Chapter 73 - Where is the champaign?

Note:

Hello, so I'm kind of having a writer's block/slump so I haven't been writing for a while. On top of that, classes are going to start soon and it's been kind of hectic organising everything. So I'm here to say that I probably won't be posting for a while. I know, I'm sorry. I have by no means dropped the story. I will see it to its end... till its end... whatever the saying is. I'll keep writing once I get the time and my mind is in its mindset to write. Once again, apologies and please try to stick with me :D

Also, my "editors" ditched me so it's back to Grammarly only edits

--------------------------------

"I hate you."

"Is that really something you say to your grandpa at his birthday party?" George asked me with amusement.

"You deserve it."

George chuckled at my pouting and exhaustion. "And why is that?"

Because I couldn't find your ninja ass, which lead to unwanted interactions with my half-blood brothers which put me in a weirder position with my current boss. But I couldn't say all that, so I said, "just because," and took a sip of my whiskey. The party was surprisingly well catered. I asked for straight absinthe as a joke and they were going to retrieve it, so I quickly changed it to whiskey.

"Just because?" George repeated dubiously.

"Yes."

We just stared at each other, with gramps trying to prompt me to spill but I refused. "Where the fuck were you anyway? I've been looking for you since I came to this damn place and I'm pretty sure I've looked here about three times before. You playing ninja or something?"

We were situated at the side of the ballroom, where there was the least human traffic. In fact, it was just me, gramps, Alfie and Mary who were standing together with only two other couples nearby.

"Don't swear at your grandpa Aiden!" Mary scolded but I ignored it with a wave of my hand. A vein popped out of her forehead and she looked ready to whip out a slipper but George's chortle stopped her.

"It's alright Mary, I've grown used to Aido's foul mouth. Even bleach wouldn't be able to remove the dirt and grime in there. And I have not been playing ninja, I've been busy reintroducing, introducing, catching up and entertaining the guests, like a Troph should be doing."

"Well, I'm glad to be a Hendrix in the case," I murmured to myself.

"What?"

"I said good on ya, at least you're enjoying your birthday party."

"You didn't say that," George said unimpressively.

"No, I didn't," I said mischievously. George's eye-rolled.

"Sorry for cutting in," said Alfie with an intrigued tone, "but what do you mean by earlier when you say you got used to his foul tone. From what I can recall, you two did not interact much throughout Aiden's stay."

I panicked internally when George looked at me with a frown and then back at Alfie.

"You don't know? Aiden has been visiting me at least once a month for years now," George informed. Alfred's emotion turned into shock before it was back to its blank slate.

George further enquired on the topic. "Aiden, did you not tell Alfred or your brothers? You said you guys talk occasionally, so I assumed it would pop up eventually."

The married couple's foreheads furrowed in mild confusion and I did my best to non-verbally tell them to play the fuck along.

I laughed awkwardly. "I do talk to them but I guess the topic never came up because I forgot that they didn't know? I just presumed that they knew from the start, isn't that right Alfie?" I smiled forcefully.

He said nothing for a while and my nervousness grew drastically, then quickly tamed when he aided me. "Yes... he seemed to have forgotten to mention it whenever we called. He must be too caught up in his own life."

I forced out a laugh, and then cleared my throat with the new purpose of changing the conversation. "How's it like coming back home after so long? Must be nostalgic."

George settled with a sad smile and turned his wheelchair so he was facing the window behind him, looking out to the front garden. "In all honesty, this place was never home. It was more of a living requirement. Home is where my wife is, so to answer your question, I haven't been home still so I don't know what it's like."

Both Alfred and Mary looked at each other with a sad expression, as if they were reminiscing the at the moment. Welp, this turned grim really quickly. I don't know what to say, I'm too tipsy for this. Abort mission. "Uh, let me rephrase it then. What's it like seeing your children and grandchildren after so long, altogether?"

Gramp's mood brightened a tad bit and I released the nervous breath I was holding in. "I'm beyond happy to see my entire family in one spot. This doesn't even happen during Christmas or Thanksgiving. I'm truly grateful, even though the intention of this party is for my grandson's benefice."

Wait, the old man knows? He hasn't turned completely senile yet?

"What do you mean? You think there's some sort of ill intention behind this party?" Playing ignorant was the way to go at times like these.

"Well the annual gathering always aimed to show off our status a social standing in a grand manner, but I'm more talking about my birthday party. They've only invited me here after so long to make themselves look better. It's mostly so they get a news headline along the lines of, not only is the Troph head a master in the art of business, but he's also the perfect family man."

My mouth parted open and my filter was still broken as I accidentally spoke my thoughts. "Your brain hasn't gone senile at all, why the fuck did you retire? You could've been running the business so much better." I did keep tabs on the family business, as much as I wanted to avoid it. It was always good to be informed.

Mary smacked my shoulder, saying something about stop being disrespectful and Alfred gave me his mean, death glare. George let out a jolly laugh and turned his wheelchair back to face me. "I'm glad you finally realised I'm still in my prime, wheelchair or not. The reason I retired was simply because I wasn't enjoying it anymore and my children seemed to be losing their patience. I'd rather die in the hands of natural causes than in the hands of my own family."

This observative fucker... he could be playing everyone like a fiddle if he wanted to.

"Well, I hope you know that I probably would've joined the family business if you were still head, so it's your fault that I'm not associated with them." I honestly still wouldn't have joined the business but I wanted to make him feel bad for ditching the company to the less capable. They hadn't driven the company to the ground but they'd lost some respect due to some of the choices they'd made. Like Hugo's affair.

Gramps opened his mouth to say something but promptly shut it when something from behind me caught his attention. His eyebrows raised in surprise and a complacent smile descended on his features.

I was about to turn around to see, when suddenly two arms were wrapping around my waist from behind, with one of the hands holding a Champaign glass. I stiffened up and was ready to punch whoever the fuck was behind me in the face, when everyone's favourite orgasmic voice played from the top of my head.

"Finally, I found you. I've been looking for you everywhere."

Almost instantly, my posture relaxed and I melted back into his chest. Something about his embraces was extremely comforting and you couldn't help but fall deeper into it. That being said, my hands were still awkwardly hovering in front of me (with the empty whiskey glass) and I had no clue where to place it, so I just kept it there. I tilted my head back to look at his jawline.

"Winwin, just what are you doing?" I asked in bewilderment.

My boss looked down at me with a disapproving expression. "Stop calling me that. And I'm putting up an act."

"You started it Winny," I refuted back. Dates don't have to be this touchy! YOU are never touchy, unless you wanna get laid and honey, I ain't putting out right now.

"When? I said you."

"When we were with Bradley and stuff, you called me Aido again."

Erwin looked up at the ceiling in thought and it finally clicked for him. He looked back at me, chuckling. "Oh yeah, I did. But that was completely out of habit, I didn't do it to spite you."

"So the other times were because you wanted to piss me off," I plainly declared.

"I didn't say that either, stop putting words into my mouth."

"But it was implied."

"On what basis?"

I groaned out of frustration. "Instead of words, I should just shove a dick up your mouth."

"Well, I wouldn't be complaining and it certainly would be a lot more pleasurable. Well, depends on whose dick. Are you offering?"

"That's kind of gay. And no I'm not fucking offering." I managed to keep the blush off my face this time but not off the tip of my ears.

Erwin sighed in disappointment and I had no fucking clue if it was genuine or not. "A shame. It would've been the only thing to look forward to in this bore fest."

His blatant flirting got my head spinning and I was dumbstruck. As if the sexual tension wasn't bad as it was after the club, he just had to go make it worse with his words. Actually, the tension originated from the time in the diner, where we were lost in each other's eyes but at the time, I couldn't recognise it as sexual. I regret ever being smarter than the average person and recognising the type of tension.

"As much as I'm enjoying your... very friendly banter, are you going to introduce your date to us Aido?"

George's words got me out of my stupor and I cleared my voice in embarrassment, purposefully ignoring the fact that I still hadn't pushed Erwin's grasp away. "You've already met Mr. Fonzo, he funds for your village. But for Mary and Alfie, this is Erwin Fonzo, CEO of Nichola and Co. as well as my boss."

"He's your boss?"

"You guys aren't boyfriends?"

"Did you finally get in his pants?"

"Wait how did you know about my donations?"

Four questions bombarded me at once but I answered them in order of difficulty.

"Yes Alfred, he's my boss. Well, temporary boss. I've been pawned off to the guy temporarily by my ex-favourite boss." Erwin eye rolled at my dramatics.

"No, we are not boyfriends. I forgot to bring a date so he's subbing in. Sorry to disappoint Mary. I know how much you wanted a good looking partner for me."

"You think I'm good looking?" Erwin's face lit up and looked at me with a goofy smile. My cheeks heated up again and I leaned back further into his chest, leaning my head against his shoulder. I looked at the other three so he couldn't see my face.

"As if you don't know that, you're literally in every tier list for good looking people."

"Yeah but it's nice to hear it from you (this smooth motherfucker, does he want me to combust?). Also, is it considered subbing if there was no date in the first place?"

"Shut up."

I disregarded his snickers to continue answering Erwin's and gramps' questions.

"I knew about the donations through gramps, since he isn't as declining as I thought he was. He figured out it was you, but it wasn't all that hard. If you want to keep anonymous, maybe don't constantly walk around with important people in the buildings."

"It is not my fault," Erwin cried out, "I tell them I want to explore the place on my own every single time but they won't leave me alone. It's so frustrating."

"...wow, you seem very passionate about this."

"I just want to be left alone."

I giggled at his sulky tone and condescendingly patted his arms.

"There, there," I said and felt his glare at the back of my head but he said nothing more, choosing to lean his cheek against the top of my head. I denied all allegations of heart-fluttering held against me.

"As for George's question," I added, "what the fuck? No, I didn't get in his– what do you mean finally?"

He shrugged. "It is a completely plausible question, considering how the other day you were eye-fucking him on sta–"

"FUCK YOU," I screamed, effectively cutting him off and hoping to stop the sudden exposure.

But life wasn't fair, or more my grandpa was a fucking prick.

"It's him you want to fuck, not me," he humorously pointed out.

"AAAAHHHHH SHUT UP!" I don't care about all the attention I gathered accidentally. All I cared about was digging a hole and crawling in it, then putting concrete to close it up. But I make shifted with what I had, which was just bringing my hands to my face and burying myself in them (Mary took the whiskey glass at some point and now I was convinced she's some sort of ninja).

I expected Winny to take his arms back to his side, bringing in the cold again but he unexpectedly tightened the hold instead and laughed into my hair. Gramps' question got me all conscious at all points of contact. My waist and his arms. My torso and his hands. My head and his mouth. My back and his chest. The embrace was so intimate, I didn't know what to do next.

It's usually for people who were more than employee and boss or even fuck buddies. It was an embrace that let the person being in front know that they were not alone and their partner had their back (literally).

It wasn't lonely.

It was something I hadn't experienced in a long time. That was probably why I hadn't pushed him away.

My rumination broke when I noticed that George and Erwin were now conversing and the married couple was nowhere to be seen.

My fake date and grandpa seemed to be talking about business, which was something I could care less about, so I zoned back out to focus on the warmth of this giant's man body. I took a huge inhale, taking in his cinnamon mixed with wood smelling cologne.

Unconsciously, I snuggled further back into his chest, slightly turning so I could rest the side of my head against his shoulder. Expecting him to freeze up and question my action, I held my breath in anticipation. However, he just moved his arms around so I was more comfortable and resting his cheek against my head once done.

It was clearly done subconsciously since he didn't take his eyes off gramps for a second and continued talking as if this was an everyday occurrence. Regardless, my heart was full of... fluff and I wanted to melt into a pile of fluffy goo.

The vibrations from his chest (from talking and laughter) and his surprisingly fast BPM were rhythmic enough to put me to peace and I closed my eyes, listening in to the pulses and vibrations.

I almost fell asleep but the sudden tensing behind me snapped my eyes wide open. This time I froze because my eyes fell on the one guy I didn't expect to be near (then again, I only expected to be near gramps before coming here).

Hugo Troph had approached us.

I jolted up, away from my "date" and instinctively straightened up, just like how I was taught. My father's eyes brushed me without any sort of emotion, before he refocused on the other two members of the group.

Ok he didn't brush over. He did inspect me for a solid minute and I wanted to dash out of there.

"Mr. Fonzo, father, nice to see you both are acquainted with each other. I was meant to greet you when you first entered but I got caught up with other things. I apologise deeply." He brought up his hand for a handshake.

George said nothing, just observing his son while sipping on his Champaign. Should old men be drinking?

What the fuck, is Hugo sucking up to my boss? A Troph never sucks up to anyone. Just how much of a big deal is Winwin. Did I pick a fight with the wrong guy?

Erwin beamed his business smile and looked very professional but if you studied his face carefully, you could see that there was a hint of annoyance. Did he have a personal beef with father as well? Why was he annoyed? And why were his arms twitching?

"Mr. Troph, thank you for the invite. It's an honour to be invited to such a prestigious gathering. I have always wanted to see the Troph family mansion up close. Maybe still an idea for my own future mansion."

How many times do you think he repeated that line with his PR manager?

Hugo laughed out of politeness. "Yes well I'm sure you'll be getting that very soon and I'm more than happy to help you out with the interior. But that can be discussed later, right now I want to discuss something more... pressing?"

"Oh?" Erwin said.

Am I meant to leave or should just continue standing here like I don't exist? As much as I don't like attention from Hugo, it still hurts to be blatantly ignored.

"It's come to my attention that you know the relation between Aiden and the Troph family?"

I paled.

"Ah yes, I do know, although I'm pretty sure it was the slip of the tongue from your son's part... the other son that is."

"Then has it been informed that this information should be kept confidential?"

"Indeed."

"At least the brat fixed his mistake," Hugo mumbled to himself but the words were caught by Erwin and he quickly inserted, "Oh no, Bradley wasn't the one who told me to keep it on the down-low. It was Nero."

"...I see..."

Hugo brought his attention back to me again, face still stone cold and emotionless. Memories of the past resurfaced, the constant look of disappointment, the ice-cold scolds and I couldn't take it anymore.

I peeled my gaze from my father and looked at Erwin to announce, "it looks like you guys have some things to talk about and catch up on, so I'm going to go head home now. I've already seen gramps so–"

'Wait don't go," Erwin pleaded softly, "we still need to talk."

"Can we not do it another day?" I whined out.

"No. You're going to think up some sort of elaborate story if I give you time."

Dammit, how'd he know.? I groaned in surrender, "Ugh fine. Find me on the balcony when you're done."

With a single nod, I bid George goodbye, purposefully ignored Hugo's scrutiny and headed towards the balcony.

On the way, I picked up a bottle of unopened Champaign.