Broken and Fixed - (Conor McGregor)

Chapter 18

"All tests are normal. She is perfectly fine. She might be a little affected by what happened but try your best to make her forget about that incident and try not to mention it near her." The doctor advised him while she was asleep and Conor listened to the doctor attentively.

"So, I can take her home?" He asked and the doctor replied with a satisfactory nod.

Conor slowly stroked her hand and she immediately woke up with a shock but upon seeing him, she smiled faintly.

"Let's go home, Aria." He whispered.

"I need to have a new beginning." She grabbed his hand tightly before he could move away. Her voice was weak but she sounded as if she was already better. "I need a job and I must go for the interview today."

"Oh darling, sure. But first you need to rest-"

"I have rested enough." She cut off his sentence short and struggled to sit up straight, grunting in pain as she pulled up her body and her head jerked upwards. "You can't change my mind, king."

"Alright then. What do you want me to do?" He placed himself beside her legs, gently stroking her arm, brushing her bruises which had already started to heal.

"Take me to the Feather Designing company."

He stared at her with a perplexed face. After all that had happened, she was still thinking about being independent. It felt as if she wasn't affected at all, as if she forgot what had even happened. In truth, she knew that dwelling on the past wouldn't make any difference, and besides, Conor was hers now, which meant that not even a single bug could bother her since he was a powerful man who would give her protection.

"Okay."

"Wouldn't you call me darling? Or love? We are married now." Her lips slightly lifted up into a playful smirk.

But he stood up and ignoring her smile, he walked towards the door where he stopped and took a deep breath before turning and whispering; "I married you because I want to protect you. I can't lose you, the way I lost Anora. Don't expect love from me. Just expect protection and safety." With that, he trotted away.

She let out a hopeless sigh as the nurse came in and helped her change into her normal attire. Once she was ready, she left the hospital and found her guardian, her protector in the car waiting for her. She took the seat beside him and he started to drive slowly, yet unfocused because all his mind could think about was regret, guilt and misery.

He drove, she stared. She was bored so she turned on the radio but he detested the idea of listening music whilst driving, thus she turned it off and survived the rest of the journey in boredom.

"Here we are." He stopped the car in front of the tall building which made his heart beat tremendously. Conor met Anora in the same before she died. The place gave him nothing except for heartache and that is why he quickly looked away from the building.

Aria, on the contrary, was excited to see such a tall building. This was where Anora worked at, where she fulfilled her goals and now, she was going to take over those goals. She left the car and without even saying anything to Conor, she dashed into the building. Upon entering it, she felt as if she knew the whole building by heart. Taking the lift to the second floor, she went to the owner's office and slightly knocked on the door.

"Come in."

She bashed through the door with a huge smile, for which she could not really find a reason. She found a blonde haired man, looking at her bewilderedly.

Her smile slowly faded away as her head started to throb and once again, her heart started to rage within her. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean?" He asked with his arms folded across his chest.

"This is my office!" Aria screamed.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Alistair! How dare you speak to me like that! I am Ano-" she stopped speaking as soon as she came back to her senses. How stupid of her, she couldn't control that inner part of herself, especially on such occasion.

Yes, that was Alistair. He was Anora's fiancé and that is why Aria could feel herself in the turmoil once again. But she was proud of herself because this time, she didn't completely make a fool out of herself.

"I am so sorry! Something has gotten over me." Aria rubbed her hand against her forehead, feeling a little sweaty and dizzy.

He saw her face turn pale, so he poured some water in the glass and handed it to her. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I-" she took a deep breath and smiled "I'm Aria. I came for an interview."

"Oh, you must be the new model that we wanted." He smirked brightly before standing up.

"No! I'm here to become the receptionist."

"Receptionist? No, you have more than that. You can be our model instead."

"Please, I can't even model. I can design but-"

"You can design! That's even better!" He walked towards his desk and took out a sketch book and a pencil from the drawer.

He handed them to her and eagerly stared at her, as if putting all hope into her. She took a heavy sigh before her hand started to move on its own, drawing designs which were hard for her to believe that she was actually creating them. After five minutes, she came up with a perfect outfit and Alistair was left awestruck.

"It's beautiful! Your style, it reminds me of-" his eyes became grim and he turned around to hide his emotions, "ah, never mind. Please be our designer."

"Designer? I don't have a degree." She chuckled nervously.

"So what? You have talent. That's all what matters! Even my fiancé, she-" he paused once again and shook his head, his blue eyes full of depression and guilt.

"She was the owner of this company, right? Anora McNair?"

His eyes widened and he inspected her as she covered her mouth. She couldn't believe it. She let it out.

"How do you know about her?"

"I know everything, Alistair. I used to read about you guys." Aria lied without feeling bad because it wouldn't do any harm.

"Wow. You're like a fan, no? Well, I welcome you as the newest member of the Feather Designing family. I won't call it a company because we are like a family. You will find that out in a few days."

He brought his hand forward and Aria shook it without hesitation. Flashbacks ran through her mind; Anora, Alistair, hugging in the same room but then, Anora forcefully pulled back and scoffed at him. Flashbacks after flashbacks came and she figured out everything. Anora dominated him, commanded him, ruled over him but he was loyal to her till the last minute.

"Ah!" Aria squinted her eyes, a blue, clear vein popping out beneath the skin of her forehead as she slowly stepped back. She was dizzy but she knew she wasn't going to pass out.

"Miss Aria, are you okay?" He held her arm but she pulled it back.

The door opened and in came Conor who gasped upon seeing Aria.

"You stupid jerk! What did you do to her?" Conor rushed over to her and held her to support her.

"Conor, he didn't do anything." Aria bit her lower lip, overcoming the dizziness. "This man just gave me a job, that too as a fashion designer."

"Really?" He looked from her to Alistair, who smiled nervously.

"Yes. We should go home and celebrate." She moved away from him and walked out of the office.

Conor stared grimly at Alistair, his eyes full of a sudden hatred and annoyance which provoked Alistair to give him a similar look. It was a stare off between the two, but they were pulled apart once Aria called on Conor and he made his way out.

Alistair turned around to face his desk and grabbed the frame which was a piece of decoration for the desk. He glared at the picture in the frame. It was a picture of him and his beloved fiancée who no longer existed. "I miss you Anora," his whispered, hugging the frame close to his chest, "now more than ever."