep you from calling the cops on me,” I say, crossing my hands, “or you can be a normal person and just believe me without jumping into ridiculous conclusions.”
“I can’t do that,” Coraline protests.
“Great, then I’m going to go-“
“No, you can’t!”
But Coraline doesn’t get to talk anymore.
Another car makes its way toward us, this time it’s a vehicle I am not familiar with. But it looks right at home with all the expensive vehicles in the restaurant parking lot. The lights of the car dim as it parks next to us, and the door opens.
Out of the car steps a young man around our age. He is tall, with brown hair with streaks of silver, clearly, dyed, cut in a rakish style, and molded into his head with so much product. He wears a pair of sunglasses (who the hell wears sunglasses at night?) so low on his nose that you can see the color of his eyes, which is a lighter shade of brown than his hair. He’s dressed in a designer suit consisting of a shimmering silver jacket which is garish to look it. On his neck, there are several chains, all made of silver and white gold, and rings on his fingers. In one of his hands, he holds a cigarette.
The man saunters towards Coraline and without even asking, puts his arm around her and pulls her to him.
“Well,” Coraline blushes, “I don’t think I would be able to go on a dinner with you, Jace. Because this is my boyfriend.”
“Hey, baby,” the guy who got out of the vehicle, the guy who is apparently Coraline’s boyfriend-because of course, this moment has to be more dramatic than it was, why not?-presses his lips to her cheek and gives her a smacking kiss. Then, he takes another drag of his cigarette.He gives me a once over before asking his girlfriend, “Is this dude harassing you?”I gape at them. She was the one harassing me!Coraline shakes her head, “No, it’s complicated…”“Wait, do I know you,” letting go of his girlfriend, he steps towards me, and blows the smoke from his cigarette which he was holding all over my face.I screw up my face in disgust and step back. Geez, where were this guy’s manners?“I doubt you do,” I mutter.“No, no, you look familiar,” he points at my face, “I think I’ve seen you in Empire city. You’re Anton, aren’t you?”Empire city? Well, there is only one place in Empire city where people could find me. That was at the Kings’ College. So, this guy goes to Kings' College, or he
I snap out of the daze I find myself in as Aiden berates Coraline for a crime she did not commit, and rush to her side. Aiden’s rant gets cut midway when I shoot him a glare, but the thunderous expression on his face does not change. For a moment, I wonder if he is drunk, but no, he looks stone-cold sober. This means that pushing Coraline and demeaning her like this was done intentionally. I turn back to Coraline, anger humming in my chest. I did not like her, but that was another issue. It wasn’t right to be treated like this by her own boyfriend. “Here, let me help you get up,” I ask her gently, and she nods, clearly shaken by Aiden’s actions. She lets me help her to her feet. Aiden continues to glare at us, a storm brewing in his eyes. I know I’m not helping my case right now, but damned if I leave a girl alone in a situation like this, no matter how badly she treated me. “You don’t have to go with him if you don’t feel safe,” I whisper to Coraline. Distantly, I saw the Maybach
Coraline was pretty silent when we dropped her at her parents’ house, rather than the apartment she shared with her ex-boyfriend. She changed her mind after learning about my identity after I promised her that I would help her get into Greyson Consolidated. It felt like her fears alleviated a bit, and she promised not to go back to the apartment for her own safety. She thanked me profusely after we dropped her off, and gave me her number. “I’m sorry,” she apologized again, looking near tears, “I’m so sorry for everything I did. I don’t deserve this help…” “I forgive you,” I responded, and meant every word. Gerald doesn’t ask me any questions as we make our way home, nor does he talk after we get there. He follows me silently as I walk through my father’s house, meaning to go to my room. “Young master,” finally, he talks, “did you have any dinner?” My stomach, at that moment, chooses to growl. “No,” I say, “didn’t have the time, was with Aiden and Coraline.” “I see,” something
“Well, well, well,” Aiden sneers, and I feel my fists clenching on either side of me, “look who it is.”“Aiden,” Coraline breathes next to me, and in the next moment, moves behind me. I feel so damn protective of her that I move my body right in front of hers yet again, just like the night at the restaurant.“Hello, Coraline,” his voice is anything but pleasant when he voices her name, “I see you’re still shagging the cockroach.”“He’s ten times, no, a thousand times the man you are,” surprising me, Coraline growls, “What the fuck are you doing here, Aiden? Are you stalking me?”“Is that what you think this is?” he demands.“What else am I supposed to think? We broke up, Aiden, don’t you remember? I left. You’re the last person I expected to see here.”“Well, I could say the same,” a gloating smile takes over his mouth, “Do you know why I’m here, Coraline?”“Clearly, we don’t,” I find myself saying, “which is why we asked in the first place.”He ignores me, his attention on Caroline,
For a moment, I can’t place that voice with those words. It just feels wrong, because I never expected that specific voice to utter those specific words.But then I whip towards where the voice is coming from and notice Gerald making his way toward us. Gerald did not accompany me to Caroline’s this morning, he said that there was something that needs his dire attention, so I left on my own. Which was more than fine with me, because having him as a shadow made me nervous for some reason.Gerald has traded his normal butler uniform for a sleek suit and walks with the confidence of a man who knows what he’s doing. His expression is crossed, not quite angry but not pleasant either, and his eyes are hard and cold.Distantly, I wonder, what the hell is going on?“Gerald, what are you doing?” I ask him as soon as he nears us, “we can handle this, you don’t have to get involved.”Gerald sighs, “on the contrary, young master, I believe this is one of the moments where my involvement is necessa
Gerald sighs, “I guess we have some things to talk about.”“Damn right we do,” I step closer to him, “like who the hell you actually are? I thought you were a butler.”“It is my role at times,” Gerald replied, looking tired, “Young master, perhaps we can talk about this later. Right now, I believe that the lady you accompanied here today has got an interview to attend to.”We both turn to look at Coraline, who is looking like she had no idea what was happening.“Of course,” Gerald continues, “that is if the young lady still desires to have a position within the company. I can imagine an experience like the one she had the misfortune of witnessing today might deter her. Miss. Coraline, would you like to have the interview now, after everything?”The direct address startles Coraline out of her thoughts, “um, yes, sure. If you have me,” she adds quickly, “I can do the interview.”“Very well, both of you follow me.”We do as he says and trudge toward the Zelt Technologies building. The wh
Coraline’s interview is coming closer to its end. I feel anxious to get out of here, as the surrounding seems to have an almost suffocating effect on me. Everything I learned today is too much for me to handle. I need some peace and quiet, a chance to leave the building. But Gerald dogs my steps along the way.“I know it’s too much to handle,” he says, “but think of it this way. You will be getting a COO’s salary rather than an allowance from your father. You would be able to live as independently as you want. Get your own apartment, your own vehicle, and take care of yourself like you want to.”“Very tempting, Gerald,” I mutter unhappily, “but I’ll pass for now.”“Jace,” for the first time, he calls me by my name, and I turn to him with a sigh He looks confused, “why do you deny this so much? Is it because of my position in the company?”“God, Gerald, that’s the last worry in my mind,” I assure him, “in fact, I feel good about having you here at the company. You could clearly handle
Coraline and I decided that the day was too good to waste by going home, so after lunch, we take a detour to the park nearby. We walk the cobblestone path that leads us around the park which looks beautiful with all its lush trees, freshly cut grass, and well as ponds filled with ducks and swans that dot it here and there. I feel myself become more and more relaxed as we glide through the path, listening to the sound of the wind rustling through leaves, people playing with their children or walking their pets, and spotting various kinds of birds flying through trees, all while engaging in pleasant conversation with Coraline. I nearly forget the altercation we have mere hours ago at Zelt Tech with Aiden and his goon of a manager, followed by the revelation of Gerald’s actual status in my father’s employment. All in all, it had been such an eventful day. Something that seems to be a frequent happening in my life as of late.“I hope I’m not offending you by asking this,” Coraline pipes