Outburst

Chapter 1 - The Dinner

Orange leaves crunched beneath my feet as I walked down the path to a place where people who left us earlier rested for the last time. The fall's crisp cool air swirled around, blew away some leaves that scattered on the path, making a way for me to go through.

Some said a cemetery was a spooky, sad place, where death would welcome you. On Halloween night, some adrenaline-thirst teenagers would come here to seek for supernatural adventure. I was pretty sure they would come home disappointedly-because for me, a cemetery was rather calming. It was quiet and peaceful, nothing so creepy about it. All you could hear was the sound of the wind blew, the trees, and the autumn leaves that fell slowly to the ground.

This was where I could let all my emotions out-my parents' gravestones.

The cold, hard gravestones were located side by side, like they always did when they were alive. "RENEE SILVA MERCER" and "WILLIAM MERCER" were engraved on each of it. I smiled at them warmly.

"Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad. How are you?" I said. I put two bouquets of flowers I had been holding on each stones. "Daisy. Your favorite flower, Mom. And Dad... You didn't have any favorite flowers, but you always admired Mom's little garden, so I gave you daisy too."

Then I chuckled as I remembered the moments I spent with my parents. My Mom passed away 3 years ago, when I was only 13. Cancer took her from me. Two years later, I lost the only parent I had-my Dad. Today was exactly one year since he died. His car went off a bridge, that's what I was told.

When I was remembering those bitter memories, a soft but bold voice called my name. I turned around after wiping the tears off of my face. A tall young man with black suit stood up not far from me.

"I'm sorry if I'm interrupting, Miss Mercer," he said. "But it's time for you to go home."

"Mr. Olivier." I wasn't expecting anyone here, especially this man. I looked around, focused at the area behind this man. "Where is my uncle?"

"He's still in the meeting," said this man-Grant Olivier, my uncle's driver and trusted assistant. "He said he would be home by himself and asked me to pick you up instead. You know you could've just asked me to drive you here."

I smiled wryly. I kind of 'escaped' from school and got here by myself. I just wanted to spend my moment alone. "How do you know I'm here?"

"Today is the anniversary of your father's death," he said. I wasn't surprised. As the trusted assistant of my uncle, he should know that. "My condolences, Miss Mercer."

"Thank you," I said. "Uh... I told you many times not to call me that. I have first name."

"Then I suggest you to do the same to me," he said, this time with a thin smile. He glanced at his watch in a neat gesture. "Shall we go now?"

I looked at my parents' gravestones once again and then nodded. Mr. Olivier-I meant Grant-escorted me to my uncle's black car that was parked nearby. He opened the back car door for me.

"I can ask you to stop doing that too," I said. I didn't know if Grant was really listening or not, he was just smiling, and then closed the door after I got in.

Ever since my Dad died, I had been living with my uncle, my Dad's younger brother. He was the only next of kin that I had. My Mom was an only child and her parents were already gone. I had no choice but to live with my estranged uncle. Well, either that, or an orphanage. He didn't like the idea of me going to the orphanage because I still had him.

Luke Mercer, one of the richest people in the country. He had this successful business and his company had its branches in some countries. What's amazing was he was only 35 years old. He was still unmarried, even though I knew he had a girlfriend.