CHAPTER 76: I love her

Daniel's POV: "Craig!" I called him the moment I entered the studio. He's in the middle of the dance floor, giving instructions to all his students, but I guess he didn't hear me as he continued talking to them. "Craig!" I called him again and this time he turned to me, knitting his eyebrows. Confusion was clearly written on his face as he walked towards my direction. "Mr. Kelley." He smiled at me. "If you're looking for----" "Where is Sophia?" "That's what I'm going to say before you interrupted me. She's not here and hasn't come back since the day you followed her to the parking lot." "I need to talk to her." He sighed and then looked at me straight in the eye. "That's what you always say every time you visit here, it's either you want to talk to her or you need to talk to her--- "Craig, please? This is so important and I really need to talk to her." He chuckled at me. "But I'm telling you the truth, Mr. Kelley, she's not here and I'm not asking her when she will come back because I know how stressed she has been this past few days." He said, raising an eyebrow. "If you want you can go and check her office if she's there." And that's what I did. I immediately run towards Sopha's office, but I was approached by an empty cold room with purple walls and decorations. "So, did you see her inside?" He asked me when I went back outside but I ignored him and sat down on the nearest chair. He followed me and stood in front of me, crossing his arms. "Why do you still need to talk to her? I thought she had already clarified things between you, that your marriage and agreement were over?" "Yes, but this is not about our agreement, Craig." "If it's not about your agreement, what is it then?" "It's about Joseph De Lucca----" "Oh, no, no! Stop right there!" He raised his hands, stopping me to speak in which I didn't understand. "I'm sorry, Mr. Kelley, but just in case you didn't know, she had already quit searching for justice that seems so difficult to get." "No! She can't just quit like that----" "She chose to stop living in her past and move forward together with her Mom and younger brother." "Wait, she already know that she has a brother?" "Yes----wait, how did you know that she has a brother?" "It's a long story, Craig." "Really? Or was she right when she said you hired a private investigator to learn about her background?" I just deeply sighed as I don't know how to explain it to him. "It's okay, you don't have to answer, so don't pressure yourself, Mr. Kelley. Anyway, she's now on good term with her Mom." "Ohh... it's nice to hear that." "Well, yeah, you're right. It's really nice to hear that she can be herself again. She finally learned to let go of the past and not holding grudges against the people who hurt her, misjudged her and insulted her." I avoided his gaze as he emphasized his last sentence. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking when I threw those words to her. I know I hurt her that much and I'm willing to start asking for her forgiveness." "Tsk.tsk.tsk." He shook his head. "She's fine now and happy with her family." "What do you mean she is with her family now? I know her mother and brother were here but her father is in Italy." I suddenly become confused. "She left." He answered shortly that added to my confused state. "What do you mean she left?" "She has already returned to Italy with her Mom and younger brother----" "No!" My eyes widened in shock. "She can't go back to Italy!" "And why not, Mr. Kelley? It's her hometown and that thing is for her to decide and not yours." "I know, but Joseph De Lucca was also there----" "Hep!" He interrupted me, raising his palm just a few inches away from my face to stop me. "I told you, she doesn't care anymore with the case, besides, what's more important to her right now is her sick father and not that son of a bitch! And for your information, she's not alone. She has four bodyguards that follows her 24/7, so you can now throw your worries into the nearest bin because it's no longer needed." "I want to help her, Craig! I already know her story. I found out the truth, that she was molested by that mother fucker De Lucca almost seven years ago and I want to help her give him a lesson he deserved for what he did!" I was fuming with anger when I mentioned that bastard's name, but I was slightly surprised when I turned to him and found him staring at me, expressionless. Then I heard him sighed afterwards. "Really, Mr. Kelley? So what help are you going to offer to someone who has already given up the battle, huh?" "Someone sent me a package a few weeks ago----" "And what can that package do about my friend's case?" "It's a flash drive, Craig." "A flash drive?" And he chuckled at me sarcastically. "Yes, it's a flash drive that contains all the evidence of what Joseph did to her!" "W-Wait! I-I don't understand---" "It has the CCTV footage of when the incident happened." "Y-You mean to say when Sophia went to their house and...." "Yes." I nodded as he couldn't continue his statement. "But who would send you a flash drive that contains evidence of what happened seven years ago?" "That's the question that bothers me until now." "Can I see the video?" He turned around immediately and led me back to Sophia's office. After a few minutes... "Argh! That fucking son of a bitch!" That's his first reaction after watching the video. "You're right, Mr. Kelley, she can't just quit like that. You need to follow her in Italy and show her the video. Even though she can't ask Layla's help, but she can use that as a concrete evidence against him." "Yeah, I think that's the only thing left for me to do, to follow her in Italy and to ensure her safety. Because I swear to God, Craig, I will kill him once he tries to touch her again!" He didn't say anything, he just stood up and to my surprise he walked towards the door. I thought he's going out but he stopped after opening the door and turned to me. "Are you sure that's the only thing you will do when you follow her to Italy, to protect her and to ensure her safety, Mr. Kelley?" "Yes and of course to help her with the case." "Hmm... so how about your feelings for her?" "Huh?" I became speechless all of a sudden as I didn't expect his question. "When are you going to confess your feelings? When are you going to admit that you love her? Time is running faster than our thoughts, Mr. Kelley, and I'm afraid that one day, when you wake up, there won't be any more time to do things that you wanted, so do it now." He was about to close the door when he turned around again, but this time he smiled at me. "Tell her what you feel, the real you. Tell her your weaknesses, the things you are afraid of, and all the things you wanted to say. Be yourself in front before her, and make a decision today before you run out of time and before it's too late. Waiting is a mistake, Mr. Kelley." I don't know how many seconds or minutes have passed before I realized that I was left alone in the room. I blinked my eyes and took a long deep breath as I got up and pulled the flash drive off from Sophia's computer. He's right. I need to decide right now. I need to sort things out between us. I love her. Yes, I love her and I won't give up until I hear her say again that she loves me too.