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sunnypopoki · 1 day ago

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━ 𝐌𝐔𝐙𝐙𝐋𝐄 : P.5

(𝘠𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘧𝘪𝘢 𝘏𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘹 𝘍𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳)

𝗦𝗬𝗡𝗢𝗣𝗦𝗜𝗦: 𝘒𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘭𝘺. 𝘒𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘥𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯. 𝘏𝘢! 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘰 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨?

ᴛᴡ: ɪɴꜱᴇᴄᴜʀᴇ ʀᴇᴀʟɪꜱᴛɪᴄ ꜰᴇᴍᴀʟᴇ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ, ꜰᴏᴜʟ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇ, ᴍᴀʀʀɪᴇᴅ ʀᴇʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱʜɪᴘ, ʏᴀɴᴅᴇʀᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ, ᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍᴇꜱ, ᴏᴠᴇʀᴛʜɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ, ᴀꜰᴀʙ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ, ᴇᴛᴄ.

ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ ʜᴀꜱ ʏᴀɴᴅᴇʀᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ. ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴍᴇᴀɴꜱ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ᴡɪʟʟ ʙᴇ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜱ ɪɴ ɴᴏ ᴡᴀʏ ᴀ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ ᴍᴇᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴛɪᴄɪᴢᴇ ʏᴀɴᴅᴇʀᴇꜱ, ꜱᴏ ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ᴅᴏ ꜱᴏ ᴇɪᴛʜᴇʀ. ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ ᴅᴏ ɴᴏᴛ ᴄᴏᴘʏ ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ. ᴀʟʟ ʀɪɢʜᴛꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ʀᴇꜱᴇʀᴠᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴘᴏᴘᴏᴋɪ ᴏɴ ᴡᴀᴛᴛᴘᴀᴅ, Qᴜᴏᴛᴇᴠ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛᴜᴍʙʟʀ.

Р.4 / Р.6

A bell chimed the moment you walked through the doors of the restaurant. Warmth rolled down your back and you shivered, rubbing the cold out of your arms. Kieran followed suit behind you and whispered into your ear.

"Do you want my jacket from the back of the car?"

"I'm okay," you smiled up at him, "Inside is warmer than I expected it to be. I'll be fine."

The inside was just as grand as the outside. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling and soft music played over the speakers that were built into the building. You glanced around at the customers, chattering softly in low voices, reminding you of the mumbles your mother always made with her friends every time you got home from school.

A waitress walked up to you and smiled. Her lips were painted red, her skin smooth, and her brown hair pulled into a tight bun. She looked far more elegant than whatever you were wearing. You crossed your arms and smiled back.

"Welcome to Papillon. Seats for two? Romantic seating?"

"Oh no, uh, we are meeting someone here. His last name is Evergrown?"

The waitress perked when his name was mentioned. Her nails clacked against the clipboard she was holding. Something was unsettling about the gleam in her eye, almost greedy, as if she was viewing you and Kieran like bags of cash. "Oh yes, you must be Mr. Evergrown's guests. Follow me and I will take you to him now."

You blinked rapidly. He had to be a regular if she acted like that at the mention of his name. Glancing at Kieran from the corner of your eye, he slid his hand behind you to the small of your back, walking with you. He didn't seem that curious. He kept glancing at the people in the restaurant and the doors.

His head was obviously stuck somewhere else.

The hostess led you to a more private part of the restaurant where there were less people and fewer windows. The warm lighting cast shadows against the walls, showing off the numerous expensive paintings. The whole place gave off the vibe that they were trying to be cozy, but only ended up being more uncomfortable. One of those paintings had to cost more than your entire house.

Turning your head, you whispered to Kieran. "I thought this restaurant wasn't this fancy... Do you think we have enough money?"

His green eyes melted into liquid emerald. His cheeks dimpled ever so slightly when he grinned. "Yes, Котик. We have enough."

"Are you sure? What if we don't and—"

He drummed his fingers against your back, making you jump slightly. He chuckled, mumbling. "I assure you, we do. Pinky promise."

You bit your lip. Before you had a chance to make sure for a third time, a familiar face caught your attention from the corner of your eye. You almost stopped dead in your tracks.

You barely recognized Danny. The slicked-back kid you knew in high school was gone and replaced with a charming, handsome man with a dazzling smile. His brown hair was neatly cut, his face clean-shaven, and his hazel eyes twinkling with amusement. He wore a suit. A fancy suit that reminded you of your father; maybe because of the blue tie. His shoes peeked out from under the table and you noticed how glossy they were. He stood up when he noticed the two of you, jutting out his hand with a grin. He was a couple of inches shorter than Kieran.

The hostess stood by with a plastic smile. You didn't like how she was treating him like her boss. You didn't think he owned the building, after all.

"(Y/N), it's so nice to see you again," he took your hand and placed a chaste kiss on it, glancing at Kieran when he leaned back up, "and you too, Kieran. I see you're still following her like a dog."

"Well, she is my wife so it's expected."

So much for being on good behavior. You didn't miss the small snark to Kieran's tone or the way his hand curled around your waist and pulled you ever so slightly closer to him. He smiled back at Danny cheerfully. Oh, how could you forget? He was joking with Danny again. The two of them were like that in high school (only Kieran was a lot more rude back then).

Danny's eyes widened in shock at the new information. "You two got married?"

"Did you think I would follow her around like this if I wasn't?"

He looked confused. Glancing between the two of you, his lips quirked up into a smile, albeit a little forced, and he motioned towards the table for you two to sit. "Oh my, well, apologies. You always followed her around like this in school when you were dating so I thought it was the same. Congratulations on your marriage."

This wasn't Danny. Well, it was him, but it wasn't the young man you thought you knew. Time changed everyone but you never expected him to change this much. This version of him was far too charismatic, charming, and snooty. His gaze felt daring and judging towards everyone in his line of sight—and in that moment, it was Kieran and you.

You said nothing and sat down.

"Thank you. We've only been married six months so it hasn't been long."

Danny took the menus from the hostess before speaking. He watched her scurry away. With a clear throat, he asked, "And you're happy?"

Your eye twitched. Who was he to ask that? Maybe the years whittled down his polite nature because you were too shocked to respond right away. Irritation flooded your senses and Danny glanced up. The words finally found your lips.

"Of course we are. I didn't know that you lost your manners over the years," you deadpanned. It sounded a little harsh, but you didn't care all that much. "Unless it's now polite to ask that to newlyweds?"

Danny blinked and he chuckled embarrassingly. "Oh, I—I'm sorry. I wanted to ask since we've been friends for so long... I meant no offense. I just want the two of you to be happy together."

Kieran shifted through the menu and said nothing, however, you noticed him glancing up at Danny with an unreadable expression every now and again. Well, great, now you felt like the bad guy. Your lips zipped shut. You blamed it on the restaurant, it was leaving you on edge. The fancy decor reminded you of your childhood home and the table you were sitting at was uncomfortable.

You opened your mouth to find something to say in response to that. "Oh, I see—uhm..."

"Thank you for the concern, but I don't believe our marriage is any of your business," Kieran butted in. "Friends or not, some things aren't meant to be asked in a public setting, much less over a meetup like this. We haven't seen you in a while and we have no obligations to share our marriage details with you."

Danny's cheeks reddened. You could only silently agree with Kieran, watching as your old friend sunk back in his seat and bounced his leg up and down. "Ah. You're correct, I apologize. It seems I stepped over a line."

Kieran was always better at words compared to you. Even if you were going to study psychology in school, you weren't the greatest at controlling your own life, much less your words. You shuffled uncomfortably in your seat and said nothing when a waitress came over to take your orders.

"Red wine and baked spaghetti for me," Danny said.

"I'd like water, no food, and my wife wants..."

"Uh, I'll just take a black coffee."

You didn't think you could stomach anything else other than that. Your nerves were rattling your bones like drums. Plus if Keiran wasn't getting food, you didn't want food. You didn't want to think about how much a full meal would cost anyway. The waitress said nothing after she wrote down her orders and walked away. When her heels were out of hearing range, Danny cleared his throat.

"So, how has life been treating you two?"

You straightened up. "It's been well. I'm going to school and Kieran is working full time. There isn't much excitement going on in our lives as of right now."

Danny looked at Kieran. "Full time? You? You always hated working when we were in high school, always running off to skip class or break some type of rule. What are you doing now? How do you do it when you've always been so wild?"

Kieran shuffled to get comfortable, laughing softly at the jabs towards his younger self. "Ah, well, you could say I am no longer a fifteen-year-old boy, that's how. But to answer your question, I'm an editor and freelance writer."

You nudged Kieran's side softly. Just because Danny missed the way he was mocking him, didn't mean you did. The mocking went right over Danny's head and he beamed, turning to look at you now.

"Oh, that's amazing! What about you, (Y/N)?"

"I'm going into schooling for psychology," you scratched at your neck sheepishly. "Not as creative as what Kieran is doing, but I try. I've always enjoyed the thought of helping people."

Danny's eyes sparkled and he leaned forward at the table. His hazel eyes softened and a glimmer of the old Danny shone through for a second. "Yeah, you've always been like that. Empathy has always been one of your strong suits. I remember thinking you had too much of it at times, especially when you started placing yourself in the shoes of people who didn't deserve it."

You tilted your head. He was rubbing you the wrong way. "People who didn't deserve it?”

"Yeah, like scumbags."

"Everyone deserves to be understood, Danny. We are all human. I would be a shitty therapist if I played Judge every session and decided which people deserved help or not."

Maybe you were just being sensitive? Or taking things too personally without reason? Ever since you saw Danny, your irritation kept bubbling up and up. It wasn't like he was doing anything specific to irk you, but he just was, and you couldn't place it. Maybe it was the way he was smiling, the way he kept looking at you, or how he barely glanced at Kieran at all.

Danny raised an eyebrow. He didn't pick up on your uncomfortable tone, so he carried on. "So if you met a serial killer, you think they'd deserve someone stepping in their shoes to understand them?"

"Of course! Yes."

"Even after they killed three people?"

"What type of question is that? Yes—"

Your jaw clamped shut when the waitress came back with the food and drinks. Your coffee was placed in front of you and Danny thanked her before taking his spaghetti. You didn't even notice when Kieran took a sip of your coffee, grimaced, and then gulped his water.

Danny had to be doing this on purpose to annoy you! What type of medical professional studying the human brain, to help people, would turn away someone acting on homicidal thoughts? Of course, you'd turn them over to the police, but if they required therapy and you were assigned, you wouldn't turn them away.

They did monstrous acts, but those monstrous acts were most likely developed through mental or sometimes physical trauma. It was up to psychologists and therapists to figure those things out! The more a professional learns, the more they can prevent things like that from happening in the future. Damn, all of this was making you think of the conversation you had with Kieran earlier in the car.

You watched as Danny took a bite of his food and hummed in delight. Your jaw clenched and unclenched.

"Danny, how have you been?" Kieran asked for you, deciding to move the conversation on for you. "You look happy and put together. Did you take up your family's line of being a surgeon?"

"Oh no, no! I could never. I started working for a bigger business and it pays well. I actually had the idea to reach out because something happened."

Kieran learned further and placed his elbows on the table. "Hm?"

"Yeah. (Y/N), your father called me recently. It made me think about high school and then out of the blue, I saw your social media. I knew I had to reach out and say hello."

The saliva in your mouth dried up within seconds. The world shifted and specks of color swirled in your peripherals, the edge of your toes running numb while itchiness spread across your body in rolling waves. Your nails bit into your palms. Maybe you heard him wrong. No way he just said your father, because no way would your father reach out to Danny. He knew very well you and Danny used to be friends, so he wouldn't have any reason to do so.

Kieran's hand slid over and squeezed your thigh. Unlike you, his face was unreadable, while the reflection inside your coffee mug stared back in apprehension.

"I—what? My father?"

Danny nodded. "Yes! It was a surprising call if I have to be honest. I didn't know how he got my number, he must have found it online somewhere. I doubt any of my coworkers gave it to him."

You were stunned. "...Well, uhm, I apologize that you had to deal with him."

"Ah no, it actually wasn't that bad. He was polite and started asking about what I was doing, and how my life was, and then started talking about you when the call ended. When I first got the call, I was expecting him to ask about my parents. I know that he enjoyed them when we were younger, but it turned out he didn't want to talk about them at all."

You were going to vomit. The world spun around and around, and suddenly, you were even more grateful that you didn't order any food. Kieran tenderly massaged your thigh. He didn't mind your shaking hands or the ways your nails raked over his skin, scraping at the scabs on his hands already. His soothing touch felt worlds apart from your experience.

You didn't get it. Why was your father calling Danny? Why did he mention you? Why was he even interested in Danny? Your family cut contact with you after your marriage and when you were friends with Danny in high school, they never talked to him then, so there was no reason to talk to him now. There was no reason for your father to be interested in your life when he made it pretty clear that he didn't want to be a part of it.

Fuck, you didn't want him to.

"And what was he saying?" Kieran asked the questions you couldn't.

Danny took a sip of his wine and glanced between Kieran and you. He said nothing on the matter, saying, "Something about the (L/N) business and (Y/N) as the successor. At one point he did start asking about your life. Though he never informed me that you were married, he said something about an arranged marriage, so I assumed you and Kieran broke up. That's why I was shocked to see Kieran here."

You opened your mouth but nothing came out. You preoccupied yourself with a greedy gulp of coffee, watching Danny waving his fork around.

"He didn't mention anything more about the arranged marriage when I asked. Instead, he kept blabbering about one of your cousins. Dominic? Or something? A fancy name, someone I've never met."

Dominic.

Suddenly, you didn't want to be here. You wanted to be home, in your bed, on your phone scrolling through social media to distract you from whatever was going on here. Kieran twisted his fingers into yours and pulled your hand away from your thigh; you were scratching at your leg without even realizing it, causing the skin to go red underneath.

"He said Dominic? Are you sure you heard him correctly?" you asked.

Danny tilted his head. "Yes, he said it plain as day."

What could you say in response to all that? Dominic, your older cousin's nickname, was someone who always helped your father around the house. When you were little, your main memory was your father shouting from his office and the following comes from Dominic calming him down. You viewed your father as the mad villain; Dominic was the sidekick, the butler, the one who pulled the strings. If they were talking about successors and mentioned your name, that meant they wanted you back in the family.

You? In the family again? The (L/N) family again?

You could recall how grand the house you grew up in was, and just how many patterns you could count on the ceiling every night. Muffled arguments, shady deals, and the constant flow of guests in and out of the house who leered at you like vultures. Your father never had normal "friends" and he made it quite clear that he did business with anyone who could meet his pay and requirements. Sometimes he threatened to sell you to them when you misbehaved. Even now, you couldn't tell if it was a real threat or not.

If he wanted you as his successor to his business, he'd do anything to get it. He wasn't the type of man who listened to the word "no". Denying him was something he always took extremely personally. Your mother knew that very well.

She didn't want children, but it wasn't like he listened. It made sense why she hated your guts. Each time she looked at you, she saw a little girl whom she was forced to birth to because her husband wasn't considerate enough of her feelings and autonomy. You supposed you couldn't blame her, but it didn't make it hurt less.

But if all of this was true, why hasn't he called you yet?

Sure, you blocked him a while ago, but that never stopped him in the past. He'd change his phone number, get other people to call, or find some other way around being ignored. He always found a way.

Danny sipped on his wine and watched you with a perplexed expression. He knew about your relationship with your family, but he didn't know they disowned you the day you got married to Kieran. He had no idea that mentioning them caused extreme anxiety, enough anxiety to make your skin itch all over your vision blur. Fight or flight was telling you to run for the hills.

Kieran leaned close to you and whispered, covering his mouth with his hand so Danny couldn't make out what he was saying. "Do you want to go home, Котик?"

Yes, you did. But leaving so abruptly in the middle of a meal with an old friend was rude and it wasn't like Danny purposely wanted to freak you out. You sucked in a sharp breath and tried to regain your senses. Kieran took your response as a no and frowned, but said nothing and leaned back. When you wanted to go home, you'd tell him, he trusted you.

"I see... thank you for telling me, Danny."

Danny grinned ear to ear. Whether or not he was disturbed by your obvious discomfort, he said nothing and took a bite of his food before swallowing. "Talking to your father gave me an idea, (Y/N). Of course, you don't have to agree with me or anything, but I wanted to share what I thought with you."

You didn't have to be a genius to understand what you were feeling was dissociation. The more correct term, if you had to pull it from your medical textbooks, would be derealization. It felt as if your brain was outside your body and you were watching him blabber to someone who wasn't you. Like a fucked up fever dream.

You knew you weren't outside your body from a second point of view, but it felt like it. You rapidly blinked and took deep breaths to ground yourself. It wasn't helping that much.

"I've been looking for someone to fill in a missing spot on my team. Where I work is a very important place, so it is not something I can just let random people apply for. But you're not a random nobody! I trust you more than anyone I've interviewed, and we have been searching for more empathetic and ambitious workers."

Wait, wait, wait.

One moment he was talking about how your father tried to get information out of him, but now he was saying something about a job opportunity. You refrained from rubbing your temples. Danny didn't notice your mood and kept chattering, his smile switching to that familiar 'business' smile that your father always had. He wasn't giving you any time to think.

"I wanted to—"

"Daniel," Kieran hummed, his voice heavier than normal. It sounded foreign to your ears. "Be considerate and stop talking so fast."

Danny flinched when he heard his real name. In a mere second, droplets of sweat built on his brow and he wiped them away with the back of his hand. Kieran stared at him with an unreadable expression. He couldn't tell if it was threatening or not, friendly or not. His bones lurched back in his seat when Kieran shifted.

When they were younger, Danny always felt inferior compared to Kieran. Grades and smarts didn't mean everything and when he lost you to him, that was the biggest blow he ever felt. Because yes, it was true that Danny had a crush on you back then, you were just too oblivious and dumb to see it. One of the many reasons he felt inferior was because Kieran never hesitated to throw a punch when need be—and that was terrifying.

He had a feeling that if he said the wrong thing at this table, he might become black and blue just like those kids used to be back in high school. His teeth gnawed on his bottom lip and he took a sip of his wine.

"Ah. Sorry."

Kieran just raised an eyebrow and nodded in return. He was scarier now than he was back then, especially with the width of his shoulders and the framing of his arms. He looked like he could crack his head open against the table.

You ran your hands over your hair and pushed it all back from your face, not paying attention enough to hear or see what was going on between them. Gather your thoughts, take a breath, and pull yourself together.

Even if your family was planning to drag you into the business, it wasn't like they could do anything. You were married to Kieran and you were a grown-ass adult. You had people to back you up if something wrong happened. Plus, it wasn't like your family was in the restaurant with you. You'd know if they were!

Danny cleared his throat and dragged you from your thoughts. "(Y/N)?"

"Oh, I'm sorry! I was just a little shocked," which was a plain lie but you said it with your chest, so that was all that mattered. "Uhm—go ahead. What were you saying about work? You mentioned a team of some sort?"

He was glad to move on as well. A grin fixed its way up on his face and you shivered slightly.

"What I was saying was that your father gave me an idea for work. I need someone to fill in a spot and when he mentioned you, I realized I trust you a whole lot more than any person I have interviewed. You'd be paid, of course, and the business I work for might even be willing to help with school payments if your work is impressive enough."

This definitely felt like a fever dream. The depth of the table felt so far away and the coloring of the lighting felt dim and soulless. The conversation being held was being jumped through hoops and hoops of new information without any lead-up or warning.

You rubbed your brow. Wasn't he just using you? At this point, you were aware that this was just a business proposition, not a meeting with an old friend. If you had to sum up this whole meeting, you've talked more about his work than anything else. Your anxiety fizzled into anger and your teeth clenched together.

"Did my father put you up to this?"

You had to ask it. You didn't put it below or above your father to ask Danny to do something for him, and if you had to be honest, you didn't trust Danny enough to turn down your father. Not when he wasn't his old self anymore. If this was the old Danny, you would have trusted him. Not this one.

Danny's mouth formed an 'o' shape and he shook his head. "No, no! This was totally my idea. Back when we were in school together, I knew how bad your family treated you. I wouldn't listen to anything he said anyway. He sparked an idea, it wasn't his own though."

Kieran was saying nothing. He was staring at you from the corner of his eye. Whatever he was thinking, he wasn't voicing it. You were glad that he wasn't arguing or saying anything. You were already dissociating enough as it was, so you were grateful for his quietness and soothing thumb that kept rubbing fingers on your hand. It was his way of trying to ground you.

"So you're saying my father didn't give you this idea or plan this in your head? Or tried to persuade you of anything?"

"No! I promise!"

You weren't sure you believed him. There was this sneaking suspicion that he worked for your father. Maybe he didn't, but you were paranoid now. Especially since Danny mentioned Dominic and the next possible successor of the (Y/N) business, which so happened to be you.

"Okay, okay..."

Kieran cleared his throat. "And what business do you work for? You haven't told us yet, and believe it or not, I find that rather important when being offered a job deal."

He blinked and his eyes lit up with stars. He sat up in his seat and took his elbows off the table, his legs bouncing up and down under the table. It was as if his personality changed. One moment he was anxious, the next moment he was levitating off his seat in pure pride.

"Leovana. I work with Leovana Co."

LINKS :

- Wattpad

- Discord

- Quotev

- Buy Me A Coffee

[ Read P.6 Here ]

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