The Love Complex (Completed)

-16-

"If equal affection cannot be, let the more loving one be me." -W. H. Auden

After the episode ended, they walked into the kitchen. Dylan got ready to cook, but Regina stopped him. She needed to distract herself. "Have you been able to write anything yet?" He asked, as she put on the apron.

She shook her head, "I haven't even started. I don't even know what I'm going to write about."

Dylan nodded, "I'll help you then."'

His intentions were obviously pure and good. However, she knew that his help wouldn't be so helpful. Despite this, she didn't say anything. Instead, she worked in silence while Dylan spoke.

"I'm going to be honest, I've never watched a lot of romance movies or series, but my mom always told me stories about the neighbors' love-lives when we cooked together."

"You and your mother cooked together?" She asked. Dylan nodded. "Yeah, she taught both Jaxon and I. My dad and her are both chefs, they met in culinary school. They actually wanted one of us to inherit the restaurant, but sadly, neither one of us really had the passion."

"Really? What does your brother do?"

Dylan smiled, "He's a police officer. He's also not the best cook."

Regina chuckled, she walked over to get a pan, but Dylan beat her to it and got it for her. "Anyway, I'll tell you some of the stories so you can get some inspiration."

Regina nodded, taking the pan.

"The last story, probably the best one, was about this woman. When she was young, she fell in love with a baker, but he wasn't in love with her. The baker was a young widow, his wife had died in a car accident, and he didn't want to replace her. The woman, after she found out, loved him even more. Mom said that she was just in love with the idea of love; she wanted to be loved the same way that the baker loved his past wife. " He stopped. Regina looked at him, he was busy placing salt on the salt shaker.

"Then, what happened?" She asked. Dylan looked at her and smiled. "They didn't end up together. She was about to marry him, but ended up falling in love with a man she met on a train station. She called off the wedding and left with the man she had just met."

"What happened to the baker?"

"He didn't love her. He still loved his wife. After the wedding was called off, he left for his wife's hometown. Mom said that he eventually married another woman, but it isn't really certain."

"That doesn't sound like a love story."

Dylan shrugged, "If you really think about it; it kind of is. I mean, she eventually found love. It just wasn't with the person she thought."

"Is there another story?"

Dylan chuckled. "Well...Let me think about it..."

Regina nodded. Eventually he remembered another one. "You might like this one." he said as he sat down.

"This might be more hopeful and romantic."

"This one began in the summer. A college girl had come to her grandfather's to spend the summer. She had a terrible discussion with her parents and wanted to run away from everything. While she was there, she met a young lawyer. The lawyer was really uptight and she immediately disliked him, but the lawyer had a brother. His brother was a painter and he was the very adventurous--he'd often disappear without saying a word to anyone. Anyway, they spent almost all the summer together. It was perfect. Then one day, the painter left. The girl was sad, she looked for him everywhere, but he was gone. It broke her heart. When she was coming back home, she met the lawyer. He was going on his way home. She asked him for the brother, and they eventually ended up heading to a restaurant nearby. Strangely enough, they kept running into each other. By the time they knew it, they became friends. Finally, it was her last day, and she was about to go back home. She searched for the lawyer, but he was nowhere to be found. The painter had come back though. He had come back and wanted her to go and travel the world with him, but she didn't want that anymore. She wanted to be with the lawyer. Eventually, she found him."

Dylan smiled and looked at Regina who was looking at him. Her gaze dropped and she immediately turned to the stove. "W-what happened?"

Dylan shrugged, " I don't know. The girl left town and so did the lawyer and the painter right after."

"Those are both really good stories, I'll think them over and try to get some ideas from them." she said before walking toward the cupboard to get the plates. Dylan nodded.

"I...actually, heard the nurses talk about your dad. They were saying that he owns Trinity Hospital." He said, after a few seconds. 

Regina turned over to look at him. "Sorry, I meant to tell you about that. I didn't know that you had been hired there. I promise I had nothing to do..."

She didn't get to finish. 

"It's okay," Dylan said with a smile. "I mean, it's a little weird...I mean, not--"

Regina chuckled a bit.  

"I-" She was about to say, when the doorbell rang. Dylan offered to get it, while Regina set the table.

"Set two more!!" A chirpy voice filled the dining room. Regina looked over and saw her younger sister. She was wearing a yellow sundress.

"Tina?"

"Please tell this man to open the door, my bodyguard was looking for a place to park. He'll be here soon."

"I did." Dylan said with an annoyed smile.

Valentina rolled her eyes.

"I'm sorry miss--" said the tall man. He was wearing a dark blue shirt and white khaki pants. Dylan immediately recognized him. "Jaxon?"

His younger brother looked at him a bit surprised.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Valentina asked.

Dylan didn't say anything. His eyes were glued to his younger brother, who was trying not to meet his gaze.

"Is-is he your brother Jaxon?" Regina asked.

Dylan nodded.

"Wait, you know him too?" Valentina asked, looking over at her sister like a deer caught in the headlights. 

Regina walked over toward her sister and pulled her into the kitchen, in order to give the men a minute to themselves.

"Why did you do that?" She asked, completely offended. Regina tried to shush her, "Tina, don't you see. Are you really that dense?"

Her sister rolled her eyes. "No, I am not, but that is my bodyguard right there, he needs to be by my side." She complained before she began to make her way back to the dining room. Regina stopped her by pulling on her elbow.

"Tina please, don't be selfish for once. Just listen to me."

Valentina rolled her eyes, but listened to her and stayed put.

"What are you even doing here?" She finally asked.

Valentina shrugged, her attention was still on the room just a few meters away. "I don't-" she mumbled, before the question registered in her brain and she looked back at her sister with a face full of indignation.

"What do you mean? I am your sister. What? Can't a sister come and see her sister?"

"I'm not saying that," Regina said, " It's just that you rarely come and visit."

Valentina shook her head. "This man is not someone I trust, okay. You know what happened between us, what if he wants to hurt you?"

"Dylan doesn't want to hurt me, okay! You keep thinking things that don't make sense. Why do you even have against him?" She asked, looking at her with actual curiosity.

Valentina looked at Regina for a few minutes, with a stare Regina couldn't quite comprehend. However, the look in her face soon disappeared, and she looked over her shoulder and toward the dining room. "I'm going in."

"Fine, I'll tell you everything." Regina blurted out, finally catching Valentina's attention.