âHello?â came a faint voice.
Arianaâs voice sounded slurred, and it seemed like she had been drinking for quite a while.
â.
.
Are you drinking again?â Holden furrowed his brows and shot a question.
It was already late at night, and Ariana was drinking, which made him worried.
âN-no.
Iâm not drinking,â Ariana replied.
Although she denied it, her voice clearly showed that she had consumed more than just a little bit of alcohol.
Her words were slightly slurred, and she sounded somewhat inebriated.
She continued, âWho are you?â
Holden scoffed.
âYou donât even recognize my voice anymore, and youâre saying you havenât been drinking?â
âSo, who are you then?â Ariana persistently inquired in her inebriated state.
âWell⦠Holden began to speak but then stopped himself.
He realized that for Ariana, he didnât have a_ straightforward identity to claim.
Holden was uncertain about how to present himself.
After a moment of silence, he finally said, âIâm your online follower and Melonâs fake dad.
â
âI donât know who that is,â replied Ariana.
Her words were still slurring from the effects of alcohol.
Holden sighed and asked, âWhere are you?â
On the other end of the phone, Ariana mumbled something about a riverbank and then mentioned a nearby building before abruptly hanging up.
Holden didnât even have the time to confirm the location she had mentioned.
Feeling helpless, he let out a long sigh again.
In the end, he decided to rely on himself and used the location hints she had given.
He finally found a bar, grabbed his car keys, and drove there immediately.
When he arrived at the bar, he looked around to find Ariana.
His eyes then landed on a small figure slouching over a table that had more than five empty bottles.
Seeing Ariana unprotected in the middle of the bar, Holden couldnât help but feel a hint of anger.
It was strange for him because he didnât understand why he felt that way.
He looked at Ariana, who was too intoxicated to recognize anyone, and he couldnât help but feel a little annoyed.
Did this woman have absolutely no sense of danger?
She dared to drink so heavily when she was out alone, and this wasnât the first time.
As he approached Ariana, Holdenâs anger dissipated.
He gently tapped her forehead and said, âStop drinking.
Letâs go home.
â
The bartender approached and asked, âYou must be Theodore, this ladyâs husband, right?â
Holden found himself frozen, a whirlwind of intricate emotions swirling within as the server fixed a quizzical gaze upon him.
After a moment of hesitation, he gave a subtle nod.
With a sigh of relief, the server exclaimed, âThank the stars youâve arrived.
This poor lady has been sipping her sorrows away solo for quite a spell now.
Be gentle in your disagreements â lifeâs no walk in the park for the fairer s@x.
Itâs risky letting your spouse stew in solitude too, nursing her wounds with drinks like this.
â
Holden gave an awkward nod and turned to assist Ariana, feeling a tad embarrassed by the serverâs assumptions.
As he looked at her slouched across the table, her cheeks flushed and her hair awry, he couldnât help but let out a sigh.
In her inebriated state, Ariana said, âTheodore, you scoundrel.
Why havenât you looked for me?
Hearing her long for her late husband kindled a stifling sensation in Holdenâs chest.
Though he knew he had no claim on her, an irrational pang of jealousy flickered through him.
With care, Holden slipped his arms beneath Arianaâs limp body, taking care to avoid the knife wound on her arm.
But as he hoisted her up, she weakly resisted.