John snapped his fingers. Before long, an adorable and gorgeous lady walked in, looking aesthetically pleasing to the eyes. John said, “I want to order some Scotch Whiskey. Wait, you know what, just bring me the whole bottle. I’m getting drunk tonight!”
The lady nodded in acknowledgement and left.
I had no idea what happened to John. I wanted to comfort him but I didn’t even know where to start. Therefore, I had no choice but to wait in silence.
Not long after, dinner was served along with a few bottles of Scotch Whiskey.
John immediately opened the bottle of whiskey. He didn’t even bother to pour it into a glass. Instead, he put the whole bottle of whiskey in front of Anthony and said in a rough manner, “Mr. Featherstone, let’s leave those drinking etiquettes aside this time. Come on! Bottoms up!”
My eyes widened in shock. “John, are you out of your mind? This is hard liquor, it’s not a beer. Are you trying to kill him or something?”
“Come on, don’t be such a killjoy. It’s just a few sips. You’re just worried about your man, aren’t you? Fine! I’ll drink it myself, then.” John then pursed his lips and cursed at Anthony, “Such a sissy!”
I was at a loss for words. What’s gotten into John recently? Did something happen? What’s with the radical change?
Without any hesitation, Anthony immediately clinked his glass and started drinking. I was about to stop him but he interrupted, “It’ll be fine. It’s just an occasional drink.”
With that, the two men started downing bottles of whiskey together. As for me, I was completely bewildered by them.
I could tell that something had been bothering John. After all, men tended to drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes during their stressful times. On the other hand, women usually reduced stress by crying or expressing their feelings verbally. Either way was fine as they wouldn’t affect physical and mental health.
At that moment, I thought I finally figured out why men often died earlier than women. It was because they were more likely to drink alcohol in excess and smoke more than women.
They drank quite a lot. John was getting himself drunk on purpose. Therefore, he kept gulping down the whiskey until he almost lost his consciousness. Not long after, he staggered to his feet and started swaying.
I was shocked when I saw how Anthony’s face was flushed red after drinking. Reckoned that he was tipsy, I raised my hand to stop him from grabbing his glass again. “Anthony, listen to me. You don’t have to keep on drinking. It’s not good for your health.”
He raised his eyes and looked up at me. With a gleeful grin, he said, “It’s no big deal!”
I furrowed my brows as I couldn’t seem to persuade him. Anger began to surge within me. “Anthony! You…”
Seeing that, he hurriedly put down the glass in his hand. A faint smile appeared on his handsome face and he said, “Alright. I’ll stop now.”
Meanwhile, John was buzzed. He rested his head and arms on the table, staring at us and mumbling with a nasal sound. “Are you guys done? I’m drinking my sorrows away here and I could use a little sympathy. Why can’t you guys give me some comfort?”
Anthony raised his brows and did not bother to respond. He rested his head on one side of his hand and looked at me as if he was enjoying the view.
I averted his gaze and looked toward John. I asked, “Did you and Hannah get into a fight? Or did you do something horrible?”
He clicked his tongue. Apparently, he was displeased. “What do you mean I did something horrible? What can I do?”
I raised my brows silently and glanced at him with an impassive expression.
He fell silent for a while. After that, he sighed slightly and took a sip of whiskey. He lowered his head for a long while and said, “Hannah wants to leave and I have no idea what I should do with the kid…”
I was stunned for a moment. After a few seconds, I said seriously, “John, are you concerned about Hannah leaving? Or are you worried that the kid would grow up without a mother?”
John didn’t utter a word but gulp down a few more sips of whiskey. He sighed weakly, “The latter. The child is too young.”
I frowned. I was slightly irritated. “John, Hannah spent most of her life with you. She even gave you all her love over the years. In the end, what does she get in return? You only wanted her to stay because your child needs a mother. Then what about you? What is she to you? Is she only a tool to carry and give birth to your child? Don’t you think she had done everything a wife should?”
He looked at me with a helpless expression. He was confused and at a loss. “I’ve given her what I can, and what I should. I will not get married. Despite not being legally married to me, I have given her all I have, especially money. So why isn’t she satisfied yet? She is never going to get what she owns now from another person in her life.”
I stared at John. All of a sudden, I was speechless. Perhaps, from his point of view, he thought that what women really wanted in a relationship were material things. Men should fulfill women’s wants and needs. However, every individual was different from the others. Maybe, what Hannah really wanted wasn’t just his money.
But, I didn’t know how to explain it to John. His way of thinking was totally different from mine. There was no right or wrong. We just didn’t share the same values.
I couldn’t help but look over at the silent Anthony. “It’s getting late. Shall we head home?” I asked.
Anthony gave a curt nod as he stood up to drag me away by arm.
“I go out of my way to invite you here, and you’re leaving before you’ve even finished your meal?” John said with obvious displeasure.
“We’re going back to take care of our kid. I’m sure she must be starting to get lonely by now!” Anthony said with a smile on his face.
John glanced between Anthony and me but decided to hold his tongue. “Fine, fine. You two can stop making a show of it and go back,” he finally uttered exasperatedly.
We didn’t wait for him to change his mind and left immediately. I helped Anthony to the passenger seat as he was in no condition to drive after the drinks that he had. After that, I sat in the driver’s seat. Anthony must have had a little too much to drink as he closed his eyes to rest right after settling down.
I started the car and couldn’t help but think of looking for Hannah one of these days to check up on her. I’d wager that she finally left John after all these years due to the disappointment building up over that period of time.
Anthony suddenly opened his eyes when we were at the traffic light. “You’re going the wrong way!” he exclaimed.
“What do you mean? We’re on the way home!” I replied with some confusion.
“Or are you heading to Moore Residence?” he said as he turned towards me.
I was stunned by the question for a moment before coming to my senses and remembering that I had promised to go back to his place earlier this afternoon. “We’re going to pick Summer up. Isn’t she still with my parents?” I answered.
He raised his eyebrows in response. “Let Summer stay at the Moore Residence then. With everything going on recently, I could use some time alone with you. Or would you not like that?”
He was obviously fishing for an answer with that last remark.
I could only nod in agreement as I didn’t really have a choice in the matter. The traffic light turned green, and I went against where I had initially wanted to go and headed back to Anthony’s villa.
It really had been a long time since I’d been to this villa, but it was still all too familiar. Anthony was obviously drunk and needed help to get on his feet, so I had to carry him all the way to the fingerprint lock to open the door. With Anthony slumped on my shoulder, it took quite some time and effort to make it to his bedroom, where I laid him on his bed before starting to leave. Suddenly, Anthony rolled over, pinning me under him. “Where are you going?” he asked drunkenly.
“We’re already home. You just lay down and rest while I go get some honeyed water,” I said with pursed lips.
The moment I tried to get up, Anthony shifted all his weight on me to stop me from leaving. “I don’t need any all that crap. I just need you here!” he said with a sly look on his face.
A sudden flash of anger rose through me. John could have gotten completely wasted for all I care, but he just had to drag Anthony into this. “Alright, I’ll be with you in a moment. Just drink some honeyed water, or you’ll just feel worse later, OK?” I sighed.
“OK!” he said while struggling to keep his eyes open.
Even though he had agreed to let me go, he was still holding onto me with the same amount of strength as before. I tried pushing him off but to no avail. “So, are we just going to stay like this all night?”
He got the hint after that and immediately let me up.
After pouring the agreed-upon beverage for him and feeding him it, Anthony closed his eyes and lay down. I wasn’t sure if he actually fell asleep by the time I got up, but seeing as it was getting late, I made a call to the Moore Residence.
The phone rang for a little bit before Cameron answered. “Sienna! Are you coming back soon? Summer has a fever, and I was just about to call to tell you!” she said anxiously.
“Mom, we’re not heading back there tonight. Anthony and I are already at the villa, so we’ll have to leave Summer to you. She’s probably feeling ill from the changing of the seasons. She always gets a fever around this time due to the temperature difference throughout the day,” I reassured.
Summer is probably so frail due to being a premature infant. At least it’s fortunate that she always recovers after a few days into the new season.
Cameron could only give a little nod on the other end of the phone. “Yeah, I was thinking if it was because of the seasonal change as well. However, she has been getting recurrent fevers for a while, and the fever medicine only seems to help for a little. Even our family doctor has been here to prescribe some medicine for her, but she never fully recovers. Letty, are you two busy tomorrow? Why don’t you bring Summer over to the hospital for a check-up? Honestly, I’m a little worried,” she muttered quickly.
“Sure, Mom. I’ll go over first thing in the morning to take her to the hospital,” I said as I gave a nod. A little fever for children is no big deal usually. But I guess a recurrent fever that doesn’t go away is a little worrying.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
Leave a Reply