Chapter 19 Maurice Lanfield
1395 Words
Elara's POV
I wasn’t looking where I was going.
That was the only explanation for how I ended up crashing into someone in the middle of a hospital hallway.
“I’m so...”
The apology died in my throat.
Because the man I had just bumped into wasn’t moving.
He was just… staring at me.
Not the normal kind of stare. Not the annoyed “watch where you’re going” kind. It was too focused and intense.
Like I had just walked into something I wasn’t supposed to.
For a second, I didn’t move either.
Up close, I could see he was wearing a hospital gown. There was a bandage wrapped around his arm, and his skin looked a little pale, like he hadn’t fully recovered yet.
But that wasn’t what caught my attention.
It was his face.
He was… handsome.
Not in the loud, attention-grabbing way some men were, by some men, I was talking about the annoying creepy jerk Jayden Bryes.
Jayden’s kind of handsome came with pressure. It was cold and sharp. The kind that made you aware of yourself.
This man was different.
His features were softer, but still defined. His hair was messy, like he hadn’t bothered fixing it, and somehow it worked for him.
But then...
His eyes.
I blinked.
The exact same shade as mine.
That alone shouldn’t have mattered, A lot of people had blue eyes.
But the way he was looking at me made it feel like it did.
Like it meant something.
My brows pulled together slightly.
“Do you know me?” I asked.
My voice didn’t sound as steady as I wanted it to.
He didn’t answer immediately.
He just kept staring, like he was trying to figure something out.
Or confirm something.
“It’s you…” he muttered.
I took a small step back.
Okay.
That didn’t sound normal.
“I’m sorry… what?” I asked, a little more guarded now. “Do you know me?”
That seemed to snap him out of whatever was going on in his head.
His expression shifted slightly, like he was coming back to the present.
Then his brows furrowed.
“You don’t remember me?” he asked.
I paused.
That question again... It gave me a sense of deja Vu.
For a second, I almost laughed.
Because of course.
Of course this would happen again.
I exhaled quietly, shaking my head.
“No,” I said. “I don’t.”
I watched his face carefully, expecting… something, any emotion. Either shock, annoyance... Or even joy.
Instead, he just looked at me for a few seconds, then nodded slowly.
“Oh.”
Just that.
Oh?
That was all?
I frowned.
“That’s it?” I asked before I could stop myself. “You just say ‘oh’ and that’s all?”
A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
It wasn’t wide.
Just enough to be noticeable.
“What do you want me to say?” he asked.
“I don’t know… maybe explain how you know me?”
“Would it help?” he asked calmly.
I blinked.
“What?”
“If you don’t remember me,” he said, tilting his head slightly, “I doubt anything I say would make a difference.”
That…
That was frustratingly reasonable.
And annoying.
I crossed my arms.
“Try me.”
For a second, I thought he actually would.
His lips parted slightly, like he was about to say something.
Then he stopped.
Just like that.
He looked at me again.
Longer this time.
Then he shook his head.
“Another time,” he said.
My eyes narrowed.
“Another time?” I repeated. “You’re joking, right?”
He didn’t look like he was joking.
Before I could say anything else, he spoke again.
“What are you doing here?”
The sudden change in topic caught me off guard.
“My son,” I said automatically. “He got injured.”
The moment the words left my mouth, I felt a shift in the atmosphere.
His expression changed, it was subtle but I noticed it.
“Son?” he repeated.
Something about the way he said it made me pause.
“Yes,” I replied slowly. “Why?”
He didn’t answer immediately.
He just kept looking at me again.
That same look from before.
Like he was trying to piece something together.
“You have a son,” he stated, repeating it again.
“Yes,” I repeated, this time a little more defensive. “I do.”
A short silence passed.
Then, for some reason, I added...
“They’re twins.”
I don’t know why I said that.
It just came out.
The reaction I got made me regret it immediately.
His body stilled.
Completely.
“Twins?” he asked as though he was still stuck on the fact that I had children.
This time, it was a question, but not a normal one. There was something behind it.
Something I couldn’t place.
I frowned slightly. “Is there a problem?”
“No,” he said quickly.
Too quickly.
Then he looked away for a brief second, like he was collecting himself.
When he looked back at me, his expression was different, but more controlled.
“I was just surprised,” he added.
I didn’t believe that.
“You’re acting like you know me,” I said slowly. “And now you’re surprised I have children.” not like it was general knowledge, but somehow I felt a comfortable talking to the stranger.
He huffed out a quiet breath, almost like a small laugh. “I told you,” he said. “You wouldn’t remember.”
“That doesn’t mean you get to act weird and not explain anything,” I snapped.
That earned me another one of those small smiles.
“You’re still like this,” he muttered.
My patience was officially running out. “Like what?”
How long did he know me for?!
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he pushed himself off the wall slightly, adjusting his posture.
Up close, I noticed it again.
The paleness and the slight tension in his movement.
He wasn’t as fine as he was pretending to be.
“You’re injured,” I pointed out the obvious
“I’ll survive,” he said easily, still looking at me with an expression I couldn't name.
That wasn’t reassuring.
“And you shouldn’t be standing here talking like this.”
“I could say the same about you,” he replied.
“That’s different.”
“How?”
I opened my mouth to answer.
Then stopped.
Because I didn’t actually have one.
He noticed.
Of course he did.
“Exactly,” he said.
I rolled my eyes slightly.
“You’re very annoying for someone I don’t know.”
“That sounds like a personal problem.”
I blinked.
Then, despite myself, I almost smiled.
Almost.
But then I remembered... “I still don’t know your name,” I said.
He looked at me for a second.
Like he was deciding something. Then he spoke, “Maurice.” he said with a small nod. “Lanfield.”
For a second there, I felt everything around pause.
Lanfield?
My brain took a moment to catch up.
Then it hit me.
My eyes widened slightly.
“Lanfield?” I repeated.
But before I could say anything else... He stepped back.
“I should go,” he said,
Just like that.
Like the conversation was over.
“Wait...” I reached out slightly. “You can’t just say that and leave..."
“I’ll see you again,” he said.
“What does that mean?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he turned.
And just like that... He walked away.
I stood there, watching his back as he disappeared around the corner.
For a few seconds, I didn’t move.
Didn’t think.
Didn’t even breathe properly.
Maurice Lanfield...
My eyes widened again, unable to believe what I heard.
“…Wait.”
I straightened.
“That was Maurice?”
My voice came out quieter than I expected.
No.
That couldn’t be right.
There was no way.
I had just stood there… talking to him like that?
Arguing with him?
I let out a slow breath, running my hand through my hair.
“What just happened…” I muttered under my breath.
- Writer
