Robert followed behind Raymond without a word till they got to the stairs. It was dark outside already and the house was at ease and generally quiet."Is it downstairs? The dinning room?" Robert asked almost impatiently. He was famished after his long rest."No, sir. Here we are." Raymond replied, pointing patiently at the first door at the other side of the staircase. "Ah, finally. I'm famished." He chuckled lightly as he talked, walking past Raymond into the room. His grandfather, Jude sat at the far end of the table waiting. "You're finally here, my child." He said upon looking up and seeing Robert."Good evening, grandfather." He greeted as he walked towards the table. The dinning room was spacious, with cozy looking furniture. There was a big dinning table in the middle of about eight chairs and Robert wondered if his grandfather usually ate there all alone."Good evening, my child. I hope you had a good rest." Jude asked between smiles, as he observed Robert's face."Yes, gran
"Thank you so much, grandfather." Robert stood up to head back to his room. Looking at his grandfather, he was glad once more that he finally had someone close enough to be seen as a father figure."It's just food, Robert. It's nothing." Jude replied gently. He was also done eating but wanted to sit a while before going to bed."No, grandfather. Not just for the food but for everything. Thank you so much." He said once again. His voice, solemn and filled with genuine gratitude."You're welcome, my child. And thank you too." Jude smiled at his grateful nature. "You're going to bed now, l see. Get ready tomorrow, I have a surprise for you." Robert nodded gently, his face beaming with smiles. "Goodnight, my child." "Goodnight, grandfather." Robert smiled, as he turned and walked away. He wondered what Jude had in store for him as he headed to his room. Raymond had left him soon after pointing out the dinning room. Robert waltzed graciously to his room, gliding like a peacock, head high
"I'm sorry, my child. I kept talking about how much sadness I felt over your father's passing, not knowing what you had to go through as well, losing both parents. Would you want to tell me a little about your mother?"Jude asked, feeling pity for his grandson. No one had ever asked Robert that. He had never shared his grief over his mother's death with anyone. Jude asking him that made him feel like someone did care about him. A rush of relief flowed through him as he held his grandfather by the shoulder."Let's go get breakfast, grandfather. I'll tell you everything there." He said, leading Jude back to the car."I don't know why I feel this way but I believe you are full of surprises and I can't wait to see you do wonders keeping up our family legacy." Robert smiled, hearing those words from his grandfather. It did feel good to have somebody believe in you, he thought. This was something he had lacked since his mother passed. So, his gratitude multiplied even more."Thank you, gran
"Funny? You think that's funny?" Grandfather asked, his face a deep frown that cut downwards through the fine lines that decorated his face. "There is nothing funny about what happened to you. You weren't supposed to go through all that and I feel sad about it. I'm really sorry. I still don't understand why your father never told me about you and your mother. I would have reached out, but all that doesn't matter anymore now, does it?""I guess it doesn't matter anymore. I just hope whatever reasons dad had for hiding us were actually reasonable. You had to see how wretched I looked, how unkempt I was. It was really hard with a father, but it became worse with mother gone as well." For Robert, this was some kind of therapy. He had never really opened up to anybody about it, so it created pent up anger and pain whenever something made him remember. But here he was, saying it out freely without any restrictions or concern. Something he never knew he needed. "Losing mother was hard, worse
Robert signalled at Raymond, who was standing my the door for him to call the waiter."Waiter!" Raymond called out rather authoritatively, resting his weight against a near table. She rushed in at once. Her blonde hair elegantly dangling around her shoulders. She was rather clumsy for a waitress, or maybe the sight of a fine man such as Robert made her weak in the knees. "Can I have the bill?" Robert asked calmly, his nice dentition on display, giving him an irresistible charm. She nodded quickly, as if nervous before mouthing the word "okay." She went in and came back out after a few minutes with a small piece of paper in her hand. She handed it to Robert, her hands almost trembling as she smiled sheepishly."Umm, okay. Here you go." Robert said, giving her a wad of cash."This is too much sir. It's way past your bill." She finally spoke out for the first time, obviously surprised by the amount of money Robert had given her."A tip for your services. Thank you." Robert replied, imm
As soon as he got home, he went up to his Grandfather's room, presenting the suit he had gotten him."Look what I got for you, grandfather. It sure would looked nice and I'm hoping it's just your size." Robert felt good, not just good but very happy."I already have a ton of suits, my child. I could have just used one of them for the event. You didn't have to. All that money was for you to get yourself things, not me." Jude was smiling, his wrinkles looked just perfect on his old cheeks."Well, I insist, grandfather. It's a new dawn for us all, so you more than certainly deserve a new suit." Jude laughed at his enthusiasm."Okay, my child. It's really nice though. I like it. Thank you.""Well, I'm super glad you like it. I'll have the maids bring you some food. I'll be in my room."Hailey sent some samples not long after and Robert was duly impressed. Although he needed something classier. He sent her the money and the preparations fully kick-started. Robert felt extremely anxious. Th
It was already dark when they arrived at the venue. From the outside, lights illuminated the walkway. A red carpet laid in the middle of the ha, from the entrance to the stage. The place looked even more magnificent at night, beaming with light and reeking of expensive class. The whole scenery was exceptionally beautiful."Told you Hailey was good, didn't I?" Jude asked, equally admiring the whole setting."Yes, she is. She really is." Robert confirmed. The guests weren't there yet, so it was a perfect time for Robert to go in without being seen before his unveiling. He stayed backstage in a nice room, with his grandfather, eagerly waiting for the event to start. Not long after, the music came on and Jude had to leave the room to go welcome his guests. He stood by the entrance, welcoming each guest that was in attendance, with Raymond by his side. Everyone were wowed by the decorations, as they were all heard murmuring about how beautiful it looked.Soon, all the chairs were filled an
Her eyes widened, pain and displeasure staining her expensive make up as she looked back at all the people clapping, then to her parents. Her father and mother were still clapping and even with the smiles on their face which were obviously forced, one could still see the pain written underneath it. She stood still for some seconds as though she had seen an anomaly or a ghost. "What have I done to myself?" She asked almost aloud, just a bit beneath her breath.Flashbacks of all the times she had mistreated him flood her mind, waging war against it as she lowered herself in to seat. It felt like she was drowning in the applause of the crowd but could not be helped out. Michael, her lover stood right beside her in shock. He had been annoyed that Raymond didn't call his name during the recognition of guests but all he felt at this point was stupidity. For a moment, he regretted his rude and wicked character but brushed it off few seconds later."What are you doing, babe? Roberts being a W