My Words Are Law

Not for my own interest (4)

'I apologize for not returning. I was asked to hurry to the meeting... Have you met Bastien? Was he good to you?'

Geneva Simmons tapped her fingers on the table. The message had not been read yet. She wanted to call Bastien, but she's worried she might interrupt something.

Knowing Bastien, however, the possibility of him sincerely engaging in a social setting is close to none. She sighed in frustration. No- If she was the girl he invited to his unit himself, then there might just be a chance. 

At the sound of the door opening, she was prompted to shift her attention away from her phone.

She acted nonchalantly as she faced the roses before her, grabbing the scissors and cutting the stems as if she had not been worrying a while back. As soon as she saw a shadow emerge from the foyer, she cleared her throat and asked about the dress with a light tone. "Have you retrieved it?" 

He let out a hum of agreement as he drew close to the sunken living room to deliver the paper bag.

"I remember calling Priscilla to bring the clothes last Sunday." He started. 

Geneva Simmons raised a brow. "What about Priscilla?" 

"Grandma... Have you been looking into me through my assistant?" He asked after a brief pause. 

The old lady arched a brow. "Bastien, I may be old, but I'm not that bored that I'd start stalking my grandson." 

"Right. You coincidentally met her and lent her a dress. Even more ridiculous, you gave her your contact number and set a schedule for her to return the dress. I wonder why? Does the fairy grandmother plan to transform all damsels in distress with one dress?" He interjected as he picked up a stem, seemingly inspecting the flower with interest. "That's very cheap of you."

Her lips formed a straight line of displeasure from the apparent tone of sarcasm in his voice. Nevertheless, she quickly hid it with a sigh before speaking helplessly. "I really don't know what you mean. Do you know that girl?"

When he didn't reply, she continued to narrate how she met Amaryllis, editing a few details along the way. "It was last Sunday... I was on my way to the Masons to deliver a gift to your fiancé when I met a girl sneezing and shivering at the side of the road. I felt pity for her, so I gave her the dress instead... Don't tell me you're the reason why she was in that poor state?" She raised her eyes to peer at her grandson's expression before quickly going back to snipping the stems. 

He looks as expressionless as ever, but he can't fool her this time. 

She puffed out another sigh. "Bastien... Have you been so aggravated that you could bear to let her be in that pitiful state? Was it really justified..? Or did you just not bother to weigh whose fault it really is-"

"Grandma. You shouldn't worry about these things. I am not a child anymore. If I make mistakes, I will fix them. If I didn't, then all is good."

She shrugged her shoulders wearily at his dismissal of the topic. How could she not worry when he hadn't changed at all..?  

"Anyway, don't go to the Masons anymore." 

She looked up at him again. "If I don't go, then will you..? You've been engaged with their daughter for a year, but not once did you take the initiative to formally greet your future in-laws. At this rate, they'll think we're playing with their daughter... Goodness..." She shook her head as she returned her eyes to what she was doing. "I say you go buy another dress and give it to Vienna personally. And don't forget to buy gifts for Mr. & Mrs. Mason, as well-"

"No need. I'm breaking the engagement off." 

Geneva's eyes grew wide with shock. "Bastien!" 

"I have already made up my mind, grandmother." He dropped the flower and turned around to leave but paused midway. "Oh. And have you still not gotten over your mother's 'rebellion'? Please stop calling me Bastien. That's not my name." 

Geneva pouted. "Hmph. Bastien's still a better name than Chryses." She muttered before calling out to him louder this time. "Why don't you stay for dinner? It's been a while since you came home. I'll cook your favorite." 

His footsteps halted to look back at his aging relative, the golden eyes appearing pensive under the lights. "...Okay. I'll head to my room first."

His grandmother smiled in satisfaction. The conversation came to an end, so he whirled around and changed directions to climb the stairs to the second floor. As soon as the footsteps faded into silence, Geneva dialed a number. 

"Miss Priscilla... I'm sorry if I've interrupted your work."

'Mrs. Simmons... Not at all. Is there anything I can do for you?' The voice coming from the other line is as formal as always. 

"Yes... Do you have any clue as to why my grandson suddenly wants to break the engagement with Miss Vienna?"

'...I see the young master already told you.' There was a sigh before she resumed. 'I honestly couldn't believe it at first, but it seems the young miss has tampered with your grandson's unit... Last Sunday, the young master suddenly called for forensics and an investigation unit to look into the Pent House. It seems Miss Vienna put aphrodisiac in the young master's drinking water earlier that day and planned to visit him at night to take advantage of it... We still don't know how she was able to access the young master's unit despite the security, but I'm speculating that she must have made unscrupulous deals with the building administrator... Thankfully, her plan didn't come to fruition...' 

Geneva's brows furrowed. "...Is that so? Thank you for informing me, as always." 

'It's my pleasure, Mrs. Simmons.' 

She ended the call, sighing in disappointment. She warned the Mason's daughter not to provoke Bastien countless times, but Vienna lost her patience in the end. The Masons could only blame their daughter for Bastien's next course of action now that he's aware of the schemer's identity... Whether it had failed or succeeded, there's no way to reverse Bastien's decision at this point. She could try talking to him to leave it to the proper authorities, but she doubts it will work. 

On the brighter side, this has opened another path for him... The girl whose name means pride, but what a sweet girl she is... And quite pitiful. 

Now that she had finished trimming the stems, she gathered the flowers and carefully placed them in the vase, admiring the vibrant red of the petals. 

It would be nice if it could live a long life. 

***

A/N: He's not that bad of a guy to drug Amaryllis, guys. haha.