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22 / Misinterpretations & Appreciations
Somebody slap me.
This was all a dream, wasn't it?
As I turned around to follow the sound of Bryce's voice, it was almost as if the life had been sucked out of me. No, Bryce Valentino didn't show up with a banner, heart balloons, or a big teddy bear of love.
Instead, this was all I needed to see to make tears pour out of my eyes.
Mason.
My younger brother was driving.
After two years from his tragic accident.
The memories of me trying to get my younger brother behind the wheel again flashed before me. My eyes watched in amazement as Mason was driving Bryce's Ferrari. Bryce was sitting in the passenger seat with the windows rolled down. I noticed the biggest smile on Mason's face as he perfectly drove around the perimeter with concentration and confidence.
Witnessing everything, happiness was just overwhelming me.
I tried wiping the tears away once Mason parked the car on the curb, and the two got out. Mason tossed the keys to Bryce as he thanked him. I never saw the kid look so comfortable before. Bryce patted Mason's back for a successful test drive and headed their way towards me. Sniffling, I was frozen for a while until I just wanted to run to that — not so little — rascal and start bawling like a proud fan.
Where was Mom and Pops? They needed — no, scratch that — they had to see this!
Bryce had his blue eyes on me with a pleasant grin on his face.
Had Bryce been helping Mason this whole time?
Giving Mason a high five, tears streaked down my cheeks as I congratulated, "I thought I was dreaming for a moment. You're driving, Mason! I'm so happy!"
Mason snorted a laugh.
"Obviously, you're crying like a weirdo right now. It's a little embarrassing."
Before I knew it, Mason pulled me into a hug and whispered through the embrace, "I'm sorry for being so stubborn these past two years. You really did help me and Bryce made me realize it."
Mason, being the sweet brother he could be, even wiped a few tears away.
Turned out that Bryce was helping Mason get back on the road ever since he found out the night of Candace's welcoming party. It surprised me because I always thought that it would be impossible. All these questions started to flutter around me, wondering how in the world Bryce was able to do this.
When I asked, my younger brother simply shrugged and grinned.
"Bryce told me to let go of the past because this is now, and the future is waiting for me. I had to let go of my fears because that's what is drowning me. The motivational speech Bryce said was much more epic, but it was along those lines. Haha! And you know, since he trusted me in the hands of his car, I kind of had to do it."
I joked through a cheesy smile, "So my car just wasn't good enough for you, huh?"
Mason stuck his tongue out, and we shared a laugh.
When I turned my attention to Bryce, he had such a gentle expression. It was all because of Bryce Valentino. The delivery boy didn't have to do anything for me or give me anything directly to make me feel genuine happiness.
Walking towards him, I couldn't help but ask, "Bryce, why? Why did you do this?"
Bryce replied, smiling, "Because I know how it feels to be in that kind of position. Mason's still young and growing, and he shouldn't live his life afraid of driving. So with my incredible skills, I helped him."
He chuckled at his last words, causing me to join in.
Lowering my head, I mumbled, "You didn't have to though."
Soon, I felt the tips of Bryce's fingers lift my chin back up just so I could directly gaze at me. I felt my face growing hot as I tried to demand my eyes to look away.
His voice churned as his sky blue eyes brightened.
"I did it because I wanted to. You and I are the same, you know that? When you care about something or someone, you'll do anything in your power to make things work."
As if my heart couldn't stop beating any quicker!
These damn heartstrings.
Gently moving my head away from his fingers, I laughed quietly.
"And, because I also care about you, how about I get you a towel to wipe your face? I don't think a tissue is enough, your snot is getting everywhere."
Bryce sounded so serious yet was holding in a laugh.
Why was I not surprised?
Shooting him a look, I quickly wiped my nose with the sleeve of my cardigan and huffed.
Bryce chimed through his grinning, "I'm joking! So, are you surprised?"
Letting his taunt go, I nodded.
"Definitely. You really got me there."
Before I knew it, I found myself hugging Bryce.
I didn't know what took over me, but I was hugging that delivery boy.
Feeling the shot of shock run up Bryce's spine, I could tell that he was just as surprised. I had to thank the delivery boy for doing this, and I guess my actions got the best of me. Seeing Mason drive after all his struggles just meant everything to me. Slowly, Bryce's arms eventually tightened around me too.
Through the hug, I beamed, "Thank you, Bryce."
When we pulled away, I was probably seeing things, but there was a tint of red appearing on Bryce's cheeks, making me giggle at the sight. Bryce cleared his throat and swiftly glanced off momentarily.
Once Bryce seemed to have regained himself, he murmured, "It really is nothing. So, about the presentation —"
That was right, I couldn't forget the fact this shady Valentino left me like a fish lost in sea.
But, things all worked out in the end, right?
I faked a mad face.
"Oh, and thanks for leaving me like that."
Bryce smirked.
"It was worth it, right? Now, you can go around saying that you're the mastermind behind it. And Mason is a new person now. Oh yeah, was Logan any help?"
Logan.
The sudden memory of our conversation hit me again.
"Maisie... you have to stay away from Bryce."
Logan's words soon echoed all over in my head. Remembering how much his eyes were pleading me to listen made me wonder what was wrong. Why couldn't he answer my question? But then, I wondered —
Tilting my head, Bryce was now curious, noticing my abrupt silence.
I asked for an opinion, "Bryce, what do you do if you don't feel the same way another person does?"
Hearing this, Bryce's face fell into distortion, and his dark eyebrows furrowed together. I noticed him gulping, probably trying to find words to respond.
His blue eyes dropped to the floor until he nearly shouted at me, "Well then, I guess you can't do anything about it but to reject that person!"
No need to shout. It was harsh how Bryce said it.
Then again, I was just assuming Logan's motives.
Sighing, I nodded.
"You're right, but I don't know just yet."
A frown then appeared on Bryce's lips.
"You having mood swings or something, Daisie?"
"Look who's talking, Mr. I-Shout-My-Lungs-Out," I retorted back at him.
"That doesn't even make sense!" Bryce countered with a short laugh, making me look like an idiot.
The two of us stared blankly at each other for a moment until Mason jumped in. Mason slammed both his hands on our shoulders, letting out a broken laugh.
Mason chimed, glancing at our puzzled expressions, "Okay, one moment you two are hugging, the next I see you two looking like you're about to tear each others' faces off. Hey, why don't we show Mom and Pops me driving?"
Letting the subject drop, I shook my head.
"Sorry, this is stupid. You're right, we should be celebrating."
Bryce eventually nodded in agreement, his eyes wandered left to right.
"Yeah. For you and Mason."
Seeing the sudden resolved situation, Mason took a step back and folded his arms. My younger brother shook his head side to side before he grinned.
"Wow, you two are seriously confusing."
. . .
"I'm sorry if this isn't anything special," Mom expressed with a sweet smile on her face as she placed one of her hearty home cooked entrees onto the dinner table.
Bryce returned with a grin, his eyes probing the dish.
"No, I'm looking forward to try it."
As if the day couldn't get any weirder, Bryce Valentino was having dinner with the Lockhart family.
Mom and Pops were just as joyful and speechless seeing Mason drive. I was still pretty stunned even till now. My parents were even more shocked finding out that it was through the help of Bryce. In thanks and in congratulations for this very accomplished day, we invited the Valentino to have dinner with us.
To be honest, I was feeling slightly awkward having him here and sitting next to me in the dinner table. After our short, uncalled for argument, things got a little tensed between us. What made me wonder was why Bryce got all worked up by my question. I just wanted his opinion.
Mason pointed at the steaming seasoned chicken and promoted, "Bryce, you'll love this."
Pops, who was sitting in the head chair, looked over at me and hinted, "Maisie, what are you doing just sitting there? Why don't you offer food to our guest?"
Shaking my thoughts away, I blinked momentarily and found Bryce gazing my direction with a small amused grin on his face. Taking his plate, I plopped a little bit of everything onto it.
I expressed hesitantly, "I hope you like it."
"I'm sure I will," Bryce answered happily, grabbing his fork and knife.
All of us soon got our servings and began eating. As usual, Mom's cooking never failed to satisfy me — no bias intended. I did hope she would teach me her recipes soon. The tenderness of the chicken nearly melted in my mouth, and the pasta was perfectly made with her made-from-scratch sauce.
"This is amazing!" The four of us heard Bryce blurt out.
Surprised, I glimpsed over to my left and found Bryce chomping away at his plate of food.
I never saw him look so happy... eating.
Mason smirked, saying how he told him so. Mom and Pops both glanced at each other before looking back at Bryce with satisfied grins on their faces. And me? I was twitching into a smile seeing Bryce like a little kid, eating the food we enjoy on a daily basis.
Mom then spoke up, "I'm very happy you like it."
After wiping his lips clean properly, Bryce nodded his head.
"This is perfect," he then revealed after a sheepish laugh, "Actually, it's been forever since I ate a home cooked meal."
This left us all with stunned expressions.
Pops questioned in a gentle tone, "You don't eat dinner with your family, Mr. Valentino?"
Bryce answered through a polite smile, "Feel free to call me Bryce, Mr. Lockhart. Well, my parents are always busy with Phoenix Empire, we rarely eat together. And if we do, it's usually served to us. So, something like this is really refreshing."
I watched as his icy blue eyes dropped onto the plate momentarily before he lifted his head up with a more charming grin.
Bryce added, "It's okay though, this kind of opportunity means a lot to me."
Suddenly, Bryce switched the topic, "So, I'm sure you heard about Maisie, right? Without her, Legends Garden wouldn't be here anymore. Thank you, Maisie."
All eyes were on me now, and my parents had such proud smiles on their faces. Mason was pumping his fist in the air calling this the "best day ever". Despite me stifling a laugh, it didn't change the fact that I felt an aura of sadness from Bryce that moment. When I turned my attention to him, he grinned at me warmly, and I smiled back.
As we finished up dinner, I was helping Mom clean up the table. The two of us were both by the kitchen sink. Scrubbing the dishes clean, there were many things happening this day. Too many.
Most of all, it was Logan's warning that was circling around my mind.
Why should I stay away from Bryce?
Mom soon garnered my attention, "Bryce is really a sweet boy, honey."
Coming back to reality, I finally responded, "He is, Mom."
"Something on your mind, Maisie?"
When I shook my head indicating that it was nothing, Mom took a good look at me before saying she would take care of cleaning. Even though I insisted on helping her, she was already pushing me out to the living room where Bryce, Mason and Pops were. The three were taking about something on the sports channel.
Once Bryce caught sight of me, he stood up and politely cleared his throat.
"Guess I should be going, huh?"
Biting my lower lip, I shrugged.
"You don't have to."
Bryce shook his head, his eyes tinted apologetically.
"Actually, I would love to stay, but I have a meeting to prepare for early tomorrow."
After thanking my family for having him for dinner, Bryce soon said his goodbyes to my parents and Mason before the two of us were standing outside the front porch. The only light was coming off from the bright moon.
Closing the door shut behind me, I said sincerely, "Thanks for joining us today, Bryce. And for helping Mason, you don't know how much that means to us."
Bryce replied with a small grin, "You don't have to thank me for what I did. I helped Mason because I wanted to. Having dinner with your family was a great experience."
"About that, when you said that you don't eat —"
He cut me off, "You don't have to worry about a silly thing like that. I enjoy eating with the Lockhart family more. Anyway, I need to be the one thanking you. I admit I wasn't much help with the Legends Garden project, but it's because, uh, never mind. I knew you could do it."
Confused from his change of thought, I stood there until Bryce pointed out, "Even though I wasn't there, I knew the board would be impressed by you, Daisie."
Speechless, I quickly stammered, "It's probably because of my professional clothes, huh?"
I hoped that my comment would lighten our conversation. My hopes were granted when Bryce started to chuckle.
He winked.
"If you say so."
"Bryce, you're a really good person," I involuntarily confessed.
There was something in those blue eyes that twinkled hearing that.
However, in the end, Bryce quietly replied, "But, I'm not the one, right?"
Thinking I heard wrong, Bryce was already waving goodbye as he headed to his car.
"I'll see you later, Daisie. Good night."
"Not the one"?
Was this delivery boy kidding me?
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Random note: I posted this chapter on Feb. 29th. This won't happen until another four years, haha.
Dedicating this chapter to ViolentAsAToddler for always making me one happy girl.