Meeting Mr. Mogul(25)

"Can I?" I asked uncertainly.

"Yes. But I instructed the nurses to give him a sedative. He'll wake up eventually."

I nodded absently and turned to my father's room. I took a deep breath  before I went inside. Out of habit, I gently knocked on the door before  entering. I slowly turned the knob and pushed the door wide open. I saw  my father sleeping soundly on his bed, and I noticed new tubes attached  to him.

Even months after he was diagnosed, I still wasn't able to grasp the  concept of him leaving me. I was still holding on to that shred of hope  that he would get better. I wanted him to get better. He was the only  family I had left.

I sat down on the chair beside his bed, the same one I always sat on  whenever I visited him. I grabbed the remote control on the bedside  table and turned on the television. I flipped through channels to find  his favorite sitcom and minimized the volume so I wouldn't spook him  when he wakes up. And intuitively, I turned and kissed his forehead in  greeting.

"Hi, Dad. I'm back from work. I'm sorry I left you this morning, but you  were the one who insisted. I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner. I should  have been here..." I trailed off as I choked on my sobs, gulping down  the sadness and guilt.

"I talked to Doctor Stanley. He said you're going to be all right. So  don't you dare give up on me here, okay? You need to rest so that you  can get better. Please get better," I begged.

I held one of his hands in mine and gave it a light squeeze, willing him  to wake up and tell me that he was all right. I didn't know how long I  sat there until a gentle tap on my shoulder got my attention.

"Hey, Mr. Maxwell said that he had to go somewhere. He also said to phone him if you needed any help," Terry said.

"He's still here?"

I was appalled that he had seen me break down. I even cried on his  expensive blazer. Now he has something else that he could blackmail me  with. I wanted to punch myself for showing him my weakness.

"No, he just went home a few minutes ago," Terry replied as his eyes hardened a little.

I looked at him and furrowed my eyebrows. "What? Did he seem  half-hearted when he offered to help?" I asked. My mood lightened up a  little at the image of an insincere William in my head.

"You're the only one who's insane enough to find something funny about  the situation. And no, he wasn't half-hearted. It was the opposite,  actually. And from the way he addressed me, I think he actually hates  me," he replied, looking bewildered.

I softly chuckled at his reaction, though it sounded strained from my  lack of interest. Terry looked at me with a small smile, eyeing me with  suspicion. "Do you know something about this?"

"No," I replied too quickly, denoting my guilt.

"Spill it, Peterson," he warned playfully. His tone finally made me laugh a little and made me feel a bit better.

"Since when did you start calling me by my surname?"   





 

"Just tell me, Andy. Don't sidetrack me."

"Okay fine," I stated, raising both my hands in defeat. "I sort of implied that you are my boyfriend."

He stared at me blankly, as if he didn't register what I just said. When  I gave him a sheepish grin, he finally snapped and blew up.

"You did what? How the hell did a conversation with William Maxwell lead  to the subject of you and me dating?" He paused to breathe. "Only you  can do something this aggravating."

"Only to you," I countered, mumbling softly to myself.

"No wonder that guy hates me. Did you say anything else? Don't try to  get out of this," he said agitatedly, glaring daggers at me.

"Oh, come on. Don't overreact. Why would William Maxwell hate you? Just  because you are on my side doesn't mean that you have the same snarky  mouth that I have."

"No. I don't have your mouth. But you told the man that I'm the only one  who can kiss it," he replied with a glint of amusement in his eyes.

I scrunched my eyebrows, not entirely sure where the topic was going. "And why are we talking about who gets to kiss me?"

"Sometimes, Andy, you can be extremely naive," he stated with a sniggle.

Now, I'm lost. I don't think I have an innocent mind. For all I know,  Mr. Mogul did have some wicked plans in his head for me. If that's the  case, perhaps I should be getting ready to defend myself from his  mischievous ways. The man I considered an enemy knew my greatest  weakness. If he wanted something from me, he could use it as blackmail. I  needed to think of a contingency plan if he uses my father's ailment  against me.

The next day, I was finally put out of my misery when my father woke up.  It's like I've taken a huge gulp of air after being under water for a  long time. I was genuinely smiling and laughing again. Terry came to  visit and brought Andrew along with him. Both of them stayed for the  rest of the day, entertaining my father and me. It felt like they were  new additions to my family.

By Monday, I was hesitant to leave the hospital and go to work. I even  slept over for two nights to watch over my father, just to make sure  nothing drastic happens again. Finally, Terry came in and took over in  keeping an eye over him. He half-dragged me out of the room so I could  get dressed and get off to work. He assured me-thrice-that he would call  me if anything happens. I couldn't have asked for a better friend at  that moment.

When I got to the office, I was already an hour late for work. Again.  And it certainly is leaving a dent on my new career. Ugh. I cringed deep  down as I entered the elevator and pressed the button to my floor. I  prayed that Mr. Mogul wasn't in or I'll endure another round of lectures  about being late. I didn't want anyone to kill my recently acquired  good mood.

The elevator door opened when it reached my floor, revealing my  workplace. In small steps, I stepped out of the elevator looking  sheepish. The first thing I saw was Maggie, who was seated by her desk  doing her usual thing. She glanced up when she noticed me and greeted me  with a small smile. She also looked a little worried.

"How are you today? Is your dad alright?"

"I'm fine. My dad just woke up yesterday. Uhmm …  Who told you about...?"

"William asked for you this morning when he came in. I'm glad that  everything went well for your dad," she replied with a genuine smile.

I smiled in return, not processing the rest of her words. I only got the  part that William asked for me. He asked for me? Was he really taking  this ‘starting over as friends' thing seriously?

My train of thought was interrupted when the phone rang. I turned to Maggie as she answered the call.

"Hello … ? Yes, she is here... Okay," she put the phone back after a few  seconds and faced me with an impish grin, "William wants to talk to  you."

I looked at her vacantly for a second until the words sunk in. Her smile  widened at my reaction and gestured for me to go in William's office.  When I finally snapped out of my daze, I stood up from my chair and  slowly headed inside.

"Just go in," Maggie encouraged when I hesitated for a second.   





 

I took a deep breath and knocked on the door before turning the knob. I  didn't really know why I knocked considering he was already expecting  me. In small steps, I entered his office and kept my head down as I  closed the door behind me. I faintly heard his fingers tapping on the  keys of his laptop.

"Hey," he greeted when I turned around to face him. He momentarily  stopped typing as he motioned for me to sit down on one of the chairs in  front of his desk. I didn't really notice them there two days ago.

He went back to his laptop and continued to type as I sat down. For a  moment, I saw him looking up at me strangely but then he glanced back  down at his work just as quickly. This was when I finally noticed what  he was wearing. He had on a light gray suit with a blue tie, which was a  non-brooding look for him. I've never seen him wear light-colored  clothes before, which used to make me think that he only had mourning  clothes. But this outfit surprisingly looked good on him. He seemed so  striking that I was afraid to face him. I guess I needed to warm up to  this new look before I could comfortably deal with him. "How is your  father?" he asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"He is fine," I replied quietly, blushing. I just realized I was checking him out. What?

He stopped typing, looked at me, and closed the laptop. "Do you need any  help with your father's medication? Why didn't you take a day off  today?"

"No. It's okay, Mr. Maxwell. But thank you," I replied with a tight-lipped smile.

"Oh. Alright then. Uhm... Do you want some time off to take care of your father?"

I gave him a small smile and shook my head. "I'm good. I need to work to  pay for the bills. Terry got the morning shift covered for me."

"Terry? The guy who was..."

"Yeah. He's a friend, actually. Did you say anything rash to him before you left?" I asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Ah. Uhm..." he stuttered uncomfortably, avoiding my gaze. "I just asked him to give you a message. That's all."