?ALL THE WRONG REASONS?
?EPISODE THIRTY-THREE?
Adrienne kept herself busy by helping to organize her
mother’s victory p@rty, aka, ‘Adrienne’s Introduction to
Society’. She didn’t like that bit, but her mother thought she
deserved it. Her mother promised to do it subtly. No
speeches, special mentions or any form of
acknowledgement whatsoever.
Adrienne insisted on taking care of the venue, the
decorations, the catering and the program. Her mother’s
a-ssistant, Maryse took care of all the invitations and RSVPs.
Most of the people on the guest list were French and
Adrienne couldn’t speak French to save her life.
Adrienne actually enjoyed what she did. For days, she
was busy ensuring that every detail was in place, everything
would be sp-otless and perfect.
“I could actually make you Head of Banquet
Reservations and Events,” her stepfather said to her, finding
her in the ballroom, choosing different table linens.
“Papa.” She smiled at him. She was hesitant to call
him that. Pierre isn’t really her flesh and blood. But then
again, he’s her mother’s great love, and her brother’s
father. And he was great to her so far. So, every day, it got
easier for her. “I used to review a lot of restaurants and
event services in my previous job.”
“I can see you really know what you were talking
about.” He smiled.
“Thank you.”
“You know you always have a place in this company,
Adrienne,” her stepfather said. “When I married your
mother, Starck Corp. acquired more than a dozen of your mother’s family’s hotel chains. This business is yours as
much as it is Jin’s.”
She smiled at her stepfather, feeling how sincere he
was in showing his affection towards her. If only, her
stepmother was like this to her when she was growing up.
“Thank you, Papa. But I have no idea how this works.”
“I can s-end you to a few courses here or in the States
if you want. It would help you learn more about what we do,
if you decide you want to be a p@rt of this. Jin told me you
have an inclination for writing. Well, you can write on your
own time. You can do something here. It’s totally up to you.”
Adrienne found that thought really exciting. She really
had to start planning her life now. She hadn’t heard from
Justin and she knew…even if she didn’t want to think about
it, there was also the possibility that he wouldn’t come back
at all. What would she do if that happened? If finally, she
came across a newspaper announcement that he was
getting married? She had to be re-ady, too.
She wanted to start thinking about her future as well.
Paris would be a good start for her. She couldn’t be in New
York and not think about Justin. Going back to Boston to her
father wasn’t an option.
She hadn’t forgiven her father yet. He called her once
but she didn’t answer him. Her heart broke over that. But
she wanted to be honest with him, the way he’d been so
dishonest with her all her life. She wanted him to know how
painful it still was for her. By spending time with her mother,
she wanted to bring back all the years that were lost
between them.
“I think we should start by s-ending me to French
language cla-sses,” Adrienne admitted to Pierre.
Pierre smiled. “You’re right. Whenever you’re re-ady,
let me know.”
When she got home, Adrienne was surprised to see a
box on the be-d. The box said Versace. She opened it and
found a white co-cktail dress. It was beautiful and elegant.
And Adrienne loved how it wasn’t screaming for attention. A
matching silver Manolo Blahnik high-heeled open toe
sandals also came with the box.
She sighed. She wasn’t really used to this. She knew
her mother’s friends and colleagues would have high
expectations of her. She wanted to live up to those
expectations not for her own sake, but for her mother’s.
Jin called her that evening. He was still in Dubai and
would only return on the day of the p@rty.
“You have to be here. You have to do some escort
duties for me, plea-se.” She almost begged him. She really
felt that she nee-ded Jin to stay beside her, orient her on the
norms of the French crème of the crop.
“I shall try. But I think Mom wants you be escorted by
someb©dy else.”
“Justin the Neanderthal?” she asked.
Shit, no!
“This is just a warning. She seems so keen on ma-king
this guy her son-in-law. I haven’t spoken to her about it yet.
But this guy does come from a pretty powerful family. And
from what I heard, he’s the perfect package—whatever you
girls mean by that!”
“Have you met him?”
“Oh no, no. I am not in the business of socializing with
Mom’s friends unless they’re doing business with us.”
“Well, this guy feels like he’s the god of
awesomeness!” Adrienne said sarcastically. Apparently, Jin
has not yet spoken to his friends about N-1-9-8-9.
Jin laughed. “Don’t worry, Yen. If he makes a wrong
move, p@rty or no p@rty, my fist is going to connect with his
face.”
Adrienne sighed. “Just be here on that day, okay?”
“I sure will,” he said. “All right, got to go.”
“Jin…” Adrienne said softly. “Thank you…for
everything. It’s the first time I actually felt I have a sibling.”
Jin took a de-ep breath. “I’ve known I have a sibling all
my life. And you were taken away from us. Mom never really
told anyb©dy that we lost you. For years, she’s just been
telling people, including her best friends that your father got
custody of you and thus, you lived with him. But every day
her heart broke because you weren’t with us.”
“I wish I could have known that when I was growing up.
At least, I wouldn’t have felt like something was wrong with
me.”
“Mom, Dad and I are thinking of filing a case against your
Dad,” he said.
Adrienne felt a shot of panic. “Jin…is that really
necessary?”
“Mom is very furious. She just doesn’t show it to you.
She didn’t want you to worry too soon. You just came back
into our lives.” Jin took a de-ep breath. “She wanted to raise
you in Paris. She told your father that. He could visit you
anytime and you could even live with him during school
breaks. That was their agreement. She was furious that he
chose to have you all for himself and erased her from your
life.
“I get that. We celebr@ted your birthdays, even though
you weren’t with us. Every day, she feared that she would
come across the obituaries in the States with your name on
it. She found relief each day that she hadn’t.”
“I know, my Dad was wrong. What he did was
unforgiveable. But honestly, Jin. I also know that he did what
he did because he was afraid of losing me, too. And I don’t
want this to get bigger and messier than it alre-ady is.” She
sighed. “My father knows it’s difficult for me to forgive him.
His marriage to Marina is over. I haven’t been talking to him
or answering his text messages. Maybe he’s suffered
enough.”
Jin was silent for a few moments. Then he said, “Not
for me. Not for Mom. It would never be enough compared to the pain and ordeal he made us go throu-gh for twenty-three
years, Adrienne.”
“Let’s talk about this as a family. Don’t do anything
yet, okay? If Mom tells you to push it, you tell me first,
okay?”
Jin sighed. “Okay. Let’s wait until after the p@rty.”
“Good. Now go back to work.”
Adrienne started a group chat with Yuan and Jill. She
told them about the p@rty. She invited them to her coming-
out-to-society. She offered to pay for their flights, too.
Yuan: Sorry, Yen. I have a convention on the same day.
I won’t be able to come. But s-end me pictures, okay?
Adrienne: Okay. Will do. Oh my God, I’m dre-ading that
day! My Mom is setting me up with her friend’s son. And his
name is Justin, too. But he is the exact opposite of my
Justin!
Jill: Is he hot?
Adrienne: Maybe. Without his weird contact lenses,
and absurd taste in fashion, I guess he can be cute. He has
gray eyes and he’s a few inches shorter than Justin. Yeah, I
guess he’s not bad looking, but he is such an a-sshole! I
don’t know what my Mom was thinking!
Yuan: I guess setting up kids is quite common in rich
people’s circles, huh? Welcome to Justin Adams’s world,
sweetie! Now, at least you have more un-derstanding about
what he must feel. And you should be proud of yourself for
being unselfish enough to let him go because you didn’t
want to pla-y tug-of-war with his folks.”
Jill: By the way, I saw Justin in the office this morning,
Yen. You wanna hear about it?
Adrienne stared at her screen for a while. She didn’t
know what to type. Of course, she was dying to know what’s
going on with him. But what if she doesn’t like what she
finds out? She knew it would break her heart even more.
Before she knew it, she was typing: Shoot!
She waited anxiously for Jill’s reply. After what seemed
like an eternity, she heard a notification from her computer.
Jill: He gave notice to Jada that he will no longer be
working p@rt-time for blus-h. He said it was because of family
obligations and he said, he would be getting married soon
and would be settling down in Chicago. I’m not going to lie
to you, Yen. He didn’t look devastated. In fact, he was
looking…chirpy. I’m sorry.
Adrienne stared at the screen for a whole five
minutes. She re-ad what Jill wrote to her. Justin announced
that he was getting married and settling down in Chicago?
She looked at the calendar. Twenty days. She still had
twenty days. That’s what Justin said to her. Twenty days and
they’d fly to Italy.
But then… maybe he’s met his fiancée and maybe he
did give it a try. He made no more effort to contact her after
his last message to her. Maybe his fiancée didn’t turn out to
be so bad after all.
Well, she wanted him to do this. She should have been
re-ady for this ending. But then she realized, nothing could
prepare anyb©dy for the blinding pain the finality of a
relationship would cause. Maybe she was in denial the
whole time. Even if she did let him go, de-ep inside her
heart, she really did believe he could convince his parents to
set him free.
Tears rolled down her cheeks. She thought her heart
couldn’t be more broken than it alre-ady was.
She started typing: It’s okay, Jill. I wanted him to be
happy, remember? I will be fine.
Yuan: I’m sorry, Yen. We know someday, you will find
your real happiness, too. Maybe it’s not your time yet. You
have so many things to look forward to now. You had Justin
before, but you didn’t have the love of a family. And now
you do.
Jill: I guess something’s got to give sometimes. But
don’t worry. After your coming out to society thingy, I’m sure hundreds of eligible bachelors would be pining for your
hand. Hang on, okay?
Adrienne: I love you guys. Now, I have to go.
She didn’t really have to go. But she wanted some
time to herself. She went to be-d and hu-gged her pillows.
She closed her eyes and didn’t suppress the tears that
came.
In a way, she was asking herself why she let him go.
But then again, if she didn’t, and later he met his fiancée,
who may be his real destiny, then she would have to give
him up eventually.
So maybe…just maybe…it’s better this way.
***
Friday night the whole banquet in Starck Hotel Paris was
in full swing. Everything was perfect. The ballroom
glimmered in its full soiree decorations.
Adrienne stood on the mezzanine floor of the ballroom
and looked on as the guests came pouring in. Her mother
asked her not to come down and meet the guests just yet.
She said she wanted her to wait at the gazebo on the
second-floor garden and they will come and get her.
No announcements, huh!
But her heart had been so numb over the bad news
she heard about Justin that she couldn’t care about anything
else anymore.
Everyb©dy was wearing lavish clothes and Adrienne
couldn’t help feeling mortified as she looked at the people
below her. And an hour from now, they would all meet her…
put her un-der the microscope to see if she’s worthy to be
one of them.
Well, she knew she dressed the p@rt well at least. She
was wearing the white Versace gown that has a crossover-
keyhole ne-ckline and back with asymmetrical stra-ps. The
floor length Sk-irt flowed over her perfect curves, and the slit
on the thi-gh reveals a little glimpse of her long legs un-der the gown. Her hair was br@ided behind her and left little
tendrils around her face. Her makeup was nu-de over her
cheek and smoky on the area of her eyes, ma-king her look
like angelic and tough at the same time.
“You look lovely, my dear,” her mother said to her.
“Justin will not be able to take his eyes off you.”
Adrienne took a de-ep breath. “Mom…” she started. “I
hate him.” There! She finally said it. No nee-d to pretend
otherwise.
Her mother blinked back at her. “What? I thought you
two were hitting it off.”
She shook her head. “We didn’t get along from day
one, Mom. And besides, I told you I wasn’t looking for a
boyfriend. I was just looking to befriend your friends.”
“Sweetheart,” her mother began. “Okay…I know how
we can fix this.”
“Mom, there’s nothing to fix,” Adrienne argued.
Tears welled up in her mother’s eyes. “No, sweetheart.
You don’t un-derstand. I haven’t been completely honest
with you.” She took a de-ep breath. “Well…I wasn’t just
setting you up with Justin. I was hoping you would really fall
for him…enough to get… married one day.”
Adrienne’s eyes wi-dened. “What?”
Her mother sighed. “I know. It’s terrible. I couldn’t tell
you. I made that arrangement a long time ago. When you
were a baby and I just got back from Paris. My father…made
me promise to return you to this family and form a strong
bond with Christine’s family. She was my oldest friend. Our
families were always keen on becoming related to one
another someday. She had a boy. I had a girl.
“Our fathers were like brothers. Your grandfather
invested in Christine’s father’s business venture, which gave
them a lot of fortune. They were keen to merge this family
not just because of money…but also because of gratitude
and friendship. So, we sort of…arranged for you to marry
Christine’s son.” Her mother squee-zed her hands.
“Mom!” Adrienne couldn’t help the feelings that
overwhelmed her. “How could you have agreed to that
arrangement when all these years I was missing?”
“I know, sweetheart. It’s wrong. But all these years, I
never told anyb©dy outside of this family that you were
really missing… stolen by your father. We wanted to keep
this a secret because… we didn’t want anyb©dy to take
advantage of the situation or s-ensationalize it and drive
your father further into hiding.
“We silently searched for you. Even Christine didn’t
know. I always just told her that you were in the States with
your Dad. And I actually forgot about the arrangement until
Christine reminded me about it a couple of weeks back.
They said that Justin seemed to be re-ady to get into a
serious relationship. Maybe it’s time to introduce you to
each other.
“Christine lived in the States. I didn’t see her often. It
was easy to make an excuse to everyb©dy, including her,
why you were not with us. To be honest with you…I had
forgotten about the agreement. My focus had always been
about finding you. When Christine s-ent me a message,
reminding me about it…and to start introducing you and
Justin…I meant to tell her the truth. But Jin… Jin called me
and told me that he had a lead on you. So…I held it off for a
while.”
Adrienne couldn’t believe her ears. How could this
happen to her? She was a casualty of an arranged marriage
herself. Now she found herself a subject of one. And to a
hopeless a-ss-wipe!
“Mom, plea-se…I can’t even stand Christine’s son.” she
protested.
“Okay…I’m sorry. I know…there’s absolutely no reason
that would justify what I did. I promise you, I have no plans
of forcing it. Your grandfather for-ced me to Pierre, employed
all means to ensure I married him. But I didn’t regret it
because he was a lovely man. And I fell in love with him after a few dates. So, I was hoping after spending some time
with Justin, you two would hit it off and you won’t find this
terrible anymore. And if you really couldn’t stand it…I had
no intention of forcing it.”
“He’s terrible, Mom!” Adrienne argued. “Mama, my
ex-boyfriend is going to marry the girl who was arranged for
him. That’s why we broke up. Until now, I was still
heartbroken about it. I promised to wait for him as long as I
could. Or until I know for sure that he’s alre-ady accepted his
fate. plea-se do not do this to me. I beg you.” She was
almost teary when she said those words to her mother.
Her mother looked at her ruefully. She cu-pp-ed her
hands around her face. Then she nodded.
“Okay.” she said. “I love you. I will break the
arrangement with Christine. It will break her heart and she
may not talk to me in a few months, maybe years, but she
will get over it. My father is long gone, he couldn’t do
anything about it. He seemed so keen about planning the
future of this family. I messed up your life because of him.”
Her mother took a de-ep breath. “I’m so sorry,
Adrienne. I shouldn’t have left you with your father. I should
have been br@ve enough to face my father…instead of
leaving you to your Dad. I did this to you. And I will not mess
up your life even more by forcing you to marry some guy
you do not want. After all these years, the one thing that I
realized is that your happiness is more important to me than
anything else.” Her mother smiled at her apologetically. “I
realized this when I got you back. I know the pain I went
throu-gh when I lost you. And I am not going to lose you
again. So if you say you won’t marry Christine’s son, then so
be it.”
She smiled at her mother. “Thank you, Mom.”
“But maybe it’s too late to back out on ma-king Justin
your escort for tonight. But after this soiree, I swear to you,
you won’t have to see him again.”
Adrienne was still disappointed she had to spend
some time with N-1-9-8-9. But if it’s an a-ssurance that he
would disappear from her life forever, then one night won’t
be that bad.
“Okay, Mom, I guess I can live with that. Besides, Jin
can just rescue me anytime I feel the urge to vomit.”
Her mother smiled. “Okay, now go to the garden.
Justin will fetch you when it’s time.”
The second floor of the hotel led to a small garden.
There was a small gazebo and a wishing fountain in the
center. It was filled with lights and the trees had lighted
LEDs to look as if fireflies infested them. The garden was
indeed magical especially at nighttime.
She stood inside the gazebo and enjoyed the
spectacular view in front of her. In the sky, there was a
lovers’ moon and she couldn’t help the tears that peered in
her eyes.
She missed Justin. She felt like he was just right there.
Every single day. Every single hour. When she walked, she
felt like he was walking beside her. When she sle-pt at night,
she imagined being locked in his arms.
She wished that love was enough. She wished that life
was not complicated. She wished that the world wasn’t
crazy and her life didn’t come with complexities and
obstacles. She wished everything was just…easy.
She couldn’t believe what her mother just told her.
She couldn’t believe she agreed to marry her off to some
guy she didn’t know, and hadn’t met before.
And Justin the Neanderthal? The hairs on her arms
actually started to rise in disgust.
But she was thankful that she didn’t have to try so
ha-rd to convince her mother to let her go…unlike her Justin,
who was for-ced to embr@ce his own destiny. How she
wished that Justin’s fight had been easy, and that he had
succeeded in fighting for her.
She stared at the moon again, then she closed her
eyes and thought about Justin Adams…her Justin.
I wish you all the happiness in the world. I wish you all
the smiles, laughter and love that you deserve. I wish…that
finally… all your prayers will be answered…that the miracles
you hoped for would be given to you.
She wished those things with all her heart. It killed her
a little each day when she thought about not seeing him
again, not feeling the warmth of his skin against hers, not
hear him say he loved her…not see the wicked, mischievous
look on his face whenever he said his usual line to her…
words she wished she could hear him say again…if only for
the last time.
Tears rolled down her cheeks. She gently wiped them
with her fin-gers. Her escort would come soon and she didn’t
want to be caught crying. Not by him. Not by the
ins-ensitive, stupid je-rk who was probably heaven’s curse to
all women.
Suddenly, she felt like she was no longer alone. She
felt that someb©dy was standing behind her. And she
realized in horror that Justin the Neanderthal had alre-ady
come for her, finding her in a pri-vate moment, seeing the
tears she didn’t want to show anyb©dy else.
She realized, too, that he stood close to her… too
close he was almost tou-ching her.
But before Adrienne could turn around to face him,
she felt his breath against her ear. And then in a soothing
voice, he whispered, “You’re a fox.”
Tbc