EXISTENTIAL
1176 Words
Ivy was getting ready to leave the water when someone rushed into the fountain area.
Their footsteps made her pause and look up.
“Anna! Where have you been?!” She questioned with relief, as Anna rushed over to her.
“Oh my bride. I have excellent news for you!” She said with such excitement, she forgot Ivy was requesting her help to get out of the water.
Her excitement contaminated Ivy, and she also forgot she wanted to move out of the water.
“What news, Anna. Tell me quickly please!”
“Okay,” Anna dragged her hand, and held it in her own hand that was jittery from joy. “Guess what my husband just told me?”
Ivy's face went blank. In what world was she supposed to know that not only Anna had a husband, he also told something clearly very exciting?
Her biased mind was starting to even feel a hint of irritation at the thought of her precious Anna falling for the propaganda that was men, but she pushed that feeling aside to listen to the woman she considered her dear friend.
“Anna, I can't guess. Come on, tell me already!”
“Okay, okay! I'll tell you. My husband is head of the security Division, second only to boss Hedeon. You must have met boss Hedeon. Broody, redhead, always—”
“Anna, Anna, get to the point please,” Ivy interrupted, but added a smile at the end to encourage her.
“Oh yes,” she blinked out of her head. “They're on their way to Sheila Greene's villa, Bride. They're going to bring your grandmother here! Isn't that wonderful news, Bride!” She pulled her hand away, to clap in sync with her excitement.
However, Ivy didn't share that feeling. The smile on her face wiped away, replaced by a feeling that something sinister was brewing.
Why else would her grandmother be brought to this place all of a sudden? It was clearly an afterthought.
Anna's jubilation slowed down when she saw Ivy didn't share in it.
“Bride? Did I say something wrong? Why is your face like this?”
Ivy double blinked out of her thoughts. “Could you take me to Vladimir?”
“Vladimir?” Anna's head doubled back, caught off guard by that request. “Bride, he's very occupied right now. The atmosphere is quite tense at the moment. I don't know if it's the right time to–”
“Please Anna.”
Something in her eyes melted Anna's heart. She couldn't refuse her.
“Okay, I'll take you. But first, you should get out of the water, and out of these clothes okay? What about the flowers you wanted?”
“I'll come back for it. Let's go.”
A couple minutes later, Ivy was all dried up and clothed in dry clothes.
“I'm ready now.”
“Okay, let's go Bride.”
They stepped out of the room together, and Anna took her straight to the information room.
The guards at the door stopped them from just barging in.
Anna spotted Ivy's face already squeezing with irritation, and stepped in.
“Please, brother. This is the boss Bride. Let us in. She has something important to discuss with him.”
The guard, stern faced, stared at Ivy from head down to her toes.
She refused to return his gaze, because she knew it wouldn't be with a smile on her face.
“Wait here,” he said in Russian to Anna, and then went inside the room. “Boss,” he walked over to Vladimir who had looked up when he heard the door open, and whispered to him.
Vladimir's eyes widened. His first thought was what Ivy could possibly want.
That question haunted him so much, he decided to step out himself.
“What's going on? Why can't we go in by ourselves?” Ivy asked Anna.
She opened her mouth to answer when the door opened and Vladimir showed up.
Ivy felt his presence, and her stomach instantly clenched.
“Is there a problem here?” Vladimir looked from Anna to Ivy.
She returned his gaze, their eyes holding.
Neither spoke for a couple seconds, but just looked at each other.
Feeling like she was interrupting, Anna took careful steps behind to give them space.
Her feet made a tiny sound just at the spot she had marked in her head she would stop, breaking the spell.
Ivy cleared her throat. “My grandma,” she said.
Vladimir's brows instantly lifted on hearing those two words. “What about her?”
“I hear you're bringing her here. Why? Is something wrong? If you're mad at me, and bringing her here to punish me, then please stop. Just punish me directly. Don't involve her.”
He scoffed, shaking his head. “I can't believe you right now,” he muttered under his breath.
“Sorry? You'd have to speak out. I can't hear you.”
“I said I can't believe you,” he raised his head, and his voice. “This is what you interrupted me to say?”
Ivy's forehead creased from confusion. “What have I done wrong? Why is asking you to leave my grandmother alone and punish me instead a problem?”
“Because you're assuming I'm bringing her here to punish you!” He frustratingly heckled.
“You're not?”
“No I'm not! But I'm not going to discuss this publicly with you. Heck, I'm not even discussing it with you at all. You can sit with your horrible thoughts about me by yourself.” He turned around to leave, but Ivy quickly grabbed a hold of his arm out of desperation.
That electric spark happened again, but she held tight, out of her fear and worry.
She spoke in a rush when he turned his head behind. “My grandmother is my life. She is everything and even more to me. If you say you're bringing her here to help her, how do I believe you?” She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath before opening them. “Please don't hurt her.”
Something softened in Vladimir's heart towards her..
Although she had pissed him clean with her remarks before, the vulnerability she was showing at the moment, spoke to him.
“I'm not going to hurt her. I have a philosophy that women are the greatest gifts on earth, even the bad ones. I try my best not to hurt them. But I still can't explain anything more to you at the moment. I have to go.”
Despite still being on edge, Ivy bobbed her head in acceptance. “Alright. Do what you have to do.”
He didn't budge, which made her confused.
“You're holding on, Ivy,” he pointed out.
“Oh.” Her hand dropped swiftly, and she moved back.
Vladimir turned right around, but a smile claimed his face, as he returned to the room.
- Writer
