SEVEN

Axel cleared his throat multiple times when his skin touched Vida's, but she stood there with confusion written all over her. She could not understand her father's actions and the reason behind them. She was sure it was probably the side effect of him having been in a semi-coma. Instead of asking him the reason and going round and round in circles, she quietly removed her hand, which made them all take their hands off. She pulled up the small chair and sat beside his bed, taking his hand and gently tracing the pulsing veins.

"Everyone thinks that I am a bad child," she began.

"Who thinks that my Vida is a bad child, and how dare they think that?" John asked. Anyone could see the bond that the father and daughter shared and how comfortable they were around each other. It would make one wonder why Vida was so comfortable staying so far away from her father; at least that was what was running through Axel's mind at that time.

"Everyone," she said in a stressed voice. "The nurses were looking at me as a bad child who let her father suffer while she was away trying to fulfil all of her heart's desires without thinking of anyone else."

"You and I know that it is not like that, so you do not have to worry about what anyone else says."

"Do I not have to worry about what anyone else says?" she asked with a frown. I don't have to worry about them, but still, they are speaking, and it is hurting me," she added in a lower tone this time. You know that I would have dropped it all without a thought and flown into the country the moment you needed me, and all you did was keep it away from me," she said.

She felt the atmosphere was a bit settled now, and she could speak and scold her father for letting her be in the dark about him for such a long time. "What am I working for if you are sick and lying in bed? You know very well that I would leave all I am doing just to be by your side."

"And that is too much of a price for you to pay and for me to ask."

"What?" She did not expect to hear such a statement from him. He had given all he had to make sure that she had a fantastic childhood even without her mother, so why wouldn't she want to do the same for him? "Why would you say that?"

"I know that if I had called you, you would leave all you had and come to take care of me, but what about your career, which you love so much and the life you were building for yourself? What about all of that?" he asked.

"All of that doesn't matter, and you know this," she said, patting down on the blanket that was covering the lower part of his body.

"I know, and it made me feel burdened. I did not want to be the father who stopped his daughter from achieving what she wanted to do. I had dreams of you taking over my company, but you chose another path, and I wanted to be happy for you and support you as much as I could," he said, and it almost made her cry to hear him say that to her. "And I was not alone; I had plenty of help; James helped me, Maria helped me, and even Axel here was of great help. He took care of me and helped with the business."

Vida was supposed to be happy that her father got help when he needed it but she could not help but feel angry that he was showing up here again and taking her place. She cleared her throat, trying to mask her anger. If she flared up in anger, how was she supposed to explain it to her father?

John did not notice the shift in her emotions, but somehow Axel noticed and excused himself with incoherent words. Vida was glad he was gone; at least now she could be alone with her father for the first time since she came to the city.

"Did you not miss me, or were you okay with the new child you adopted?" she asked.

"New child? Did I adopt a child?"

"Axel, I am talking about Axel," she said, frowning, thinking that her father was pulling a prank on her.

"Axel?" he asked and laughed, throwing her into confusion. It was not supposed to be funny, but he was laughing. "Axel is not my child? I did not adopt him," he announced, and for some reason, she felt relieved to hear him say that. "He is not my child; he is your husband-to-be."