Grew Up As A Handsome Young Man

"Aighoo… let's finish eating first, why are you guys talking while eating?"

But none of them paid any heed to her words and still glared at her husband as if they were deceived by Mr. Simmons. Some of Kiera's cousins from her mother's side were also present. Such a laughing stroke they became in front of their whole family. They deserved it, her warning was not enough for them actually. Let them enjoy it more for a bit. After all, this is the perfect family dinner they planned for to happen.

Kiera was already feeling sick of the whole situation so she stood up from her seat. Anyways, she wasn't that hungry to finish her dinner here in this shitty environment. The moment she prepared to walk out of the house, her mother called her from behind.

"Kiera, you should at least finish your meal before you go."

Oh? So, her mother remembers that she has a daughter now? Why is she acting all like an ideal mother now? What happened all of sudden? She should have been busy in her usual tension, like how to pacify her dear husband. Actually, she didn't do a single thing better than this in her whole life.

Kiera didn't turn back but got out of the house without giving a single glance to any of her relatives who were quite shocked and angered by her rudeness. She didn't know, someone else also got out of the house after her.

The night was cold. Looks like winter is going to come earlier than usual. Kiera stood in front of the vast garden of the mansion. She should cool her head a bit here, or else she is gonna kill somebody as she is more than furious right now. Kiera came here telling Anna that she could always quit in the middle, but never knew that she really had to leave the dinner in the middle.

"It's been a while, Kiera," All of a sudden she heard someone say from behind. Kiera turned back to look at the person who was talking and found Theodore's brother standing a little far from her.

"Yeah, it is."

She didn't know what to say further as she wasn't that close with him. He was maybe 1 or 2 years younger than her, but right now, he kinda looked a lot more mature than his age. He has grown into a really handsome young man, she had to admit it.

"So, he did come, huh?"

By 'he', he is definitely directing Theodore. Yeah, that's right. At least he has the right to know here about his brother. As far as she knows, Theodore's brother and father are not the same kinds of her family. Actually, they are way better than her family. She doesn't know why Theodore constantly avoids them, but she really likes that she should inform them about Theodore once in a while.

"Yes, I am really sorry, I totally forgot to tell you guys," Kiera apologized.

"No, it's okay. It's not as if he is gonna let us know about him. Don't mind us. It's enough to know he is doing well and has someone who takes care of him by his side."

Taking care? She doesn't know. She especially did nothing for him. But hearing these from his own brother made her feel a bit sad. Why is he like this? She knows she is also like this, but her parents are not this nice like his family. Why doesn't he cherish the things he has?

"I am quite surprised that you accepted their invitation to come here," Kiera changed the topic all of a sudden.

"Hmm… actually, I am just like them. Earlier, they were asking whether I knew about his whereabouts, but it was me who came here today to know about him. Funny, isn't it? Well, it's not just me, they are also kinda obsessed with him," he said, chuckling.

At first, Kiera didn't know what to say. Actually, they really can do nothing when the culprit is not here.

"I know right? I just don't understand! Why don't they just spoon-feed him after kidnapping him here? Why bother with me? Every single time he stays at my place, I am forcefully dragged into the whole mess," Kiera replied frustratingly.

"Yeah, yeah, at least you got the chance to be irritated. And here we are, almost forgetting the face of his," Theodore's brother looked at the night sky with a distant look. As if he was trying to pry something from looking at the sky like that. All of a sudden, she felt awful to blabber all the unnecessary things. She made someone younger than her sad. Though she wasn't that close with him, she knew in her heart that he was not like others. Next time, when Theodore's gonna come, she will surely drag him to his father's. Nowadays, he listens to Annabelle, right? She is gonna make her a weapon this time.

*** *** *** ***

The night was not only long for Kiera. It was quite the same for Annabelle. After chatting and having dinner for two hours or so, Anna suggested going home as she said she was feeling a bit tired.

Liam knew that they are not gonna work out as Anna was the least bit interested in dating. The whole time, they chatted about so many things, they also found their tastes a little bit familiar. But somehow, he could get the idea that Annabelle wasn't here to get a boyfriend or fiance. She was here maybe because someone forced her to. And when she was finally here, she at least decided to have a friendly chat as Liam was really a very nice guy. Liam also felt very happy to talk to her. Too bad, she wasn't interested in dating, so somehow those two ended up having a lavish dinner and hanging out together like friends.

It was already past 9, so Liam suggested driving Anna home himself. But Anna refused, as she didn't want to be a bother to him too much. Liam also didn't force her as she politely refused to take the favour. It was really nice to meet him, but it was unfortunate that Anna really didn't want to find someone for any commitment right now. It's tough to give anyone any commitment when you are so unsure about yourself actually.

When Liam left the restaurant, Anna decided to stroll beside the busy streets. She liked to stroll aimlessly alone on the footpaths sometimes. Back then, Malibu streets were not that calm like San Diego. She missed it, the Malibu. Her life there, it was actually so easy, so peaceful there.

When she was getting those nostalgic feelings, someone from behind covered her eyes all of a sudden.

"Who is it? Remove your hand!"

Shit! Don't say she is now meeting some creep in the street here? Gosh… What happened to her? She totally forgot that she is not in her weird costume today. She was looking more like a rich father's only daughter, walking on the street alone looking all attractive.

But surprising her, that person from behind removed their hand and walked in front of her.

"Jae…. Mr. He?"

This time, Anna was more than shocked to find out the person who did that. This doesn't even make sense. Why is he here? And how come he is acting so friendly all of a sudden?

"You were on a date today?"

The next moment, Annabelle was more than shocked. How come he knows about it? It was impossible for Kiera to tell him something like this as she was the only person after her mother to know about this date, also she won't tell him even if there was any situation like this. Because she already warned Kiera not to involve this man in anything related to her without her permission.

"This has nothing to do with you I suppose?" Anna replied sternly.

Somehow, she was getting a little bit different vibe from him than usual. As she turned back to the past, turned back and remembered the old Jaemin she knew. She is probably dreaming, is that because of the two glasses of wine she drank earlier or what?

"I didn't know you would sulk like that, little pie."

The moment Anna heard those words, she was forced to look at Jamin's eyes directly. Her eyes were already moist. When did she become so soft? But what can she do? She really couldn't help it. All the overwhelming feelings started to flow inside her mind in an instant. So, he still somehow remember this name, huh? There were tons of memories, memories of a certain someone calling her 'little pie' a long ago. She missed it, she missed this name when Jaemin called her 'Annie'. She missed this name when he acted all stranger to her. At that time, he was like her family. When her own family was messed up, he was there, patting her head and supporting her like a big brother. How can she deny it just because he started to pretend that he doesn't know her? After all, it was her fault all along that she is no longer a part of Jaemin and others' lives.

Jaemin's face looked a little pained when he witnessed her sudden change. He walked a little closer to her and bent down to her height. She wasn't that short to be exact, but Jaemin was on the taller side. If she was the same little Annabelle like she used to be back then, she would have nagged about his height and whined to give her the formula to be this tall.

"Why are you crying?" Jaemin said gently, seeing those long-awaited suppressed tears fall from her hazel eyes.