Love And Revenge

Part 5

Ava was having breakfast with Acel in her lap. Her eating routine paused when the pavilion door was knocked from outside. Ava glanced briefly at the door and then looked back at Acel.

"Acel, can you stay here for a moment?" Ava asked.

"No, I want to go too, Mama," Acel whined, still not accustomed to the atmosphere in the Lapileon family pavilion.

Ava smiled and gently pinched Acel's cheek.

"Alright," Ava said, then carried Acel to open the door.

After opening the door, Ava was slightly surprised to see that it was Asther who had come. Instinctively, Ava took a step back. Conversely, Asther was surprised by Ava's reaction and instinctively took a step forward.

"W-what brings you here?" Ava asked, a little nervous.

"Huh?"

Asther acted clueless when questioned by Ava. His gaze then fell on Acel, whom Ava was carrying.

"I, uh, wanted to invite you both to have breakfast at the main house. Jhein said you didn't need servants, and taking care of such a little child like this would be too much trouble for you," Asther said, still looking at Acel who was also now looking at him.

"No need, I'm having breakfast with Acel. Thank you for the invitation," Ava politely refused Asther's offer.

"Ah, I see."

Asther sounded disappointed, and Ava could hear it. Ava was about to go back inside, but she hesitated when Acel suddenly reached out to Asther.

"Uncle, carry me," Acel requested with a stutter.

Both Asther and Ava were surprised by Acel's request. Without waiting long, Asther then extended his arms to Acel. Ava didn't know how to hold her son back in this situation. Asther then picked up Acel and warmly smiled at Ava's son.

"Do you want to play with Uncle?" Asther asked.

Acel nodded eagerly, while Ava was about to stop Asther, but seeing Acel enjoying being held by him, Ava couldn't bring herself to stop her son.

"I'll take your son to the main house first, okay? Continue your breakfast! When he's done playing, I'll bring him back here," Asther said, taking his leave.

Ava reluctantly nodded in agreement with Asther's proposal.

***

"This is all the paperwork for the transfer of inheritance from Mrs. Evelyn to you and Mr. Asther. The process cannot be completed quickly because it's not a will but rather an inheritance transfer," Jhein explained to Ava as she read through the documents he had given her earlier.

Ava shifted her gaze from the paperwork to Jhein.

"How long will it take?" Ava asked, concerned about leaving her bakery for too long.

"I don't know, Miss Ava. It could take a month, but it could also take more than a month," Jhein explained.

"I see," Ava muttered, looking pensive.

"You can't go back to Maldavis yet because it will be very inconvenient to travel between Andorra and Maldavis. Poor Acel, he'll be exhausted," Jhein continued as if he knew what was on Ava's mind.

Ava looked at Acel again and then nodded softly, agreeing with Jhein.

"Oh right, speaking of Acel. Where did Asther take him to play?" Ava remembered her son hadn't returned since Jhein and Asther arrived earlier and Acel refused to leave Asther's side.

"Master and Mr. Asther are playing in the backyard of the pavilion. Mr. Asther asked me to make a swing for Acel."

"A swing?"

"Yes, Mr. Asther said Acel really likes swings. So he instructed me to make one."

Ava remained silent, listening to Asther's instructions. She then began to worry because she saw how close Acel was getting to Asther.

"Is this a fatherly instinct? What if Asther finds out the truth? I don't want to lose Acel," Ava thought to herself.

"Don't worry, Miss Ava. Master Acel will be fine with Mr. Asther," Jhein said, as if he knew what Ava was thinking.

Ava looked at Jhein, hesitatingly nodding her head. Not long after, footsteps were heard entering the pavilion.

"Asther," Ava called out, reflexively standing up when she saw Asther enter carrying a sleeping Acel.

"Please take me to Acel's room. He fell asleep after playing," Asther said.

"Sleep?"

Ava couldn't believe her son could fall asleep so easily. As far as she remembered, Acel was quite selective about who he would sleep with. Even Ava had to carry Acel for quite some time to get him to sleep.

"It's best if you accompany Mr. Asther first, Miss Ava. Our conversation is also finished, once this paperwork is ready. I'll take it to the notary for processing," Jhein interrupted Ava's thoughts.

Ava startled, then reflexively nodded in agreement. Shortly after, Ava led Asther to the room they shared with Acel.

"Put Acel to sleep here," Ava requested after arranging the pillows so that her son wouldn't fall off the bed.

Asther complied with Ava's request and laid Acel down on the bed. Shortly after, Asther looked at Ava and cleared his throat.

"I'll go now," he bid farewell.

"Um, thank you," Ava responded briefly.

Asther then walked away, leaving Ava standing in her place, watching his back as he walked away. When he reached the door, Asther stopped and turned back to look at Ava.

"Ava," he called out.

"Yes?"

"May I come here again tomorrow to play with Acel? He helps me forget the fatigue of working all day in the office," Asther requested, surprising Ava with something she never expected before.

***

Jhein, who also lived in the Lapileon family's main house, opened the door slowly. Jhein was surprised to see Ava carrying Acel who was crying.

"I'm sorry, Jhein, for disturbing you this late," Ava said.

"What's wrong, Miss Ava? What happened to Acel?" Jhein asked, panicking at the sight of Acel crying.

"He's looking for Asther," Ava whispered, revealing the truth.

Upon hearing Ava's words, Asther, who was coming down the stairs, hurriedly approached them standing at the doorway.

"Why didn't you just call me? Why did you have to come here?" Asther said, taking Acel from Ava's arms.

"Uncle," Acel whimpered, immediately wrapping his arms around Asther's neck.

"It's okay, Uncle's here now," Asther said, gently patting Acel's back.

Jhein and Ava both looked at each other, observing the closeness between Acel and Asther.

Asther had just come out of his room. Acel seemed to have fallen asleep. Asther then approached Ava, who was sitting on the sofa in front of his room. They exchanged glances for a moment, and then Asther smiled faintly.

"Come into the room! It's late already, you can use my room to accompany Acel," Asther said.

"No need, I can take Acel back to the pavilion," Ava quickly refused.

"What if he cries again and looks for me? I won't sleep in the same room with you. I'll sleep here. When Acel gets fussy and looks for me, you can leave," Asther said.

Ava fell silent, unsure whether to agree to Asther's proposal or not.

Finally, after all the persuasions from Asther, Ava agreed to sleep in Asther's room. Asther himself now sat on the sofa and was reading the documents he needed to understand before the meeting tomorrow. Asther then looked at the wall clock when it struck twice, indicating it was already 2 in the early morning.

"I still can't sleep," Asther whispered, then gently rubbed his face.

Asther then took a small bottle from the table. He took two sleeping pills and drank them with the help of the wine that had been accompanying him while working. Just then, Ava came out of the room to get a drink.

"What medicine are you taking, Asther?" Ava asked.

***