Falling for Him

CHAPTER 2

Arya’s POV

---1 year ago---

Just like one of those mornings, I woke up to the screaming and shouting of my parents. I lay there listening to their muffled voices, insulting and begrudging each other, as usual. I heaved a sigh of frustration and got myself to push the duvet off of me. I went into the washroom to do my morning business. While brushing my teeth, I heard a loud thud that had me standing frozen staring at my reflection in the mirror. Maybe my head was overreacting. Maybe I heard it wrong. I can’t think like that. I rushed out of my room toward the master bedroom on the 2nd floor. As I climbed the stairs, I saw Abe standing at the threshold of my parent’s room. I went to stand behind him, my heart pounding in my ribcage, tapping his shoulder with my hand. He turned around, looking at me with teary eyes and his face stern and angry.

“What happened?” I asked in a hoarse voice. I was too scared to know the answer. He stood there, sweat drops visible on his forehead, silent tears slipping from his blue eyes, staring at me with a blank face. “ABE!!” I shook him hard. His face was scaring me. His tears gave me an idea of the events that took place. “What the hell happened??” I screamed. He looked at me, as if just realizing my presence. His tall frame bending down to my height as he threw his arms around me, holding me so tight, crying hysterically, as if I was his only hope, his savior, the only one who could turn time around. I turned to look inside the room. And what I saw had me gasping for air. I couldn’t breathe. No! No! NO! I pushed Abe aside. No! No! This isn’t real! This isn’t real!

“NO!” I screamed. I ran into the room, crouching down at the body that belonged to my mother. She lay there, trying to grasp for breath. Her eyes were lazy and fazed, as if she was preparing to leave us all behind. Her head had a wound that was bleeding uncontrollably. I couldn’t get my heart to calm down. I needed to be in control. I looked around to find my father, staring at my mom with a tear-stricken face holding a lamp in his hand, covered in blood. I suddenly realized what had happened. This had gone too far.

I placed my hands on her wound, trying to stop the bleeding. “Call an ambulance!” I screamed. My father looked at me as if the realization had just hit him. He was too shocked to make a move. I looked at mom, my tears falling uncontrollably, “Mum. Mum, you’ll be fine. Hold on to me. You’ll be fine.” I kept reassuring her. Abe and dad didn’t make a move. I screamed again, “Abe! Call an ambulance! NOW!!” Mom held my face in her bloody hands, “I… I love… I love you baby.” She said, trying to smile through the pain. “No mum. You hold on. Don’t you dare say good bye! Don’t you dare! You’ll be fine.” I tried to convince her as much as I was trying to convince me. “You’ll be okay. You’re not going anywhere.” I was beginning to lose hope. “ABE!!” He finally moved, grabbing a cordless phone from the night stand, dialing 911. I kept assuring mom she would be fine. “Learn to forgive your father. He is a good man.” She said as her eyes fluttered closed. Soon the ambulance arrived.

Everything from there happened in a haze. The paramedics brought a stretcher, placed my mother’s half lifeless body on it and took her to the hospital. Dad didn’t move. He stood there blank, motionless, eyes red and teary. Abe and I followed the ambulance. Mom was taken into surgery. Doctors said the situation was too critical, and they couldn’t conclude anything before the surgery. The wound was too deep. She had lost a lot of blood. They could only wait and observe after the surgery.

The next three nights were spent in the hospital. Abe and I didn’t leave her side. Mom looked so weak and fragile. She was alive. The surgery was a success, but she didn’t wake up. The doctors said her body was in too much of a shock and pain. Her defense mechanism is probably letting her sleep through the pain. Her body needed time to heal. She was in a self-induced coma. She would wake up. We just didn’t know when.

Dad was taken in by the local PD. We had filed charges but he denied them. He was let out on bail, and had turned up at the hospital. He had guilt in his eyes, but neither me, nor Abe could care less. He did this to her. This time he crossed all the lines. This time he broke us. We had a word with the local PD but Detective Johnson told us that he claimed it to be an accident in the heat of the moment. They couldn't take him in until they had solid proof or an alibi against him. "What about the finger prints on the lamp, that should be enough proof!" Abe asked, seething.

"Sir, your father hasn't denied hitting her. He just claims it to be an accident. We can't hold the fingerprints or the bruises on your mother's body against him. We need your mother to state that he was the one who tried to harm her. Only then can we do anything about it." I scoffed.

"This is absurd. We are her kids! We've seen all that has been going on in that house. He hit her, abused her, tortured her EVERYDAY! You're saying you won't even consider our statements?" I almost screamed in frustration.

"If this has been going on for so long, why didn't you file charges earlier?" The detective asked, raising a brow.

That had both Abe and me staring at each other. He was right. We didn't take action before, so our statements seem baseless. We didn't do it because our mother never let us in the hopes that her husband will go back to normal. I left them there, i couldn't believe all that was happening. "I'm sorry sir. We can't do anything until your mother wakes up and confirms all this. I wish we could do more." I heard the detective say.

When I reached the room my mother was in, I saw Dad sitting next to her, holding her hand.

"Leave." I said, gritting my teeth. Dad looked at me, with tears running down his face. He looked guilty. He wanted to apologize. “I’ve been so wrong, I need to right these wrongs. I'm so sorry, Arya baby.” He said. I couldn't stand to be in the same room as him. "I said Leave now. I will not tolerate you in the same room as her. When she wakes up, she can decide what she wants to do with you. But I'm not your baby. You can't be my father! You and I are over. So just leave!" I seethed. He got up with his head bent in shame and left without another word. I sat on the chair dad had just vacated, holding mom's hand and letting my tears out. No matter how much I deny it, he was once a man I looked up to. I wanted to believe this was the time for his redemption, that he was actually the man my mother vouched for. But that didn't mean I could make it easy for him. I needed to hear him apologize to my mother. I needed to know she wasn’t wrong. I needed to make him suffer like he did my mother.

But a week after that incident, mum woke up. She didn’t remember those years of torture. Amnesia, the doctor said. It was like her brain had blocked out all the painful memories. She was in love with her husband again. Since, she couldn't remember, the police couldn't do anything. Dad used the opportunity as a clean slate, a second chance. The doctors didn’t let us tell her the truth because it could cause a lot of stress and put her back in the state of a coma, except this time she wouldn’t wake up. So we pretended.

We pretended to be a happy family. We pretended to love that monster we called our father for the sweet smile our mother gave us every morning. Dad apologized to us too. He pleaded for us to forgive him. But Abe and I couldn’t see past the devil he had turned into that awful night.

Eventually, we moved on in our lives, but it was getting difficult to put up with the sham of our fake family. Abe was mean and angry all the time. I hadn’t seen him smile even once after the night mom loved dad again. While I was trying to hold it all together only for the moments my mom was around during breakfast and dinner, it was getting hard to breathe in the same room as that man who tortured my mother. We shared meals together, we acted to be in love with each other and we would make our mom believe in a lie every day. And both Abe and I wanted out.

---Present---

At breakfast, we asked Dad to hand us over the Arians Inc. California branch. Obviously, dad threw a fit, while mom supported us. To think, the way we treated him after what happened a year ago, he would do anything for our forgiveness. I scoffed at that thought.

Dad planned on hiring a CEO for the head office to keep running the business. The CEO they wanted to hire was some billionaire tycoon, who apparently refused the offer. I don't know the reason, just that dad had been really counting on it and was devastated when he refused.

Dad clearly didn’t deem us capable of handling an entire branch on our own. So, I worked out a proposal where I suggested that Dad make Uncle Hank the running CEO till they don’t find the perfect fit. Abe could take over the branch under his wing. I could still train to be the VP and Abe for the future CEO. The branch was new and Uncle Hank would be able to run the business based on his own terms, at least to a certain extent, more than what he was right now. Uncle Hank obviously saw the opportunity and decided to side with our suggestion. And considering his relationship with Dad, he was the only one who could convince him to follow through.

The meeting in study was between Uncle Hank and my father. They were discussing the pros and cons of my proposal. After a few slams, heated exchange of words, my dad walked out slamming the door behind him and running up to his room. Uncle Hank walked out a few moments later, with a victorious smile on his face. He watched dad’s retreating figure and then shifted his gaze towards Abe and me, sitting on the couch, our anxiety pretty clear on our faces. “That was scary.” Abe commented nonchalantly. Uncle Hank only chuckled before taking the seat on the lounger sitting opposite us. He snatched the now empty packet of wafers and crumbled it in his hand. “Relax.” He said casually. “What do you mean Relax?” I blurted, running thin on patience. He looked up at the both of us, and gauging at our expectant faces, he smiled and said, “It’s done.” Abe and I exchanged looks, still not being able to believe our ears. “Will you please Elaborate Uncle Hank!” Abe asked, exasperated. Uncle Hank rolled his eyes, “He’s agreed to the deal. Will you two please calm down? Look at your faces!” Abe got up from his seat and gave him a bear hug. As unbelievable as it was, this was the first time I had seen Abe smile genuinely in the last year, the kind of smile that reached his eyes.

“Really? He agreed? Just like that?” I asked, eyes wide open. To say I was shocked, would be an understatement. “Well, I emphasized the pros of you both handling the business. How you will get the hands on experience by handling the deals on your own and how it would prepare you for the time when the business is officially handed over to you both once he decides to retire.” he said.

I knew that wouldn’t be enough, so I looked at him, raising my eyebrows. He let out a chuckle, “I hate that you know your father so well." He said, shaking his head. "When that didn’t work, I told him the truth. That you guys couldn’t put up with the act of loving him. Let’s face it, he knows the truth, he feels it.” He continued. I knew that would have hurt him to hear. But it was the truth. "And that had him agree. Of course, he wasn’t happy about it. I’m sure you heard him screaming at the end.” He said with amusement in his voice.

“I know my father, he won’t agree just yet.” I voiced my concern.

“It’s a done deal Arya, stop worrying about it.” Uncle Hank said, trying to reassure me with a gentle smile. But I knew my dad. There had to be a catch. My father wouldn’t agree with it that easily. He may have changed at heart for my mother, but he was a ruthless businessman. And no emotional blackmail would work on him. I won’t be surprised if he does find a way around it.

At dinner that night, the tension in the room was thick. Mainly because I could see Dad's brain working. We sat at the dining table, waiting for our dinner. My father sat at the head of the table. Uncle Hank and Abe sat on his right side talking about other business opportunities. Mom and I sat opposite them. Mom was telling me about her day at the boutique, but I wasn't listening to a single word. My eyes were stuck to dad, who was staring into the air, lost in his own thoughts. Mom noticed me and turned to dad, following my line of sight. Dad seemed angry, so she reached out to take his hand, giving it a light squeeze. He looked up at her with a gentle smile. Dinner was finally served. We ate in silence, till dad cleared his throat, grabbing everybody’s attention. We all stopped eating and looked at our father, as he finished chewing his food, swallowing the remnants by taking a huge swig of the wine and wiping his mouth with a napkin. He watched Abe and me with a serious look and proceeded to say, “Okay. I’ll let you two handle the California head office.” Abe and I exchanged looks, but Abe seemed happy. He patted Uncle Hank’s back, who sat on his right side, with a huge smile. Uncle Hank returned his enthusiasm. Mom reached out to me and caressed my cheek with a warm smile, which I returned. But I knew my father. I knew there had to be a catch. He won’t let this go easily. “But there’s one condition.” I knew it! I gave Abe and Mr. Hank a knowing look, to which they seemed slightly taken aback.

“You can both go to the California branch, if you can convince Mr. Samit to accept the post as the CEO.” Abe and I knew then, that it was an impossible task. Mr. Samit would never agree to invest in Arians Legal Inc. He had blatantly refused to invest in our organization for reasons unknown to me. “I thought, Uncle Hank would be the CEO.” Abe stated with a frown. My eyes traveled to Uncle Hank, and I saw a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes. Why won’t he say anything? I thought that was the deal.

“It’s okay Abe, your dad needs me here. Plus, you two can surely handle the situation, I’m sure of it.”

He knew it! He knew dad wouldn’t let him head that division! I glared at my father, who was absolutely unfazed. He didn’t hold an ounce of guilt for doing something like that to his friend.

My mother held my hand, squeezing it to help me calm down. She didn’t see what I saw. I knew the monster in him wasn’t dead. I just knew it. I will never forgive him! I couldn’t handle being in the same room as him. But I couldn’t just leave because of my mother. Just in time, my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID, thankful for the distraction. I picked up at the second ring. “Hey.”

“Where the f**k are you?” came her shrill voice as she screamed. I looked at my mother and then my father. Their curious gazes stuck on me.

My best friend Kiara, we’ve known each other for half our lives. Met in high school, became friends by the end of the semester and have been inseparable since. She is dating this cute doctor, but it’s quite a mess.

“Hold up! Stop screaming, and tell me what happened?” I told her, looking at my mom apologetically.

“He is such a jerk, Arya! I don’t even know why we are together anymore.” And that's how it always starts. “Calm down. Take a deep breath.” I told her, calming myself along with her because this was going to need patience and with my dad in the same room, I was holding on by a very thin thread.

I could hear her exhale a harsh breath. "Where are you?” I asked her when I felt she was starting to calm down a little. “Meet me at the spot.” She said before she hung up.

Arya- Don’t do anything stupid till I get there. Just keep breathing, I’m on my way. I texted her.

Kiara- I hate how you know me so well.

Reading that, a smile formed on my face. “Who was that?” Came my father’s cold voice.

“Kiara. I got to go. Excuse me.” I slid down my chair and got up from my seat, leaving behind the half-eaten plate of food. “Is everything okay?” My mother asked, her voice concerned.

I smiled at her, “Nothing I can’t handle mum.” I gave her a hug and left the room, running to the front door after grabbing my car keys. I needed time to think. And driving was the best mode of relaxation I experienced.