♪♪And you've given me the best gift

That I've ever known

You give me purpose

Yeah, you've given me purpose. ♪♪

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ [Purpose] - [Justin Bieber]

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"Is this what happens in my kitchen when I'm not around?" Persephone's voice, low and direct with precision, rang out in the kitchen.

Kian and Esmé froze momentarily and slowly swivelled to her.

Persephone stayed silent with her eyes, sharp as a sword, pierced through them briefly before flickering to the mess of flour on the floor, her posture rigid.

"Per ... Persephone!" Esmé shrieked.

It took a minute for things to dawn on her. She spun to the mess they created, a far-reaching difference to the spotless way it had been a couple of minutes before then.

She turned back to Persephone with urgency surging in her eyes. "It's not what it looks like," she said but cringed at her choice of words.

Without missing a beat, Persephone's brows arched upwards, tilting her head to the side. "Really?"

A minor snort escaped Kian's lips, and both females sent him stern gazes. He cleared his throat to hide his amusement, letting Esmé refocus on Persephone.

"Yes, a little miscalculated incident occurred, and that's why the kitchen looks like a mess. It was never our ... my intention to make a mess out of it," she explained.

Persephone gave her a narrowed look, though mischief flickered in her eyes for a moment. "I see, and when do you intend to clean up this minor incident?"

"Right this minute."

Kian's lips rose as laughter threatened to spill at her spontaneous reply, but it died instantly once Persephone's stern gaze fixated on him. "Mother." He stayed still, bent his head halfway, expecting a stern remark, but she just scoffed and turned around, leaving the duo to their cleaning business.

They held on unmoving ─ holding their breath ─ waiting for her to turn around, till they heard the click of Persephone's office door. Kian turned to Esmé and he couldn't help but laugh. "Priceless."

His laughter filled with warmth and life showed how much more relaxed and amiable he was. Though she didn't find the situation funny, her spirits lightened, tugging the corners of her lips up into a full smile.

"It's not funny, you know? She might fire me."

Kian scoffed. "Not a chance. She likes you a little too much to do that."

"Yeah? And you don't like that very much, do you?"

"I do. Like it. Very much."

The words were out before he could stop them, but for whatever reason, even though a stomach knot tightened far beyond what should have been possible at the silence that grazed the room, he wasn't about to take those words back.

Esmé couldn't help the silly grin plastered onto her lips. Her pulse skipped a tune, but she didn't care at that moment for a relaxed smile to match hers crossed his face.

Warmth swirled around them from outside to within.

"I'm glad you do," she said, "because if I lose my job, it's on you."

"Anytime."

Whatever control she had on her lips snapped as it curled further up, and she was certain she looked like a Cheshire cat.

She turned her head to the side just when a flush crept across her cheeks with Kian chuckling.

"What a mess," Esmé murmured, but that was all trigger she needed to step out of the bubble. "Mess... Damn," she added, groaning.

Drawn back to the promise she made to Persephone about clearing the mess right that minute. A thought dawned on her and she whirled around to face Kian, who took a startled step backwards.

"I don't think the mess of the kitchen got to her that much."

"Huh?"

"I mean, Persephone. Something else was bothering her. That's why the mess in the kitchen came secondary."

"Oh." A thin line appeared between his brows as he thought about it. For the kitchen mess to come secondary to whatever was bothering Persephone, he knew it had to be something really serious. "I'll go talk to her."

"Yeah, I think you should." She looked him up and down at first. "But... after you clean up."

A smile returned to his face, easing the crease there. "I thought you had a thing for floursome men."

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Kian walked out of the bathroom into the dimly lit office room, wiping off the remaining droplets of water on his hands. He narrowed his eyes at the empty chair behind the neatly arranged table where he last saw Persephone seated.

Shuffling from the right side of the room grabbed his attention. He turned to notice Persephone on the couch, staring out the window. A memory flashed into his mind ─ in place of his mother was a dishevelled Esmé in his arms and the ache he felt seeing her that way. It was the moment he felt drawn to protect her, but it was also a time he wasn't ready to acknowledge any feelings.

The memory drifted off as he focused back on the woman who sat there then, another person he had failed to be there for.

He placed the towel on a chair in front of the table and made his way to his mother.

"Are you nervous about tomorrow?" he asked, taking a seat by her side, looking out into the night that buzzed with energy the room seemed to lack.

Persephone scoffed, not taking her eyes off the beauty before her. "Why do you think Persephone Eleanor Lincoln would be nervous?"

Kian turned to her with a cracked smile. "'cause she's human?"

She cracked at that with a half-smile that seemed sad. "She is human, isn't she?"

Kian's forehead furrowed with an alert gaze. Esmé was right. He didn't think the mess of the kitchen could make his mother that lost in thought, no matter how much she hated it.

"He was always here for my luncheons," Persephone said, breaking into his thoughts giving him the answer he had been looking for.

An ache in his throat let him know just who she was referring to even before she cut her eyes his way, hesitation was written boldly in them. The previous ache he felt increased as he realized and saw a lot of things he had missed in the past.

She put up a strong wall that made it seem like she didn't miss her husband, so she wouldn't make Kian feel guiltier.

Her eyes watched him with caution and switched to his hands that lay on his legs. She sighed a bit at the sight of it, free from the locked fist it used to have whenever she mistakenly mentioned his father.

This didn't stop the hollow Kian felt within. It was mainly because he made his mother wary about missing his father around him. He closed his eyes and turned to the window, the guilt weighing heavy in his heart.

How do you move on from there?

Esmé's words rang in his head as he opened his eyes with a certain determination. While the pain he felt could make him redraw once again, he needed to do it differently. Do right by her as he intended. He let himself get lost in the memories of his father at his mother's luncheon. "Yeah, he never missed one, did he?"

The smile on Persephone's face grew slowly. Tears willed up behind her eyelids at the freedom of being able to share a lovely memory with Kian. She turned to the window too. "Never."

Kian crackled slightly, remembering a particular memory. "He was always ready to step in, even if anything went wrong. Like the time he had to pull their attention away from the disaster that could have happened if they ate that meal."

Persephone shuddered at the memory, chuckling. While the memory had its awful moment from the minor mistake a worker had made to the meal she had prepared, the light moments still brought a smile to her lips. "I have never seen Louis make a fool of himself like he did that day."

"I never understood, though, how he could spring up so many jokes that were the least bit funny and still hold everyone's attention."

"He had a way of just pulling everyone to him, no matter how silly what he did was."

Kian nodded, agreeing. His respect for his father rose to an infinite degree that faithful day. Not caring about being a laughingstock as long as it prevented his wife from being that.

Silence settled in the room with both of them lost in thought.

"It's just he was always here and with this being the first one since..."

Kian turned to her and carefully held her hand, making her turn to him. He smiled briefly at her. "I understand." he paused as she smiled back at him. "I can't replace your husband and I haven't been the best son, but I promise to be there for any support you would need from now on."

Her eyes sparkled with gratitude as she beamed. "Thank you."

Kian opened his mouth to dispute her thanks just as a sly smile rose onto Persephone's lips. He instantly sensed the shift in the topic before she even spoke and inwardly groaned.

"Though I won't be sure if you are going to be there for me or for the stunning young lady you joined to make a mess of my kitchen." Her brows wiggled with the smirked that graced her lips.

He chuckled, shaking his head. "Both of you?"

Persephone chuckled alongside him and tapped the hand that cradled hers. "I never thought I'd see the day you would make a mess in the kitchen."

The corners of his lips quirked up. "Yeah, neither did I. It just happened."

Persephone smiled with an easy sigh released. "We tend to lose track of time with the right person."

Kian nodded but stopped midway, noticing the crooked smile forming on her lips. He immediately knew she was keeping something in. "Just say it, mother."

"You like her."

There was no reply.

Persephone scoffed. "No denial, huh?"

"I don't think this is something I want to talk to you about."

"Oh, please. You don't need to say anything. I can see it all. The way you moved about there, laughing. I've never seen you that happy before."

Kian raised his brow at the new information. "And yet you stepped in to disrupt that."

"You were making a mess of my kitchen."

Kian threw his head back in laughter. "Of course." He tilted his head to the side, giving her a focused gaze. "But that's not the only reason, is it?"

"Look at who is reading who now, Kian."

"I guess you know how annoying it feels now."

"Lesson learnt," she said with a small smile.

Kian kept silent, waiting for her to go on.

Persephone took a deep breath in. "Now there, I'm not trying to interfere or anything. I'm just making sure for both of your sakes that this isn't Nightingale Syndrome."

Kian smiled before he replied, "No, it's not." The thought crossed his mind before, but reflecting showed him it couldn't possibly be that way for Esmé when he wasn't exactly a perfect doctor taking care of her and for him... "The attraction might seem recent and because of the help she gave when I needed it the most, but it's been there longer than that. I just didn't dare admit it."

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Yehaw!!

Hiya people!

Happy new year once again guys!

It's been quite some time but life's been a bit of a mess out here but I want to use this opportunity to really appreciate you guys for sticky around. It really means a lot to me.❤❤

What. were. your. thoughts. on. chapter? Did you think in your mind, "What was that, Kian?" at last once? You didn't? I mean, there was a potential confession there, right? Let's hear your thoughts on it! Let's st the new year, new me fire ablaze with your comments, right here. 💭👉🏽

Till next time!  💕