Giles Ashford had always wondered if his master had a secret life or was he head of some secret society. He had observed that he had secret conversations over the phone with people unknown to him. He knew it was really childish of him to think in such a way. It was as if he were a 12-year-old kid imagining himself to be some sort of mafia. Maybe the young master was only keeping secret contacts to find a way for young Miss Aria. But he couldn't help it. His young master was capable of anything if he wanted, hence he couldn't rule that possibility out.
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"Mum, it seems that Aria Winters' health isn't so good. Doctors won't be able to do much after a while. It seems it's hopeless." Lucien Blackthorne said to his mother. Aria had been the talk among them since she had entered a coma.
"I have heard about it too, son. Let things be alright, that's all I wish for. All the other things are irrelevant," his mother replied. She was not happy with how things turned out in her dear child's life, but she hoped it would be better. Lucien Blackthorne knew how his mother was feeling about all this.
"I hope that, too, mother." Lucien Blackthorne said and let out a sigh.
From what he knew, his stoic brother had tried to give the best treatment in the world for this girl. She was his friend when he was in school. That's all they knew about her until it changed.
His brother had always carried a cold demure. He was strong, intelligent, and extremely handsome. No one would expect any less from the Blackthorne family's genes. But he was exceptional in his own way, and he never showed much emotion. No one could understand his emotions except him and their mother. But even they weren't able to make him feel things. Only once in his life had he seen his brother so distraught. As if he had lost his entire world.
It was a rainy night, a stormy one to be precise. After all the destruction the day seemed to have brought to his brother's life,, as he assumed it wasn't small. The day he saw his brother in utter defeat. He came to the hospital when Elias Whitlock called him and told him to go to the D hospital. It was a top-notch hospital in the country. Elias Whitlock told him that his brother's assistant had asked him to be there, but he couldn't be there for another hour, so he had asked him to be there. But his voice was frantic, panicking. He couldn't forget the terror he was in. He was extremely shaken after the call. He was afraid that something had happened to his brother. He rushed to the hospital as fast as he could.
Giles Ashford was there waiting for him right at the entrance, he walked him to the unit where his brother was and waited outside. When he entered, he saw his brother a bit far from him, holding the hand of a beautiful young lady whom he recognized as his brother's school friend, Aria Winters. She was telling him something, even if she was struggling to utter those words. He couldn't make out what it was as he was a bit away from them, and her words were feeble to hear. Just as her consciousness slipped and nurses took her away for further treatment. His brother went silent. Tears were streaming down his face.
His brother walked away, not even noticing him, into the rain. He followed him. Once they were out of the hospital, his brother fell to his knees, as if his legs had collapsed, and gave up on him. And he let out a scream of agony. He could still remember that. He could still remember it ringing in his voice.
His brother returned to his old way, showing little emotion as always. He never gave an explanation for what had happened. He had been trying ever since to make her return to life. Hiring the best doctors, providing her the best treatment and medical support. Even though the Winters family could afford most of it themselves. He never let them. He didn't give them any explanation, but no one dared question him. And the Winters family was at peace knowing their daughter was in the best hands.
He hasn't been able to bear to see his master, whom he had loved so much, whom he looked up to so greatly,, crumple. Sure, he never showed his misery later on. But he knew that he always felt it. He had once imagined his brother experiencing love; he knew that when that happened, he would even turn the world upside down for his love. But never had he imagined finding his brother's love in such a miserable position. Beyond help. He sincerely wished for things to take a turn in his brother's favour.
The second young master of the Blackthorne family was just as exceptional as everyone else in the family. Since his brother was the one taking care of business, he wanted to pursue his interest. He was extremely interested in quantum physics and was pursuing it as his major. He was soon to graduate. He was pretty popular; if his brother carried the cold forbidden aura,, he carried a loving, warm aura. Everyone was deeply attracted to him. He was pretty popular at his university, too.
He could understand clearly that the loss his brother faced that day wasn't small. He had told his mother about that day. She was in deep misery since then. Sadness had enveloped her when she realized that the girl her dear son loved was beyond help. She would have been more than happy to accept her as her daughter-in-law. She had succeeded in making her son feel love. She was also the daughter of the Winters family; she knew she couldn't be that bad after all. She also knew about her since her childhood. She wanted him to move on for sure, but she knew that Blackthorne family men can't get over their love so easily. She would be happy just as much as he would when she finally woke up.
Felix Blackthorne wasn't aware of all these assumptions that his brother and mother had, maybe it didn't stop with them either. He knew that his brother had seen him on that day, the day he was the most vulnerable in his entire life. But he was so stubborn that he wouldn't let anything out. But he never knew of the things they thought about all of that; after all, he avoided that one topic, so he could only assume their thoughts. He tried to make that day a closed chapter in his life. But he failed miserably. He somehow couldn't just give up. As if something was telling him not to lose faith yet.