Just as Mia wondered if her dream was just her imagination or an actual event in her past that she couldn't remember, Rien dreamed about the same memory that night but his dream was a little different because even in his sleep his Milena appeared vividly. He remembered every detail about her from what she wore on a certain day, her hair, her lovely face, every little expression in her wide doe eyes, every word that came out of her cherry lips, down to the sweet scent of pear and freesia on her hair and skin.
When she started crying so desperately and begged him, he wanted to kick himself on the head so hard. His heart felt like it had been ripped out of his chest and smashed by a wrecking ball. How could he make her cry like that? How could he make her think that way?
When she said, "You just couldn't wait to get rid of me", it felt like being stabbed in the heart. How could he make her feel that way? His precious little kitten, how could she think that? He just wanted what's best for her. He had been feeling guilty all those years because he knew she was a musical genius and could've gone to the best music boarding schools in the world to learn and be the star that she was meant to be but she wouldn't because of him. Everytime she quietly sat beside him and read business journals instead of music books, each moment she smiled brightly at him and made him feel better when he's starting to feel the pressure of his training, every gentle pat she laid on his shoulder when he argued with his father, every word of encouragement, every time she cheered her on and made her happy, he felt guilty. He had been holding her back and he felt bad about being happy that she stayed with him everyday. All along he felt he shouldn't be too glad and let her stay by his side to brighten and warm his every day like his very own sunshine when she could be out there shining her brilliance to the world. Seeing her so heartbroken made him doubt his intention, should he have been selfish? Was it better if he just kept her to himself and never let anyone else see her beauty? Would that have made her happy instead?
Happy. That was all he wanted to make her feel, the way she made him happy everyday. How could he fail so miserably?
Then she said, "You don't have to love me back." Rien knew he had tried so hard to hold himself back. She was too young. She just turned 16 that day while he was already a young adult at 19. He had hated and tortured himself for a long time because it was so hard for him to hide what he truly felt for her. He didn't know when it started but he felt something has changed inside him one day. He no longer just wanted to protect her, dote on her and take care of her like an older brother, he wanted something more but he knew he couldn't do anything about it so he kept it to himself.
Rien held the crying Milena in his arms tighter and blamed himself again for her tears. Yes, he couldn't love her the way he wanted to yet but did he not care for her enough to feel a little more confident in her status in his heart? Everyday that he took care of her like the most precious and fragile porcelain doll that he held dearest to his heart over the years, she never knew how much she meant to him? Did she not know that she was the most important person to him? Did she not know that she was the only reason he woke up everyday? Did she not know that she was the other half of his soul and without her the world will lose all its purpose for him? Did she not know that one word from her and he would cross every sea and climb every mountain to grant her every wish? Did she not know that if she wished to touch the stars, he would build a ladder to the skies with his own hands so she could reach them? Did she not know? How could she not know how much he loved her?
At that point, he didn't care anymore. It wouldn't matter that his parents would disown him. It wouldn't matter what anyone else thinks. It wouldn't matter that he would lose the respect of others. It wouldn't matter if they judged him for what he felt for his Milena. It wouldn't matter that it would be impossible for anyone to believe that he loved her with the purest intentions, that he was willing to wait for her to be old enough to choose to be with him. Even if he was persecuted or died for it, he just had to let her know. He couldn't keep hurting her like that.
"I love you." His voice broke as he squeezed her tighter into his body as if holding her any looser will make her disappear. He choked on his tears and the overwhelming emotion that he felt. The perfect lofty and reputable facade of the future seigneur was broken down to reveal a vulnerable man. She was his only weakness and at that moment, he had revealed that truth to her. "I love you so much, Milena. I'm sorry."
"What did you say?" Milena gasped as she slightly pulled herself away from embrace and looked at his face with wide innocent eyes. "Say it again."
Looking into her eyes, he smiled softly. "I'm sorry, ma minouche." He knew what she wanted to hear but he liked teasing her. Her expressions were just too adorable to pass.
As he expected, she furrowed her perfect eyebrows and pouted as she hit his chest. "Not that. Before that."
Rien sighed as he concealed a smirk and brushed some stray hair away from her lovely face then tucked them behind her ear. "Milena, you know very well that I don't like to repeat myself. I already said it twice. You still didn't hear it well?"
"You're saying you don't want to tell me again?" She glared at him.
He shrugged. "I said what I said and I meant it. Was it my fault that you were crying so hard and didn't hear me properly?"
"Yes because YOU were the one who made me cry so hard." She pouted again and rolled her eyes at him. "Fine. If you won't tell me again, I won't talk to you anymore." She pulled away from him completely and turned her back to him then crossed her arms over her chest.
She meant it and he knew she meant it when she said she won't talk to him again. It wouldn't be the first time for him to experience her cold treatment either. Just before her birthday, she got angry at him for setting a business meeting in the morning of her birthday that she refused to talk to him for a week. She would sit it the same room or even beside or in front of him but won't say a word to him or even let him hold her hand. It was absolute torture for him not to hear her sweet voice call his name or see her beautiful smile for him. Rien never wanted that to happen again. Besides, he was just teasing her, there was no need to go that far.
He stepped closer to her and hugged her from the back then said, "Don't be angry anymore, ma minouche. I was just teasing you." Rien kissed her hair and whispered, "I love you."
He then gently turned her to face him and looked into her eyes. "I love you," he smiled softly as he cupped her cheek.
He leaned down then touched their foreheads and noses together, "I love you, Milena."
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as if to savor the sweet words he said then whispered, "I love you more, Rien."
Instinctively, their lips started to slowly gravitate towards each other as their hearts pounded wildly in their chests but before their lips touched, Rien quickly moved to kiss her cheek instead. When he immediately pulled away after that, she opened her eyes and looked at him in confusion.
"Why? That's not how it's supposed to be. You're supposed to kiss me on the lips. In all the romantic books I've read and movies I saw, after the man and a woman confirm their love for each other, they kiss on the lips. Don't you want to kiss me, Rien?" She blinked her beautiful doe eyes twice and her full cherry lips quivered. He had to use all the self-control in his body to stop himself from grabbing the back of her head and kissing those sweet lips until she was too out of breath to spout nonsense.
Who said he didn't want to kiss her? Of course he did, he wanted to kiss her so bad for so long that his palms now had multiple nail marks from all the times he had to clench his fists tightly until his palms bled to control himself but he had to wait for her to turn 18 for that. She was really just too charming and irresistible for his own good. He knew the next two years would be constant torture but he has to do the right thing for her.
He chuckled at himself and shook his head. He then smiled at her and playfully poked her nose. "Stop looking at those nonsense, Milena. You're with me. I'm the only man you should be paying attention to." He then pinched her chin and raised her face towards him. "Their romance is not my romance. I love you that's why I want to take care of you and treasure you. I can't just pick the most precious flower in the garden just because I want her. I have to wait for her to mature and bloom beautifully. Until then, all I could do is to bring her out to the sun, pull out all the weeds that grow her soil, make sure she had everything she needed to grow, put a fence around her to keep those who want to touch her away and break their hands if they insist." He smirked.
Milena giggled. "You would really break their hands?"
"Or shoot their knees so they can't walk closer to my precious flower. Depends on how annoying they are." He shrugged and chuckled.
She smiled, stood on her toes and flung her arms around his shoulders. "Then I should grow thorns so they wouldn't dare. That way, you wouldn't have to trouble yourself with breaking hands or shooting knees and focus your attention on pampering me instead."
Rien laughed as he hugged her waist tighter. "That's a deal then, pretty flower." She giggled and laughed together then their eyes met and they both stopped at the same time. Their eyes locked on each other as their lips slowly moved closer but when he felt her warm breath on his skin, he stopped himself just in time and moved to kiss her forehead instead. He sighed as he squeezed her tighter into his body and kissed the top of her head. "Two years. Just two more years until you're 18."
She sighed and nuzzled in his arms. "Sometimes I wish you weren't such a perfect gentleman. It wouldn't hurt to kiss me just a little you know." She then looked up at him with a naughty smirk on his face and Rien could only feel sorry for himself.
He sighed and shook his head. "This will be the longest two years of my life."
After he said that, rain started falling on his face. Rain? It didn't rain that day. He looked down at Milena who smiled at him and called, "Daddy."
Daddy?
Just as he was wondering, the earth shook and he heard a voice call, "Daddy, wake up!" It wasn't Milena's. It was Aric's.
"Young lord, perhaps this is not the best way to awaken the seigneur. We could get in a lot of trouble for this." Mister Samuel calmly advised the little boy.
"Mister Samuel, this is an emergency. I'm sure Daddy won't mind. He would even thank me for doing this." Aric said then squeezed water out of his water gun a couple more times.
Rien opened his eyes and found his son jumping on his bed and shooting his face with the water gun. "Aric Sebastian Fernandez!" He roared and his angry voice echoed across the entire top floor of the hotel. Everyone who heard was terrified except little Aric who stood proudly and smirked.
"Finally! You're awake, Daddy." The little boy said.
"Who wouldn't wake up to that?" Rien grumpily sat up and wiped the water off his face. "What's this all about? You don't want your tech lab anymore? I can have that building burned right now." He glared at his son who only snorted at his threat.
"Before you do that, Daddy, you should thank me first." Aric declared proudly as he looked down at his father. It was clear that he also enjoyed that he stood taller than his Daddy at that moment.
"Thank you? Thank you for barging into my room and disturbing my beautiful dream with your games?" Rien grumbled.
"No, Daddy. You have to thank me for waking you up and warning you that while you're up here dreaming your precious dream, downstairs in the restaurant someone is already stealing your wife." Aric sighed dramatically. "Poor Daddy… Losing his wife in his sleep while…" The young lord's sentence was cut short when his father sprung out of the bed and marched towards the bathroom.
The seigneur mumbled furiously, "I'll see who dares to try and steal my wife. He doesn't need his life anymore?"
Aric smirked when he heard his father and jumped out of the bed. He then told the steward as he walked towards the door, "Let's go, Mister Samuel. It's time for a good show."