Delon's pharmacy was shutting down for the day. Stephan's sales manager was gathering the day's sales while Stephan was putting his papers together in his office. Stephan spared his watch a glance,he still had time before Delia would get off work.
"I knew you would still be buzzing" Stephan heard an all too familiar voice from the doorway. "What the hell? Adam Hudgens!" Stephan sprung up with excitement.
"In the flesh" Adam laughed,bringing Stephan into his embrace. "What's the occasion? How did you get here?" Stephan gushed as he pulled away.
"What? I can't visit my little brother anymore?" Adam laughed,propping into a nearby sofa. He was still in his work clothes,just like Stephan,so Stephan gathered that he must have had something to do in town.
"Closing another deal?" Stephan inquired,taking the seat beside his. "God,it has not been easy. Remember that steel company dad has been obsessed with,Jeremy finally acquired it" Adam explained.
"Damn,that's what we call an expansion. You guys are so good at this,really" Stephan commended. "I did nothing bro,just signed papers while Jeremy did all the work" Adam chuckled.
Stephan almost forgot himself,listening to every tad bit of information his brother was giving him in their catch up session. It'd been so since he'd seen any of his family around so Adam's visit felt like some holiday of the sort.
Stephan loved his brothers. Holding last as a birth rank afforded him the comfort of two shoulders. He had to give himself the accolades for rarely putting them to use though,he'd always had that independent string,the need to do things for himself by himself. But that didn't stop his brothers from always putting him before anything else and offering their shoulders. And although he hadn't noticed,he did seem to need a shoulder now more than ever.
"Don't you feel bad for leaving him to all the work at headqaurters?" Stephan question as he and Adam made their way out of the pharmacy. They'd taken their time sauntering about the three-storey building as Stephan had to carry out his routine evening inspection before letting the workers close up.
"Not really. He was rather elated that he didn't have to travel. You know how he is,hates moving around and all" Adam shrugged. Jeremy had always been the most reserved brother,always reserving his thoughts on his next action to himself.
Stephan nodded with a laugh,recalling how much Jere's reserved nature had caused people to believe he and Adam were the more mischievous ones,whilst Jere had always been the mastermind behind their shenanigans.
"You coming with me?" Stephan questioned as they reached his car,noticing an austere car at the other end of the parking lot. "Nah,I'm here with a car. We can meet up at the house,same address right?" Adam told him with a light tap of his shoulder.
"Yeah,you can go ahead. I have to pick Delia up on my way back" Stephan informed. "Oh,my Flower. It's been so long" Adam smiled. "I'd meet you both back at home" he stated before striding towards the car Stephan had noticed. Stephan loved how much his family adored Delia,like she'd been born right into their family from the start,she was made to be theirs.
It had been a short drive,not that the distance was short but Stephan had his speed make it so,he didn't want to keep Delia waiting and he believed he'd expended some good amount of time.
He'd reached the studio in no time and parked the car just by the corner. Sparing the building a glance,he noticed that it looked pretty much closed for the day with the lights turned off and windows tightly shut. It caused him to second guess Delia's presence at the studio.
He recalled sending her a text that there might be a change in their dinner plans and he wondered if that had caused her to take a different course of action. Taking out his phone,he dialed her number.
His brows furrowed when she didn't pick up even after the sixth beep,causing him to raise his gaze to his surroundings again,in search of her. His eyes had ignored it at the first scan but looking back,he spotted Delia climbing down from some car he barely recognised.
He unknowingly watched for a longer time,Zac climbing down as well and attempting to somehow calm Delia. The exchange between the two was as much interesting as mind-boggling for him.
Meanwhile,the call was still beeping and its status remained unanswered. He wondered what the degree of impertinence of their discussion held that she still hadn't picked his call.
Just then,the receiver got connected and Delia's voice resonated through the speakers of his car. "Hello" She breathed heavily,so heavy that Stephan could almost believe she was distraught. Staring at her from the opposite side of the road almost affirmed it,her face and body language morphing into stressed and disturbed nuances.
"Hey,I'm right by the street" Stephan managed to bring himself to say. "Oh,okay" Delia replied before bringing the call to an end. She crossed the street and was getting into the car the next minute.
"Hey" Delia told him as she settled beside him. "Hey,how was work?" Stephan smiled,pleading with his feelings to not let jealousy get the best of him. She looked genuinely tired and he didn't want to make it worse. Maybe later,he would try to talk to her later.
"It was okay,you?" Delia smiled,putting her seatbelt on as Stephan turned the car on again and continued down the street. "Same. Had some normal patients,some abnormal ones..." Stephan trailed off,causing them to chuckle.
"The day is never complete without those nerve wracking clients" Delia added. "Exactly"
"So,you said you had something to tell me" Delia reminded him. "Oh yeah,Adam's in town" Stephan told her,causing Delia's face to light up almost immediately.
"Really? Oh my God,that's so nice. Why didn't you tell me sooner? I don't have anything planned out" She cheered. "I didn't know either. He just showed up right when I was about to close the pharmacy for the day" Stephan explained.
"Oh my gosh,so where is he?" Delia questioned,relaxing back into her seat. "He headed home,I told him I had to get you from work" Stephan explained,focusing on the turn he was about to make on the street.
"This is bad" Delia breathed,causing Stephan to spare her a glance right after he'd made the turn. "What's that?" He questioned,looking between her and the road.
"The house is empty. Odette was meant to go shopping tomorrow" Delia expounded. "We need to go shopping,Stephan" She told him. "Uh,right now? Can't we do take out? It's going to take a while to get everything prepared anyway" Stephan suggested.
"That could work" Delia thought out loud. A while of silence settled between them,causing Stephan to rethink. "You know what,I think we could just go shopping. It's not that late" he suggested.
"Right?! Shopping it is" Delia cheered,her bouncing in her seat causing Stephan to give off a laugh as he changed the direction of the car.
"Why do I have this feeling that there's an ulterior motive in this our late night shopping?" Stephan laughed as Delia linked her hand into his whilst their walk through the parking lot. He laced his fingers into hers thereafter,just as they walked through the doors of the mall.
"Stephan,I know the four digits of all your cards. I don't think I need a plan this shabby to do whatever" Delia laughed as well,as Stephan took out a shopping cart.
"I don't know if that should be assuring me or scaring me" Stephan stated,feigning a frightened expression which had them both laughing as they loomed through the aisles of the mall.
Their jokes,squabbles and banters had Stephan thanking his lucky stars that he had agreed to shopping. It had never been his forte but being here with her,it reminded him of their old days,it felt like they were reliving and finding some lost part of them and it was bliss.
"We're not getting that Stephan" Delia opposed as Stephan picked out a pack of sausages. "Why not? I thought you loved this stuff" Stephan's brows furrowed as he stared at the item in his one hand as the other now pushed the cart.
"I do. But I...don't just like to eat it" Delia shrugged before moving past him. Stephan looked between her and the item before putting it back in its place. He wondered what could have changed,that had almost been her favourite thing in the world. She couldn't have a meal without them.
"Hey,Stephan" She called from where she stood a few metres away from him,picking out a bucket of ice cream from the fridge. "Yeah" Stephan got pulled back to earth,continuing in his way towards her.
A grin had grown on Delia's lips and it had Stephan's lips curving into one as he approached her. "Remember the first time I brought you shopping and you almost panned out" Delia reminded,causing them to laugh.
"Not almost baby,I panned out. Like the hell,I can do groceries,clothes and all this kitchen stuff,but I cannot handle shoes,ever" Stephan opined,which only earned more laughs from Delia.
"It wasn't even that bad. We were in the mall for barely an hour or two" Delia shook her head as she laughed,the scene replaying in her memory. "That's what you think,Lia." The name had rolled off Stephan's tongue so easily and struck a part of Delia,causing her to pause in her tracks and look to him. It'd been ages since he called her that way,she realised it was one of the reasons she'd felt so far from him. She realised she also hadn't noticed it that morning.
"What is it?" Stephan questioned with a small yet concerned smile,like he'd noticed the exact same thing. "Nothing" Delia shrugged. "But just look at you now,you're here pushing the cart and shopping at night" Delia mused,walking backwards before him.
"Yeah,I must give it to myself. Care to see what else I can do?" Stephan suggested,leaving the cart and closing the space between himself and Delia. Delia felt her smile lopside,the smirk on Stephan's face wasn't the friendly kind.
To her great misfortune,her escape reflexes had been rather slow because she'd barely taken a step backward before Stephan's arms came around her.
"Stephan,no! Stephan,no!" Delia shrieked,as she got hoisted by her waist and by taking just two strides,found herself being placed into the cart by Stephan.
"No!" Delia cried between laughs while Stephan had been fully overtaken by his laughs. "I'm going to crush you when I get out of here Stephan" Delia threatened as Stephan picked out more buckets of icecream.
"If you get out of there" Stephan grinned,a grin that Delia wished so much to wipe off his face but found herself mirroring as he got to pushing them down the aisle.
"Oh Lord,Stephan please. I look like a baby" Delia pleaded,becoming frustrated by the amused looks she'd been getting from other people in the mall. "That's not a problem. You're my baby after all. Just tell me what you need and it's done" Stephan chided.
"Good God" Delia rolled her eyes despite of the smile still over her lips. In less than an hour they'd been here,he'd made her feel chills and tingles nothing less that three times.
That didn't stop her from throwing several punches at him when he'd finally lifted her out of the cart,which anyway was when they were about to pay. She doubted if her fists had done anything to him. Even though he'd whined like a little child,she knew they'd affected him little.
The drive home had been short or so they'd thought. Or perhaps they'd been too engrossed in miming the lyrics of the songs which had blared from Stephan's car speakers.
"Adam! We're back!" Stephan called out as they walked through the front doors. They headed for the kitchen to place the grocery bags down. Delia exited in search of Stephan's brother while Stephan stayed back,going ahead to sort out all they'd picked from the mall.
"Oh my gosh,Adam!" Stephan smiled,hearing Delia shriek from a distance he could assume was the hallway. "Flower!" He'd heard his brother holler back,the image of him engulfing her in his embrace like he always did flashing across his mind causing his smile to widen.
He'd been just about to make his way out of the kitchen when the buzzing of a phone on the counter had his threading coming to a stop. He retracted his steps to stare at the caller ID,as he'd realised it was Delia's phone.
He immediately wished he had paid it no attention,feeling a part of him get triggered for the nth time that day. Why the hell was Zac calling his wife by whatever time it was in the night? He glanced up the screen,8:47pm it read.
"I swear I was this close to forgetting what you looked like" Adam's muse and Delia's laugh pulled Stephan out of his reverie. Stephan tried his best to compose himself,to tame the jealousy which had not only sprouted but was now almost fully grown in him. He didn't want to ruin the good air.
"Seriously,you and Steph have been so scarce" Adam told them,taking a seat on a kitchen stool. "I really don't know what is wrong with us,but we'll fix it" Delia stated calmly,coming up to Stephan's side and giving him a knowing look.
"Are you okay?" Delia questioned,her gaze growing with told concern at the stiffening of Stephan's arms under her hold. "Uh,I'm fine" Stephan tried to deny. "I was just thinking of the time it would take to put dinner together" He managed to tell her.
"Oh,Adam already got that covered. Although he really didn't have to. Are you hungry?" Delia questioned again,her concern morphing into worry as she watched him. He was trying so hard to hide it but she could see right through his tactics. She knew something was on his mind,she'd know right from when she'd gotten into the car that evening.
"Maybe. A little tired too" He shrugged. "I'll just freshen up and meet you guys out back" he told them before exiting the kitchen. Delia stared at his retreating back wondering what could have made him this way. He'd never been an impulsive person so she was almost sure there was something. At least he'd been okay all evening.
"I don't think he's okay" Adam told her,earning her attention. "I don't think so either" Delia sighed,shutting her eyes for a few seconds. She easily got affected by the slightest change in his countenance.
"Don't be so hard on yourself Flower,you know he always comes around" Adam told her. "In the meantime,we should set dinner up while I get to catch up on everything I've missed so far" Adam smiled,causing Delia to do the same. She loved the Hudgens family,she'd always believed they were specially made for her.
She was just about to exit the kitchen after Adam when a notification buzz from her phone laying on the kitchen table caused her to pick it up. The message from her forum of artists hadn't been her concern,it was the notification which read,Missed call - Zac,8:47pm.
"Oh,not this" she sighed exasperatedly. It wasn't so hard to put the pieces together,Stephan had probably seen the phone ring. She knew he'd probably seen her coming from Zac's car earlier that evening because he'd been waiting for her.
And like any other logical human,she understood if he had misread the situation. Even if he hadn't,it looked very wrong. She had to try explain things to him,maybe after dinner. Besides,why the hell was Zac calling her at night? Did he want to see her marriage burn down to nothing?
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