The clock on the apartment wall showed a little past ten at night. Aruna sat upright on the living room sofa, which had deliberately been left dim, illuminated only by the faint glow of a corner lamp. Kenzie had been fast asleep in her lap for the past hour after a long day at school. The child’s breathing was steady, in stark contrast to the violent heaving of Aruna’s chest as she held back a storm of anger ready to explode at any moment.
Click.
The sound of the front door opening shattered the silence. Gavin stepped inside with his suit jacket draped casually over his right shoulder, the top buttons of his shirt undone, and a soft whistle escaping his lips. He looked fresh and positively radiant—clearly, he had just won a major deal and had enjoyed himself spending the evening after his successful lunch date.
"Wow, you’re still awake, Wife? How romantic, waiting for your husband to come home in the dark like this," Gavin teased with an unabashed grin.
He walked closer, intending to place his car keys on the coffee table with his usual flair, always eager to look charming. But his smile froze the moment he caught Aruna’s stare. Her eyes were so sharp and icy that they sent a shiver down Gavin’s spine.
"Nice, Gavin. Coming home at this hour with such an innocent look on your face," Aruna said in a very low voice, which only made her sound more frightening.
Gavin cleared his throat, trying to regain control of the situation. He loosened his expensive watch and sat on the single sofa across from Aruna in a relaxed pose, pretending he hadn’t done anything seriously wrong that morning.
"Come on, Na... you’re still bringing up this morning? I already told you, I had an emergency involving Rendy’s company and my big project. As a man, I have to be professional," Gavin replied lightly, waving one hand dismissively.
"An emergency? Professional?" Aruna let out a cynical laugh, a hollow sound that made the atmosphere even more oppressive. "Sneaking out before dawn because you were afraid I’d ask you to babysit Kenzie while I went to work—that’s what you call professional, Gavin?!"
"Hey, don’t call it sneaking out. I went to work! To make money!" Gavin protested, his voice rising an octave as his ego was pricked. "Besides, Kenzie was safe with you, wasn’t she? You’re seriously overreacting, Na. You’re blowing a little thing like this way out of proportion."
"A little thing?! Are you senile or something? You were supposed to watch Kenzie today, Gav!"
Aruna slowly rose to her feet so she wouldn’t wake Kenzie. She carried the sleeping child to the bedroom and laid her down on the soft bed. After tucking her niece in, Aruna turned back to face Gavin. This time, there were no tears of sadness—only the blazing flash of anger in her eyes.
"Do you have any idea what I had to go through today because of your selfishness?! I had to swallow my pride and beg the principal to let me teach while bringing Kenzie into the classroom! I had to juggle taking care of Kenzie and teaching the other children while making sure she didn’t get fussy during class!" Aruna berated him, breathing hard.
Gavin snorted and leaned back against the sofa, folding his arms across his chest with a lazy, careless attitude. "So where’s the problem? It all worked out in the end. Nothing happened to Kenzie, and you still got to work. Simple, right? That’s why you should use that smart brain of yours, Na. There’s always a solution to everything without turning it into a drama."
Hearing how dismissively Gavin treated everything she had gone through, the resentment in Aruna’s chest rose to a boiling point. This man was a selfish, stone-hearted bastard. He didn’t just refuse to feel guilty toward Aruna—he apparently had no room in his shallow heart even for pity toward an orphaned child like Kenzie.
"Oh... so you think this is a simple drama?" Aruna gave him a deadly smile. She walked to the dining table, picked up her crossbody bag, and pulled something out of it.
Crash!
Aruna threw a white envelope directly into Gavin’s lap. Gavin flinched in surprise and stared at it with a furrowed brow.
"What’s this?" Gavin asked lazily, flipping the envelope over with one hand.
"It’s a letter from Rendy’s lawyer. He came to see me at school earlier. Since no one was here when he came to the apartment, he went to see me there instead," Aruna said curtly. "It... it’s the official will from Rendy and Adisti, signed and notarized, regarding custody and the division of assets."
"Before that accident, Rendy and Adisti went to Mr. Eza’s office—he was Rendy’s trusted attorney—and the two of them prepared the document there," Aruna continued.
Gavin furrowed his brow, his curiosity piqued. He opened the envelope and found two sheets of legal documents inside. As his eyes scanned the words line by line, the womanizer Gavin’s face suddenly turned deathly pale.
"W-what is this?!" Gavin stammered, sitting up straight at once.
"Did you think Rendy didn’t know his lazy, irresponsible little brother?" Aruna sneered, folding her arms across her chest as she watched Gavin’s expression change with satisfaction. "It’s all clearly stated there. If, within three months of their deaths, you’re proven to have neglected Kenzie or failed to take part in caring for her physically, all management rights over Rendy’s controlling shares in the company will be transferred entirely to me as Kenzie’s sole guardian. And you... will be dishonorably removed from the board of directors."
"You can’t do that! That’s extortion! I’m his brother!" Gavin cried in panic, jumping to his feet. His eyes widened as he stared at the document in his hands. Losing his position in Rendy’s company would destroy his luxurious lifestyle.
His own company wasn’t even half the size of his older brother’s. If he lost his share in that company, his income would shrink, and he wouldn’t be able to treat all the beautiful girls he was pursuing anymore.
"Yes, I can. Very easily, Gavin. Rendy’s lawyer will be monitoring us. And guess what I did at school today?" Aruna stepped forward, giving Gavin a checkmate stare. "I asked the school to issue an official letter stating that Kenzie was entirely in my care on school grounds today because her uncle refused to watch her according to the schedule. The letter was sent directly to Rendy’s lawyer’s email this afternoon as concrete evidence."
Gavin gaped at her. His brows drew together, his handsome face now filled with overwhelming frustration and resentment. He felt trapped, struck precisely at his weakest points: his ego and his finances. His cheap charms and the flirtatious winks he usually bragged about were completely useless against Aruna’s cleverness tonight.
"You... you did this on purpose to bring me down, Na?!" Gavin snarled through clenched teeth, holding back his humiliation and fury.
"I’m not bringing you down, Gavin. I’m only forcing you to become a responsible human being," Aruna replied coldly, without a trace of emotion.
Aruna walked toward her bedroom, but before opening the door, she turned back to Gavin, who was still standing there motionless, clutching the envelope with a disheveled expression.
"Tomorrow is Thursday. It’s still your turn to watch Kenzie. All of Kenzie’s regular schedule is written in full in her blue notebook. If you run off again at eight tomorrow morning... you’re finished."
Bang!
Aruna slammed her bedroom door, leaving Gavin hissing in frustration in the living room. The womanizer kicked the leg of the living room table in irritation, cursing his fate as he found himself completely trapped in the responsibility he hated most.
To be continued...