Chapter Twelve

LIAM "Mom, you still haven't told me what you're doing here and why you're sitting so quietly," I said to my mom, who suddenly walked in here about ten minutes ago and still hasn't said a word. "This is my company Liam and I can walk into wherever I like, whenever I like," she retorted and I couldn't help but stare back at disdainfully. "Agreed mom, it's your company and there's no doubt about that but just a reminder this is my office and you can't just barge in here and not tell me exactly what brings you here in the first place," I snapped back at her, not exactly in the mood to deal with her tantrums today. "Let me ask you something Liam, do you really love me as your mother? Do you genuinely care about me like you claim? Do you actually trust in my decisions?" she asked suddenly and I immediately grunt. What in the world is she going on about now?" "Why in the world is this even a topic of discussion mom? What is going on with you now?" I hissed tiredly, wondering why I have to deal with this on such a busy day. "Just answer the question Liam!" she replied snappily and I'm honestly shocked. "Mom, what has gotten into you? What the fuck is your problem now? You want an answer, okay fine! Yes, I love you mom but unfortunately, I don't trust any decision of yours cause you are irrational and it's irritating. If that's all you needed to hear, you can leave now. We have a fashion show in two weeks and I don't have time for this," I snapped back at her harshly and she gasped dramatically. "How could you say such things to me Liam? I'm your mother for goodness sake. I've always been there for you and you know that I raised you all of my love. Is this really how you repay me?" she asked and I mentally rolled my eyes. "Okay mom, forget what I said earlier. What exactly brings you here?" I asked, feeling very uninterested in falling for her emotional blackmail. "I did something you may not like but I want you to know I did it for our sake and you have to understand me." She tells me and I frown. "Oh my goodness mom, what did you do now? Which one of your messes am I about to clean up?" I asked and she sighed shakily. "It's not that bad so don't look at me like that," she hissed and I frowned. "Just spill it mom," I replied impatiently. "Okay fine! I invited Garrison and Hannah for dinner at our place and it's happening tonight," she said and I scowled at her immediately. "You're messing with me, aren't you mom?" I asked, hoping she would just laugh it off and tell me it was nothing but an absurd joke. "Unfortunately, it's not a joke son and I know, I know, it's not exactly the wisest decision on my part but it's the only thing I could think of when he asked whether or not you agreed to marry Hannah. I couldn't bring myself to tell him that my son was willing to ruin the company that I worked so hard to build for the sake of some criminal," she replied and furious would definitely be an understatement to describe just how upset I was right now. "Are you fucking with me mom? What the fuck is your problem? How dare you invite that useless piece of shit into our home? How could you do that?" I yelled furiously at her and she seemed to be surprised that I actually raised my voice at her. "Don't shout at me young man!" she hissed and I scoffed. "I shouldn't shout at you? Really mom? First, you agreed that I married Hannah, the same crazy girl that traumatised your own daughter by almost choking her to death and trying to convince her to kill herself and with what excuse, 'it's for the family.' Now, you're even going as far as inviting her to our family home with her horrible father who did nothing but make life a living hell for our dad, your husband! To what length is your inability to reason mom? How can you be this inconsiderate and selfish? What is wrong with you mother?" I asked tiredly, feeling irritated by the fact that my mom really had no good bone left in her. "You know what son, I can't have this conversation with you cause I'm starting to think that you'll never understand where I'm coming from. The only thing I'm gonna tell you is that you are to come home for dinner tonight and you better not think of ignoring me cause boy, If you try me, I'll show you just how inconsiderate and selfish I can be. Do you understand? Have a good day," she replies and immediately gets up to leave. I stare into space in complete disbelief. I never imagined that mom would actually threaten me to do something that she shouldn't have ever even thought of. It's the fucking audacity for me! Sighing, I pushed the thought of her nonsense display out of my mind and decided to focus on what was more important here, which is my work. If she thinks I'll play along to this nonsense she had planned, then she must really not know her own son well enough. ***** Gabriella. I took in a deep breath as I sat patiently in the restaurant, waiting for Mrs Helton to show up. I still felt very weird and sceptical about meeting with her but since I didn't want to seem rude and disrespectful, I decided to meet up with her knowing fully well that I may or may not get bullied and insulted. Of course, she had specifically mentioned that I kept this a secret from Liam and although I didn't want to, I decided to keep it to myself anyways cause I'd hate to be the reason behind any argument between them even though, I know I'm already a reason for whatever rift they're having at the moment. "Gabriella?" an unfamiliar voice calls out my name and when I turn to see who it was, saying I'm surprised to see her would definitely be an understatement. "Layla?" I asked, not masking my surprise. "The one and only dear," she replied and I mentally rolled my eyes at her. Still the same old Layla, I see. "Anyways, how have you been? How're you holding up with everything?" she asked and I furrowed my brows in confusion, wondering why she sounded so worried. Last I remember, we were never friends. "I've been well I guess. How's everything with you?" I replied. "Everything with me has been amazing as always. It's quite unfortunate though, I have a meeting to attend right now so I can't stay for too long to chat but before I go, I really want to tell you that I hope you're proven innocent if you really are innocent and I sincerely hope you're not put in complete ruin over the entire situation. At the end of the day, I wouldn't want your hot mess causing me problems so I hope all ends well," she said and I immediately frowned. Truth is, I was already expecting the bitch in her to show herself at some point. "Excuse me? How exactly does my situation affect you in any way?" I asked, not hiding my irritation. "Really? You don't know how you affect me? Sweetie, I'm Layla Ouellette, a super model who also happens to be strongly associated with AT fashion. If you get proven guilty, the company would be affected greatly and my name would unfortunately be dragged as well. So if you think your situation is only bothering you, well, you are so fucking wrong cause you are one step away from ruining quite a number of lives," she replied and if her aim was to bother me, she succeeded. "I guess I have to apologise for putting you and your brand in such an uncomfortable position but you don't have to worry about anything because I will be proven innocent and I will not be ruining anyone's life," I replied to her calmly and she smirks. "For your sake, I hope so cause if it happens otherwise, I'm sorry to tell you but there will be no coming out of that. You will be ruined for life. Anyways, it was nice chatting with you briefly, I hope all goes well for you and have a nice day, I guess," she said and with that, she immediately turned her back to leave and I glared daggers at the back of her head for messing up my mood. If that was really her objective, she got me cause I was not only furious, I was also scared and discouraged. She did have a point about the entire situation. If I unfortunately lose this case, Liam's company would be in a hot mess and this may affect their sales and unfortunately affect the employees as well and I wouldn't want to cause Liam any trouble. "Good to see you're punctual," a voice said from behind me and I didn't need anyone to tell me who it was. Anita Helton herself has arrived. "Good afternoon to you too Mrs Helton," I greeted calmly as I got up from where I was seated and gave her a slight bow out of respect for her. "I would say the same but it is not a good afternoon and I don't have time for pretence. Have a seat," she said and I let out a soft sigh, knowing very well that this meeting would not be a pleasant one and trying as much as I could to summon the courage to actually deal with it. "So miss Johansson, since I'm not one to waste my time, I'll get straight to the reason I had to call you out but before I do, I have to ask you this and you'll have to excuse my brashness dear but have you no shame?" she asks all of a sudden and although I was expecting to be attacked verbally, I didn't think she'd go off so soon. "I'm sorry Mrs Helton but I have no idea what you mean by that and how you expect me to reply to such a question," I replied, still keeping my cool. "You don't? Really? Well then child, how do you explain sticking to a man of importance knowing very well that your attachment to him could ruin his entire life? Doesn't that make you shameless, dear?" she said and my stomach churned in discomfort. Sighing, "I apologise Mrs Helton but I don't think getting support from my man is anything to be ashamed of," I told her and she scoffed. "Your man?" she dragged and scoffs. "It's your audacity for me young lady. How can you be so selfish and unreasonable? Do you really want to see my son in complete ruins before you finally realise that you're nothing but bad luck in his life? Think about it child, what good has ever come out of your relationship with him? What exactly have you done for him asides drag him into your mess and make him into a person that supports a murderer? Of what use have you been to him since you got together?" "Listen to me child, I am trying so hard not to say the most hateful words to you cause I actually pity you but if you keep hindering my son and putting my life's work in a mess, I will no longer be this pleasant with you. Be warned," she said and just when she's about to get up and leave, I stop her. "Mrs Helton, if Liam considers me as a burden, I'll leave him like you wish but as long as he doesn't think of me as one, not you or anyone else has any right to dictate to me what I should and shouldn't do." I say to her boldly and she breaks into a short laugh before replying. "You kids nowadays can't even differentiate between love and pity and it's actually so sad to witness. Liam may have liked you but the only reason he's sticking by your side is because I raised him to be a gentleman and he is a kind man. Don't delude yourself by thinking you're in any way special because you, my dear, are nothing but a pity case to my son so if you have any shame left in you, let him go and don't ruin him. Excuse me," with that said, she makes her way out of the restaurant and I stay still, unable to fathom any reasonable words. It really hurts my feelings that everyone thinks I'm nothing but a liability to Liam and as much as I try not to think they're right, I can't help but sometimes believe they're not wrong either. I know I'm innocent but can I really win this? Can I really prove people wrong and most importantly, can I really save my relationship with Liam and save my best friend?