Chapter 3

“Shawn! You are just in perfect timing. You are right, dear. My daughter Ericka is back. Come here and join us,” her father said in a lively tone. The happiness that he had felt when she came back couldn’t be denied by the smile on his face and at the same time on his voice.

He was smiling at Shawn who was walking towards their direction.

But Ericka didn’t bother to look at the man and instead she continued eating her food. She could hear heart pounding so fast. She felt like her ribcage was going to crash because of how hard it was pumping inside her chest.

Suddenly, all the last memories that she had with the man flashed back inside her mind and that moment that she saw him kissing and hugging her stepsister suddenly came inside her mind and she couldn’t control the fury that she felt towards him.

The two men at the dining table with her were just quietly looking at her. It was very obvious that she was not interested in the man who just arrived while they were having breakfast.

She didn’t even throw even a single glance at him. She couldn’t hide what she was feeling inside her towards the man. She hated the fact that Shawn was acting so innocent as if he really had no idea of what happened and why he was ignoring him.

“Ericka, are you not even going to welcome your best friend?” Her father suddenly asked her. It seemed like he couldn’t help but wonder why she acted as if no one had arrived. How she wished she could tell him everything. How she wished she could tell his father that the man in front of her was one of the reasons why she left him.

“It looked like she was not happy to see me,” the man mumbled. “Am I right? Are you not happy to see me?” Shawn said which made her raise her head. She looked at them as he was sitting in front of her, and her father was on his left side.

She could see his father’s face was full of confusion of what’s happening. His eyebrows were knitted together while his forehead was knitted. His father’s eyes were full of questions while waiting for her to answer.

She could understand him. Shawn was her best friend, and her father didn’t expect the kind of treatment she was giving him. They grew up together and it was not hidden from them how close they were to each other. It was normal for his father to be shocked.

She just looked at Shawn coldly. Ericka couldn’t believe that the man was acting as if he knew nothing about why she was ignoring him.

“I am sorry but Dad, I am already done with my meal. Please excuse me. Dad, I will just wait for you in your study room.” She said and then stood up.

She was heading out of the dining room without looking back at the people she left on the dining table.

“Ericka,” she heard Shawn call out her name. But she just ignored it and acted as if she didn’t hear anything and continued her way to her dad’s study room.

Her heart was beating so fast inside her ribcage. She was catching her breath as soon as she went out of the dining table. She wasn’t prepared to see the man after so many years.

She couldn’t deny to herself that she had missed him but at the same time, she hated him a lot. She had hated him since that day that she saw him with her stepsister. Of all people, why should it be her stepsister? How could he do that to her? For the longest time of her life, she had not dreamt of any man to be a part of her life other than Shawn. She was the man in every dream that she had so she couldn’t fully understand what happened to him and he allowed that kind of thing to happen.

But before she could even reach the staircase, a hand held her forearm which made her stop. She was surprised and she felt like her feet were rooted from where she was standing.

“What happened to you, Ericka? What’s wrong with you? Why are you ignoring me? Acting as if I don’t exist? Do you really hate me that much and for what reason?” Those were the questions that Shawn had thrown at her.

Suddenly, she came back to her senses. She couldn’t believe that he had the audacity to throw her those questions. Where was Shawn getting all the courage to confront her like that?

The anger inside her chest rose in her head. She wanted to shout and burst out all the feelings she had for him, especially the hatred. She wanted to tell him how she hated him for making a fool out of her. But there was no way that she would make him see that she was hurt because of him. That she was affected by what he had done a couple of years ago.

Ericka turned around with her head up high. She looked at the man’s face after that to his hand that was holding her forearm. His eyebrows were drawn together while waiting for her answer to his questions.

But sorry to him, there would be no answer for his questions. He didn’t deserve any explanation coming from her. As far as she knew, if there was something that was explaining it shouldn’t be her, but it was Shawn.

‘Don’t you dare to touch me. You filthy man. You are the filthiest man I have ever met,” she said in a mocking tone and then after that, she swayed her hand so that Shawn would let go of her forearm.

She saw how confusion and shock crossed the man’s face after she said all those words at him. But she didn’t care at all of what his reaction was. She continued to walk and went upstairs heading to her father’s study room.

She reached the room and then she leaned her back on the side of the door. From there she let the tears flow on her cheeks. She had been holding these tears since earlier in the dining room when Shawn arrived.

They grew up together. He was the man of her dreams. The man to whom she wanted to spend her whole life with, but all was like a nightmare after that day of seeing him with her stepsister.

She was back to her sanity when she heard the footsteps that were approaching her direction. She immediately wiped the tears on her eyes and then she fixed herself through the glass wall that was in front of her.

After that she distanced herself to the backdoor, she was not mistaken. It was her father especially when the door opened, and he got inside of the room.

“Sit down, my dear,” her father said after she heard the click of the sound of the door as he locked it.

She couldn’t help but wonder what he would be talking to him, and he wanted privacy. It was the first time that her father had called her to talk to her and they were inside the study room.

There were a lot of things that were popping inside her head.

“Dad, what happened?” She couldn’t control herself anymore, so she immediately asked her father after she closed the door. She was watching him as he walked and sat on his swivel chair.

Her father didn’t answer her but instead, he took a folder from his drawer and then he opened it. There were documents inside which he handed over to her.

Her eyebrows were drawn together as she was confused of what her father was up to. She took the documents from her father’s hand and then she read it.

She saw the first page. There was a name of a prestigious hospital and her father’s name was written on it. It seemed like it was the medical record of her father. She took all the courage that she had.

Her heart was beating so fast as she kept on flipping the pages. She found out that her father was already in the fourth stage of his colon cancer.

What was happening in her life? She left her daughter at the hospital and went to their house just to find out that her dad was also sick.

“D--- Dad,” she mumbled as she lifted her head and looked at her father who was staring at her. She couldn’t help herself and she stood up and then gave her father a hug.

Ericka felt like a bucket of cold water was poured all over her body. She suddenly felt guilty for leaving her father all alone with her stepmother and her stepsister. She was sure that they were happy with her father’s condition. It was proven as they left her father alone while they were both out of the country.

If she could only explain to her dad the reason why she got depressed probably, her father would understand her and comfort her. In a way, she realized that she had been selfish back then and she felt guilty.

“I am so sorry, Dad. Please forgive me. I have been selfish,” she said in between her sobbing

She wanted to put all the blame on her because of what happened to her dad.

How could she leave her knowing how wicked her stepmother was?

“Don’t say that you are sorry, my dear. If there’s anyone that should feel sorry and that should be blaming himself, it should be me. I should have talked to you alone back then. I should have discussed the issue without your stepmother around, just like what I am doing now,” her father said in a cracked voice.

“Do they know about your condition?” She asked.

“Yes, they are well aware about it and I am happy that you are finally back. Now, I am going to have peace of mind. I can turn over the business to you and you can manage it. The business that your grandfather had built. Continue the legacy,” her father said.

Ericka didn’t know what exactly she should be feeling. Was she capable of running the business? Her eyes furrowed and looked at her father.

“Dad, are you sure that I can manage it? I still need you to teach me the run around of it,” she said.

“Don’t worry, my dear. Shawn is there to help you,” her father said which made her stop.

“B--- but Dad,” she said stammering when she heard what her father said. She was going to manage the business along with Shawn. It just sounded ridiculous. There was no way on earth that she would be working with that man.

“I think that’s just impossible for him to do. They have their own business for him to manage,” she said as she really didn’t want to get close to the man.

She couldn’t let herself be near him and she didn’t know how she would be responding and acting in front of him.

She was doubting herself for how long she would be hating him. As she felt she missed him so much and if she just didn’t remember how much pain she had felt because of the man back then, she might have hugged him the moment that he entered the dining room.

Ericka was surprised when her father shook his head. It was like she didn't want to hear her father any further.

“No, my dear. Our business and Shawn’s family’s business are one now. We are collaborating with them. We have been doing this for several years now and I can say that it is a success.”

She was dumbstruck because of the revelation that she heard from her father. It was surprising and at the same time disappointing news that she had heard today.