A handful

Silas tried to hide his discontent, but unknown to him, his face had already scrunched up in dissatisfaction.

Whereas, Wanda was shocked to see him “James? What are you doing here?”

James grinned, taking a chair to join their table without being invited. “I brought lunch today as usual, but I only found Andy. He was sleeping soundly, so I left to find you”

Wanda nodded “Yeah, but you somehow figured out my exact location?”

James shrugged, “Dumb luck.” his gaze flickered from Wanda to Silas. He said to Wanda “I'm guessing you met the Doctor here by chance?”

Wanda quickly explained “Ah no, actually I—”

“Look at the time!” Silas suddenly exclaimed looking at his wrist watch. A slight frown appeared on Wanda's face “You need to leave?”

He glanced at the two with an apologetic smile, nodding “I’m afraid I have to. It's such a shame, but I've got a ton of work to do”

“We understand,” said Wanda, replacing her frown with a small smile. He was a Doctor, so she understood he had to be always busy.

With that, he left.

“So you didn't meet him here by chance?” James asked Wanda once Silas was out of range. Wanda nodded and explained. She left out the bit about getting burned purposefully.

“It's good you immediately thought to pay him back. It's better not to owe any favors to people like him” said James, his expression a sneer.

Wanda blinked at him “I've heard that Doctor Deane is a good man”

James scoffed “He's a billionaire, Wanda, he's not a good man.” Of course, Wanda was ready to argue. After all, since meeting him, Silas has been nothing but kind and dependable. Besides, James makes a lot of money too, does that make him a bad person?

But before she opened her mouth to speak, James changed the topic. “I dropped some gifts off at Andy's ward”

Wanda's brows raised “Gifts? What for?”

James nodded “I know Andy will be discharged soon, and he'll need to get back to school. I just got a few stationery items he would need”

Wanda cocked her head to the side, her lips curling into a smile “I was going to get him those things”

“Well then I guess Andy's lucky. He has two people who care about him and each other,” James said, wanting to emphasize ‘each other’, but Wanda only seemed to grab the first bit.

Her expression turned soft, she muttered, “Yeah, he's lucky.” She looked up at James. “Only one problem now…. Andy will have to choose which of ours to take with him to school”

James leaned back, crossing his arms. “We both know he'll take yours over mine,” he pouted like a child. His sudden jealous demeanor caused Wanda to laugh out.

She soothed him, saying, “Relax, he doesn't have to choose, he can have both. I'm only joking.” She stifled a laugh.

James watched the syncing of her lips as she said those words. He was barely listening, lost in her smile, which caused his heart to flutter. Inadvertently, his thoughts escaped “You have the prettiest smile, Wanda,”

Wanda's laughter died down. She scolded him, “Don't make silly jokes, James, there's nothing pretty about this old widow's smile,” she chuckled dryly.

James reached out to her hand, his expression serious “I've told you to stop calling yourself that”

Wanda averted her eyes, slowly retrieving her hand. Her voice dimmed “That man is dead to me and you know it”

James felt his heart clutch with a sullen feeling as he watched her. She was in constant pain, which she had been trying so hard to live past. He knew no matter how happy Wanda looked on the outside, she was always deplorable on the inside.

If only he could make up for it. He had so much love to give, but he was afraid they wouldn't be reciprocated. Wanda's heart was filled with love and hate for the man who broke her.

In the end, James settled the bill after insisting, and Wanda knew better than to argue with him over it.

Wanda returned to Andy's ward to find him wide awake, sitting up on the bed. “You're back,” Andy grinned, outstretching his arms for a hug.

She smiled at him, entering his warm embrace. They parted and she poked his nose “Hope you didn't miss me too much,”

Andy giggled, informing her, “Uncle James was here earlier. He brought a lot of gifts with him.” he pointed at the corner where they lay on each other untouched.

Wanda ruffled his hair, mumbling under her breath “Uncle James sure is a handful, isn't he?”

“The Doctor was also here,” said Andy, causing Wanda's smile to falter. She turned to him “Doctor Deane was here? What for?” A surge of panic caused her heart to jump.

Andy tucked his hand underneath the pillow and brought out a small container “The Doctor said it was for you and that it was important”

Wanda blinked at him, her eyes flickering from Andy's gaze to the small container. She took it, examining it with her eyes. A soft sigh escaped her lips when she realized what it was. Her heart warmed up. It was an ointment for her bruise.

How lovely.

That evening, Silas returned to an empty house. Fiona hadn't called him all day, and now, when he was expecting her to pounce on him with questions the moment he opened the door, she was nowhere to be found.

“Fiona?” His brows came together as he stepped in. He checked the tea area and the living room. She wasn't at her two usual spots. Maybe she wasn't at home? Was she still upset? He asked inwardly, walking up the stairs

He got to their bedroom. The place was dim and devoid of her eloquent charm. He collapsed on the bed with a tired sigh, his mind replaying his encounter with Wanda at the shop.

His lips curled up when he remembered Wanda trying to pay him back. Maybe she only heard that he was the Miracle Doctor and paid deaf ears to the part of him being a billionaire.

He recalled up until James's inauspicious arrival. He felt a sudden sense of irritation surge through him. He swore he could feel something building up in the atmosphere back when he was with Wanda. James's presence destroyed everything.

Silas raked his hair, getting up. He walked up to the bathroom and opened the door. His heart sank at what his eyes beheld.