"Be my date."

"Excuse me?"

"You earlier said that the only way to get back at him was to do something he would never expect me to do. I don't want him to take me for granted. You yourself do not have a date yet. What else would be better than to go out with his long standing rival?"

.

.

"Forget I said anything. I'm sorry. I didn't think this through. I didn't realize you may not be interested-"

"Close the door when you come in after the rambling, we have got a lot to discuss."

******

"She doesn't deserve this, Natalie deserves more than being thought of as a- I feel disgusted to even think of it!! Your mother was nothing like the person you were made to believe, dear. She deserves better than to be remembered so demeaningly by one of her only children..."

"Well, you weren't exactly there to clear things for me, we're you now!!"

******

"You seem to be rather fixated that I do not favour you. "

"I, -"

"Though absolutely true, that doesn't mean I do not wish you well. "

******

"Today's session is dismissed. "

"I sorry, I Swear I didn't –"

"I can't help you if you don't trust me enough to even let me touch you."

"I didn't mean it like that-"

" I realize you're still dealing with the aftereffects of the incident girl, and this had noth-nothing to do with me, but that microsecond of hesitation, weakness is all your attacker would need to overpower you. You can't let your fears overpower you again."

******

"Ah, young romance, I see, I see... Your grandfather will not be exactly pleased. Though he has no problem with such indulgence, rather he would encourage it, don't you think you can do a lot better than them? I mean, what's the big deal about these Japanese whores anyway? Your father was just as smitten by them. And look how it all turned out to be.

I realize I'm interrupting a rather lustful night of yours... But remember, for as long as you don't make them your wife or have kids with them, I don't see why there'll be any issues. I'm deeply worried about the future of our company, we don't want history repeating itself, to be stuck with a bastard child as heir to one of the strongest, biggest business empires of the world."

******

" So, let's skip the pleasantries. You know I'm not pleased to be sitting here with you.

I have heard all about your playboy antics. What's your motive? And don't you dare try fooling me punk, for I know exactly how playboys work. And they wouldn't let things happen if they don't have an insentive in it. So, if you dare try misbehaving or taking advantage of the situation, I don't care how powerful yo-"

"Spare me the monologue, sir, I hear quite a many as it is, and I know your heart isn't in it. You want a reason to trust me. You know exactly well that you can't do anything if I hurt her. "

"Wanna bet on that, you son of a-"

"The only reason I'm here, putting up with this sh*t is because I owe your daughter. I was never interested in her. And she was off limits from the day I met her. And you have absolutely no idea of how nerve-racking their baseless bickering is. The dojo would be way more peaceful to train at. This is all the reason I can offer. No thank you for the coffee. "

******

"You just love attracting unwanted trouble, don't you?"

"Nope, and this might be exactly the reason that it comes looking for me. And just to clarify, I don't like being your damsel in distress any more than you like to be my knight in shining armor "

******

"You can date a guy an year older than you, but I can't date a guy an year younger than me?"

"Jeez, I just asked. You don't have to bite my head off for it."

"Just asking is exactly what leads to misogamy."

******

"I didn't believe it at first, but not after I had to walk through the same hell. You really don't remember your days from the Abbey."

"None before the um-incident at least."

"Hmm, I believed so. But don't you remember of anything, anyone at all from the Abbey, before the Abbey?"

"I told you, I don't remember much."

"You must remember enough to help me and the others flee, convince Mr Dickenson to give us a chance. To be sitting here and actually talking to me."

"I don't see how this even mattes. I don't have time to waste on mindless chatters. So, if you are here for something specific, you have five seconds."

"How are you so at peace with yourself, the crimes you've committed, the crimes you were made to commit?"

.

.

.

"Since the trance broke, I've been on the run, barely surviving, didn't have much time to think about it. Until last year,"

"When Voltaire got hold of a semi-guardianship,"

"Interrupt me one more time-"

"Jeez! sorry. Continue... "

"The point is, You'll be free of it for at least a year from now. Then, you'll only get a few glimpses a month. Stay away from Russia as long as you can afford it. It will only hasten the process."

"But don't you want to know your past?"

"Why should I even bother about it when I know all it holds in it is an ocean of misery. No, thank you, I would love to live in the bliss of ignorance for as long as I can afford it, which isn't for long. Now if you'll excuse me –"

******

"It was I who brought you here, kid. Wouldn't you want to know why? "

"Why sir?"

"Because you remind me of myself."

.

.

.

"But soon, I wasn't happy with my decision. Would you want to know why? Because you reminded me too much of myself.

Our profession demands us to be devoid of emotions. It demands us to be logical all the time. You've got a whole lifetime ahead of you, a promising career too. I take my advice if you want to have an intact soul, a mind that doesn't haunt you with nightmares, and minimum regrets by the end of it all.

Emotional attachment to a client is a big no. We can only help to an extent, but we must realize some people are beyond help. That their fates were written the day they were born, how much ever they try, they can never outrun them, and there isn't anything we can do about it. If you had been trying to wrestle out sensitive information from him, that I would understand, but this... is absolutely not acceptable. "

******

Words: 1085

******

Dear readers, 

I owe you guys a lot. It's because of your love and support that the story has progressed so far. But mostly importantly, I owe you guys an apology. 

I could give you a lot of reasons,  college work, exams, lack of ideas,  being out of touch with the story,  having so many versions of it running in your head,  you forget which one I had actually written down,  lack of ideas,  being distracted by an exciting novel series, and what not, but it doesn't change matters. 

I'm sorry for not answering your requests , for I didn't know how to continue from where I last stopped. So,  I start anew.  I remember I had said I would continue in the previous book itself,  but things aren't working out that way. So,  here it is!! I'm sorry to making you feel like this is story was abandoned,  which is absolutely not the case!! 

Hope you guys can accept my apology. 

What do you think of this chapter? Of this new beginning as a whole? I seriously hope I haven't given you just the amount of information to keep you hooked on the story and not too much that the story no longer interest you.

 I'd love to see whom you guess the speakers of these lines,  in what context it could have been spoken, etc,  etc. Do continue voting and commenting,  I wouldn't mind if they are positive or negative. 

Stay Safe,  Happy Reading !!

Ava