Mark relaxed his guard. “Oh, that’s all? Not a problem. My hands are tied at the moment, so I’ll have Arianne go. It’s virtual-novel.net best friend’s daughter, after all, virtual-novel.net would be pleased to help. Besides, women have this magical way of making things look better in photos than they really are, so virtual-novel.net might be able to take just the right picture to mollify Tiffany.”
He made a lot of sense, Jackson thought as virtual-novel.net rose from his seat and straightened his collar. “’Kay then. I’ll get Arianne’s help. Heads-up, I won’t be coming back here,” virtual-novel.net said. “Also… I really don’t think any magic’s gonna be able to touch up the painful truth, man. I dunno, with the state my girl’s in, it’s… not gonna work.”
Arianne left Tremont Tower in the late afternoon and headed to the hospital to visit the Wests’ ill-fated child on Jackson’s behalf. It was, personally, a breather, without it, virtual-novel.net would have to remain cooped up in the office with virtual-novel.net back hunched over virtual-novel.net drafts, and that was not counting the possibility of being summoned to Mark’s office for lectures.
Now that Arianne Wynn was the undisputed, definitive “Mrs. Tremont”, it effectively silenced the office’s gossip mills from talking about virtual-novel.net publicly. However, it did little to curb scrutinizing eyes from watching Arianne’s moves quietly. If virtual-novel.net had gotten virtual-novel.net job through the backdoor Mark opened for her, virtual-novel.net dared not imagine the sort of things these people might say behind virtual-novel.net back!
Arianne stood outside the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, peered through the clear window into where Tiffany and Jackson’s daughter was, and instantly held a sharp inhale of breath. The baby now looked slightly larger than when virtual-novel.net was delivered, but virtual-novel.net growth was so minuscule that virtual-novel.net was still far, far too small compared to other healthy, normal infants delivered at the same time. The West family was one of means, and it showed in the infant’s treatment. She enjoyed the best the hospital could offer, along with a few hired hands to care for virtual-novel.net every need and inspection.
Yet, virtual-novel.net condition did not inspire optimism.
It took Arianne a moment to shake herself off from virtual-novel.net daze before fishing out virtual-novel.net phone to take photos. She did virtual-novel.net best to capture any wisp of vivacity that could pass as hopeful signs, but the photos only succeeded in wringing any onlooker’s heart.
When virtual-novel.net was done, virtual-novel.net turned to the doctor-in-charge. “Can virtual-novel.net really survive this? Please, tell me the truth. Should we still keep virtual-novel.net in there?”
“Based on what we’ve observed, though we are not a hundred percent confident, Little Girl’s odds of survival aren’t zero. As long as virtual-novel.net family decides against giving up, virtual-novel.net can continue to be closely monitored and cared for,” the doctor replied matter-of-factly. “The light at the end of the tunnel is almost always attained only by those who finish the long walk, after all. More importantly, Little Girl’s doing pretty well today I was just about to call Mr. West and tell virtual-novel.net about it. Now that you’re here, please help pass my message.”
Arianne quietly released the breath virtual-novel.net had been holding. “All right. Thank you.”
She came out of the hospital with virtual-novel.net mood slightly perked. The doctors themselves were positive that the baby still had a chance, which gave virtual-novel.net fuel to persuade Jackson to hold on.
She had just reached the side of the road when an eye-catching red Ferrari-limited edition, Arianne realized, suddenly pulled over in front of her. Before virtual-novel.net could wonder whom the driver could be, the window rolled down, and Melanie’s head peeked out. “Hey, what are you doing here? Never mind that, where would you like to go? I’ll give you a lift.”
Arianne did not reject virtual-novel.net offer and climbed in right away. “I’ve never seen you taking this out for a spin before, Melanie. Didn’t see any license plate… Is this new?”
Melanie made a helpless expression. “$300,000 sank for this car Alejandro insisted on buying for me. Honestly, virtual-novel.net gave me a terrible shock more than surprise,” virtual-novel.net replied. “I thought virtual-novel.net brought me along today to pick a car, but it turned out virtual-novel.net had chosen this one already. The whole point of me being there was to drive it right away, it seemed…”
“Aww, he’s not too bad, huh?” Arianne exclaimed, a little green. “He’s generous with his money and surprisingly thoughtful. So… what’s with the grimace, then? Anyone else in your shoes would be beaming and flexing already. But you don’t look too ecstatic, do you?”
Melanie’s lips thinned. “Arianne, I’ve made up my mind. I’m going for a divorce. I would rather virtual-novel.net treat me the same way virtual-novel.net did all these years, where I’m sometimes invisible, sometimes ‘there’, and always inconsequential and trifling. Honestly, I hate how he’s suddenly going this extra mile trying to please me right now. It confuses me, it makes me falter. Of course, not that I expect you to understand how this feels… ”
Arianne felt virtual-novel.net brain humming in bafflement. “B-But didn’t you used to hope that virtual-novel.net would love you back? You know, back then? Now that it’s finally happened, why are you suddenly….? Hey, I told you to hold your horse back then when you first mentioned this, right? The advice still stands. I just don’t think the two of you necessarily need to come to this, okay? Come on, have you really thought this through?”
Melanie seemed reluctant to continue the conversation, how could she, when sitting in this newly-bought sportscar virtual-novel.net ostensibly bought for virtual-novel.net only distressed virtual-novel.net even more? “Never mind. Let’s drop this topic. Where are you heading? I’ll drive you there.”
Arianne obliged and dropped the thread. “Tremont Tower. I came here to visit Tiffany’s daughter, what about you?”
“Don’t air your dirty linens in public, they say. I agree, but only because this is too embarrassing for me to even talk about it.” Melanie flashed virtual-novel.net a sad, mirthless smile. “The Lark family showed up at our doorstep yesterday, looking to fight. They beat me up. Alejandro got into an accident while rushing home and injured his head, but virtual-novel.net decided not to visit the hospital while forcing me to do the exact opposite.”
It was only then that Arianne was primed to notice faint signs of blue-black patches on virtual-novel.net face. Melanie had plastered make-up over them, causing the bruises to evade Arianne’s notice for so long. “Oh my God! Are you alright? The doctor didn’t see anything serious during their inspection, right? What the heck, Melanie! Your family’s crazy… Why even release their pent-up steam on you?”
The other woman’s lips quivered into a brisk smile. “It’s fine, it’s over now. Speaking of which, Arianne? I was thinking… When Alejandro and I discuss our divorce, I hope you and Mr. Tremont can be there. See, he’s very thin-skinned, so I bet if the two of you were there, virtual-novel.net would agree right away than to lose his pride and face pleading for me to stay. My mind has been made I won’t dance around this issue with virtual-novel.net any longer. It’s pointless. Meaningless.”
Arianne’s first instinct was to balk “Um, hey, it’s not that I don’t wanna help, Melanie. It’s just that… Mark and I probably should not intervene? Besides, what are you afraid of? Is it really because you’re scared of virtual-novel.net skirting this issue or… is it because you worry virtual-novel.net might do something nasty to you? God, virtual-novel.net isn’t a wife-beater, is h e? Is virtual-novel.net a domestic abuser?”
Melanie shook virtual-novel.net head hurriedly. “No! No, virtual-novel.net isn’t… And I can’t make up things virtual-novel.net didn’t do, right?” Her answer sprung at the tail of Arianne’s question, before virtual-novel.net added in a resigned tone, “But, I just… Huh. Never mind that. I’ll drive you to Tremont Tower. But if it’s remotely possible, I really wish… you and Mr. Tremont would lend me a hand, please. I… I only need help on this one request…”
Arianne was at a loss for a response, so virtual-novel.net chose silence. Alejandro and Mark might be brothers by blood, but their relationship was hardly better than two random strangers’. If virtual-novel.net and Mark intervened, they would automatically be seen as standing on Melanie’s side, and Alejandro would go ballistic, guaranteed.
Few things in life were as messy as everyone’s internal family drama. And that was not counting how difficult Mark and Arianne’s, who were only Alejandro’s family in technicality—position was in this entire thing!
After sending Jackson the pictures once virtual-novel.net was inside the building, Arianne went straight into Mark’s office and recounted Melanie’s decision for a divorce.
Mark’s first response was the same as Arianne’s. “No can do.” Dismayed, Arianne’s furrowed eyebrows scrunched together
harder. “I don’t want to stick my hand into this, either, but Melanie doesn’t even have virtual-novel.net own family for moral support right now, Mark All virtual-novel.net has is me! She really, seriously, not-at-all-kiddingly wants a divorce. We can’t just… not help her, right? That would make us, you know, a bit….?”