chapter 96

Chapter 96. Don't give up on MomOliver walks back into his room and meets Lena, sitting on his bed. He had expected that she would be out before he arrived but it turns out that he guessed wrong.She jumped down from the bed immediately and rushed to meet him halfway through the room. “Hey Dad, how is mom, were you able to convince her?” she queried.Oliver could detect the fear in her voice, she was scared that she had ruined things between them. He didn’t want her to feel bad or guilty for any of these, none of these was her fault, she was just a victim of circumstances.“Hey, sweetheart… you are still here,” he muttered and went down to her level. He placed his hands on her shoulders.“Yes Dad, I was worried.”“Well you don’t have to be, Princess,” he said with a smile on his face. “I am sorry that you have to go through all this because you were born to two stubborn people who have made terrible mistakes,” Oliver apologized.“No Dad, I love being your daughter, mom as well… I don’t ever regret being a part of this family,” she replied immediately and shook her head.“This doesn’t feel like a family anymore, sweetheart, you deserve much better than this, family stays together,” Oliver reasoned.“No Dad, my teachers say that family is in the heart, so the physical distance doesn’t matter.” Lena replied quicklyOliver smiled and nodded. “Well your teacher is right, listen to me Princess, it doesn’t matter if we are kilometers away, you are always going to be my daughter and I will always be the father who loves you, I won’t let anything or anyone change that,” he said in a sad tone.A drop of tear rolled down her right eyes and she wiped it off, it was the first time Oliver had seen her cry. “Why are you saying all this dad? You are not giving up on mom, are you?” she queriedOliver forced another smile and drew her closer. “Your mom has made her choice Princess, she chose to move on and I do respect her decision, so that is how it is going to be. But don’t worry, that doesn’t mean I would stop being your dad, no one can take my place in your life, Princess… I promise you that.”“No you can’t give up Dad, we still have two days before the wedding, we can make things work if we keep trying.” Lena urged.Oliver sighed. “I am not sure about that, Princess… What difference could we possibly make in two days? By the way, why do you have so much faith that your mom would change her mind? Aria is too stubborn and once she makes up her mind, it is difficult to change it,” he replied.It was obvious that Oliver had given up already. He was tired of trying and failing again and again.“Look here Dad, you told me yourself that mom still loves you, I mean… she was about to confess her feelings for you earlier, right?” Lena queried.“Yes Dear, but…”“Then don’t give up, even if it is for the next three days. I still have faith that you two can be together again, and it has to happen because I need both of my parents to watch me grow, I don’t want you two to ever be separated, please Dad,” she pleaded and cupped his face.Oliver pulled her closer to his chest and hugged her. “Alright sweetheart, I will give your mom and I another shot, but this time around, we would go about it in a completely different way.” He announced.“I think you are right Dad, maybe we shouldn’t chase after mom anymore, maybe it is time we make her come to you herself. You know? Make her realize that she cares for you more than she thinks and she can't afford to lose you, then she comes running back, not even her ego would stop her.” Princess Lena replied“That is exactly what I had in mind too, maybe we have been going through this in a completely different direction, it is time to try something new.” Oliver muttered and broke the hug.Lena finally smiled. “Thank you Dad, for doing this for me,” she said in appreciation.“No sweetheart, I should be thanking you, for inspiring me not to give up, and I am doing this for the three of us. I will make sure that you, Aria and I get to live together as one big happy family.” He promised.“Alright Dad, I will go to bed now, before mom comes screaming my name, I guess she would be greatly pissed off after whatever discussion you two had, she would be mad after realizing that she didn’t get the freedom she imagined she did get after you gave up on getting her back; that kind of feeling is frustrating, I guess.”“I know that sweetheart, but you don’t need to worry, your mom will be fine in no time, I promise you that… now get running kiddo, you don’t want her to come roast me, do you?” Oliver asked and chuckled.Princess Lena giggled. “Of course not Dad, but would you tell me what plans you have?” she queried.Oliver smiled and then stood up, he walked slowly to the window and stared out of it. “The sky is without a star today, that makes the moon and the clouds feel lonely. That is my plan Lena, at least something similar to that, but I won't tell you in full details yet, you just have to wait and get surprised.”Lena smiled, without taking a step from where she stood. “Alright Dad, I do love good surprises, that is if I don’t figure it out before you do it,” she said and chuckled.Oliver laughed softly, then he turned back to face her. “Goodnight Princess, have sweet dreams tonight and try to keep your mind off your mom and I, it's all gonna be fine, you can count on it.”“Of course Dad, I do trust you… I know you can do it, goodnight.” She replied and hugged him again.After a few seconds, she let go and ran out of the room. Oliver sighed and went to lock the door, he figured out that he needed rest, especially after having a rough day that didn’t end well. When he finally gets Aria, he would never make the mistake of letting her go again.After closing the door, he went back to lie on the bed. His arm had been fixed, but it still hurt a bit, he had done all of that for love, something very foolish. Maybe Aria was right on that part, it was a silly thing he did there.It took a while, but he eventually fell asleep. He forgot about all his worries and drifted to wonderland.