WAIT! Why Are You Here?

Adrienne

The door slammed shut behind Eddie, the sound bouncing off the walls, rattling the windows.

I stared blankly at the space he’d been standing, waiting to feel something – anger, hurt, or the familiar ache is been carrying for the past three years. But I felt… Nothing. Instead, there was a strange, hollow quiet where that feeling should be.

Was this what moving on felt like?

I almost laughed. I’d spent three years begging – groveling – for his attention, and now that I finally had it, even in the cruelest form, I felt nothing at all.

Arlene let out a breath beside me, allowing herself to sink into her seat as though she’d been holding a weight and she finally had the freedom to drop it. “I genuinely don’t know how that man sleeps at night.”

I didn’t respond, because I had nothing to say. My phone buzzed on the small table beside the bed, pulling me from my thoughts. I reached for it, wincing slightly as pain shot up my abdomen from the movement, and my stomach dropped when I saw the notification.

I had a missed call. Two missed calls. Both from an unknown number I instantly recognized.

D. W.

With everything that was happening, I’d completely forgotten about our meeting.

Guilt twisted my guts as I unlocked my phone and found a text message from the same unknown number.

UNKNOWN: I heard what happened. I hope you’re alright? Don’t worry about today – we can reschedule whenever you’re ready. Take care of yourself first.

I read it three times, searching for any form of judgement or irritation in the words and found none. Only… concern. From a man I’d never met, who owed me nothing but a date thanks to my grandmother.

“I’m sorry.” I typed back immediately. “I should have reached out sooner. Thank you for understanding and I’ll let you know when I’ll be free to meet.”

His reply came almost instantly. My heart began beating fast when I saw he had in fact seen my text and was typing back.

UNKNOWN: There’s no need to apologize. Just focus on getting better and we’ll talk soon.”

We’ll talk soon.

I recited this three words again and again in my head. Something about them settled strangely in my chest – warm, familiar. I could hardly recall the last time someone’s concern had felt so… uncomplicated. Welcomed.

I was still staring at the screen when the door opened again, and I quickly set my phone aside.

“Adrienne?”

I looked up and my breath caught in my throat. “Mr. Quinn?”

Old Mr. Quinn stood in the doorway, leaning slightly on his cane. His sharp eyes scanned the room before resting on my firm. Concern was etched until every line in his weathered face and his mouth tired into a frown.

“I came as soon as I heard.” He said, moving further into the room. Arlene stood reverently and he lowered himself into the seat she just vacated. “Its all over the news, Adrienne. What does Eddie thinks he’s doing? The whole country is talking about it.”

I winced. .of course it was in the media. Still, I hadn’t expected it to spread so quickly. I forced a small smile even though it felt so foreign on my face. “I’m fine, Mr. Quinn. Really. The doctor’s say I just need rest.”

The old man’s eyes lingered on me before he finally nodded. “Good. That’s good. You should rest.” He glanced around the room again, the frown on his face deepening further. “And where is Eddie?”

I hesitated. If he’d seen everything in the media, then he should know where his grandson was. I had no idea how much he saw, or what the narrative they were spreading was. So, I had no idea how to answer.

After all, Old Mr. Quinn didn’t know his son and I were no longer together. If he knew about Lydia and her alleged pregnancy, I had no idea. All I knew was that I needed to choose my next words carefully.

“I – he was here. He just… stepped out to take a call.’

Mr. Quinn’s expression hardened, the frown turning cold. It was a cold I was familiar with, the one Eddie wore all the time. I realized sometime ago that one needed some level of cold to build an empire.

“He stepped out…” he repeated flatly and pulled out his phone. Without another word, he punched in numbers and dialed. I listened as the phone rang twice before it was answers and Eddie’s voice filled the room.

“Grandfather –”

“Get back in here. Now.” Mr. Quinn’s voice left no room for argument. He ended the call before Eddie could argue and turned back to me, hitting his cane on the ground angrily.

Arlene caught my eye with her brows raised slightly, as if to say this should be interesting.

Indeed, it was going to be.

Less than a minute later, the door opened and Eddie stepped back inside, his jaw clenched tight, and his eyes flicking briefly to me before settling on his grandfather. I could see he was thinking I was behind his grandfather’s appearance.

“Grandfather,” he said, clearly shucked to see the old Mr. Quinn here. “What are you –”

“Sit down, Edward.”

I’d never heard anyone call Eddie by his full name before. No one had the guts to. And from the way his shoulders stiffened, I guess he hadn’t been expecting it either. He gave me an accusatory look before sinking into the bed beside me.

“I just saw a video,” Mr. Quinn side, his voice dangerously soft. “of you grabbing this woman’s arm hard enough to bruise it, in front of half the country’s press. Did I ever raise a child like that?”

Eddie’s face went pale. “Grandfather, it’s not –”

“I am not finished!” Mr. Quinn’s voice sharpened. “Do you have any idea what this looks like? Not just for you. For this family? For everything I have spent sixty years building?” he leaned forward slightly. “And more than that, have you forgotten that this woman is till your fiancée? Whatever issues exist between the two of you, you do not embarrass her like this. You do not embarrass this family like this.”

“Grandfather, you do not understand the situation –”

“I understand enough!” Mr. Quinn cut him off sharply. “I understand that you’ve made a public spectacle of this family not once, but twice in the same day. Fix it, Edward. Whatever this is – fix it. Before I have to.”

The silence that followed was suffocating – for all of us. Eddie’s hands curled into fists at his sides, but he said nothing. He simply bowed his head and boiled.

Old Mr. Quinn turned to me, the fire in his eyes receding a little. “Forgive this rascal here, will you?” he said, taking my hand and squeezing it gently. “He’s such a fool not to recognize the treasure that’s right under his nose. Forgive him, for my sake”