Outburst

Chapter 3 - Uncle Luke's Fury

Have you ever received a call that started with about 23 thank you’s? Lucy just gave me that call, along with a girly scream and panted breath. It did sound like she had just seen a ghost or something, but that just what happened to her if she was too happy.

Lucy said that Ivan was so nice. They had a small talk right after I left—but don’t worry, Callie, no one discussed why you left so abruptly, she stated—and exchanged phone numbers. And the rest of the call was just her talking about what would happen next for them.

She also added, “It would be so nice if one of my best friends could date one of Ivan’s. We could do a double date—or even triple date!”

I was okay with her dreaming about starting a serious relationship with Ivan, but, “Don’t you even think that double, triple, quadruple date would ever happen,” I closed our conversation when I realized it was already 7.20 pm.

I was the first person to come to dining room for dinner, as usual. I always did this because Uncle Luke was strict about time and obviously hated waiting. He would come exactly at the dinner time he decided. Yeah, he decided everything in this house. Dinner time, the food, even the thing that he had nothing to do about—like what time I should be at home—were monitored by him. Or Grant.

Speaking of Grant, he came earlier than Uncle Luke tonight. Usually, he was like my uncle’s tail, always walking behind him. But something made him came here first.

Grant was still young. He was probably about 6-7 years younger than Uncle Luke. He was tall and very well-mannered. He wore good clothes too. I meant, I never saw him in casual clothes other than shirts or suits. I couldn’t even imagine him wearing one because it was just too impossible to happen.

I could say that his job as my uncle’s assistant was such a waste of his brilliance... and his good look. He looked—and obviously was—really smart. I heard he was an Oxford graduate. Why would he end up being only an assistant? He had been working for him for 2 and a half years—at least Uncle Luke could give him a promotion or something. He could even start his own company with all those certificates I saw hanging on his bedroom wall.

“Can I ask you something?” Grant’s voice brought me back to the dining room.

I blushed. What if he knew that I was thinking about him? No, more than that—I definitely tried to interfere his job, the job that he really enjoyed.

“Sure.” I nodded fast.

“Those boys from this afternoon... Do you know them?”

My eyebrows furrowed. “Uh, why?”

“Do you know them?” He emphasized his question. For a split second, he sounded much like Uncle Luke.

“Y-yeah. Of course, I know them. I mean, why would we be in the same place talking to each other if I don’t know them?” I tried to chuckle, but it came out weird—really weird that Grant narrowed his eyes on me.

“Look, it’s better that you stay away from them,” he said, in the most mysterious way I had ever seen from him.

“What?” Honestly, I didn’t know what to react. Should I be surprised, confused, or angry?

Uncle Luke came in, and suddenly our ‘serious’ conversation didn’t matter anymore.

“Just do it,” said Grant fast, then stood up and nodded once to Uncle Luke. “Sir.”

The foods were immediately served by the maids, while I was thinking hard about Grant’s sudden statement. I drank my hot tea while looking at him, hoping to get more explanation than a simple ‘just do it’, but he just looked back at me in a flash, and then focused on his food again.