"Are you sure you don't want to go home?" Zane asked worried.
Besides getting her verbal confirmation, his eyes were also checking her every change in expression. Aria never had things she requested of him, she almost never asked him anything for that matter. Even things concerning his working schedule, decisions, she never expressed a personal opinion regarding them.
This would be a perfect situation for any man to have, even more so for Zane, whose company required more time and attention than a normal working man needed to direct towards his work. Her understanding and quiet personality should have been ideal for him.
But for the somber man who was quite the novice in a loving relationship, it would only add trouble if he could not guess her real mood accurately. Aria would most likely endure everything on her small shoulders rather than inconvenience him in anyway. And this could easily be proven by the fact that she had kept her insecurities about their relationship tightly inside of her heart, enduring until the very last moment before she actually told him how she felt.
As such he always checked her face and body language as thoroughly as possible to verify the accuracy of her answer.
Her state of mind and health were of utmost importance to him, and these days even more so because of the last period of time that remained of her pregnancy.
The doctor had specified that the twins although healthy were smaller than they should be at this stage. This fact coupled with the notion that Aria had been in a coma for her second trimester, caused the medical staff to repeatedly advise Zane that her body was more frail than usual, so he had to be as careful as possible in all matters that concerned her, whether it was her mental health or her physical one.
It was after all, the reason that made them visit the doctor's office every week. It was also because of this, that Zane delayed in informing Aria of the contract that existed between him and her until after she gave birth.
Thus if he felt the slightest indication from her part that she was really feeling unwell, he would leave with her in a heartbeat.
"I'm sure. I just need to rest for a little while." Aria affirmed once again, smiling serenely to calm his concerned heart. His darting eyes that moved between her eyes probingly would not settle down otherwise.
In all honesty, there was nothing she wanted more at this time than to go home. The embarrassment from before was too much for her to bear...
As soon as her song had finished, all the employees from inside the ballroom started to enthusiastically clap their hands, and with their applauses, the reality that she had sung in front of hundreds of people came crashing down.
Until that point she had seen nobody other than Zane, she had kept only him in her eyes as the lyrics came from her mouth, but the thunderous claps brought her back to reality.
She was not sure, if everyone really liked how she sang, or if they were only showing their support because of who she was... but she was in absolutely no mood to check the real reason.
Her legs felt like they were about to give out from under her, and she was only able to still keep standing because of Zane, who had immediately supported her.
The awkwardness and the adrenaline rush that took a toll on her body showed on her face almost instantly. And even without her asking to, Zane quickly excused themselves for a bit and took Aria to a resting room.
But besides of an agitated state of mind caused by the fluctuation of her feelings, her general physical state was still alright. And even if it wasn't, she couldn't just leave at the drop of a hat. Just now when they entered the room, Ryan had followed behind Zane reminding him of the things he still had to deal with for the night, with the most important being his speech.
Regardless of the other things that might have been handled by other people, the speech of the leader of the consortium surely had to be given by the president himself.
"We can go back home, you don't have to worry about anything." Zane asked her again, as he patted gently the small beauty's head.
"No. If I can rest for a few minutes, I will be as good as new." Aria assured him and also showed him an even brighter smile to demonstrate her good health.
"Ryan, inform the managing team, I will be giving my speech right now. And as for the other things left on the program, they can reschedule them as they see fit." Zane's gentle voice had changed to the solemn and commanding tone that Ryan was most accustomed to, so without trying to change his mind, the assistant only complied and had already left to prepare the venue.
"You really did not have to do that." Aria urgently informed, but Zane had already made up his mind.
"It is alright. I have greeted some people, we have also entertained all the attendees with your song, which is a more personal touch to the overall party than intended. As such we have showed plenty sincerity towards everyone, so there will be no problem. Besides, I am also tired, and would very much like to return home and rest." He reasoned logically, seeing her worried face. And just to make sure she believed him, also sighed a bit as though he was truly fatigued.
With these reasons, Aria was of course convinced and would no longer try to assure him of her state.
"Zane, you called me." Malcom asked curious, after a brief knock on the door.
"Yes, please look after Aria for a bit. I will give my speech then come and take her back home." Zane informed his friend, and patted a bit Aria's head before leaving to finish his duty.
"Alright." Malcom immediately agreed and sat on the opposite couch.
He did not even look towards the leaving Zane, and had already started to enthusiastically discuss with Aria.
"Wow... I really did not know you could sing so well. Was that song from..." he started to talk with a bright smile on his face, not paying attention at all to Zane, who had glanced at them for a bit, before closing the door and leaving.
He really should have brought Anne with them at the party, Zane thought. But as his mother informed him she will also be coming an hour later into the program, he had let the maid have the night off.
With his mother taking care of Aria, he would have felt more assured that nobody would bother his wife. After all, who would dare cross the former president? But with the impromptu moment just now, his entire plan for the evening had changed.
His mother had not yet arrived, but Aria's general mood instinctively told him that she needed to return home with him. As such he had no choice, but to call the second person he most trusted, Malcom. Though he really did not like the fact that the latter seemed to have more in common with his wife than himself.
"Hapchu!" Malcom voiced unexpectedly, as he was listening to Aria's thoughts on a particular book.
"Bless you!" She politely told him, noticing his sneeze.
"Thank you! Weird, I'm not coming down with a cold and there's no draft in here." He pondered as he wiped his nose with a handkerchief. Strangely, he had been sneezing several time since he had entered the room.
"Perhaps there's a bit of dust in the air." Aria reasoned pensively. Though considering the care that had been put in for tonight's ball, it was highly unlikely.
"Yes, there's no other explanation..." He started to say, but could not continue his words when the ringtone from his phone was heard.
Answering the call from the hospital, his face changed when he received the news from the other end of the phone call.
A patient for whom he had performed a heart surgery during the day, had started showing unexpected complications. With the degree of the side effects that her state was showing, and considering that he was the principal surgeon and naturally was the most informed about her heart disease, he had no choice but to agree to return as soon as possible to the hospital. The on call doctor, although quite a competent doctor in his own right, could not efficiently treat the patient without all the facts of the disease checked after all.
"Is her state stable right now?" He asked, as the doctor told him the first aide he had already given.
"Alright. Yes the treatment is good at least for now. I will be there as soon as possible." He informed then closed the phone call.
A former patient herself, Aria could understand the fact that the doctor who handled the operation was the most qualified in resolving the patient's complications. And also because she could keenly notice Malcom's altered expression, thus she opened her mouth even before Malcom could excuse himself.
"Go on. I am alright here, there's no need to accompany me." She assured, seeing that Malcom was reluctant to leave her alone.
"No, let me see first how much longer Zane will be gone for." He decided as he rose on his feet and approached the door. He was torn between leaving Aria by herself and the patient, whose state was getting worse by the minute. The staff were barely keeping the girl stabilized for his arrival.
"Malcom, it's really alright." Aria assured again, as he paced a bit in front of the door. It was clear he was restless to leave, but did not dare do so without assuring Aria was left in another person's care.
Seeing that Zane was not answering his phone, he realized he was most likely giving his speech at this moment and was in no position to notice the call, perhaps had even silenced his phone.
His next best choice was to call Ryan, Zane's assistant, who he had already started dialing without a second's delay.
"Just let me try one more time." He sighed and then waited for the phone call to be answered on the other side.
The second call, as opposed to the first one, successfully got through and Malcom learnt that Zane was just closing his speech at this very moment. With the distance from the ballroom to the hotel's waiting room, it should take the man no more than 5 minutes to return.
"Five minutes will pass in a heartbeat. Please go on without a worry." She replied calmly when he had told her Ryan's estimate time for Zane's return.
With her confident reply and seeing that she was more or less in quite a good state, he had no choice but to leave Aria's waiting room and dash towards the elevator.
Of course worried about her, he called Ryan again and told him to make sure Zane was informed that Aria was left alone. Still feeling unassured, he had even asked for Ryan to go come accompany Aria first, but the latter had told him that just at that moment the president had really finished his speech and he was going towards him to inform Zane about Aria.
Sighing in relief, Malcom closed the phone as the elevator's doors closed, taking him to the parking lot. There were only five minutes, the time was short, nothing would happen in merely 5 minutes.
Inside the waiting room, Aria was already quite well now. The talk with Malcom had distracted her momentarily from remembering what she had boldly done. Now even though, the memories were once more coming back, she wasn't as flustered as before.
Plus the waiting room was properly insulated from the noise from outside of it, so the silence also added to her calming down.
These were Aria's thoughts, when the sound of the door opening was heard. With Zane coming back to return home, she was even more peaceful, which was quite evident by the bright smile that appeared on her face as she directed her eyes towards the door.
"Hello, cousin." The fiery red dressed woman greeted and already entered the room, even though she had not been invited inside. Not that Aileen bothered to seek Aria's approval to do so. She hadn't even knocked on the door before already barging in the room, after all.
"Why are you here?" Aria's gentle expression quickly frowned, as the image of her handsome husband from her mind was exchanged by the reality of a cousin she already felt an immense aversion towards. Since the encounter from last time from the restroom, Aria already had quite a poor opinion of Aileen.
If the latter truly wished her well, she would have spoken to Aria when Zane was present about everything she truly wished to know. But on both occasions that she had met her, Aileen seemed to not notice her when Zane was in the same room, even less she did not bother to voice any opinion of concern towards Aria and her well-being in those moments.
Voicing her opinions when the one she accused was not near and could not deny or excuse himself from her accusations... how could Aria really trust her when she said that Zane wanted her to be kept away from them for a sinister motive like how Aileen had implied.
"I wanted to talk to you one more..." Aileen started to say, and quickly approached Aria's seat.
"I don't have more to talk with you about." Aria denied sharply, and put her hand on the armrest. She wanted to walk out of the room and walk to where Zane was. She could recall the way towards the venue, and even if she did not... it was better than staying in this room.
"Are you sure? Even when I can tell you accurately why Zane wants to keep you away from us?" Aileen asked again, maintaining the aggrieved tone she had used since she entered through the door.
"Zane is protecting me. There's nothing more to it." Aria spoke confidently, encouraged by Zane's repeated advices of how to conduct herself when others wanted to fool her.
"Is he protecting you? Or is he protecting his children?" Aileen asked with her voice becoming even more urgent. Aria had just steadily stood up, it was clear she wanted to leave the room.
"There's nothing that would make me happier than knowing he is protecting our children. Please move and let me pass." As much as she had just wanted to walk away without speaking to Aileen further, unfortunately the woman was just in the way of her exiting the path between the two couches. She could still quite easily bypass her, but she did not trust Aileen at all, and was afraid of the latter's briskness.
The woman had kept wanting to speak to her about Zane and convince her of his ulterior motives as far as she could tell. But right now, she really did not trust Aileen's expression in the slightest. Somehow, something about the emotions that Aileen wanted to express on her face felt fake. Her concern for sure was not real. Her expression seemed too forced to be real.
Zane had told her in the past, that there would be people who wanted to take advantage of her. As far as she could tell, the hypothetical situation he was talking about was like how it was right now. But she was not aware of what Aileen was capable of doing to stop her from leaving, and did not want to do anything that could make the woman grab her or do something that might make her lose her equilibrium and consequently harm the twins. She was aware of the feebleness of her body after all.
"Even protecting them from their own mother? Even taking them away from their own mother?" Aileen asked again, finally succeeding and gaining Aria's direct attention and gaze. Up until this point Aria had not looked her in the eyes at all, but once these words were spoken, she had instantly looked towards her.
"Zane would never..." Aria spoke after she had stood silent for a second. Aileen's words were pure nonsense, she thought. So naturally she wanted to refute her words. But the phone that Aileen had placed in front of her eyes stopped her for a moment.
"This is the paper for your divorce agreement that he forced upon you on your wedding day. You hadn't even married in his family for a single full day before he shoved the divorce papers in your face. Can you really defend him still?" She confidently spoke, her tone adamant because of the clear proof.
"And this... this is the contract in which you agree to renounce any parental rights on any children that may come from this marriage. Can you still think I am not telling you the truth?" Aileen continued sure of herself, not giving Aria time to voice any disapprovals to her claims.
"My dad is your lawyer. I bet he did not inform you of this. Of course he wouldn't, because then you could talk to him about your legal documents and you would find out everything. You would know then that as soon as you give birth, the children you would painstakingly raise inside your womb would no longer be yours. How could he afford to let you know this?
Especially considering your poor health due to the coma. Any negative emotions could make you abort the children. He would never allow this happening to his heirs." She spoke with an eloquent voice, but one could feel her urgency. She was trying to speak all that she could before Zane would return to take Aria home.
An urgency that Aria also felt, thus making her doubt Aileen's words with certainty.
A picture in a phone meant nothing for her, documents could be falsified. Aileen also knew she had forgotten her memory, so she would not be able to recall their signatures. A pen smudged on a piece of paper with words that Aileen could perhaps have written herself on a laptop meant nothing to her. And though she did not know previously that Darren Langdon was her lawyer, she was still not prone to believe Aileen. Zane had probably omitted to tell her this, right?
"Alright. I understand. I will ask Zane about what you told me." She calmly stated, no fluctuation evident in her voice.
Not making Aria wary of Zane in the slightest, very much upset Aileen. She had thought that the picture on her phone was enough to separate Aria and Zane. By now she had expected that Aria would want to flee away from Zane. But not only she was not the least bit perturbed, she even appeared to dismiss her words altogether. Even though she had said she would ask Zane about it, her tone did not betray any sense of sadness or fear.
"Aria, think about it. Why would he act so kind towards you right now, when in the past you would not see each other for weeks if not months at a time? He is kind now just for fear that your emotions would affect the children. Once you give birth, he will immediately revert to his old self."
Hearing Aileen's claim, she remembered that in the past Zane had indeed not returned to the mansion for 2 weeks. Even the butler had told her that this was the normal situation. But this only meant that Zane had indeed fallen in love with who she was right now, and so would have a change of heart on how he would act around her, not that he wanted the children.
"He most likely changed when the doctor told him about your pregnancy's risk. Am I right?" Although Aileen was only bluffing at this moment, she knew for certain that Zane would be informed by the doctor to take care of Aria because of the coma. So Aria could be influenced to associate the two facts together, even if they had no connection to each other.
Coincidently or not, Aria could really recall that Zane started to come home more often after her visit to the doctor's office. At that time, the doctor could have called him and indeed tell him that the children were smaller than normal, and that Aria was quite frail due to the coma, even though there were no major health problems.
A second of uncertainty was proof to Aileen that a small seed of doubt was successfully planted. It had been harder than she had expected, but she only had to speak a bit more and increase it.
"When I was at the office last time. He quickly came and took me away. He was afraid I would tell you about things you were not meant to become aware of until you had given birth. And all this time, has he never asked you anything about me or my family, has he never told you to stay away from us?" She probed further.
Though Aria hadn't really spoken with Zane about the Langdon family, and was about to deny this fact to Aileen, she did recall something from the latter's words, seemingly unrelated at the time.
It was a trifle unimportant thing, a matter she would have never remembered again, if it weren't for Aileen's words. He had asked her after Aileen's visit at the office, if the woman had spoken to her about a contract. But he had explained after that he had thought Aileen would complain to Aria about her employee contract... Was he afraid that Aileen would have talked about the contract with her? Was this indeed the reason for his weirdness at the time?
"You see the shield which he placed around you as his protectiveness, but are you sure that's all there is to it? Is he really protecting you, someone who replaced the real heiress, or is he being careful just because of the children? Is he only afraid you could unexpectedly abort the heirs inside your womb? The heirs to the Langdon and Black fortune!
It's your choice to believe or not, but decide only when you have all the facts. Try to ask around a bit more from the butler and the maids how he was with you previously. And also try to find a way out of the mansion and come meet my father.
My words can be faked, but legal documents notarized cannot. With your lawyer present we can go to a court house and you will find then their legitimacy. I will wait for your decision, but if you want to keep your children, I advise you... Don't let Zane know of our discussion."
As much as Aileen had wanted to continue push Aria further down the uncertainty path, which she had evidently started to follow as a consequence of her claims, she was after all still wary of Zane. The latter could return any minute now. It was really not good for her to be in this room, when he would return.
So she swiftly turned around and really left. This could also be as another support to her claims after all. If she pestered too much Aria to make herself believable, it could have an opposite effect. But if she left after only expressing this much, perhaps she could really accomplish more.
Aria's face seemed reluctant to believe her, but her gaze had lost the confidence she had in the beginning and most importantly although only a bit, Aileen felt that her gullible cousin grew paler and even a slight tremble could be sensed, if she looked closer.
With Aria's uncertain expression etched inside Aileen's mind, the woman elegantly moved her crimson red dress, as an obvious smile adorned her face. It was a pity that Aria did not collapse on the floor just then, perhaps even losing her pregnancy, but there was still a definite gain for her from this encounter, she thought. Just the fact that she could wipe that smile on Aria's face from when she had entered the room, and it was still enough to brighten her mood.
The latter would also visit them shortly when the doubt inside of her heart ate her alive. Then they would finish this marriage of convenience once and for all.
She was not particularly worried about Aria informing Zane of this, as she had instilled enough fear in Aria, for her to interrogate the man directly. But unfortunately as she would find out later, she had really underestimated the faith Aria had in Zane. Aileen still thought she was dealing with her taciturn cousin.
"Aria?" A voice interrupted her numerous thoughts, as Aria had started recalling each and every little gestures that Zane had done for her until this point.
She really did not wish to believe Aileen... no, she did not believe it. As long as Zane would tell her otherwise, she would whole heartedly believe him, not anyone else. But if the documents were real then what should she do? She pondered with her heart growing weary by the second.
It was as though a chain that had enveloped her heart suddenly snapped...
"Aria?" Zane called out again confused. He had been notified by Ryan that Malcom had to leave for an emergency, so he had returned as fast as he could. But why was Aria so pale right now? Did something happen in the few minutes he was away?
"Did something happen?" He asked again as he already approached her, and wanted to hug her in his arms, worried of her health. With his arms around her shoulders, a slight tremble could really be felt on his skin transmitted from her small frail body. For a second there it seemed she was once again entering a moment of stillness just like before.
"I saw Aileen earlier. And I was wondering about Darren Langdon, is he my lawyer by any chance?" She bluntly asked, not answering his question directly. She was trying as best she could to keep her emotions under control, but it appeared impossible at this very moment. She could not even raise her eyes to look at his face, afraid to notice his changed expression.
"How did you know this? Did Aileen talk to you about it?" Zane's eyes widened at the knowledge, as his face lost his usual expressionless features.
He was clearly agitated by her questions, an agitation which Aria also felt, even though she was still not looking towards his face. His body language, his slightly raised tone confirmed for her the answer... Darren Langdon was really her lawyer.
If one of the facts that Aileen had spoken about was true, who was to say the other facts were not real as well?
A sharp pain pricked her heart again, as another chain felt broken. It was as though Zane himself was tearing the chain apart with his own two hands.
"Is there a contract between you and me? Will I lose my parenting rights once the children are born?" She asked again spiritless, as she was still kept in between his arms. Still her tone had gotten quite harsh by this point. It could have been the hoarseness because of the barely maintained voice that came from her body that she was beginning to lose control over. Or perhaps because of the tiredness that seemed to envelop her entire being.
She felt a third chain shatter when the answer to the questions delayed in coming from his mouth. It was another confirmation. By this point, the strength seemed to leave her body, making her loosen her hold on his arms, as she brought her hands to rest on his chest. His accelerated heart rate which she felt under her palm, was it also another fact that could answer what his mouth could not?
"The contract was completed on our wedding day, but it was because..." He started to explain after a moment of silence.
He had delayed in talking to her about those damn documents that were the mistake of his life, because he was concerned of worrying her, but he had been gravely mistaken. As she was right now, like a fragile leaf trembling in the way of the merciless wind, he deeply regretted his decision.
The only option right now was to tell her the truth, and explain to her what had caused the documents to be completed by the both of them. He feared that were he to lie, it would only agitate her further.
The problem was that Zane was not aware of exactly how frail Aria really was, or better said how frail her heart was.
A forth, a fifth, a sixth... numerous chains broke with the words he uttered, until it felt like there was only one single chain holding the reborn soul in place.
"Why? Why have you not told me about the contract?" She hadn't meant to sound so harsh, but inadvertently this was how the words came out from her mouth.
She really did not care for the motive behind the contract, as she hadn't been the one who had signed the documents. But him withholding this information from her, this was the most important. As such she hadn't left him explain his reason, and interrupted him with the present question.
"You are frail right now. With the pregnancy and your coma, I was afraid of something..." He immediately started to explain, feeling an urgency he had never felt before. Aria did not seem to listen to his words, at least not the meaning behind them. The words seemed to enter her ear only to come out the other at this point.
'You see the shield that he placed around you as his protectiveness, but are you sure that's all there is to it? Is he really protecting you, someone who replaced the real heiress, or is he being careful just because of the children? Is he only afraid you could unexpectedly abort the heirs inside your womb. The heirs to the Langdon and Black fortune!'
With the last of her strength, she suddenly pushed his body away, before he could finish his explanation. The force which her feeble hands could muster at this moment could never compare to his power normally. Right now, even less strength she could manage to use to separate herself from Zane.
But as he was not prepared for it, and because he also never forcefully kept her in place, fearing causing harm to her small body, it was quite easy to push him two steps behind, as she also moved away.
Only at this moment, did she raise the tear stained hopeless face to look at Zane.
She had blindly trusted the man she loved, as such the consequence of finding out the truth from another even more impacted her state. The more one trusted, the more the recoil from a lie would hurt.
"Snap." She heard inside her chest... It was an inaudible sound to the outside world, but it did not mean she did not feel it with every fiber of her being.
It was the last chain that had kept her soul inside this body after all.
When helplessness takes over, what is left instead of a soul is only an empty shell.
Heart is true, but unacknowledged will cause the hopeless girl no place left to dwell.