Alvin couldn't feel himself. He was looking at his father with a shocked look on his face. Disbelief clouded his features; and his fists were tightened on top of his lap.
“W-what does marrying Amanda have to do with this?“ “Don't ask unnecessary questions. We both know that you won't be able to live a good life…” Mr Muller said. “…with another woman,” he added as an afterthought. Alvin suddenly hit his fists on the chair and stood up to attack his father in anger but the scar-faced guy blocked me. “What do you want to do? Fight me?“ Mr Miller asked, his voice sounding amused. “I'll do more than fighting you, old man! I'll kill you here and now!“ “Watch your words, boy!“ Mr Miller exclaimed, standing up too. Alvin noticed for the first time that his eyes were red; he had probably been doing drugs before he came. “You even told her what mother said. Why in the fucking world did you do that?“ Alvin yelled, trying really hard to stop his tears. “It's not my fault that I was born like this. I—” “That's not the point, Alvin! You're changing the subject of our discussion. This isn't happening because your mother claimed your face is cursed. It's happening because you refused…” “Refused what?“ Alvin asked, even when he already knew what his father wanted to say. “Why don't you complete it?“ “This will never have happened if I…” Mr Miller stopped. Alvin looked at his facial expression. “I have a business issue to attend to. Just freaking marry her, Alvin! We both know she's a good wife material; and one of the only people that can stand your face.“ “Okay. Let's assume I marry her, then what?“ Mr Miller smirked devilishly when he heard his son. “I'm not forcing you to marry her, son. It's your choice.“ Alvin let out a breath of relief. “…just know that I'll not even blink my eyes if Raven comes for you.“ “But—” Mr Miller wasn't sitting on the chair anymore. He was already walking back upstairs; leaving Alvin in the middle of his words. The scarred-guy followed behind him as he walked. The now-very-cold sitting room was left with just manager Loki and Alvin. “Loki, I—” “I'm sorry, Alvin. I can't change Mr Miller's mind.“ Manager Loki walked out of the sitting room after that, leaving a weak and speechless Alvin to himself. **** Alvin didn't go to his company later that day. He simply called and told Amanda with an angry and frustrated voice that he might not be returning for some days and his assistant CEO, Victor, will take his place and help manage the company's schedule. Alvin was in his permanent residence, legs stretched and eyes red as he tried to concentrate on the football match in front of him. But it wasn't working. His thoughts kept flashing back to the look on his father's face when they were arguing. It was a look Alvin was very familiar with—a look that said Mr Miller didn't care about him or the choices he makes. “Only mother could handle him,” Alvin said to himself, throwing a single seed of the popcorn before him to his mouth. His phone suddenly rang. Alvin picked it up and put it on his ears. Silence on the line. “Hello?“ No response. Alvin wanted to cut the call in anger and block the number since it was a private one; but he wanted to confirm if it was a spam call first. “You called me first, can't you fucking talk?“ Alvin finally yelled, not able to keep his anger in check any longer. Somebody laughed on the line. It was an old and dull sound like the cough of a goat—and Alvin suddenly recognised who it was. “Daniel?“ “Hey, Alvin! It's been really long. Nice to see that you haven't changed a bit. You're still that rude and arrogant punk I've known since high school.“ The tone of Alvin's voice changed the next minute. “What! Is it really you? Why didn't you speak before? I thought it was some sort of fraud call; sorry, man.“ “It's fine.“ “You took off right after high school. Where have you been since then?“ “I will tell you everything. But over a few drinks, why don't you come to this club? I'll send you the address.“ Alvin wanted to say he was on strict prohibition of going to public places, but figured the distraction was exactly what he needed. “Okay, man. I'm on the way.“ Alvin received a text message after that which read the address of the club. And he was a little shocked. “North Hollywood? Now what the fuck would a person like Daniel be doing there?“ Despite his confusion, Alvin got up and prepared to leave. He came out of his house after that—it was a small and simple mansion which he had bought with his personal money earned from his company. He got out and discovered that his Butler was in front of the door that led outside. “Mr Lyam?“ he asked, as if in great shock. The French man bowed, smiling in admiration and he looked at his master. “What are you doing here at this hour?“ Alvin asked, glancing at his watch. “It's almost 9p.m.“ “I know you wasn't sleeping, so figured that you might try to go out at last.“ Alvin almost laughed when he heard him. Mr Lyam's French heritage was so thick and serious that he sometimes couldn't compose correct English sentences. The poor man hadn't even been able to speak English at all when he was employed by Mr Miller ten years ago. “Yeah. I'm going out, what is wrong?“ “No! Your papa won't like that! And you even fired all of your securities. And you're not wearing a—” “It's in my pocket,” Alvin interrupted in anger, hating himself for the fact that his two butlers are always reminding him to put on his mask. “Still you sh—” Alvin pushed him to the left side in irritation. He opened the door and stepped outside into the night. Mr Lyam ran out after him, crying and calling and warning with a mixture of French and English that he shouldn't go. Alvin ignored him. His eyes were roaming over his six cars; wondering which of them he should pick. He finally decided to go with the black McLaren 720S, since it was his least expensive car and the one that called the least attention. The Keys were in the garage key-holder and he grabbed them before stepping to the car. “Master! At least go with the Chauffeur!“ Mr Lyam begged, hitting the rear window of the car. Alvin wind-down the glass a little and said to his problematic butler: “If you utter a single word of me leaving to my father, I'll make sure you never experience happiness in the rest of your life.“ Then, he drove off. The gate opened automatically as he got there.Alvin pulled up in the driveway of the club, turning his car key on the ignition. He turned off the music playing in the car radio. Moving his hands over his hair, he tapped on the steering wheel. Alvin had no idea why he felt uneasy about this place, maybe it's because the place is in North Hollywood; one of the most dangerous and insane parts of Los Angeles. “I wonder if Daniel is already in there,” he muttered to himself. Suddenly, he heard a tap on his window. Alvin's heart flew into his head at that instant. He wasn't expecting anybody. Who could that be? He was starting to regret his reason for coming here with a Mc Laren. This car might never be considered as “flashy” in the part of Los Angeles where he stayed, but this isn't that part of Los Angeles—this is North Hollywood! The tap came again, this time more loud and intense. Alvin calmed himself and squinted his eyes to see the person outside his car. It wasn't very clear, since it was night. And Alvin also knew tha
It was a cool night. The breeze from the ocean swept all of its surroundings and island with a satisfying amount of cold. In a dark and small building in California, there were two dozens of hefty and well-builded men. Some others were outside, guiding the surroundings and making sure it's not attacked or rampaged. They were seven particular men in a wide room, one that smelt of drugs and liquor. They were plastic chairs scattered about in different directions—some looking like they hadn't been washed in months. The room had the vibe of a cemetery—quiet and void of life even though they were seven living beings in it. The windows were open, but it was still very hard to breathe. The seven men all had serious and stern expressions on their faces. Nobody was saying anything. Three of them were sniffing a small pack of cocaine with eyes as red as blood. Three others were taking long draws of Jamaica-made marijuana. There was something everybody in the room had in common, and that
Nora's hands were placed on her jaw and she seemed to be far away from the world. It was early morning, 2a.m. to be exact. She had arranged all her sales records for the day and was only waiting for her fellow bartender, Lily, to take over the shift from her. The club wasn't nearly as filled as it was yesterday. It was empty now that it was a Sunday morning. There were still some regular customers chugging on alcoholic drinks with girls sitting on their laps at the far end of some tables. A low music was playing in the background, and fluorescent bulbs of different colours cascaded on the walls of the club. Nessa was very tired, and she was forcing herself not to match up to manager Thompson's office and report Lily to him; she has been coming more and more lately these days. Nora's eyes were heavy, her fingers shaking. She was surely going to pass-out if she had to wait in this club for ten more minutes. Despite everything that was happening to Nora at that moment, she couldn't
It was a new day. The streets of Los Angeles were swarming with people who were either driving or walking to their destinations. The sun was quite intense—since it was “sunday”. And it was definitely not the type of day to be indoors. But things were different for Alvin; he held a bored expression on his face as he looked at the swimming pool before him. He was lying back at the pool bench in front of his permanent residence—not sure if that was the best way to wade away time. Alvin's face was free from a mask, and that was the only thing he was enjoying at that moment. He was shirtless, even though he hadn't got in the pool yet. But he wasn't only shirtless, he was also restless. No matter how hard he had tried, he couldn't get his mind off the girl who he had met twice now. He hadn't thought too much about her the first time they met in the fueling station. But now, he saw her face everywhere he looked. “I'm crazily obsessed with her,” he muttered to himself, smiling for the
Raven Waxson stepped out of his black Mercedes car. It was Sunday, and the sun was more intense since it was afternoon. He was outside a very popular and large hotel in San Francisco. Raven let the cigar on his lips fall to the ground and he squeezed it with his leg. “This is how I'm gonna squeeze him,” he muttered to himself. He was wearing a long black robe with a thick hood. His face tattoo shone wickedly as he looked at the building before him. Raven turned back to his car and ordered the driver to go wait for him. Then, he patted the knife in the pocket of his boxers and walked towards the gate of the hotel. Two security men were standing there. They both looked alike with their saggy moustache, blue and black uniforms and a chubby short body. One had a short colt 1191 gun tucked to his side and the other had a weapon-scanning device. Raven walked up to them with a frown on his face. He was about to barge past them when the one with the weapon pushed him back. “Kindly sh
Nora was lying down on her bed. Her hair was scattered on the sheets and her eyes were heavy from tears. It was 3p.m. in the afternoon, and yet she hasn't climbed out of the bed since she woke up that morning. Her heart was heavy, she was angry and depressed. Diving that man had probably been the worst decision she had made in her life. Not only had she lost her job, she has also lost the chance of getting the money she needed for flying out of the country to a place no one would find her. She picked her phone on the bed, then she opened it and went to her gallery. Tears of pain filled her eyes as she opened the picture of her father. He was smiling, his dimples shone in his face where he had the tattoo of a small scorpion; he also had green innocent eyes—just like hers. Nora cried as she looked at the picture and thought of him. If only her father had been innocent like his eyes, maybe he would still be alive today. There was a sudden knock on the door. Nora knew it was Cath
(Last chapter's continuation) “He is?“ asked Nora with a voice filled with disbelief. “I am?“ asked David. “Yes! He's that guy I told you about, Nora. He had the lead role in the “Ten days in hell” movie.“ Nora looked at the man before him, like she could hardly believe what she was hearing. She and David were very close for such a long time. How come she never knew he was an actor? “Is this true, David?“ Nora managed, not knowing what else to say. David nodded as his reply, adjusting his tie like it was just starting to choke him. And for the first time, Nora noticed that he was wearing an actual suit—not the pencil-jeans and T-shirt he always wore when they were still… Catherine was practically jumping in excitement. “How come a person as rich and famous as you is in a North Hollywood bar of all places? What happened to the real celebrity cities like Los Angeles and New York?“ “I—” “We need to leave right now, Cat,” Nora suddenly said, not giving “David Beckham” a ch
It was Monday at last, a sunny and busy day that promised success and a happy ending. Alvin was at the fitness side of his company. He was doing the gym with headphones on his ears. It was one of the private facilities in the building, allowed to only him and sometimes to assistant CEO Victor. Alvin's face was filled with sweat as he worked out his hatred against life. The headphone was blasting his ears with loud pop songs and he was starting to feel out of the world again. The threadmill was at it's fastness, and Alvin kept going even though he was starting to get tired. His thoughts went back to the green-eyed girl once again, and he was soon starting to regret never asking her for her name. But she seemed to be familiar with that place where she saved him—so he might be lucky enough to see her again if he goes back there. As Alvin was contemplating it, he soon losed concentration and ended up slipping off the threadmill. He landed on his back on the floor, his arm and legs