Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I WAKE UP TO PERSISTENT knocking. Sitting up, I see Y/n is still asleep. The sound seems to be coming from downstairs. I throw on a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt and go investigate, hoping to stop the noise before it wakes Y/n and my parents.
When I open the front door, I'm stunned to find Suguru standing on the front porch. I spoke to him on Friday to let him know I was taking Y/n to Aspen Grove, and he said he was scheduled to visit one of his restaurants in New York this weekend.
"Hey, what are you doing he—"
"Where's Y/n, I need to talk to her," he interrupts, pushing his way inside the house.
"Suguru?" Y/n's voice catches my attention.
She's standing at the top of the stairs, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. There's a faint smudge of mascara underneath them, and her hair is tousled. Thank god she put on a pair of gray sweats to go with my Linkin Park T-shirt before she came out of the bedroom.
"Can I talk to you in private?" Suguru asks.
Y/n comes down the stairs to join us. "What's wrong? I thought you were in New York."
"This is a conversation that we needed to have in person," Suguru states, refusing to look at me.
What the hell is his problem?
Y/n frowns. "Does it concern Satoru?"
Suguru nods. "Yeah."
"In that case, he's not leaving," Y/n says, folding her arms across her chest.
I'm not particularly looking forward to being in the middle of their sibling showdown, but I like the idea of Y/n wanting me here.
Suguru runs his hands through his hair. "F/n called late last night and left me a five-minute voicemail. I thought it was a producer calling me back, and was surprised when I heard his voice. The last time we spoke was the day he walked out on Mom. I'm not even sure how he got my phone number."
"What did he want?" Y/n asks.
"Between the shouting and colorful language, it was hard to follow his message. From what I did understand, he claims Satoru married you because Stafford Holdings is acquiring Geto International and is using your marriage as leverage for a better deal."
That fucking bastard.
F/n's erratic behavior makes it clear he's in a downward spiral. I wonder if he got wind of Tomoe's private investigator, or at the very least, is worried that we're going to pull out of the deal because of the information his team was forced to hand over. It doesn't make sense that he would reach out to Suguru after all these years. If anything, telling him would incentivize us not to do business with F/n. The problem is that he's not thinking rationally right now. He's in a panic and grasping at straws.
