Chapter 7
952 Words
"Wait...what just happened!? Am I hallucinating now?" Stanley said, glaring at the music box in utter shock.
He suddenly felt a chill all over, and a little panic as if his past was hunting him. He melted at the sudden sound of a bird. He looked around creepily, hoping not to find Ruby's ghost waiting for him for judgment.
He heard silent footsteps coming towards him. His eyes widened as he stared blankly towards the sound of the footsteps. He swallowed hard as the door creaked open.
"Stanley!"
He was jolted back to life. He sighed heavily!
"Why are you at my safe?" his father asked.
"I... I was just looking around." He stammered, struggling to get a hold of himself.
"Am I actually scared of that little girl?" he said in disappointment.
The little panic he had, had already drawn a bit of energy from his body. He reclined tiredly against the couch, unable to wave off the thought about the music box.
His mind was completely occupied by this thought for almost the entire time of the meeting. He drew in a deep breath when it was finally over.
He decided to ask his father about the music box. He wasn't sure he was going to give him an audience, given the crucial time of drawing the company out of crisis, but he wanted to try his luck.
"Father," he called out. He always found it cringe to call him "dad" since they were never close.
"Do you have a question for me, Stanley?"
"Ye.... Yes, but it's quite personal," he said with a glimmer of hope.
"Ask away," he said calmly.
Stanley was a bit surprised, his eyes lightened up at his father's positive response. His father had never been that calm, especially during the times when the company was in distress.
"Luck must be on my side today," he thought.
His father stood still, curious about what his son had to ask. They'd never really had a father-to-son talk ever since he became a grown up, just mere discussions about the company.
Stanley moved towards the safe and grabbed the music box.
"Who owns this music box, and where did you get it?" he asked inquiringly.
"Oh, that? You don't remember?"
"Remember what?" he asked, squeezing his face in confusion.
"Is there something I'm missing here?" he asked further, completely lost.
"That's your music box," his father revealed.
His brows arched.
"What?... How? When did it become mine?" Stanley asked inquisitively.
"I don't know... the orphanage packed it for us as part of your belongings when we adopted you."
"I was already 10 then! Why don't I have a memory of it? It doesn't make sense!" Stanley said, almost shouting.
"If you don't have any memory of it, maybe it isn't yours then," his father said, rather nonchalantly, while preparing to leave for his study room.
Stanley stood still, more confused than he had ever been. He wasn't able to move an inch due to the shock, and when he finally found the strength to move, he bumped into the entrance door.
"Ouch…!" he let out a painful cry.
The pain jolted him to life. He realized he had left the music box in his father's safe, and rushed back to take it. He accidentally pressed the play button on the music box while trying to grab it. The music brought back emotions, one he couldn't explain. Tears unconsciously rolled down his eyes. He cried bitterly, his tears now pouring in torrents.
He was jerked back to reality by the sudden slam of the door upstairs. He quickly turned off the music with his trembling hands and rushed to take his leave.
He fired the engine in his car and zoomed off, but he couldn't take his mind off the music box and what it had caused to him.
"What the hell is happening to me?" he thought loudly.
"Something isn't right somewhere!" he concluded.
Determined to get to the root of the matter, he decided to make a U-turn to his father's house to search deeper. He was sure he would find a clue that'd lead him to the truth, but his mind was too occupied by these thoughts that he forgot to activate his left indicator to signal to other cars, resulting in a clash with the car behind him, causing a fatal accident.
He was immediately rushed to the hospital in an ambulance with the other victim, and was taken to the emergency room.
************
Ruby's phone rang. It was Stanley!
She was immediately consumed by anger. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fist tightly, struggling to suppress the anger erupting within her.
She picked up the call, planning to hurl all insults at him if he said anything stupid.
"What do you want?" she asked immediately.
"Hello, is this Mrs. Edwards?" A voice came. Her heart melted. The anger in her suddenly subsided.
It felt strange. That was the first time someone would refer to her by her husband's name. She suddenly felt an internal satisfaction and happiness. She couldn't help it!
"Hello, am I speaking to Mrs. Edwards?" The voice came again.
"Ye.... Yes," she stammered.
"This is Sycamore hospital. Mr. Edwards is in the emergency room right now, and we need a family to sign a consent form to go into surgery."
"What?" Ruby yelled.
Her chest became cramped.
"Wha... What do you mean he's in the emergency room? What happened to him?" She trembled. Her breath hitched.
"Please, be here as soon as possible," the voice said without giving her an answer to her question.
She rushed outside to take a taxi, ignoring the curious looks wearing on the maids.
- Writer
