5 Dinner
900 Words
Andrew returned from work ahead of time only to be told that his dinner had not been prepared. Seriously?
“Mr. Patrick and Miss Marge went out for dinner, so we did not prepare dinner.” The cook nervously cried out, almost in tears.
“What about Laurence?” There was some displeasure in Andrew’s tone.
“She said she’s not hungry and did not want to eat.” The cook’s legs were shaking.
Andrew gave a cold look and entered the villa. Suddenly his senses were bombarded with the tantalizing smell of food.
Everyone was stunned and when they saw Laurence setting the table with food.
Before Laraine could sit down to enjoy her dinner, she saw Andrew enter with a crowd of servants behind him.
She had an instinctive fear of Andrew.
But she plucked up her courage and went to greet Andrew, “Hello, Brother. You came back early.”
“Yes!” Andrew went to wash his hands in the bathroom, walked to the dining room, sat down at the place Laraine had set for herself, grabbed the spoon, and started to eat.
Laraine tried to stop him, “Hey, that’s my…”
“You’ve grown up and learned to prepare dinner. That’s good!” Andrew said, looking up at Laraine.
Laraine was hungry. But looking into Andrew’s eyes, she did not dare to argue and could only watch him enjoying her food.
At first, Andrew just thought these foods smelled good. But he did not expect that they tasted delicious as well.
When Laraine found that Andrew had no intention of inviting her to eat with him, she walked to the kitchen and made a bowl of instant noodles. She decided to eat in the kitchen to avoid being in Andrew’s presence. However, that idea was knocked out when she heard his voice.
“Come sit with me!” Andrew said, motioning her to sit with his eyes.
Overwhelmed by his presence, Laraine sat down opposite Andrew.
Looking at her sad and resentful face, Andrew smirked. He knew exactly what he had done. He grabbed some garlic bread and pushed the plate towards her. Laraine nodded in thanks and started to eat timidly.
Andrew ate gently watching Laurence slowly.
When Laraine finished her noodles, Andrew had finished eating and was wiping his mouth with his napkin.
Laraine took the bread and nibbled at it.
She could feel Andrew’s gaze on her but she did not dare to look up.
Andrew looked pensively at the girl sitting opposite him. Seeing the beautiful soft pink lips nibble the bread, he could barely breathe.
What was more, Laraine licked her fingers after eating.
Her fingers were beautiful.
“You should exercise more!” Andrew's eyes fell on her thin shoulders and he frowned.
Laraine looked up, “Um… am I eating too much?” She asked timidly.
“No, but you’re too weak. I could break you in half if I wanted to.” Andrew then turned to his assistant, “Make an appointment with the gym for Laurence from tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir!” Aiken answered and added the matter to his calendar.
Aiken has been Andrew’s assistant for a year now and knew everything about the family except Laurence because Andrew did not care about her before, so he had never paid any attention to her.
Laurence was shocked at Andrew. She did not expect Andrew to let her go to the gym. And she really did not feel like working out at the same gym as her siblings.
“Can I go to another gym? I… I…”
“No. Go to the one I say. I will be there in person.”
Oh, god! Laraine thought!
________
Several servants were immediately fired without even a chance to argue. They regretted their dereliction of duty and wanted to beg Andrew for a chance. But the housekeeper stopped them and asked the guards to drive them away.
The housekeeper understood that Andrew punished them as a warning to others that the family always came first and they should always follow everyone’s orders, including Laurence’s.
Early in the morning, Laraine was woken up by her phone. It was from her best friend, Daisy Clark.
Daisy Clark was a simple and straightforward girl. She was quite easy going and friendly which is why Laurence got along with her.
Daisy prattled on and finally came to the purpose of her phone call. There would be a party at her house and she was invited.
Laraine did not want to go, but she then thought of the gym thing and agreed at once. Then she called Aiken about changing the day to go to the gym. Thankfully, Aiken agreed to ask Andrew.
Nervously, Laraine waited for Aiken’s call.
She jumped when her cellphone rang frowning when she saw a private number. Shrugging, she picked up thinking it was Aiken.
“Laurence!”
Hearing the sharp tone, Laraine became frightened and replied quickly, “Oh brother! I didn’t expect you to call.”
“I’m at the company. You come here now.” Andrew ordered in an unnegotiable tone.
It was like she going to the teacher’s office to ask for a leave.
When Laraine arrived at the company, Aiken was already waiting downstairs. He led her into a fancy elevator.
Along the way, people whispered as they saw a pretty young girl going to Andrew’s office.
Ignoring the whispers as she was quite used to them, Laraine walked straight into the CEO’s office. However, when she saw Andrew, all her confidence slipped away.
In the office, Andrew was reviewing papers and did not even look up when he heard Laraine come in.
“What are your plans for today?” Andrew asked quietly.
Laraine wanted to escape. She did not want to go to the gym, least of all with the one person that terrified her.
“Um, my friend Daisy invited me to her party today.”
“How old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
“You’re eighteen. You are not a kid anymore! You are grown up. You should learn to take more responsibility!”
Laraine did not understand what Andrew meant. Was going to the gym an example of taking responsibility?
“You do not need to go to the gym today, but don’t do this again. Give me a plan for yourself tomorrow. You can leave now.”
From beginning to end, Andrew never looked up from his papers.
- Writer
